Gillingham are keeping tabs on the hottest talent in Kent, says boss Steve Evans.

The manager does admit they don’t have huge resources to plough into scouting but insists they have their eye on things locally.

Evans was responding to a question put to him during the recent Zoom question and answer sessions, which took place over three nights.

Supporters were able to quiz the manager on any topic they wanted. Jim Staples was one of those, asking about the scouting network at the club and following it up by inviting the manager for a pint at the Frog & Toad in Gillingham, which was duly accepted.

Evans said: “We have got four people, one who works almost on a national basis, and he controls the other three guys, one in the north, one in the Midlands and one around Maidstone/Kent way.

“We are like supporters, it doesn’t sit with us well if we see a player go from a club like Dover or a Folkestone or Deal Town, anybody, and end up going into our level or higher and doing very well. We need to be on top of it.

“Myself and (assistant manager) Paul Raynor look at it as best we can and we check the non-league reports on a Sunday and a Monday. Anybody of the age profile that we see are scoring goals or defending and getting mentioned then we should be watching them in the next two fixtures.

“We have to rely on our people that look at games and players for us and to see whether myself or Paul should be going.

“We have ruled out a lot of players in Kent who have been recommended to us, at Folkestone and Dartford and different places. When we have looked at them, we have thought, ‘given what we have got and who we are looking at are they better than them?’ The professional opinion has had to be no.”

Evans accepts that they can’t throw huge resources at scouting.

He said: “We should be having three or four (scouts) from local football, two or three in non-league, but even if scouts phone up and say they will do it for expenses, just for fuel only, as some of them do because they love the game, it is still very difficult sometimes to go to the chairman and say to him the expenses for scouts has come in and it’s £2,000 or £1,800.

“That might make him think, ‘well what have we found there? We haven’t found anything.’ If we don’t then find anything the next month it can go on like that.

“It is through word of mouth normally, through reports of players doing well, bringing it to your attention.”

Even if the Gills do spot a talent locally, they may still be then competing with teams higher up the pyramid with money available to take a gamble.

Check out the biggest of Kent’s non-league movers in recent years and see how they have got on.

Read more on the Gills