Avenue boss Carl Shutt will come face to face with his former employers Kettering Town for the first time since he was ousted by the Midlands club in a cost-cutting measure and he is looking forward to Monday's meeting.

He says he has unfinished business with Kettering but is not looking for a cheap shot at the directors, a chance to lord it over the team or even on a mission to prove to the supporters what they are missing.

"I'm looking forward to it because I was bounced out of there so quickly that I never got the chance to say farewell to everyone," said Shutt.

"Monday will be the first time I've had chance to meet up with them since I left - the first time I have had the opportunity to say thanks to the supporters of that club for all they did in trying to get me reinstated.

"In the last four or five games of that season they mounted a campaign, holding placards up outside the ground, chanting my name from the terraces, contacting the local media and radio stations.

"I was very disappointed to lose that job because of the dire financial straits the club were in and the reaction of the people I had tried to serve well helped me through it at the time."

The swell of public opinion showed just how highly regarded Shutt is as a manager and how much he had done for Kettering in his tenure.

His popularity did not wane, and when Avenue appointed him to take over from Trevor Storton the first goodwill messages e-mailed through to Avenue were from people at Kettering.

"I enjoyed my time with them and I thought I was doing a good job, obviously lots of other people did. I have had cards, letters, phone calls and e-mails - all from people down there wishing me well since I started here at Avenue. I even had a four-leaf clover sent to me. It's nice to know I was appreciated.

"I have heard that Kettering will be bringing two or three coachloads of fans with them and I would like to see them all for a chat after the game. It will be good to catch up with some of them.

"But I'm Avenue now and I hope it will be a good game, a good advert for non-league soccer, as long as we get the three points from it."