Whitstable Town FC

Picture chairman and manger with Kent League Cup: Pic Per Laleng: On hearing the results over the weekend and confirmation that relegation is almost certainly no longer a worry chairman Tony Rouse Saying:

“I am delighted for Marc and his staff, all the players and supporters and all the local business’s who have supported Whitstable in their very first season in the new league, and that we will be a Ryman League club next season.”

Manager Marc Seager added:

“I was always confident that we had the personnel, both on and off the pitch to stake our claim as a Ryman club. The weekend’s results mean we have a twenty plus goal difference over Horsham YM who are second to bottom, with fifteen points between us. It means they have to win their remaining five games 3-0 and we have to loose all our remaining games without scoring another goal, so I think we can safely say we are OK.”

Asked if he thought there was ever a time when survival looked too a big task.

“If I am honest the lowest point was the defeat against Walton Casuals, we needed to lift ourselves after that result, but we did and never stopped believing; we had the backing of the club and the players to see us through. I am not going to harp on about the budget, we have to live within our means, that in itself is a leveller and makes my job that little more difficult.

From the winning Kent League side we had last year I felt we had a bunch of players, who once they had adapted to life in a tougher league would do alright, for one reason or another, not because they were not wanted by the club, a number of players decided to move on. There were times during the season when I had only one fit recognised striker to pick, others times through injury only one fit centre back to call on, but we came through and myself and staff as the management and more importantly the players have matured and adjusted to life in a tougher league and will be better equipped to move forward next year for the experience gained this.

At the beginning of the season, just like the other twenty-one managers in the league I felt we had a chance to prove ourselves, the reality was that the chairman and I sat down and spoke about what we could achieve this season, survival was the key. We have done that and now, apart from going for as many points as we can, my thoughts are already turning to next season.

I know when Alan Gower and the chairman went to the first meeting of the Ryman League they both felt the tremendous weight of expectations in the room from Ramsgate and Maidstone’s back to back promotions. As a club we knew that was beyond us, yes we have managed to raise our standards for the big games; the players know that any real success will only come if they treat every game as a ‘Dover’ and I believe we can.

This season has gone so quickly, all the wonderful new grounds we have visited, the new friend we have made along the way, but firstly we need to put this season to bed, then start thinking about next and the challenges it will bring. With the support and backing I receive from the club, my staff players and supporters, my message is we will be ready ” Marc