The introduction of promotion play-offs into the Southern Counties East Premier Division is a welcome boost for the likes of Hollands & Blair.

In past seasons the race for promotion out of Step Five has been dominated by one or two teams - Erith & Belvedere went up as champions last term and Phoenix Sports won the inter-step promotion match against VCD. Sheppey and Chatham swept aside allcomers the previous year.

Blair are hoping to be in the mix this season as positions two to five will be open for a four-team end-of-season play-offs and a chance of making it into the Isthmian League.

It’s still a big ask for Blair, who finished 15th last year, but they head into this season on the back of their SCEFL Challenge Cup win in May and, unlike last term, have had a home ground to warm up for the season and a place to call their own.

This time last year their Star Meadow home pitch was still being resurfaced and the ground transformed.

“There is a good buzz around the place,” said boss Scott Porter. “We’re training on our own pitch, which we didn’t have last pre-season. To turn up Tuesday and Thursday, it doesn’t matter what the weather is, to train on that surface is a pleasure. The lads are benefiting from it and the sessions have been great.

“Our pre-season has gone well, we had one disappointing result, the first one against Gillingham, but it was really good after that one. Folkestone was a great test for us.

“The boys have adapted to a new system. A couple have come in, a couple have adapted to the new way we want to play, a couple have moved positions with what we’ve worked on and we have done a lot of work in the classroom with video analysis.

“We got out of jail last season by winning the [Challenge] Cup, otherwise it would have been a failure in my eyes because the league position was very poor. We wanted to finish higher than eighth, which is where we were the first half season we were there.

“Like a lot of teams we have the play-offs this season and I am sure, like me, many managers are thinking ‘we can get into the play-offs’ and that’s what we want to do.

“There are some big teams in the league, some big money flying around, but we set our targets high - as a group we are looking to get into the play-offs 100%.

Blair completed their pre-season schedule on Saturday with a 2-0 win over Hawkinge Town. Last Tuesday’s game against Isthmian Premier Folkestone ended in a 5-2 defeat.

Blair took the lead in that game, newcomer midfielder Alfie Giles netting. Substitute Jamie Thain added a second.

An injury blow earlier in pre-season has meant George Benner (groin) being sidelined. He could be out for another month, but it’s given another player a chance to shine.

Porter said: “Dale Davis, a local boy, has come in and he’s growing into it. He has been a massive plus as a left-sided centre-half.”

Former Arsenal youth player Davis is the third new arrival following Giles and left-back Keegan Wickham to the club.

Blair open their SCEFL Premier Division season this Saturday away to Tunbridge Wells, a side who have experienced some turmoil following the shock departure of manager Luke Carpenter last week.

Porter said: “Teams chop and change players during pre-season so those first 10 games you going into it a little blind anyway.

“We’ll just go and concentrate on ourselves, keep doing what we’ve been doing in pre-season.”