NEW Altrincham manager Phil Parkinson prides himself on thoroughness, but it is doubtful even he will have put as much preparation time into Saturday's opening pre-season friendly as lifelong fan Mark Buckton.

Former Altrincham Grammar School pupil Mark has spent 17 hours in the air, travelling 14,000km from the Taiwan capital Taipei to Heathrow via Kuala Lumpur, to ensure he can take his place at Yockings Park for the 3pm kick off against Whitchurch Alport.

For good measure, the 46-year-old, accompanied by his wife Ching Yeh, is marking his first visit home in nine years by sponsoring the game.

"I'm quite impulsive, so when my wife asked whether I'd like to see England again, back in January, I said yes, and we booked the flights there and then," he said.

"We're due at my sister's on Thursday, so the Whitchurch game is ideal, before we head up to Scotland for some sightseeing.

"I just thought it would be a nice touch to sponsor the game. I'm no millionaire. It's not exactly Lord Sugar.

"It's just a 50 quid thing, but I get to meet the captains and have my picture taken with them, so I'm looking forward to that.

"I mean, even if we lose, I'll have it in my head that I've sponsored an Alty game, so it will be worth every penny.

"I've always supported Alty, and I even sold programmes at the ground for a couple of years.

"There are great memories from those days, watching players like Gary Anderson and Graham Bennett and, before them, John Davison, and going to Wembley for the FA Trophy win against Runcorn.

"But I left England in 1996, after joining the RAF, and after one year in Australia and 20 in Japan, I've lived in Taiwan the past 12 months, working as a sports writer, covering the national team for the Asian media.

"Now I've finally made it back, for two weeks at least, and I'm hoping to catch up with some old school mates after the game on Saturday night – I can't wait for that."