Ashford boss Steve Lovell wants his side to secure their Ryman League Division 1 South status by the time they play fellow strugglers Whitstable next week.

After a 1-0 home defeat to Leatherhead on Saturday, Town earned what Lovell called a ‘very important point’ at Ramsgate on Easter Monday.

It leaves the Nuts and Bolts two places and three points outside the drop-zone, having played four fewer games than the sides around them,before last night’s (Wednesday) home game against leaders Croydon Athletic.

The maximum number of points Eastbourne and Walton Casuals can achieve is 38, meaning Town need just seven from their final seven games.

Lovell said: "It is tight down there. We need that number to be mathematically certain but it would mean Walton and Eastbourne need to win all three of their games.

"Our priority is just to finish third-bottom, which keeps you in the league."

Six of Town’s last seven games are at home including two against title challengers, three against play-off chasers and two against strugglers.

Lovell (pictured) said: "We will go all out to try and win each game. The quicker we get the points we need the better. There is something on every game. Sittingbourne are up there and we have them on Saturday and then Met Police.

"By the time we face Whitstable (on Thursday) I would like to be in a position where we don’t need to necessarily win that game.

Town face a selection crisis ahead of the Sittingbourne game, with only 14 fit men, four of them being reserve team players

Nick Smith could miss the rest of the season with a groin injury and Matt Newman is likely to miss Saturday’s game, while Toby Ashmore’s work commitments rule him out.

However, Danny Lye and Joe Fuller could both return against Bourne, who lost 3-2 at home to Whitstable on Tuesday night.