After all the controversy of being appointed Margate boss during the summer, Jamie Coyle can finally take charge of the Thanet side for an Isthmian League fixture this weekend as they travel to face Cray Valley PM.
Speaking to KSN on the eve of the start of the season and the seeming extended lead up to it, Coyle admitted, “It certainly is a first in terms of some of the circumstances of players missing or injured, ill and everything else – it’s been a long pre-season, ultimately though if you get a positive start to your season, it’s all forgotten about!
“I have been involved in teams be it playing or in management where you win every pre-season game and then can’t get a point when the League starts!
“But there’s also vice versa where you can’t buy a win pre-season or play well and then have a terrific run at the start of the season. Ultimately, it’s all about building relationships and minutes in players legs getting through it unscathed from injuries – it’s been far from ideal but it will all be irrelevant if we get a good start to the season when Saturday comes against Cray Valley.”
Margate’s trip to the Artic Stadium and Sittingbourne’s to AFC Croydon Athletic are the only two South East League games being played on the opening day – a decision that has surprised Coyle as he told us, “I can’t remember anything like it before! I can’t remember any league that I played in and managed in only ever having two league games on the opening weekend of the season!
“That said we’re just really looking forward to having a “real” game and you really can’t beat having to go out there with three points at stake and we are looking forward to the start now.”
The Gate travel from east to west of the County to face a Valley side relegated from the Isthmian Premier in May, and the Margate boss knows the problems that his side faces.
“I have seen them twice myself in pre-season against Snodland and Ebbsfleet – they are a very well organised side and very, very athletic and I’m sure that they will be there or thereabouts come the end of the season if they keep the team that I have seen pre-season.
“They have some good individual players, and we will have to be at our very best to get a positive result from their place – it’s a tough start but one that we are looking forward to.”
Coyle ended last season as manager of SCEFL Champions Whitstable before the move down to Thanet, and we asked if the move has put more pressure for success on his shoulder and he told us, “I think it will only be the pressure that we put on ourselves as a management team.
“We have had an unbelievable two years as a management team – the win ratio was fantastic and ultimately, we have to continue that and hit the ground running so that we continue the good run that we have had over the last couple of years. We put a lot of pressure on ourselves which is the only pressure that we really worry about and what drives us forward every week!”
“It’s going to be a really competitive year with teams improving all the time. Some of the top budgets that are in the league, and we know that we have to compete against them.
“Some of them are huge, ultimately you see teams in our league who are pulling teams out of the National League – you know that it’s going to be a tough league as there will be some really good individual players in the teams that we are competing against.
“But as we have always done, we will try to base our model around organisation and coaching with tactically getting things right and that’s what got us the success in the last two years. So, if we focus on that with the decent squad that we have put together then we will be really competitive this year.”