Ebbsfleet’s player-of-the-year Dean Rance will miss the start of the new season with a knee injury.

Rance hasn’t featured in any pre-season games and he may not return to action until the Fleet visit Basingstoke on August 30.

The midfielder is desperate to play earlier than that but he’s under doctor’s orders to rest – or risk doing more damage.

Ebbsfleet boss Steve Brown said: "Rancey’s got a little bit of an issue with his knee. He had an injection in it on Friday and we’re looking at about four to six weeks at the moment.

"It’s a bit of a blow.

"He looks fit and he’s raring to go but the specialist has suggested that we let it all settle down and give him four to six weeks’ rest.

"The training ground pitches are like concrete, so they’re just aggravating him every time he trains. We’re hoping that by managing it, it’s enough to not need surgery, which would be the next step.

"We’ve gone as far as we can without having surgery and if it cures it, great but if it doesn’t, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it."

Read the full story in the Gravesend Messenger.