Can I say it's really tough with no budget, says Fisher boss Dean Harrison

FISHER manager Dean Harrison says this season will be a massive one for the club.

The Fish have played two games in the Southern Counties East Football League so far, losing 4-1 at Deal Town before stunning Cray Valley with a 2-0 win at Champion Hill on Monday night.

Fisher welcome league rivals Corinthian in The FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round on Saturday afternoon with £1,500 up for grabs for the winner.

Harrison said: “Obviously I want to win. We’ll see. Corinthian will be a good side, they’ll move the ball well. We know what they do there.

“I believe the winner gets Folkestone away in the next round, which is a fantastic day out, so we’re going to go all out to win, so will Corinthian.”

Corinthian arrive having beaten Erith Town (3-1) and Erith & Belvedere (3-2) in their first two league outings.

Chairman Ben Westmancott wrote about the club’s progress with their new ground in Rotherhithe in his programme notes against The Millers.

“I am tremendously excited by this season. Not only are there new clubs joining the league and new grounds to visit but it is the first season with new manager Dean Harrison in charge.

“Dean established his credentials at the tail end of last season saving the Fish from relegation in style – who can forget the fine 3-0 victory over Tunbridge Wells!

“A number of players have left over the summer to clubs in higher leagues and Dean has gathered a fantastic looking new squad who are really starting to gel as a unit.

“Dean has brought in talented coach Danny Hill who is working alongside Jason Birchill, the goalkeeping coach, this year.

“This season is set to be one of the most important yet. We are going to need all the support you can muster to get us where we need to be – home once more.

“If you have been to Rotherhithe recently you will have noticed diggers on site doing preparatory work to the new ground. These are exciting times and our dream is being realised!

“However, there is no time to sit back and think that our work is achieved. The facility will be basic and requires kitting out. We also need to agree with the council how we can make best use of it so that the wider community can reap the benefits. People want a diverse club – but to make that happen we need people to organise and run teams.

“We also need to agree with the council how the facility will be operated.  At the AGM people wanted to keep our options open, recognising that we may well want to work with a partner organisation to operate the facility.

“Early 2016 is our target date for coming home. We are planning engagement events to develop the plans.  Together we will come home.”

Harrison, meanwhile, wants to build a team that will be able to pick up a winning mentality on home astroturf.

The manager said: “It’s massive. We want to get a squad assembled here and have a good season so we can get into Rotherhithe next year, back home and really have a push and start having a go and start getting back to where we should be so this year is massive.

“Can I say it’s really tough with no budget! Most clubs in this league are paying now. It’s tough to get players in and keep players and what we’ve got here at the moment is a fantastic squad.

“It’s tough we try and do things right off the pitch. We try to keep training fresh and work on the right things. We try to talk to the boys in the right way. We try to keep players playing so there will be squad rotation at times.  We’ve got quality to do that so you just hope for the best and hope we can build a family bond here and players will want to stay and play for Fisher.”

Visit Fisher’s website: www.fisherfc.co.uk

Fisher  v  Corinthian
The FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round (Sponsored by Emirates)
Saturday 15^th August 2015
Kick Off 3:00pm
At Champion Hill Stadium, Dog Kennel Hill, Edgar Kail Way, East Dulwich, London SE22 8BD