All eyes will be on Deal’s reaction after their Kent Senior Trophy Final heartbreak. That’s the verdict of manager Steve King, as they visit newly-crowned champions Erith & Belvedere tonight and aim to keep their own hopes of a top-two Southern Counties East Premier Division finish alive.
Maximum points from their last two league matches could yet still see Deal earn the runners-up position and a shot at promotion to the Isthmian League through the play-offs.
After a 6-0 thrashing by Punjab United in Sunday’s Final, King said: “We’ve just had a long chat in there. "Everyone is going to be watching us, aren’t they? “No one in the world would have expected that result so everyone is going to be watching our reaction.
We just said to the boys that our job is to go and get six points. “We’ve got to try at Erith & Belvedere, and then we’ve got to try and win at home to Sutton [this weekend].