Chatham boss Kevin Hake is hoping his early work pays off after assembling much of his squad ahead of their pre-season schedule.
Their third game of the summer was a goalless draw at the Gallagher Stadium on Tuesday night against a Maidstone side that is still very much in transition, with 12 trialists included in their matchday squad.
Hake’s added seven new faces to his squad that won the Isthmian South East Division last season and is now hoping for three promotions in a row.
He said: “We did our business really early, both with people going out the door and people coming in the door, and that has given us that little bit of familiarity.
“We have been bitten in previous years where if you leave it too late it is never a good thing. I am pleased we have done it early and we can get that familiarity around the dressing room.
“We’ve got some youngsters involved as well and some of them will be looking to go out on loan.
“The cut-off we have in our heads is July 25 where we will start to really refine the team and getting it to less numbers.
“You can’t read too much into pre-season, it is all about getting the minutes into the legs, the guys are getting there and we haven’t picked up any injuries, I am really pleased with how it’s going.”
With a month left of pre-season Hake hasn’t ruled out any more additions to the 22 he’s already got signed up.
“You never know,” he said. “You are going to get calls, I get calls every day from people who want trials or it has not worked out at one club and we have a big black book that we can go to but I like to keep familiarity as much as possible and the squad is looking good.
“We’re starting to get bonds and friendships and that is very important for us, we achieved that last season
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