By Pete Oliver

Some boys don't like to play lower down the divisions but that doesn't bother me Stafford assistant manager David Oldfield

David Oldfield has seized the opportunity to roll back the years after dusting off his boots to prolong his playing career at Stafford Rangers.

Fortifying the midfield of the part-time Blue Square Premier club is a far cry from Oldfield's days with Manchester City, Leicester City and Luton Town.

But the 39-year-old needed little persuasion to combine his role as assistant manager to Phil Robinson with leading by example on the pitch.

"He was chomping at the bit to play. It's nice to have that experience to call on and he's done very well," said Robinson.

Oldfield made a handful of appearances last season in his first year at Marston Road and then recently returned to the fray to help Stafford get over a poor start to the season.

After a couple of outings from the bench, Oldfield's first start coincided with Stafford's opening win of the campaign at the 11th attempt.

"We've got a small squad so when there are injuries and suspensions we all have to pull together," Oldfield told BBC Sport.

"Fortunately I have not really suffered any nasty injuries so I have kept ticking over.

"Some boys don't like to play lower down (the divisions) but that doesn't bother me. I just feel fortunate to play."

He added: "I think I will be there or thereabouts, rather than a regular now.

"But I still feel I can offer a little bit. If Phil feels I can still run around and cover the ground, hopefully I can be useful as a squad member.

"And I think one of the things I can be helpful with is as a talker on the pitch, because we are quite a quiet bunch."

Football is a strange game and the lads at the top are very similar to the lads at the bottom David Oldfield

At close to 40, Oldfield is not the oldest member of Stafford's side, with veteran striker Neil Grayson still popping in the goals at almost 43.

And Robinson himself is also threatening a comeback to bolster the numbers of his slender squad at the age of 40.

"I'm having to get some sort of fitness. If I can extend the squad a little bit I might have to do that," said Robinson, a former Wolves, Huddersfield and Notts County midfielder, who also played alongside Oldfield at Stoke City.

From Stoke, Australia-born Oldfield moved to Peterborough and then Oxford, where his playing career spent a two-year stint in hibernation.

"When I was at Oxford under Ian Atkins I had to make a decision to start on the coaching side or keep playing," he said.

"I did not want to miss the opportunity to get some experience on the coaching side. I thought I could carry on playing but the (coaching) opportunity was there.

"It was the right thing to do, but I did miss out on a little bit more playing time."

At Stafford, Oldfield is again getting the best of both worlds as he furthers his coaching education and extends his playing career that memorably included two goals as a City striker in their famous 5-1 Manchester derby triumph of 1989.

"I've seen the full spectrum of it," he added.

"But football is a strange game and the lads at the top are very similar to the lads at the bottom.

"They are different in terms of ability but the attitude through football is that you usually get a good set of lads wherever you go and the banter and the things the boys talk about are similar from the top to lower down.

"This is good experience, working with the part-time boys, finding different ways of motivating them and trying to find ways of getting the best out of them when they have been doing other things and coming to us after a day's work.

Stafford striker Neil Grayson is even older than Oldfield himself

"It's a different set of problems from what I've been used and it's a learning curve for me."

It is also a learning process for Stafford, as they look to survive in their second season back in the top flight of non-league football.

Last season they finished outside the bottom four by a single place and it could be just as difficult this time.

But with Robinson and Oldfield continually working to improve their current players and further develop their squad, their aim is top a mini-league that looks likely to develop at the bottom end of the table.

"The Conference strengthened over the summer. The full-time teams got bigger squads and there is a noticeable gap between the full and part-time teams," added Robinson.

"It makes it very difficult for a part-time team to compete.

"But I am optimistic about the rest of the season and excited about the players we need to be able to bring in.