We've managed to get a good side together, says Ashford United boss Tony Reynolds

ASHFORD UNITED boss Tony Reynolds says he feels “gutted” about missing the club’s opening pre-season friendly against Gillingham on Wednesday night, writes Stephen McCartney.


The game marks the first football match being staged in Kent this season and more importantly, first team football returns to Homelands Stadium following the sad demise of Ryman League Division One South outfit Ashford Town just over a year ago.

A crowd of over 1,000 is expected to the Kingsnorth-based ground, as former Dover Athletic boss Andy Hessenthaler brings his Gillingham side to play a side that are six levels below them in the football pyramid.

Ashford United have been elected one of the sixteen founder members of the Kent Invicta League (the new league at Step Six) and Reynolds has arranged a list of gruelling matches against higher-league opposition to get his side ready for the big kick-off on 20 August.

Ashford will go into the clash on the back of only four training sessions and Reynolds said: “We’re all looking forward to it.  We’ve got a squad of players which we’re happy with.

“We’ve only had three training sessions and what we have got are thirty lads who are all battling for twenty positions and every one of them have looked 100% keen and enthusiastic and that’s just what we want.”

Ashford resident Reynolds added, “I can’t play all thirty players on Wednesday night but I’ve made it quite clear we can only really take twenty players, with two goalkeepers included in that.  It will almost be two (Ashford) sides appearing on Wednesday night and that’s how we’ll go.

“I’m gutted about missing it because I’m looking forward to the first game and all the hard work that’s gone on behind the scenes really.

“For the first time we’re going to see out on the park what we’ve got for this year and I’m quietly confident we’ve managed to get a good side together.

“Because it’s still early days, we haven’t gone too much on how we want to play.  Obviously we’ve got a system of play but as far as we’re going to play is going to be off the cuff on the night.

“We’re going to work on set pieces on Monday.  When the season kicks off we will work so hard on set-pieces and organisation and the way we want to play.  On the fitness side they look fantastic.  They will only play 45 (minutes) but at the stage of the season we won’t go silly.  Basically it gives us a chance to look at everyone apart from the lads who unfortunately aren’t going to make it.”

The game was originally pencilled in for today, but the League Two outfit asked to put the fixture back four days.

Reynolds said: “Unfortunately for me, I’ve booked a five days break and with the proposed Gillingham game being today would have been great as I go to Spain on Monday and be back next week.

“I’m going to miss the first game, which I’m gutted about, but I need to have a break – I’ve got Mark Patterson and Paul Chambers taking care of the playing side on the night.”

Reynolds revealed that Lee Shearer, Jimmy Strouts, Matt Bower, Lee McRobert, Paul O’Brien and Gary Lockyer will provide the experience against the Gills – with the rest of the team made up of local youngsters looking to impress on the big stage.

Reynolds said: “I’ve got some experience in there.  I’ve always said that we need experienced blended with enthusiastic youth and we seem to be getting that sort of shape at the moment.

“We’ve got the likes of Lee Shearer, that’s got to be confirmed as Lee’s still headhunted locally, and we’re hoping we can get Lee on board.

“We’ve got Jimmy Strouts, those two alone have got bags and bags of experience.

“Matt Bower, who I had at Welling with me when we were playing in the Southern League Premier, which is now like Conference South, he was fantastic for me and I know he will do a good job for me this year.

“The whole lot of them, Lee McRobert, ex-Millwall, and Paul O’Brien – you put that into the side blended with some very good talented young lads we’ve managed to find, like Gary Lockyer, a centre forward, who has been around some of the Kent League and he’s still a young lad.  He needs to be playing consistent football and that will give him the platform to go on to bigger and better things, hopefully with Ashford.”

Reynolds, however, fears that some of his players could be snapped up by local managers, who can entice them with Ryman League football.

“We have to be realistic in this game, that’s what’s frightening about playing the local sides in friendlies,” he warned.

“Of course, we want to play the local (higher-league) sides.  The problem is there’s always a fear at the back of my mind that they’re going to perform on the day and managers are going to think ‘he don’t look a bad player’.

“We know it happens.  I’m not naive enough to think it’s not going to happen.  The likes of (Folkestone Invicta boss) Neil Cugley and Ports (Scott Porter) down at Hythe, they’re looking all the time for players.

“I think I’ve got a pretty good squad together for this year and that’s the worrying thing because of the fact where the football club is financially.  Financial gains could be a real bug-bear in this day and age.

“Hopefully they show enough loyalty within their own football club to stick things out for the duration and hopefully it will be a good season for one and all.”

www.kentishfootball.co.uk  begin our coverage of the highs and lows of the 2011-2012 season, by covering this game.

Admission Charges:
£5 (adults)
£3 (Seniors)
FREE (under 16s)

Visit Ashford United’s website: www.ashfordunited.co.uk

Ashford United  v  Gillingham
Pre-Season Friendly
Wednesday 6^th July 2011
Kick Off 7:30pm
at Homelands Stadium, Ashford Road, Kingsnorth, Ashford, Kent TN26 1NJ