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Hythe Town manager Steve Watt believes Saturday’s home FA Trophy tie with Hastings United will be a good benchmark for his side.
Hythe made it back-to-back wins in Isthmian South East with Saturday’s 2-0 home victory over Haywards Heath and are starting to look the way Watt wants them to.
The Heath win lifted the Cannons up to 13th but Watt admits unbeaten leaders Hastings will be a different proposition in the first qualifying round tie.
The Sussex side have started the season with five wins and three draws to head the table, two points clear of Sevenoaks.
Watt, who spent time at Pilot Field as assistant boss when Darren Hare was in charge, said: “Hastings always have a good side, they’re well organised and have got a good blend of youth and experience.
“They’ve got a management team who have been in place for a couple of years and that always helps.
“We don’t have the resources they’ve got but it will be a good gauge of where we are at the moment, how far how we are behind them.
“We might find we’re not a million miles away.”
Watt described the Haywards Heath win as comfortable and was pleased with the quartet who made their debuts – Jamie Coyle, James Rogers and Alex Flisher, who started, and Aristide Bassele, who came off the bench.
Former Dartford joint-boss Coyle was playing for the first time in two years and the 36-year-old marked the occasion with Hythe’s opening goal.
Watt said: “Jamie looked like he’d never been away.
"I texted him during the week to say I fancied him to get a few goals at this level and he was unlucky not to get a second because he had another header cleared off the line.
“I thought the starting XI and the substitutes all played their part and that’s encouraging because it shows we’re developing a strong squad.
“It was much more how I want things to look and how I imagined my team to be set up.”
Winger Bassele, who played for Watt at Margate, is playing in an attempt to earn a deal and the Hythe boss says he continues be contacted by players wanting to come to Reachfields.
He added: “I think I’ve got a waiting list. I’ve had texts myself, as have some of players.”
Hythe were beaten 2-1 by Ashford in the Velocity Trophy at Homelands on Tuesday on a night when Watt took the chance to ring the changes.
Striker Frannie Collin (tight calf) was among those to sit it out.
Meanwhile midfielder Chris Kinnear has left the club by mutual consent.
