Nobody needs to tell freshly-appointed Margate captain Sam Blackman how tricky their opening Isthmian Premier fixture of the season could be.

Gate host newly-promoted Whitehawk on Saturday, August 12, with the east Sussex side having beaten Hythe in last term’s Isthmian South East play-off Final to return to Step 3 football.

Midfielder Blackman certainly won’t underestimate their first league opponents and recalls how, even in the top flight, new boys have been known to spring early surprises.

He said: “Sometimes, they can be the hardest ones to play.

“You even see it in the Premier League. I remember Brentford came up and beat Arsenal, first game of the season [2-0 in 2021].

“But you can’t ask for much more than a home game on your opening day. The league this year is going to be tough.

“You can see some of the players that are being signed. There’s a lot of teams going for it, which is good.

“You want to be playing in competitive leagues and against competitive teams.

“Whitehawk at home, we’re looking forward to it already. Hopefully, we can get a good result.”

Blackman has taken the Gate captain’s armband this summer and it’s a new role he is relishing.

“It’s good,” he noted.

“I enjoy it. It’s a nice responsibility.

“Hopefully, it’ll calm me down a little bit - but probably not!

“But it’s a privilege to captain the club.”

He has taken over from influential playmaker Ben Greenhalgh, who will continue to be Margate manager Reece Prestedge’s No.2 for the campaign, although he still will be a vital player.

Blackman said: “I’ve known Ben for a few years now.

“He’s good.

“He’s experienced, he’s been about and is a very good coach who knows his stuff. But he’s still a very good footballer.

“It’s always good to have him on the pitch.”

Margate are well into their pre-season now and, having won 4-0 at home to Southern Counties East Division 1 Canterbury City last Tuesday, they lost 2-1 at Isthmian South East Herne Bay three days later, despite defender Harry Hudson’s effort.

“We said at half-time that this is as close to a league game as you’re going to get in pre-season,” said Blackman, whose side were without summer signing striker Steve Cawley and Prestedge, with coach Elliot Leveson in charge in the dug-out.

“There were a lot of tackles going in, it was tasty, so it was a good test for us.

“They’re a decent outfit, we had a few missing and tried a few things.”

Blackman will be joined in Gate’s midfield by Leo Mazzone.

The 26-year-old, formerly of Ebbsfleet, featured in their first three warm-up fixtures, which included crashing a long-range effort onto the bar in their 3-3 draw with Deal Town.

Mazzone had suffered an injury which forced him out of the game for a period but, most recently, he featured for Whitstable.

“I think he’d been out for about a year-and-a-half with a serious knee injury,” explained Blackman.

“He’s coming back and he’s done well in his games. He’s earned his deal.

“There’s competition for places, which is what you want.

“We have got four or five midfielders, we have got three or four strikers, so competition all over the pitch which - we hope - will make us a better 11.”

Others signed by Gate, who host Sittingbourne this Saturday, include goalkeeper Damian Niemczycki, along with defenders Archie Johnson and Tyrone Sterling.

While it’s still early days, the skipper feels the initial signs are positive.

Blackman said: “We’ve kept a good core from last year and we’ve added some really good players.

“It’s still early days yet. People are gelling, figuring out how each individual works, how they like to run and how they like to do things.

“So it’s still new but so far, so good.”

Gate beat National League South Dartford 2-0 through goals by Phil Roberts and Greenhalgh on Tuesday and visit Corinthian next Tuesday.