Whitstable Town manager Jamie Coyle says players and management staff are still adapting to playing on vastly different pitches on weekly basis after 3-1 victory at Lydd Town

Boss Jamie Coyle admits Whitstable’s players and management staff are still adapting to playing on vastly different pitches on a weekly basis.

The Oystermen were 3-1 winners at Lydd as they claimed their first Southern Counties East Premier Division victory this season last Wednesday.

Of Whitstable’s first four games, two have been on artificial surfaces while the others, including their match at Lydd, have been on challenging grass pitches.

Coyle admitted: “We have found it difficult as coaches this year.

“We go from playing at a perfect facility and on a 3G pitch, which a number of teams have got in this league. Unfortunately, you have got the other side with some of the worst grass pitches around.

“It’s been difficult for the players.

“We literally have had to change our philosophy and the way we want to play to suit the pitches that we’re playing on.

“We have gone from Sutton Athletic, which was a similar pitch to Lydd, to then playing
Sevenoaks on a 3G pitch in the FA Cup, to playing at home, to then going to Lydd.

“It’s tough for the players and it’s tough for the coaching staff.

“As you move up the leagues, it becomes a lot more consistent in terms of the quality of the pitches.

“But this is a league where you go from one week playing on a perfect 3G pitch to, basically, a dust-bowl in a park.

“It really makes it tough for the players to make those in-game decisions and have the understanding of what’s required week-to-week.

“It’s the first time I have coached in a league where you have to have a completely different Plan A and Plan B, depending on where you’re playing.

“It’s a challenge for us as coaches and most definitely a challenge for the players.

“But as the season progresses, they’ll get more and more