WAYNE Thorne is poised to commit himself to Chippenham Town next season just days after his older brother Gary signed for the club.

Left back Wayne, 24, has been the subject of much transfer speculation in recent weeks with Bath City, Weston-super-Mare and Newport all thought to be in the frame.

But after negotiations with the Newport and Chippenham, Thorne was finally set to sign for the Bluebirds last night after tying up a few loose ends with manager Steve White.

He said: "I've spoken to Newport for the last week and I've spoken to Steve White, I know where I'm going and where I want to sign.

"I've weighed things up over the last few months and there's only one place I want to stay. I've had lots of text messages from the lads asking me what I was doing and hopefully by the weekend things will be sorted

"We've got to make sure we get back up where we belong."

Wayne admitted Gary's signing this week had played a small part in his own decision and believes Chippenham have made an astute choice. Gary, 29, has played over 300 Southern League games for Bath City, Gloucester and Newport and was at Merthyr Tydfil last season.

Wayne said: "Being a local lad Gary was an obvious choice. With Colin Towler leaving we needed a good centre-half and Gary is one of the best in the league so it's an excellent signing.

"I speak to him every day and we played together for Gloucester six years ago. We go out together all the time so we know each other very well."

Manager Steve White hopes Gary Thorne will be the first of a series of new signings.

He said: "He is one of those players I have seen quite a lot of in non-league football and I believe he can do a good job for us. He is not over tall at about 5ft 10in but he has a lot of spring and a big presence."

Gary Thorne and his new Chippenham team-mates will face Premier League hopefuls Cardiff City as part of their pre-season programme on July 18. Although the Welsh Bluebirds are unlikely to field international stars such as Robert Earnshaw and Danny Gabbidon, their line up should still include some first team players.

White, who used his links with Cardiff City and manager Lennie Lawrence to secure the fixture, expects it to be a good test for his men.

Cardiff City fans are known for their hooligan element, but Chippenham secretary Chris Blake does not expect any incidents at Hardenhuish Park.

He said: "Their fans do have a reputation for violence, but this is only a pre-season friendly. Clearly the Cardiff City team is not a full first team and it is their first friendly.

"We are certainly talking to the police as we have to do for every one of our home games. We are hoping we won't have any problems and that there will be a family atmosphere."