Chatham Town manager Kevin Hake is preparing for another testing clash against Ashford United as they battle for a place in a cup final.

Chats twice beat the Nuts & Bolts in the league last season but needed a penalty shootout to edge past them on the way to the Kent Cup final during that campaign.

The teams had met in the FA Cup preliminary round the season before that - a tie that went to a replay before Chats progressed on penalties.

They meet for a place in the Velocity Cup final tonight (Tuesday).

There’s a division between the sides now, with Isthmian Premier Division high-flyers Chatham coming up against an Ashford side sitting mid-table in the South East Division.

Hake may well make changes again to his side following Saturday’s league win over Concord Rangers but won’t be underestimating the visitors.

He said: “Ashford are a club that we always seem to traditionally draw in cup competitions over recent seasons. All of our games have been great games in recent years and I expect this to be no different.

“We would like to go one further than we did last year after we lost on penalties in the semi-final against Aveley but we will need to be at our best and will need full support from the terraces to do that.”

The winner will play Hashtag United in the final after their semi-final victory over Haringey Borough on Monday night, winning 2-1 thanks to a last-minute goal.

The final is scheduled for Wednesday, April 17 at Aveley FC’s Parkside ground.