So a final post to indicate the fix I achieved.
Discovered the McLeod pressure plate was rated at something like 1700kg clamp pressure
compared to 1100 kg for a standard AU variant.
So I've simply swapped over the pressure plate and now have a moderate pressure clutch pedal which I am more than happy to drive and use now.
I had thought of one way to nicely raise the master if I wanted to do this but wanted the core equipment to be my starting fix.
Thanks all for the suggestions and now I can move forward onto other jobs and keep this begga moving forward towards its own motive action.
Cheers
Steve