Peter Varney hailed Ebbsfleet's supporters as "magnificent" after they roared their team to victory in Saturday's play-off final.

Stonebridge Road was rocking as two late goals in the space of four minutes turned the game on its head and sent Fleet into the National League.

Fleet were a man and a goal down with 35 minutes left and the 2,300 home fans responded by cranking up the volume to lift Daryl McMahon's players.

Mr Varney said: "The crowd were fantastic for us. The noise they made in that second half, they almost sucked the ball in at that end.

"They were absolutely magnificent.

"It was a brilliant day. To go down to 10 men and then put on a performance like that in the second half, it just shows the character of the squad here. Some other managers have called into question the team spirit and commitment but you saw it in abundance.

"Great shot for Daryl because he changed things in a way which influenced the game massively (sending on Jack Powell for Danny Kedwell) and with 10 men, we looked much the better side at the end."

There were a few worried faces in the directors box when Fleet had Anthony Cook sent-off just before half-time. Chelmsford went on to take the lead 10 minutes after the break.

Mr Varney said: "You sometimes think maybe the world’s against you and that it’s not meant to happen.

"Daryl’s plan was always to bring on Jack Powell and Darren McQueen later on, as they tired, but it all had to happen a bit quicker. I thought they were absolutely brilliant in the second half."

McMahon and Kedwell lifted the trophy in front of the new main stand at Stonebridge Road, the first side of the ground to be rebuilt as the Fleet's old home undergoes a complete transformation.

Mr Varney said: "If you look around the ground, you see the £5million stand that’s nearing completion, on Wednesday our hotel development goes up to the planning committee at Gravesham and if that’s approved, we start on that.

"What we’re trying to do is build a club at the same time as build a team. From my experience, that’s always the difficult bit.

"You need that bit of success to kickstart the things you’re doing off the pitch.

"You saw it on Saturday, a packed stadium, all the singing and the support that came in the second half. In recent weeks, the gates have been over 2,000.

"Teams go through good and bad spells but now they’re seeing all these facilities being built, not the old tin shed with a bit of terracing, it’s now a football club rising out from the ground.

"People do attach themselves to success and they do like facilities now. They can be quite discerning between what they do at a football match or go to the cinema or a show.

"I’d like to think we’ve tried to keep the pricing here very competitive.

"As Ebbsfleet Garden City evolves, we’re trying to make this the place to come."