Jay Saunders is aiming for an immediate return to the Ryman League Premier Division in his first full season as a manager.

After seeing his Maidstone United side fall short in their attempt to escape from relegation, with a 2-0 loss at Hornchurch on Saturday, Saunders immediately targeted winning promotion back to the top division in a year’s time.

He said: "In an ideal world we will drop down for a season and come back up straight away and ready to go into the new ground in Maidstone. That would be the dream.

"We’ll have to see. Sometimes you have to take a step back to take two forward. Both Dover and Dartford have been down to this division in the last few years and have gone onwards and upwards since then.

"Obviously we never wanted to go down, we didn’t want to suffer our first relegation, but hopefully we can enjoy some big games and some Kent derbies next season, win some games and get back up at the first attempt."

He added: "It won’t be easy, I know that. It’s a tough league, the standard might not be as high, but it is a hard league to get out of."

After agreeing to a one-year rolling contract as permanent boss after a successful caretaker spell in charge, Saunders (pictured) has already begun planning for next season.

He said: "It is all a new experience for me, but I’m enjoying it, arranging friendlies and pre-season training and working with a budget.