Sheppey United hope to secure the title on Saturday and are rolling back the prices to encourage as many people as possible to come along.

The Ites last won the title at step five level in 1995, when they landed the Kent League, and it's now within their grasp again, heading into the weekend sitting top of the Southern Counties East Premier Division.

Co-chairman Matthew Smith, who has been at the helm for 10 years, wants the whole community to come out and savour the occasion. Sheppey need to beat bottom side Tower Hamlets to clinch the championship but are already promoted regardless.

Mr Smith said: “I want every person on the Isle of Sheppey to come to Holm Park on Saturday and show the team just how proud they are of them, because this team are creating massive history that I do not think will be repeated for a good few years.

“Our supporters are superb and have been all season, and Saturday will give the team a chance to thank them by putting on a show worthy of being crowned champions!”

Supporters attending the match at Holm Park early, between 12pm and 1pm, can not only pay half the admission price (which is already cheap) - cash only - but enjoy half-price draught beer during that hour. Every adult entering the ground will also be entered into a raffle to win one of three season tickets.

Those who work for the NHS, the armed forces or a “blue light” service can gain admittance for free by showing their ID. The match will be followed by the club’s award ceremony, including the player-of-the-year, and live music.

Standard admission price for the match from 1pm onwards is just £5 for adults, £2 concessions and free for children. Under-16s have to be accompanied by an adult.

“We want to show our supporters how much we respect what they have done for the team and the club as a whole during this historic season,” added Smith.

• More: A fitting finale says Ites boss Ernie

United have been pushed hard for the title by Chatham Town and are two points clear of their rivals, who are managed by their chairman Kevin Hake - a familiar figure for those at Sheppey.

Both Smith and Hake took over the old Sheerness East team 10 years ago and much has changed since then, on and off the field. It will be a proud moment this Saturday.

Mr Smith said: “As I sit looking back over my past 10 years here at the club it's quite fitting that on the 10th anniversary of taking over Sheerness East FC we find ourselves promoted to Step 4 football.

“When I first walked onto the Isle of Sheppey back in 2012, I had a dream of bringing senior football back to the island and that dream this Saturday will finally be realised.

“As has been well documented, I tried to obtain planning permission for floodlights at the Sheerness East Working Men’s Club, however, this was never going to be agreed by Swale Borough Council, so following a few chats with James Gray I was put in touch with Gibraltar-based Ernie Batten at the time.

“I called him and told him my vision for senior football on the island and I could tell from his voice he had heard it all before but I knew how serious Kevin (Hake) and I were. We held various meetings with the old Sheppey United directors and the merger was finalised in April 2013 where we moved to Holm Park.

“The main stand and fencing were installed ready for the start of the 2013/14 season where we successfully won the Kent Intermediate Shield and promotion from Step 7 (Kent County League Premier Division) into Step 6 football. Floodlights were erected in January 2015 whilst competing at Step 6 in the old Kent Invicta league.”

Batten returned from Gibraltar to take charge of the team ahead of the 2015/16 season after standing down from his role as co-chairman.

That season they won the Kent Senior Trophy and promotion to step five after finishing runners-up to Bearsted.

“Given that Ernie and I have only really had four full seasons together in step five the achievement is even more remarkable,” Smith said, having lost two seasons to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Both Ernie and myself have invested heavily on the Holm Park infrastructure during my tenure as chairman and that’s the part of this journey I am most proud of.

“We have given the Isle of Sheppey something to be proud of and have given a sense of footballing pride back to the community that was starved of senior football on the island for well over 25 years!

“My philosophy of club ownership seems to differ from many others, I liken any football club to a listed building where we are only ever custodians of the football club for a chapter of years.

"During that time it’s our duty to make that club better not always having success on the pitch but building the infrastructure, community engagement and creating a self-sustainable model to make the club better for when you pass it on.

“My honest belief is that football clubs should only ever be part owned with supporters holding a large stake of the club so their wishes can be heard. Semi-professional football now is a vast business that requires day-to-day running and had someone told me this back in 2012 I am unsure if my journey would have started, but alas it has.

“Gary Seamark, my joint chairman, has achieved brilliant things at the youth section and we have teams ranging from under-8s all the way through to under-18s and again all completed in the space of six years, with the youth only really joining us in 2015/16.

“Gary has been superb as joint chairman and this season is testament to him and all the committee for how far we have come as a football club.”

The top two teams in the SCEFL Premier Division will be promoted to the Isthmian League for next season. The champions go up automatically and the second placed side are heading up comfortably as one of the best runners-up at step five level on points per game average.

Chatham Town have a better goal difference than Sheppey. If United don’t win and Chats beat Erith Town away, then the Medway side will win the title.