I think now we do want to progress as far as we can, says Otford United boss Jim Gillan

OTFORD UNITED boss Jim Gillan says he wants to win promotion the proper way.



The O’s are in eighth-place in the Haart of Kent County League Division One table with five wins and three draws from their thirteen league games and are ten points behind leaders Erith 147 Sports.

Forest Hill Park (who groundshare Ladywell Arena with Lewisham Borough) and Otford United both have a significant advantage over the rest of the division because they have floodlights.

And with Crockenhill pulling out of the Kent Invicta League at the end of the season to drop down into the Kent County League due to the costs involved playing at step six, Otford United would be the most ideal club to take their place.

Otford United turned down the invitation to become founder members of the Kent Invicta League a couple of years’ ago – but Gillan wants to progress.

”I think now we do want to progress as far as we can,” he said.

”I’d like to do it on merit rather than facilities because for some reason we don’t always attract some of the better players to come here. I don’t know why.  We’ve got the facilities to do it so we’re always on the look out for them, but for some reason they don’t want to play for Otford, so it would be nice to do well in this division and get promoted in the right way rather than get promoted because we’ve got the facilities – but we’d take it!

”I like the Kent County League. I like the way it’s run and everything else but it would be nice to play at the highest level we possible can.

”That’s the ambition for me.  One of the reasons when Dennis (Leigh) went and asked me to take over I’d take over providing the club was ambitious.

”We are ambitious. We do want to play at the highest level we can and if that’s the Invicta League then so be it but I’d like to get there by getting promoted in the right way and getting promoted from the (Kent County) Premier League.  That way you can build your team and get them ready.

”We’ve got quite a good crop of youngsters coming through now with the colts’. We’ve got an under 15 side and in two years’ time they’ll be coming up in the reserves.  Our reserves are getting a bit old and we’ve got some players now that we need to be looking at as well.

”If we can do it the right way then great but I wouldn’t turn it down.  I don’t think the club would either.”

Despite having a pavilion that holds separate dressing rooms for both teams and officials and an area to serve refreshments and a covered shelter that overhangs to provide shelter for spectators, the ground is not enclosed.

But the club would need the backing of the parish council to develop it’s ground and progress up the football pyramid.

”It depends what other things we need to do,” added Gillan.

”We’ve got no dug-outs and it’s the parish council so it might not be necessary that we could go (into the Kent Invicta League) because we do need dugouts and to get portable ones cost £3,000 and we ain’t got that sort of money.”

Gillan takes his side to Coney Hall – a side that are one place above them in the table – next Saturday.