Chatham Town plan to cap their 130th anniversary celebrations by officially opening their new clubhouse extension at Maidstone Road in May.

They hope to hold their annual end-of-season presentation night in the new facility, and chairman Jeff Talbot said: "It is a tough target we have set ourselves, but at the moment we are on course to meet it."

Supporters have donated around £1,000 towards a ‘buy-a-brick scheme’, and the club have now started a ‘buy a window’ initiative to raise more funds.

Mr Talbot said: "Both have proved good ideas. There is a not a lot of money out there at the moment, but every little helps and we always need more."

Chatham’s lease means they now run the whole site themselves, and Mr Talbot estimates that it will cost around £50,000 a season to fund.

He said "The figure includes paying all the bills, so we need as many revenue streams to cover it. The new extension will give us two new multi-purpose areas which we want to see used 24/7.

"They could be used as classrooms during the day, and meetings in the evening, while the upstairs room, which we have named the President’s Lounge, could be used by local companies as a cost-effective venue for team-bonding exercises and other functions."

Chatham are due to host Great Wakering Rovers in Ryman League Division 1 North on Saturday, but Mr Talbot believes the game is unlikely to beat the freezing weather. A pitch inspection is planned for 10am on Saturday .