Justin Luchford has revealed the secret behind the success of Whitstable’s pursuit of striker Ian Pulman – nagging by the manager’s girlfriend.

The striker returns to the Belmont after a successful spell at Ramsgate and Town boss Luchford revealed Pulman had opted to join the Oystermen ahead of lucrative offers to stay at Southwood or join other Kent sides in Ryman League, Division 1 South.

Luchford (pictured) said: "I’d pretty much given up on him. I thought he’d go elsewhere. Then I went to Billy Edwards’ testimonial at Margate with my girlfriend and a few friends and Ian was there with (Town player) Dan Wisker.

"To be honest, my girlfriend was instrumental in getting him to sign. She asked me who he was, I told her, she asked me if he played for me, I said no and explained the situation – that he had other offers.

"She said ‘I’m not having that’ and spent all day telling him to sign for us. She didn’t leave him alone, she must have asked him 150 times but eventually he caved."

Luchford added: "It’s a great signing for us but the pressure will be on him to score us goals."

Town have also captured former Folkestone skipper Micheal Everitt, 29, who made more than 500 appearances for Invicta before leaving this month.

Luchford said: "I’ve known him for 12 or 13 years since I was at Folkestone and he was coming through the ranks. He is a good player and a leader in the spine of the team and that’s exactly what we were looking for."