Joint-manager Phil Miles insists Faversham Town won’t shy from handing first-team opportunities to under-23s prospects this season.

Besides basing their recruitment policy on youth, the Lilywhites have also set out to build a bridge between academy football and the senior set-up.

One player set for an opportunity to prove his worth is teenager Rolando Onu, who scored after coming off the bench in last season’s 4-3 defeat to VCD.

Miles said: “Rolando is signed for us, he’ll play for our under-23s but he’s also a first-team squad member, we’ve got a lot of time for him.

“He’s only 17, he’s still at the Dover Academy but we look at Rolo as a first-team squad member and he’ll be heavily involved come the start of the season.”

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Onu wasn’t the only player to get his shot in 2018/19, with Will Risdon and goalkeeper Harry Day also earning first team debuts late on in the campaign.

Pre-season has seen Faversham welcome along a number of trialists, but also provide academy products a platform on which to vie for first-team minutes.

Miles added: “We’ve been open to people coming in and having a go, you read some of the CVs and they look like world beaters but they turn up and it’s a different story.

“We don’t rule anybody out and I think we’re getting to the point now where we’ve got 13 possibly 14 signed and also we’re going to dip into our under-23s.

“We know, though, that there are at least three or four in our under-23s that we’re happy to sign first-team papers as well and then they can help out where they need to.”

Town continued preparations for the new season with a 2-0 win over Isthmian League North Division side Romford on Saturday.

They start their Isthmian South East campaign at home to Guernsey on Saturday, August 17. The kick-off is at 2pm.

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