Folkestone have been left facing an anxious wait to find out the full extent of Tom Derry’s weekend injury.

Forward Derry sustained an eye problem shortly after the hour mark as Isthmian Premier Invicta were beaten 2-1 at Isthmian South East side Herne Bay in a pre-season friendly.

Asked how Derry now was, Folkestone boss Andy Drury, who also had taken off defender Joel Odeniran in the first half as a precaution, replied: “Not great.

“He’s been in and out of A&E. He took a bad poke in the eye, it’s gone quite deep.

“We will have to see how that settles down and how long he will be out for.”

Former Cray Wanderers and Tonbridge man Derry was signed in December.

He netted eight times as Invicta steered clear of relegation trouble and scored a hat-trick in a 4-0 victory at Whitstable this month.

“Tom has been a bit of a focal point up there,” said Drury. “He does well in both boxes.

“But Evans [Kouassi] is back and Dan Smith has done really well for us, so we do have other options.”

Invicta’s goal at Winch’s Field was a fifth of the summer for Smith. He also had bagged a late brace in last Tuesday’s 2-1 win at Sittingbourne.

“We kind of knew Herne Bay was a game where we would have to juggle things a little bit,” admitted Drury.

“We had four or five players out, so we had to juggle it with trialists and youth-team players. We always had an inkling it would be tough.

“But the boys got minutes and that’s the most important thing.

“It’s quite a nice 3G pitch. It’s probably one of the best around. It was quite a humid day, so it was sticky but it’s a good one.

“We got answers on some of the players that have been trialling with us.

“We found out where some of the youth-team boys are - and even some of the signed boys. If they’re not up to speed, there’s decisions there for myself to make.

“But that’s not a bad thing to sort out now.”

Drury is also hopeful of signing some more players with higher-division experience soon.

He said: “You probably get to about now when they start filtering down.

“We’re close to signing three that played in National League South last year. But you just never know, there’s been situations where others have come in at the last minute.

“Hopefully, we can get them over the line.”

Invicta welcome Margate this Saturday (kick-off 1pm) after losing 2-1 to last season's Southern Counties East Premier Division champions Deal Town on Tuesday despite defender Ian Gayle's second-half goal.

Drury spent seven months at Hartsdown Park before he was dismissed on Boxing Day in 2022.

Ahead of the friendly against his former club, speaking before their midweek defeat, he said: “I’m looking forward to all the home games.

“I feel like we got safe comfortably enough in the end last year. It will be good for the fans to see the new boys.

“Hopefully, the majority will be available for Tuesday. If not, they should be back for Saturday.”

And the manager is hopeful Folkestone fans will again be out in force to support them throughout the new season.

He said: “I think it just comes down to winning games. If you do that, the fans come.

“I think they kind of accepted where we were last year.

"Now, there’s a bit of excitement and, hopefully, we’ll start the season well.”

Folkestone are set to welcome Maidstone to Cheriton Road next Tuesday.

Hythe Town are at home for the first time in pre-season when they entertain Dulwich Hamlet this Saturday.

Their scheduled weekend game against Rochester United was called off, with Hythe saying the SCEFL Division 1 side’s changing rooms had suffered flood damage.

Hythe’s Reachfields Stadium has been undergoing ground improvements - including bar renovation and new dugouts - over the summer while major work has been done on the pitch to improve the playing surface.

Hythe’s match at Kennington ended in a 5-2 defeat last Tuesday. Hythe are at Canterbury City next Tuesday.

The Cannons will kick-off their Isthmian South East season on Saturday, August 10, at home to Phoenix Sports.