Hopefully we can stay in the pack for a long time, says Hythe Town boss Scott Porter

HYTHE TOWN boss Scott Porter says his side are one of twenty-two sides competing in a false division.

Hythe Town climbed up to third-place in the Ryman League Division One South table following their battling 2-0 win at Dulwich Hamlet last night.

Porter admitted his side returned to the force that saw them clinch the Kent League title a couple of years’ ago as they outfought a Dulwich Hamlet side that were unbeaten at home in the league.

Hythe Town have collected 20 points from 11 league games and are two points behind leaders Maidstone United, who have two games in hand.

Hythe Town welcome Justin Luchford’s Whitstable Town to Reachfields Stadium on Saturday.

Whitstable are the lowest ranked Kent club in the division and go into the game sitting in the bottom six, with 13 points from 11 games.

But Porter said: “The table’s false. I’ve said that for a couple of weeks in the press. 

“There’s eleven points between the top and the bottom so we won’t ever look at the table especially against Whitstable, a Kent derby.

“They’re always tough games.  Like I say the table’s false and every game in the Ryman is tough. 

“I’m expecting three tough home games.  I take each game as it comes.  You look to get maximum points at home but in this league you can never expect that because they’re all tough games so we’ll enjoy last night and we’ll re-group and go on Saturday.”

Hythe Town go into the game on the back of three successive wins and Porter says confidence is high, especially after beating then leaders Crawley Down Gatwick 1-0 last Saturday and their capital gains at Champion Hill last night.

Porter said: “Results bring confidence and that’s football for you.  Players start playing with a little bit more confidence, a bit of a smile on their faces.

“Three weeks ago we were bottom of the league.   The table is false and it’s changed. My boys have got a lot of belief in that changing room at the minute and we bring that off the pitch as well as on it.

“Hopefully we can build on what we’ve done over the last three or four days.”

Hythe, who were bottom of the table when they faced Tooting & Mitcham United on 6 October, a game that they won 5-2 at Reachfields, just sums up the unpredictability of the Ryman League Division One South this season.

Porter said: “There’s a long way to go in the league.  It’s a marathon. We’re up there and we want to stay up there and that’s the main aim for the rest of the season.”

When asked how his side will stay in the pack, Porter replied, “Be consistent and be organised and hopefully we can do that.  We wasn’t that last year. We’ve got off to a better start than what we did last year. The league’s a lot tighter this year so hopefully we can stay in the pack for a long time.

“It’s a tough league. The Whitehawk’s and the Bognor’s have gone. People have cut budgets, players are swapping here there and everywhere so that’s why it’s tight so we’re just happy to be up there with them and hopefully we can stay in the pack.”

Hythe welcome Leatherhead to Reachfields on Tuesday 6 November and Porter added: “They’ve come down and they’re starting to pick up a little bit of form as well.  They’re all tough games in this league, whether you’re home or away, up there or down there, they’re all going to be tough games.

“They’ll be looking to come and get something and we’ll be looking to get something because we’re at home so we’ll see what happens.”

Later on in the month, holders Hythe Town travel to Ryman League Division One North side Thamesmead Town in the Second Round of the Kent Senior Cup (sponsored by portablefloodlights.com).

After beating Kent Leaguers Erith Town, Hythe Town produced three giant-killings to beat Ebbsfleet United, Dover Athletic and Dartford in the final at Princes Park to win the silverware for the very first time in the club’s history.

And Porter does not want to surrender the trophy against Keith McMahon’s side when they travel to Bayliss Avenue on 20 November.

Thamesmead, at present, have won all five of their five home games in the League.

“Obviously we want to go as far as we can and try to regain the Kent Senior Cup so hopefully we can do whatever we can to beat Thamesmead,” said Porter.

“Thamesmead is a tough place to go but there’s so many games up until then.

“We’ll do our utmost to play the strongest side that we possibly can to not lose.”

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

Hythe Town  v  Whitstable Town
Ryman League Division One South
Saturday 3^rd November 2012
Kick Off 3:00pm
at Reachfields Stadium, Fort Road, Hythe, Kent CT21 6JS