Ramsgate manager Ady Pennock delighted with togetherness in his new squad after making 11 summer signings ahead of Isthmian Premier opener against Leatherhead

New Ramsgate manager Ady Pennock is pleased with how well his squad has gelled in pre-season.

Pennock inherited eight players when he took over at Southwood in May and has added 11 new faces ahead of the Isthmian Premier campaign, which gets under way at home to Leatherhead on Saturday.

“It’s been a good pre-season,” stated Pennock. “The biggest thing was getting everybody together.

“The players have worked hard and I’m very proud of them. Having those players already here was a big help, and I’ve been very pleased with them as well - they’ve been excellent.

“I think it helps if you’ve been together for two or three years and everyone knows their jobs, knows each other and their strengths and weaknesses and everything else.

“But that’s what this challenge is all about. I love the challenge of getting a new squad together.

“It’s been really good, but we’re not shouting from the rooftops or anything like that. We know it’s going to be a very difficult season for everybody but we’re going about it the right way and we’re heading in the right direction.”

Ramsgate finished 10th on their first return to Isthmian Premier football in 17 years last season.

Pennock narrowly missed out on the top five at former club Dartford last term, 12 months after losing the play-off final to Dover at Princes Park.

“I’m not really one to say we’re going to win the league or be in the play-offs or be mid-table or fight relegation,” added Pennock.

“It’s a long season and there will be lots of ups and downs.

“At Dartford, we punched above our weight and we did incredibly well there. There’s some very good sides in our league, and it’ll be extremely tight from top to bottom as everybody can beat everybody on the day.

“We’re going to give it our all