JOE Jacobson says he will always be proud of Accrington Stanley’s achievements last season as he prepares to face his old side tonight along with new Shrewsbury team-mate Terry Gornell.

Jacobson and Gornell were both part of the Stanley side that surprised many by reaching the League Two play-offs last term.

The left back opted to join Shrewsbury on a free transfer in the summer after his Stanley contract expired, while Gornell similarly decided against signing a new deal at the Crown Ground – although the Reds did receive an undisclosed, if not entirely satisfactory, fee for the striker because he was under the age of 24.

Six of the Stanley team that featured in the play-offs have since left, with the Reds struggling to emulate those achievements so far this season, but Jacobson insists he will always regard the club’s late surge into the play-off places as a special time in his career.

“It was the club’s highest finish for a long time so I think we were all proud of that, I certainly was,” said Jacobson, who is expected to start at left back in tonight’s fixture at the New Meadow.

“If we had got promoted it would have been one of the biggest achievements in football but unfortunately we just missed out.

“I had a very similar run at Bristol Rovers when we managed to get promoted and we also had a run to the quarter finals of the FA Cup, but last season was up there.

“I don’t think we overachieved as players, because we had some very good players. Perhaps as a club, the budget was down there so perhaps we overachieved a little, but that’s credit to the manager.

“I’m sure all of us who have left are so thankful for the opportunity we were given. I had a fantastic time there and the fans were great.

“There were times when we weren’t getting paid but the staff were great with us and it was so enjoyable to be part of the squad.

“They have maybe had quite a similar start to last season, they’ve had a few too many draws but we were in the same position and made the play-offs so hopefully they can do the same again.”

Jacobson was sent off in his last game for Stanley – their play-off second leg loss to Stevenage – and had to battle to win his place at Shrewsbury after being banned for the first three games of the season.

But both he and Gornell, who also had to fight for a spot in the team at the start of the campaign, have recently been regular in a side who currently stand sixth in the table.

Jacobson also played in the Shrews’ Carling Cup third round tie at Arsenal, although Gornell missed out through suspension.

“It was tough, I was up against Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, but it was a fantastic experience,” he said. “We took the lead early on and there were 4,000 or 5,000 of our fans there and 45,000 in the stadium in total. It’s one of those games you’ll always remember.”

Jimmy Ryan was left on the sidelines after being on the wrong end of a challenge from Dean Winnard when he faced Stanley with Scunthorpe earlier in the season, but Jacobson expects only friendly exchanges tonight.

“I did hear about that,” Jacobson said of the tackle on Ryan.

“But I’m just going to treat it as a normal game and then after the game we’ll have a chat and a bit of a laugh. I spoke to Dean Winnard and Kevin Long on Sunday and we had a bit of banter about the game.

“Obviously when the fixtures came out Accrington was the one I was looking for, more the away game but the home game too.

“We have won six in a row at home so we feel confident at home, just like we were at Accrington last season.”