It means a lot to the club to remain in the South, says Foley

Thursday 22nd July 2010

CHATHAM TOWN boss Paul Foley says he is pleased that the club have returned to Ryman League Division One South, writes Mike Green.

Chatham kick-off their pre-season campaign with a trip to last season’s Kent League runners-up Herne Bay on Saturday and Foley told www.chathamtownfc.net “We have a good run of games to really look at a few things and I make no excuses for that.

“We need to see the lads that have stayed on from last year over a decent collection of minutes as I know the ones that have joined from VCD obviously.

“The first few games are predominantly part of the fitness process that we have been going through over the last couple of weeks, so I won’t be reading too much into them results wise but we will be looking at how all of the lads are fitness wise and how they will fit in to the best starting eleven when the season starts.

“We have started the last three seasons with the simple rule that if you are not fully fit no matter who you are, you don’t start the season in the starting eleven.

“When we get to the last few friendlies against Welling, Ebbsfleet, Maidstone and Folkestone we should be getting near optimum fitness and we will need to be ready against these four who all play in higher leagues.

“I am pleased to welcome another player on board this week in Kane Rice who has been training with Welling United for the last few weeks. Circumstances at Welling have changed as I understand and although Kane had an injury last season at VCD that restricted him to a handful of games, he is all ok now and he will be a valuable asset for us here as he was at VCD.

“He can play in a number of positions and with his pace, determination, strength and eye for goal, he will only add to the options we already have in the squad.’

Foley is delighted that Chatham Town have been switched back into Ryman League Division One South, following Ashford Town’s decision to resign from the League.

““Despite the unfortunate circumstances that surround our placement in the Ryman South, I am delighted for the club first and foremost as it meant a lot for the club to stay in the South,” said Foley .

“It is just unfortunate how it came about and in losing Ashford from the league we are obviously losing a Kent club and a Kent derby from the season ahead.

“As I said before from a football perspective it did not make much difference to us on the playing side as there were advantages and disadvantages in going into either the North or the South. The advantages for the club as a whole though are obvious and we will benefit from an improved average gate I am sure and we will have the added incentive of those Kent derbies against Ramsgate, Whitstable, Sittingbourne and now Faversham Town.

“It will be interesting for the lads who competed in the Ryman North last year to see how they fare in the South and it will be interesting to see how we fare against the club’s last season in the South.

“Playing against old adversaries at the Kent clubs and my old boss Jim Ward at Ramsgate will also add some interest to the season so there is plenty for me and the lads to look forward to.

“The drawbacks versus competing in the North are that we are back to where we were last season when we were going into games without much knowledge of our opponents but we will soon get up to speed as we did last year so I don’t see a major problem there.

“We may have to be a little more conservative in our own targets behind the dressing room door though as we were all very optimistic about our chances in the North, had we played in that league this year even with the tough additions of Grays, Needham Market and Sudbury this season.”

Article courtesy of www.chathamtownfc.net

Herne Bay v Chatham Town

Pre-Season Friendly

Saturday 24th July 2010

Kick Off 3:00pm

At Safety Net Stadium, Winch’s Field, Stanley Gardens, Herne Bay, Kent CT6 5SG