Chatham Town Women’s boss Keith Boanas says focus remains on league title bid despite Chats moving into Kent Cup final through 7-0 semi-final victory at Aylesford
Boss Keith Boanas’ main priority is on Chatham Town Women’s title bid.
Chats moved into the Kent Cup final as they cruised past lower-division Aylesford 7-0 on Sunday. That set up a showdown with Dartford Women at Maidstone’s Gallagher Stadium on Thursday, May 1.
They have also reached the Isthmian League Cup final where they will play either Billericay Town or Sutton United.
But with Chatham involved in a three-horse National League Division 1 South East title race alongside Norwich and leaders Real Bedfont, the cup games are firmly on the back-burner.
Asked if final places might give his players added incentive to earn a regular starting berth, Boanas replied: “There is that but, for me, no.
“We’re in the Isthmian League final, as well, so we have got two finals to look forward to. We don’t have a date for that one yet.
“But all the while we can get that [top] spot, we need to focus on that and the league. Using my surname a bit, these cups are just a bonus.
“While there’s a mathematical chance in the league, we have to go for that. But we need to win every game to put pressure on the other two, certainly Real Bedfont.
“We cannot afford to drop another three points - whether that’s through two draws or a loss - so there’s massive pressure now for us to get maximum points from every single game.”
Chatham’s higher-division pedigree came to the fore after the restart at Forstal Road.
Boanas reflected: “I, obviously, changed the side around a bit with them being a couple of leagues below.
"But they were holding on - and I do mean they were very much hanging on - to a 0-0 at half-time.
“We hit the crossbar twice and missed three or four good chances. We had to bring some of our stronger players on.
“Once we managed to get