KEV’S GOT FAITH IN MILLER TIME
KEVIN WATSON says Cray Valley PM chiefs are meeting his on-field aspirations with their work off it as they lay the foundations for next season.
The manager took the Millers to Wembley last year in the FA Vase and the Southern Counties East League title to create club history.
In making their Isthmian League South East debut this term, they found themselves in promotion contention with ten games to play.
But football’s sudden stop put an end to their eightgame winning run which had seen them into third, five points behind leaders Hastings United.
“We would have liked it to have been played out as we were in good form but it’s understandable it wasn’t,” boss Watson told The NLP. “It was looking likely we were going to secure a play-off place as a minimum. It would have been interesting to see how it would have finished.
“In terms of aspirations going into the season we just wanted to try and win games, as we say every season.
“Just because it was our first season, there was no element that we were looking for a mediocre finish. You’ve got to be aspirational. I do believe the committee and the board and the people at the club are aspirational and that needs to resonate and filter through to the management, coaching staff and the players.”
Watson, the former Chatham Town manager, has improved the on-pitch performance year-on-year since his arrival in 2017 but insists the upward curve doesn’t guarantee success next season.
“Just because you’ve done well one season doesn’t mean you’ll do well the next,” he said. “You have to keep evolving and we’re conscious of that. We never look too far ahead but we don’t look at the past. Last season (at Step 5) doesn’t win us any games at Step 4.
Philosophy
“We’ve got our values, ethos and philosophy which we try to stick by. One of the reasons we’ve done quite well is because the players we brought in have bought into that.
“A lot of work has been done during this extended off-season to the facilities, the pitch and the changing rooms. The club are matching the aspirations not just vocally but trying to do everything they can.”
Cray Valley are working towards a start date in early September, which they have set themselves, and won’t be beginning pre-season just yet.
Watson is after at least four new players for his squad which quickly found their feet at the level.
“We’re trying as best as possible to plan for next season which is proving extremely challenging,” he added. “We’ve put a schedule together for a pre-season.
“There will be a natural turnover of players. We’re very specific with the players we bring in but we have some targets in mind.”