Brendon Cass will fire us towards Kent League title, says Porter

Tuesday 22nd June 2010

HYTHE TOWN boss Scott Porter he pulled off the biggest transfer coup for a Kent League club this summer by enticing striker Brendon Cass to drop down two league’s to sign from Folkestone Invicta, writes Stephen McCartney.

Long-serving Folkestone Invicta boss Neil Cugley guided his club into the Ryman Premier League via two play-off wins over Leatherhead and Godalming Town at the end of last season, but that hasn’t stopped his prize asset shaking hands with Porter tonight.

Cugley, who has lost influential midfielder Jimmy Jackson through retirement, saw striker Peter Williams sign for their Ryman League Division One South neighbours Ashford Town, but supporters cannot be too happy to see Cass sign for their Kent League neighbours.

But Cass’s arrival, coupled with the capture of Faversham Town’s leading goalscorer, central defender, Lee Shearer, signals Porter’s intent as the Reachfields Stadium club bid to clinch the Kent League title next April.

Cass, who has banged in plenty of goals for the likes of Gillingham, Tonbridge Angels, Chatham Town, Dartford (where he created history by scoring the first ever goal at Princes Park Stadium in November 2006), scored 11 goals for Chatham last season, before moving to Folkestone Invicta last March, where he scored seven goals as to help Folkestone Invicta clinch promotion.

Porter, who contacted www.kentishfootball.co.uk to unveil the transfer coup, is pleased to have enticed Cass to Reachfields Stadium.

“We’ve been looking for a striker since the season finished really because that’s the missing link,” he said.

“We obviously needed a centre half, which we got in Lee Shearer, and then we needed a striker. I had my eyes on three or four but you can only wait for so long for people’s signature and then I came across Brendon and spoke to him before the weekend and he was quick to make a decision tonight.”

“How we look at it, if he shakes my hand he’s here for the season and that’s how we put it across to each other and he’s very happy to be here.

“Like I said to him, I said we need someone like himself to get us out of this league and hopefully he’s only going to be one season in the Kent League.

“We’re pushing on to win the league and push on to Ryman South next year.

“He’s a good lad, he’s up for the challenge and we’re all excited about it down at Hythe.”

Porter added: “I’ve just told him, I want his goals to get us out of this league and I’m sure he will get many goals.

“I’m not going to put any pressure on his shoulders. We know where we want to go and he knows where we’ve got to be.

Porter is pleased with the way his squad is shaping up ahead of the new Kent League season, which kicks off on 7 August.

“Obviously the first season I took over we made a number of changes with people leaving and people coming in and it was all unsettled,” Porter explained.

“This year, one person’s left and we’ve kept the whole squad. We’ve made two signings in two areas where we needed to build on and that’s the way forward, the way we’re going.

“If you keep changing the squad year-in-year-out, you’re not going to get any success so this year is definitely a big year for Hythe.”

Porter revealed that former Ashford Town midfielder Gary Clarke “is going to do pre-season at Ramsgate and Chipstead,” - two sides that play in Ryman League Division One South.

Porter admitted that he learnt “a number of things” during his first campaign as a rookie manager, despite a number of years playing Kent League football and assisting former boss, Paul Fisk.

Finishing in third place in the Kent League table - a massive 21 points behind promoted champions Faversham Town, can be classed as a disappointment.

Porter said: “I’m only a young manager, but I know a lot about the Kent League as I’ve been in it for a number of years playing and assisting Fisky.

“We’ve put the points across that we need to improve on and I speak to Clive Cook (my assistant manager) every day trying to solve it and we’ve brought in Nicky Dent as coach and with his experience and how he used to play footballer and hopefully that can rub off on our lads.

“We will pick out the minuses but we’ve got a lot of plusses from last season and hopefully we can put that into this (coming) season.”

Hythe Town report back to pre-season training on Thursday, 1 July.

Porter said: “I’m speaking to one more at the end off the week - an attacking midfield player - and if I get him I don’t have to look anywhere else.”

“There should be about 18-19 (in my squad) but there will probably be a number of players at pre-season so we will be looking at 25, maybe 30, with people like trialists and other people who have said will come down, which is fine, as everybody will get a chance.

“With the players that we’ve got from last season everyone’s going to come down, apart from one. That’s a massive plus.”

Visit Hythe Town’s website: www.hythetownfc.co.uk