Folkestone Invicta captain Ian Gayle praises debut display of fellow defender Joel Odeniran in 1-0 Isthmian Premier victory at Canvey Island

Skipper Ian Gayle has praised fellow Folkestone defender Joel Odeniran after his fine debut display.

Odeniran replaced the suspended Marvel Ekpiteta to steer Invicta to a 1-0 Isthmian Premier victory at Canvey Island as he put in a man-of-the-match performance alongside Gayle last weekend.

He has been recalled from Isthmian South East side Herne Bay where he had been playing on a dual-registration basis.

Gayle reflected: “It was a good, professional win on Saturday. We could have won by more.

“We had Joel come in and he did really well. He got into the KentOnline team-of-the-week so I’m really proud of him.

“He did really well in pre-season but he was just a little bit unfit and lacked a bit of experience. But he’s gone out, now come back and he did really well.

“He made some crucial tackles, which kept our clean sheet, and, in essence, that made us win the game.”

The shut-out was only a second this season for Folkestone’s new-look squad.

“Don’t say that out loud!” joked the former Dagenham and Welling defender.

“We seem to have been giving away goals cheaply recently.

“But hopefully, we can spark something now and go on a nice run.

“Hopefully, we can keep a few more clean sheets but, most importantly, let’s hope we can start getting three points more regularly and start climbing the table.”

Teenager Odeniran’s inclusion at Canvey added youth to a vastly-experienced squad.

Gayle, 31, said: “He really looks like he means well and he just wants to win everything. We do get good energy from him.

“It gives us a chance to let him do our running for us - and we can take a little break!”

For now, Odeniran will have to put any hopes of a regular run of first-team games for Invicta to one side as they return to FA Trophy action.