Hythe boss Sam Denly has been dealing with an injury crisis this week.

The Cannons were struggling for numbers after Saturday’s friendly against Tunbridge Wells – a game Denly now admits might have been a mistake.

Town faced Burgess Hill in the Velocity Trophy last night (Tuesday) with a squad padded out by players recalled from loan spells.

But when Hythe fly to Guernsey on Saturday, the manager expects to have most of his key men available.

“In hindsight, it’s a game I wouldn’t have had,” Denly reflected after the 2-0 defeat to Tunbridge Wells.

“We came in early for a training session, more working on things in preparation for next week but I’ve now got a few injuries.

“We had a few beforehand and we’ve picked up a couple more. Junior (Aikhionbare) came off injured Saturday so we’ve got a mini injury crisis at the moment.”

Zak Ansah and Nathan Daly return for the Guernsey game after both were unavailable in midweek.

Denly hopes to have Zach Fagan and Jack Sammoutis fit but Aikhionbare, Ryan Palmer, Chris Kinnear, Josh Stirman and Jack Negus are all struggling.

Hythe head to the Channel Islands third in the league while Guernsey have won their last two matches. Denly said: “You could say we’re not playing them at an ideal stage of the season because they have picked up a few good results lately.

“Steve Nolan watched them on Saturday against Sevenoaks and was impressed.

“On their day, they’re a dangerous side and going away makes it difficult.

“They’ve got some good players but, like most weeks, we’ll concentrate on ourselves because we’ve got more than enough to beat anyone in the league.

“If we’re not at our best, it’ll be a difficult day because they are a good side.”

It’s a long day but Denly said: “We’re used to now.

“In some regards, I quite enjoy it because it’s something different. It’s not every weekend you fly to a football
fixture.

“Logistically, it can be a bit of a headache but it is what it is. They’ve been in the league a long time now so we become accustomed to it.

“Travelling on Saturday morning is more of a headache.

“You used to stay Friday night and that’s so much easier because you get there after work, have dinner together and you walk across the road and you’re there.

“It was better when we did that but that changed a few years ago because of expenses.”