Folkestone skipper Liam Friend has vowed to avoid a fourth straight year of play-off heartache – by winning the league championship outright.

Friend and his team-mates were despondent after losing the final of the Ryman League, Division 1 South play-offs to Leatherhead on penalties in May.

That followed semi-final disappointment in each of the previous two seasons and Friend, who’s keen – and good enough – to play at a higher level, believes Folkestone’s time has now come.

He said: "We don’t want to go through the play-offs this year. You start trying to get in the top-five just as an aim but we want to win the league.

"I’d love to be stood here, lifting the trophy in May. I’ve said to Cugs (manager Neil Cugley) and he’s the same – one more year to give it a good go.

"Last year we thought we had a side that was capable but there were too many changes. This year, though, we’ve got Boothy (Paul Booth), we’ve got (Ian) Draycott in to score the goals, Dane (Luchford) scored a lot of goals last season, the midfield looks strong and we’ve already talked about the defence, our experience and how long we’ve been playing together. It looks good.

"There’s nothing hindering us at the moment. The financial aspect is positive and we’ve got a good squad, so why not?"

Read the full story in the Folkestone & Hythe Express.