New Ebbsfleet midfielder Billy Clifford is so suited to the club’s style of play that it was a running joke in the Havant dressing room.

Clifford swapped one National League South promotion hopeful for another last week when he joined the Fleet just days after leaving Havant.

The former Chelsea youngster had been an integral part of the Hawks’ midfield but Clifford - described as the best midfielder in the league apart from his own squad by Fleet boss Dennis Kutrieb - should fit in perfectly at Stonebridge Road.

“I’m more accustomed to the ball on the floor, maybe that’s where I didn’t fit in at Havant and maybe clashed with certain people,” revealed 30-year-old Clifford.

“It was actually a bit of a running joke that I’d be suited better in an Ebbsfleet team than a Havant team.

“It’s just going to take time, for me to get used to the gaffer, for the players to get used to the way I play as well, and hopefully we can click sooner rather than later as there’s not that many games left.

“Obviously, there’s patterns I have to get used to here but the manager is incredibly detailed in training and in his meetings, and I’ve picked up a little bit already.”

From the outside looking in, it appeared Clifford was a key player for Havant. However, he hadn’t featured since their Boxing Day reverse to Eastbourne.

So, was it a tough decision to leave or was that something that was almost forced upon him?

“A bit of both,” responded Clifford. “It was one of those situations where it was a bit of butting heads if you like, with certain people. But I’ve got no hard feelings there, it’s football.

“I’ve been in football for a long time and it can change so quickly. I wish them all the best but my focus now is to get promoted with Ebbsfleet.”

Clifford impressed for Havant when they lost 1-0 at home to the Fleet at the start of November.

He gave a fascinating insight into how Ebbsfleet’s title rivals viewed a team they are competing with for honours.

He said. “That night we saw how strong Ebbsfleet were. I felt maybe Havant were the better side on the night but the experience to get that late winner, you can really show your promotion credentials in games like that by getting a winner in the last minute.

“For me it was a strange one to now be here but football moves on. It was one of those games you pinpoint as soon as you get the fixtures. When are we playing Ebbsfleet? There was a little bit more build-up.

“That week going into the game maybe there was a bit more detail as we knew they’d be right up there in the mix. We always knew at Havant that they were the ones who were going to push anyone to win the league.

“When you play against the top end of the league sides, you want to show how good you are. I want to show that I’m as good as, if not better than, those players and I felt I did that on the night.

“To play alongside them now and be part of the squad is a good thing as it will push them forward, there’s competition for places and that can only benefit Ebbsfleet in going forward.”

The teams go head-to-head again at Stonebridge Road this Saturday in the league.

Clifford doesn’t know if he will feature and Fleet boss Kutrieb has already indicated that he may not be included so quickly against his former team-mates.

But if he does play, then Clifford knows that there’s plenty of other dangers across the Fleet line-up if Havant single him out for special treatment.

“They know me inside out, I’ve been there for three seasons, but the beauty of Ebbsfleet is if you man-mark me then you’ve got four, five, six, seven players [to worry about],” said Clifford.

“We saw last Saturday that Dominic Poleon and Rakish Bingham were a handful, Toby Edser and Omari Sterling-James came on, so there’s more than just Billy Clifford to worry about and I think that’s the difference between the sides.

“You’ve got bits of magic all over the pitch when it comes to Ebbsfleet.”

And on the bad blood between Havant manager Paul Doswell and Kutrieb, Clifford added: “It’s a strange one. I think they’re very passionate guys and they both want to win, that’s what it comes down to.

“They’ll back their club to the hilt and sometimes things boil over. But as a player you like that, you want to see your manager going to war for you, if you like.

“We’ll see what happens this week but it will be interesting.”

At least Clifford will be able to give his new team-mates an extra insight into Havant’s plans, although he’s expecting Doswell to have an extra trick or two on the day.

“There’s little bits of pieces maybe but Paul Doswell is very well equipped and I’m sure he’ll have a few things up his sleeve that I’m not aware of,” said Clifford.

“These are the games you want to play in as a footballer. For a neutral and the fans, hopefully it’s a good game on the day and we take all three points.”