Gosport Borough have laid down the gauntlet to Wessex League leaders Winchester City by signing arguably the best goalkeeper in local non-League football.

Borough boss Mick Marsh was last night due to complete the transfer of Colin Matthews from Ryman Premier outfit Eastleigh.

Landing the highly-rated former Bognor and Newport IoW keeper is quite a coup for the Privett Park outfit, who have beaten several higher league clubs to his signature.

Marsh said: "Colin's had a few bigger clubs on the phone to him not too happy, but like I keep telling people, we're as ambitious as anyone.

"He's obviously a very good keeper or else he wouldn't have had clubs like Crawley and Havant sniffing round him."

Marsh's admiration for 33-year-old Matthews is no flash in the pan.

It was the Gosport boss who first introduced him to non-league football back in his days managing Paulsgrove in the Hampshire League.

He recalled: "Colin was playing Junior 2 football on Saturdays for a local Pompey side at the time and it took me seven months to persuade him to join us because he didn't think he was good enough for the Hampshire League.

"When I left Paulsgrove to go to Gosport Reserves, Colin left to go to Bognor Regis - and the rest, as they say, is history."

Although Matthews had more than a season to run on his Eastleigh contract after being signed for £10,000 from Newport IoW three summers ago, there will be no fee involved.

Marsh, who runs a tarmacking company, said: "I did a hell of a lot of work for Eastleigh when they did their ground up during the summer and they haven't mentioned a fee."

Eastleigh, away to Christchurch in the Russell Cotes Cup tonight, have also allowed striker Stewart Beck to join Gosport until the end of the season.

Eastleigh will retain his Ryman registration and he will return to the Sparshatts Stadium next summer.