I think our luck will run out at some stage, warns Cugley

Wednesday 03rd March 2010

FOLKESTONE INVICTA boss Neil Cugley will be forced into making changes to his line-up for their trip to Metropolitan Police at the weekend, writes Stephen McCartney.

Cugley has named the same starting eleven for seventeenth consecutive league games in their comfortable 1-0 win over Dulwich Hamlet at Champion Hill last night, but six-goal striker Simon Austin will be forced to miss the trip to Imber Court as a result of his red-card against Sittingbourne two weeks ago for his strong challenge on goalkeeper Deren Ibrahim.

Cugley will also be sweating on the fitness of central midfielder Jimmy Jackson and central defender Liam Dickson too, as the pair finished the game at Champion Hill with knocks.

But Folkestone’s 10th 1-0 win of the season (and their 16th clean sheet in all competitions) was at the end of their sixth consecutive away game.

Looking ahead to their trip to Imber Court, Cugley, who was speaking to www.kentishfootball.co.uk last night said, “It will be quite hard to be fair. They beat Dulwich the other week 4-0.”

Metropolitan Police were defeated by Cray Wanderers in last season’s play-off semi-final, but this season has been tough for the East Molesey outfit.

Jim Cooper’s side are sitting in tenth place in the Ryman League Division One South table, ten points adrift of the play-off’s.

“As you say,” said Cugley, “Everyone expected them to be up the top there so I think that will be a hard game but all credit to us. It will be our seventh game on the road so if we get a win there that will be five out of seven, which is a great achievement.”

Speaking about his consistent team selection, the long-serving boss feels he will no longer have his own way.

“It’s a great shame (having to make a change due to Simon Austin’s suspension) because we could’ve kept that going for quite a long time,” he said.

“I think luck will run out at some way along the line. Jacko (Jimmy Jackson) got an injury, Dicko (Liam Dickson) is injured but they battled through it.

“There will be a time where it will maybe come and catch us out, but there’s not much w can do about that.”

Folkestone’s win in south London means that the club are now one point clear at the top of the table, although Croydon Athletic have two games in hand.

They would have been eleven points clear of the Thornton Heath based outfit, but they were deducted ten points for going into administration, where they must pay £800 per month over a five-year period.

Whilst clubs such as Portsmouth are staring relegation (from the debt-ridden Premier League) in the face, Folkestone Invicta appear to be going from strength-to-strength out on the pitch.

“We just get on with it and they do well for me,” Cugley said of his young side. “I keep saying it but they do. I think it’s just an unusual situation when you get points taken off at the time it’s mostly teams that have big problems on the pitch and everything else.”

Visit Folkestone Invicta’s website: www.folkestoneinvicta.co.uk

Metropolitan Police v Folkestone Invicta

Ryman League Division One South

Saturday 6th March 2010

Kick Off 3:00pm

At Metropolitan Police (Imber Court) Sports Ground, Ember Lane, East Molesey, Surrey KT8 0BT