Hythe’s relegation scrap at Whitehawk has become that bit harder after the Sussex club sacked their manager.

Ross Standen has been replaced by Shaun Saunders after the Hawks’ 3-0 defeat at Whitstable at the weekend.

The Cannons trail Whitehawk on goal difference in Isthmian South East, with the clubs two points clear of the bottom three with four games remaining.

Hythe boss James Rogers expects a reaction from the hosts this Saturday after a change in the dugout.

“I think it becomes a harder game now,” said Rogers. “You know what it’s like when a new manager goes in, the players want to get in the side and stay in the side and they raise their game.

“It can go the other way where some of the players have the hump because their manager’s gone but normally people want to buckle down and prove themselves to the new manager.

“It’s going to be hard down here. We’ll set up to be hard to beat first and foremost, and make sure we don’t lose, and try to nick something if we can.

There won’t be much pretty football on display and Rogers makes no apologies for that.

“You can’t play a lot of football with the pitches the way they are at this time of year,” added Rogers.

“It’ll be a similar story there, and you’ve got that slope going both ways.

“I already know it’s going to be a poor game but we’ve got to dig in and try and get something from it because it’s getting tight down the bottom.”

Hythe beat Ashford 5-4 on penalties after a 1-1 draw to reach the Kent Senior Cup semi-finals on Tuesday last week.

Having played well against the Nuts & Bolts, Hythe limped to a 1-1 league draw against fellow strugglers Lancing on Saturday.

Riley Alford’s ninth-minute goal cancelled out the visitors’ early opener but Hythe were perhaps lucky to take a point.

“They had the better chances, they’ll probably be disappointed with a draw,” said Rogers.

“There wasn’t a lot of quality, it was a typical game between two teams at the bottom.

“I wasn’t happy with it and I let a few of the boys know. I told them I expect more off the ball if anything.

“First half we were good on the ball but we were letting people run past us and not getting tight, and that costs you.

“We take the positives of being three games unbeaten but we need to learn.

“I thought we played really well against Ashford on Tuesday, we deserved to win that game.

“But saying that, it’s the Kent Senior Cup and I said to Wynts (assistant boss Tom Wynter) it’s easy turning up and playing in the cup with no pressure and a half-decent crowd.

"It’s games like Lancing, in front of 160, they’re the games where your mentality shows through.

“You’ve got to be able to get up for those games.”