Today’s visitors are one of my former clubs, where I spent one successful season, winning the Kent Premier League. They are a club that I found very friendly and there were a lot of very committed people behind the scenes doing all they could to try to secure promotion that season, which unfortunately did not materialise. In recent seasons the club has languished at the wrong end of the table and this season seems to be the same story. Last week saw them grab their first league win of the season and they will be desperate to build on that today. I hope that all connected to the club enjoy their brief spell in the London Borough of Lewisham and a safe journey back home.

Last week saw our team fail to build on a positive result from the previous week and so we equally will be looking to secure a precious three points. I want my team to really go for the kill today and have a real go at being more direct and thus having more of an end product than in recent weeks.

Today’s fixture brings our club back to the reality of a match at home, where our performances have been far from acceptable. Our players need to learn that they cannot expect to play free-flowing football on every surface, with our home pitch being a less than welcoming playing surface. It is down to our players, as a team, to adjust the way that they approach each game and begin to realise that we are a Kent League team, not a professional Premier League team. By this I mean that sometimes our way of playing should reflect the standard that we are playing in and the playing environment. Other teams have come here and not played attractive football, but have left with all three points! We have tried to play pretty football, but been undone by a set piece or a long-ball. For us to continue to climb the table and apply some pressure on the sides near the top, we need to learn our lessons, play as a team and work hard for each other.

I want our boys to know that we still have over half of the season to play for and there are a lot of points up for grabs. So I am laying down the challenge to our players, how much do we want to achieve and how far up the table can we climb? I for one am a winner and I hope that this continues to rub off on all of the people around me!!