Faversham Town can forget about the Ryman League, Division 1 South play-offs if they don’t win their next two games.

That’s the view of Lilywhites boss Ray Turner, who watched his side beaten 4-1 at Merstham on Saturday.

Merstham have won nine of their last 10 games and that form has seen them overtake Faversham in the race for a top-five finish.

Fifth-placed Hastings, meanwhile, have started to falter, giving hope to the clubs just below them.

Faversham play the U’s on Monday in a potentially crucial game but first they’ll need maximum points from home games against Redhill on Thursday and Three Bridges on Saturday.

Turner said: “The play-offs look unlikely now. We’ve got a tough run of three games in five days, which is a big ask for quite a small squad.

“We do have to do something significant in terms of winning games. Draws are no longer any good to us. We’ve got to win games and see where it takes us. We’ve got nine games left, so that’s a significant (potential) points haul.

“The top-four are nailed on and the championship is nailed on (Peacehaven). Now there are three or four teams scrambling behind Hastings, trying to catch up. We play them on Monday but without winning our next two, Monday doesn’t mean anything.”

Jamie Maxted is still injured and will miss the Redhill game, although Aiden Sherlock could recover from a hamstring problem in time to play.