Welling United finished their season with a low-key defeat at Chippenham Town but boss Jamie Coyle feels there are lots of positives.

As has been the case in recent weeks, Welling struggled to create clear cut chances. Jamie Coyle said “I think we actually played really well in spells. From the defensive third to the midfield third, I think we did really well.

“We moved the ball quickly, we got up the pitch well, we got bodies forward, but again it kind of summarises our last month of the season. We are not creating enough in the final third. With all due respect to them, we’ve played against a team in the bottom half and the keeper hasn’t had to make a save.

“It’s clear where me need to look. It’s not just the forward players. It’s the service into them as well but to play against a team where we’ve had seventy-eighty percent possession today, to not turn it into a clear chance, we need to improve.

Having left himself out of the team as Welling’s play-off hopes had gone, Coyle said “The good thing is today, that I have taken myself out of the team and I’ve seen it from the side and you get a different perspective.

“It’s so clear. It’s glaringly obvious where we need to improve and we can do that. We’ve got the players that are already lined up, that want to come in and improve what we’ve already got. Today we’ve moved the ball well and kept really good possession, probably the best we’ve been all season in terms of having possession but we haven’t created any chances so it’s something we need to address, especially in pre-season.”

Two players came in having not played recently and Coyle was pleased with their performances. He said “That was one of (Ben) Jefford’s best games for a long time. I thought that he did really well today.

“I know that he played at centre half for Welling in the National League when he was here previously, but I thought he did really well today and was one of our better players on the pitch. He’s done really well.

“Archie (Johnson) again was solid after not having played for a while and he’s come in today and done well. Archie’s a youngster and he’s got a future at the club. His attitude has been fantastic from start to finish.

“Whether or not he’s going to be involved in starting next year or we look at dual reg next year., we’re looking at a couple of youngsters who’ve done really well this season that might come in and we may have to look at dual reging at a decent level. That’s the way that we are looking in terms of developing players for the future.”

Looking toward to next season, Coyle confirmed that he has already got a good idea on which players will be retained. “The decision has been made on the majority of players on who’s going to stay and who’s going to go.

“We sat down and we wrote down the players that are actually ours and the players that we are going to keep. We’ll have a nucleus of seven or eight that are going to stay. Jamie Philpot’s on loan, Bailey Vose is on loan, Mags (Magnus Okuonghae) is on loan.

“If you write down who we’ve actually got in the squad, there aren’t many and we have been thin on the ground in terms of our squad size this year and that’s something next year that we have to improve on, whether it’s youngsters around the place because it helps with training and it helps with competing on match days.”

One player who is unlikely to be in the squad is Joe Healy. “Joe’s going to call it a day.” said Coyle. “I’m working on taking him out for as many dinners and coffees as I possibly can to try and change his mind but he has family commitments and work.

“We do know that if he changes his mind, we’ll be the first club that he’ll come back to but he’s made a decision that this is going to be his last year which is a shame because he is such a great influence in the dressing room as well as on the pitch. It’s a big void to fill. He’s been fantastic this year.”

Despite the loss of such a crucial player, Coyle is looking forward to building on the finished season. He said “The good thing is that we’ve got some good, strong, experienced winning players that want to be a part of this next year. It’s exciting because the club has gone in the right direction.

“I spoke to (Director of Football) Tristan (Lewis) and he said that this time last year they were in a relegation battle. We need to move again. We need to step up and go full steam ahead and improve and get in that play-off spot next year.”