Whitstable Town manager Keith McMahon tells his side they must not get carried away as they eye a fifth successive Isthmian South East victory
Published: 05:00, 17 December 2021
Updated: 12:20, 17 December 2021
Boss Keith McMahon reckons Whitstable must not get carried away as they chase a fifth straight league win.
The Oystermen, who only had a single point on the board when McMahon took charge in early October, are pulling clear from the bottom of the Isthmian South East table.
They are six points clear of second-bottom East Grinstead - although that gap will be reduced to three points if the Wasps win at The Belmont this Saturday when the sides meet.
McMahon said: “We are only four points off 12th but the old cliche of taking one game at a time comes in.
“But 10 games ago, we only had one point. If we keep doing what we are doing, we have got to be looking at finishing in mid-table - or maybe pushing above that.
"But we cannot run away with ourselves.
“After Saturday, we have two tough local derbies. We are concentrating on the right games at the right times, and you can see now why I wasn’t too focused on the Kent Senior Cup match at Ashford.
"We just need to keep going.
“We have shown great fight and desire to get where we are. If we can keep performing the way we have been, I’m sure we can push ourselves further up the league.
“But if we lose on Saturday, which is possible - they had a decent result last weekend against Haywards Heath - then we are looking over our shoulders a bit more again.
“Hopefully in the last home game before Christmas, we can put on a good performance for the fans.”
Jake MacKenzie, who has been moved into midfielder, netted the only goal in Whitstable’s 1-0 victory at Sevenoaks on Saturday.
McMahon added: “He did well. We have moved him into another position. It was a training-ground goal which was good to see.
“Jake has been excellent for us.
“He is a Whitstable lad, he lives around the corner from the ground and he is one of the reasons why we have done so well recently.”
Samuel Itauma made his first start for the Oystermen too.
McMahon stated: “He’s only 18 but he’s steady. He’s quick for his age.
“He did well, and he should be pleased about that.”
McMahon may have signed another midfielder before their match against East Grinstead and winger Alex Gaggin may play some part as he continues his recovery from a hamstring injury.
McMahon said: “Gaggs doesn’t usually get too many injuries but we need to make sure he is 100 per cent fit.
“If we have a fully fit Alex Gaggin, I’m sure he will get us quite a few points in the second-half of the season.”
Gus Barnes, who limped off at Sevenoaks, is a doubt while defenders Ollie Gray and Jack Miles are not expected to return before the end of January.
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