KENT LEAGUE CUP FINAL: We froze on the big stage, admits Porter - EXCLUSIVE

HYTHE TOWN are coming to terms with their poor performance in Saturday’s Kent League Cup Final, writes Stephen McCartney.

Losing 1-0 to Erith Town was a bitter pill to swallow for assistant manager Scott Porter.

The game was settled by an own goal, scored by Hythe midfielder Dave Cook, after Dale Skelton and goalkeeper Paul Hyde failed to deal with Kevin George’s 39^th minute corner.

The ball hit Cook on the leg some three yards from goal and ensured that the Dockers lifted the silverware for the very first time in their history.

Porter, speaking EXCLUSIVELY to www.kentishfootball.co.uk afterwards, admitted his side froze on the big occasion.

The game was played at Folkestone Invicta’s Buzzlines Stadium ground in Cheriton Road, and seven of their sixteen-man squad used to play for the host club.

“We’ve got here, we deserved to get here but we didn’t turn up first half,” admitted Porter.

“We battled away second half but Erith wanted it. They battled for everything, fought for everything and really came out on top because they wanted to win.

“We didn’t start at all first half, they won every header, tackle, put themselves about. We were a couple yards too slow and it was too late really, they got the goal.

“We had a few chances, their keeper pulled off a few good saves but deep down, I think they deserved to win it, because they wanted to win it more and we didn’t want it.”

Hythe Town went into Saturday’s Cup Final having not won any of their last three Kent League games, and Porter admitted minds were on the Folkestone final.

“Since we’ve got to the Cup Final we haven’t played well at all,” Porter admitted.

“There were a few injuries, people coming back, Buster‘s (Michael Smissen) come back and not been really fit. Lee Winsfield’s struggling with cramp and tiredness, we haven’t got anyone to bring in.

“But I think we’ve got to the Cup Final everyone thought everyone’s playing not very well because obviously the Cup Final and obviously we’ve got to the Cup Final and we still haven’t played well.

“So obviously it’s something we’ve got to get sorted in the summer and push on from there because we need a few new faces because the lads that we’ve got are obviously not good enough at the minute.”

Porter, however, was disappointed that the players froze on the big stage, in front of a sun kissed crowd of 447.

He said: “There was a lot of our supporters here, a lot of local support from Folkestone and I think we did freeze.

“Reason being, I don’t think we’ve got that much experience in the side, because of the young lads and I think the occasion, you’re right, did get to them.

“I don’t think they rose to the occasion playing in front of 447 people and Erith had a few experienced players; the goalkeeper (James Wastell), even the lad at centre half, Bill Edwards, 41*.
“Buster didn’t get a sniff and the geezer’s 41*, so you’ve got to give credit to him and their manager (Mark Tompkins) because he had a game plan and they stuck with it and they’ve come away with the Cup.”

Despite scoring 47 goals this season, Michael Smissen has been told by Porter to improve his match-fitness ahead of the new season.

Porter, however, reminded interested Kent clubs that the former Dover Athletic, Chatham Town and Sittingbourne striker is contracted at Reachfields Stadium until the end of next season.

“We need to get him back fit again, he hasn’t been fit since he’s done his knee and it’s proved that because he hasn’t scored for a long, long time and that’s unlike Buster,” said Porter.

“You’ve got to take your hat off to him because 47 goals in one season, and were moaning because he hasn’t scored in five or six weeks.

“But you can’t rely on just one person and I think sometimes we did rely on him.

“He does get us out the crap really for many games but not a fully fit Buster is not a good Buster.

“He has to be fit, he has to be firing, and that’s how he gets his goals.”

Smissen’s challenge during the close season is to get himself fit in time for pre-season training, which gets underway in July.

“He knows that, we’ve had a chat, he knows the situation,” said Porter.

“He knows he’s got to knuckle down, get fit and try and beat his 47 goals. It’s going to be hard.

“We’ll get him fit, hopefully we can get him back fit, he can do a bit in the summer.”

Porter admitted the small squad just couldn’t cope with their 51-match campaign.

“I think we just ran out of steam really,” he said. “It’s a long season with the FA Cup, the big win over Dover, going top of the league, getting to the Cup Final, and then it’s taken a bit of a downhill slide because I think we’ve peaked too early.

“We got tired and we didn’t have a lot in the wardrobe as we didn’t have on-one else to bring in so we had to keep playing these players and I think fair play to the lads, they’ve done well, it’s a good season, so we can’t really be disheartened.

“We’re happy with what we’ve done but we’d like to have won today.”

Despite finishing their 30-match Kent League campaign in fourth place, Porter knows what they need to bring in to bring Ryman League football to Reachfields Stadium.

“I think at the start of the season we were looking to finish in the top six, maybe top four,” he said.

“When we got to being top of the league that took a lot out of the lads, couldn’t stay at the top of the league (because of the) pressure.

“It’s a good season for us, would have been even better had we won the club but I think Cup Final, fourth in the league, yes I think we’ll take that.

“We would have taken that at the start of the season and obviously we’ve got to take that now.”

A couple of wingers, another striker and a ball playing midfielder is high on the shopping list this summer, but Porter and manager Paul Fisk knows this costs money.

“It depends on what the chairman does and decides,” explained Porter. “We don’t know the situation that we’re in at the minute.

“We’ve had a budget for this year, we don’t even know if we’ve got the same budget for next year.

“Until we sit down with the board and decide what we’ve got we’ll got from there in the summer.

“We are looking to bring in new players, we’ve contacted a few new players already so hopefully pre-season we’ll bring in a few new players down there and strengthen the squad and make it hard for people to get into the side who think they can get into the side.

“Because every time they turn up they think their getting in because we haven’t got anyone else to bring in.”

* Erith defender Bill Edwards was listed as being 35-years-old in the pen pictures in the match day programme.

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