We also have the same aspirations as every other club in the division at this stage of the season, to win promotion, says Corinthian boss Michael Golding

CORINTHIAN manager Michael Golding says he wants to win promotion to the Bostik League and replicate the likes of Corinthian-Casuals and Romford who operate without a playing budget.

Corinthian completed their Southern Counties East Football League Premier Division campaign in ninth-place and they host Chatham Town at Gay Dawn Farm this afternoon.

James Collins returns to Corinthian and brings his Chatham Town side with the players that should be challenging for the league title this season, having suffered a miserable campaign by finishing in the bottom five.

Golding said: “The opening fixture could not be any harder. We’re at home to the league favourites, but what a fixture to start with!

“The boys have naturally worked hard over pre-season and enjoyed positive results with improving performances levels.

“James has built up a strong squad of experienced players at Chatham, so it will be a great test for my squad to see where we are at this early stage of the season.”

Corinthian then travel to Tunbridge Wells on Tuesday night for their second outing of the new season and Golding expects more from Jason Bourne’s men, having endured a tough couple of past campaigns.

“We follow that up with a trip to one of the biggest clubs in the division Tuesday night and I am expecting a tough game against a much-improved Tunbridge Wells side,” said Golding.

“They finished the season well and seem to have added well over the break, so again will be another good test for the team in front of what will hopefully be a large crowd who are always in good voice when we travel there.

“We have added six new players to the squad, carefully targeting players who will bring both experience and energy to the team and hopefully we have achieved that.

“We also managed to retain the majority of last years squad, so have a solid foundation to build on from last season.

“The aims for the season are simple, we want to improve on last year. We were in and around the top five for large parts of the season, without troubling the top four, before falling away at the end of the season with a poor run.

“We exited the cup competitions in the first round last year as well, so that is something we also need to improve on this season and I truly believe a cup run can do wonders for the league campaign as it keeps the players buzzing around the training ground.

“We also have the same aspirations as every other club in the division at this stage of the season, to win promotion!

“I would be lying if I said that’s not what I want to achieve and we need to go into every game with the mindset that we are as good as the opposition regardless of; size of club, reputations of players they have or wage budget.

“I have looked closely at clubs like Corinthian-Casuals and Romford who ply their trade in the divisions above and operate without a budget and we want to try and emulate their achievements.

“I am fully aware this will be very difficult as there are some big teams in the league, spending a lot of money, who will be challenging for the title and I also feel that Canterbury City and Erith Town will be dark horses and finish much higher up the table this season - but we are not just here to make up the numbers and will give it our best shot of causing a few upsets along the way and see what we can come up with!”

Corinthian  v  Chatham Town
Southern Counties East Football League Premier Division
Saturday 4 August 2018
Kick Off 3:00pm
at Gay Dawn Farm, Valley Road, Longfield, Kent DA3 8LY