A warm and sunny Saturday saw me come with my friend Richard, a Folkestone Invicta supporter, to see Chatham Town who coming into the match sat in second place, pushing to secure a home tie in the upcoming play-offs as they sought a third successive promotion and this time upto the National League South.

Their opponents today were Folkestone Invicta who have finally this season, under new manager, Andy Drury (an ex-Chat himself), secured safety and also begun to forge a new style of play, which has been a challenge in the immediate period following the departure of Neil Cugeley who had managed the Seasiders since 1997 until his departure in 2023.

Goals for Chatham this season have flowed quite freely, with Jamie Yila (21 goals), Kareem Isiaka (16 goals), Ashley Nzala (14 goals) and Jack Evans (13 goals) leading the way.

Folkestone Invicta’s goals have been a little harder to come by this season. The top scorers have been David Smith (14 goals), Thomas Derry (8 goals), Ira Jackson (8 goals) and Ibrahim Olutade (8 goals).

The game started with both sides cancelling each other out defensively, as attack after attack was foiled without either keeper having to make a serious save. Just when it looked as if the half time break would arrive with the scores goalless, Jamie Yila for Chatham Town found some space in the Folkestone Invicta area, and his driven shot rebounded to Harvey Bradbury who stabbed home the opening goal. At the half time break the Chats went in with a solitary goal lead.

The second half started with both sides continuing to play cautiously. In the 60th minute, as the game moved into its final third, Simon Cooper found himself at the end of an exquisite Chatham Town passing move to fire the ball home and send the home fans wild, making it 2-0.

The second goal triggered both sides into action and there were good chances at both ends. The crowd of 1807 really began to make themselves heard, as the atmosphere lifted to match the pace of the on-field play.

At full time it was Chatham Town who walked away with the points, to secure their play-off aspirations. Kevin Hake has shaped a mature, confident and capable squad and you couldn’t bet against them gaining the magic third promotion later in the season.

Folkestone Invicta looked competitive at a ground where no one has managed to defeat Chatham in a league match in quite a while. If they continue to progress like this under Andy Drury, then they should be tasting their own success in 2025.