Keith Long is calling on the Waterford public to get behind his team as they return to the SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division this season.
The club clinched their place in the top flight in front of a national TV audience last November when they defeated Cork City 2-1 after extra time in the promotion/relegation play-off.
Encouraged by a raucous support on the night, Long feels the occasion showcased to the nation just how big a football club Waterford is.
"It feels like a long time ago," the Blues manager told RTÉ Sport at the 2024 League of Ireland launch this week.
"We deserved to win the game. It gave you a flavour of the size of the football club with the travelling support that we had. The appetite for League of Ireland football in the county has never been better."
Waterford fans of a certain generation may beg to differ, as many will have watched the club win six league titles in the space eight years across the late-1960s and early-1970s.
Returning to the top flight following a two-year absence, Dubliner Long is inviting fans of all codes to come along for the ride.
"There's a huge history and tradition in Waterford," says the ex-Bohemians manager.
"Our job is to capture the imagination of the Waterford sporting public. It's traditionally a hurling and GAA county, but why can't they come and watch their football team play as well? I don't think you're betraying any sporting code by watching football on a Friday night and your hurling team on a Sunday afternoon.
"We'll be appealing to the sporting public in Waterford to get behind the side but it's our obligation to put a team on the park that represents the club well. Season tickets are at an all-time high, our first game at home to Shels was sold out.
"It will be a different dynamic in the RSC this year, with larger groups travelling away supporters which will create a better atmosphere for games. What's not to look forward to?"
As a promoted club, Waterford will be seen as one of the relegation favourites this year and Long is under no illusions about the size of the task facing him and his team.
"We know the challenge and the gulf between where we were last year and where we are this year is huge," he says.
"It's a challenge that we're really looking forward to. The club is geared for Premier Division football so our job is to provide that and remain stable in the Premier Division.
"There's no doubt that this year is going to be a hugely competitive league, 10 teams, some with greater resources than others, predominantly a full-time league now which is good to see. So we have to provide a team that is disciplined, organised and competitive.
"We're very much the underdog. Traditionally the promotion/relegation team that comes up tends to struggle."
While things went well on the pitch last season, there was a cloud over the club in July, as owner Andrew Pilley was sentenced to 13 years in prison for charges related to fraud.
Pilley resigned as chairman of both Waterford and English League One side Fleetwood Town, with his son Jamie now acting as director at both clubs.
Despite the background issues, Long's task remains the same and that's ensuring that Waterford achieve results on the pitch.
During his eight years in charge of Bohemians Long played his part in creating a club identity that attracted larger crowds to Dalymount Park, and that is something he sees himself repeating on the south coast.
"I look at the crowd and how valuable and important they are on any journey," he says. "It will hugely important that we take them with us on the journey and when they see us play, they can identify with it. "That's really important.
"It's something that I've always been a big advocate for, to make sure that we have a vibrant football club across all areas because if you can do that, you're creating a football club and not just a first team."
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