Hythe Town intend to make the most of teenage midfielder Luca Woodhouse while they have him.

Woodhouse has joined the Cannons on loan from National South club Tonbridge.

The 17-year-old scored on his debut and also hit the bar in a 2-1 home defeat by Herne Bay on New Year’s Day.

Hythe went on to lose 3-1 at Sevenoaks on Monday but Woodhouse impressed once again.

Cannons player-boss James Rogers likes the look of the young midfielder and is tipping him for a good career.

“He’s been a massive plus for us,” said Rogers, who’s been without assistant boss Tom Wynter and first-team coach Will Graham on the sidelines for the past two games following positive Covid tests.

“He’ll go on and play for Tonbridge’s first-team and I think he’ll go beyond that.

“He’s just got something about him, he’s really impressive.

“I know Macca (Angels boss Steve McKimm), I’ve played against him and his teams over the years, and I know Tom Parkinson, who’s Luca’s academy manager at Tonbridge.

“It helps knowing people because it allows us to get players in.

“I hadn’t seen him play before but I threw him in against Herne Bay and he did really well and I thought he looked lively again against Sevenoaks.

“Macca believes if he does well, in six to eight weeks he could be ready for Conference football.

“We’ll keep him as long as we possibly can but he’s Macca’s player and he wants to play as high as he possibly can, which is how all young players should be.”

Hythe played well in defeat against Herne Bay - deserving a point - but Rogers lost his cool for the first time following the 3-1 defeat at Sevenoaks.

Jordan Sarfo’s fifth goal in eight games gave them the lead but they couldn’t hold on.

“I thought we were neat and tidy but in the final third we panicked and made wrong decisions,” said Rogers, whose side are 15th in Isthmian South East after back-to-back losses.

“We passed the ball out for a goal-kick four or five times with someone running in behind, when it should have been a simple five or 10-yard ball.

“I lost my rag for the first time after the game. I exploded, to be honest. I expect better, I expect better quality, I expect the work-rate to be higher and I expect us to keep our concentration.

“Defensively, we’re making far too many mistakes but again we’re missing George Crimmen and Tom Wynter, who are two big players for us.

"Once they’re fit, we can start moving forward and picking up more clean sheets.”

Hythe host Whitehawk at Reachfields this Saturday.

It’s a big game, with the visitors ahead of Rogers’ men on goal difference.

Wynter and Graham will be back in the dugout, easing the burden on Rogers, as the Cannons bid for just a second home win of the season.

“I told the boys after Sevenoaks that Whitehawk is a must-win game for us,” said Rogers.

“That’s how I see it and I believe we’ve got the players to do that.

“We put in a good performance at home against Herne Bay and we take confidence from that.

“If we play our game, make better decisions and stop making silly mistakes, I don’t see why we can’t win that game.”