Two youth-team prospects could be handed more first-team opportunities in Whitstable’s season run-in.

The sixth-placed Oystermen remain just outside the top five in the Southern Counties East Premier Division.

They beat Rusthall 3-1 at home last Saturday through goals from midfielder Mikey Dalton, striker Emmanuel Oloyede and substitute James Jeffrey but were edged out 3-2 by leaders Deal on Easter Monday.

With a three-game ban for Jeffrey around the corner and defenders George Sheminant, Ollie Gray and skipper Tom Mills sustaining knocks, manager Marcel Nimani has some selection headaches ahead of this Saturday’s home match against Sutton Athletic.

But attacker Manny Cuttress was a late substitute against Deal and fellow youth-team product Alfie Wood has also caught the eye.

Nimani’s No.2 Craig Coles said: “Manny Cuttress has been fantastic. He has been in training recently and scoring a lot of goals for the under-23s.

“We have got another young lad called Alfie Wood. No doubt, he will be in and around the squad.

“He’s another really good player from the system that the club has got.

“There’s players in there that have trained and played with us - they’re just two of them.

“The boys love them. Both have fantastic attitudes for boys that are so young.

“Hopefully, there will be an opportunity for one - or both - to show what they have got in the last four games of the season.”

Coles was optimistic some of their more experienced players would be fit to play some part this weekend, though.

He said: “We have got quite a few with knocks and stuff. It’s tough.

“We won’t know better until probably Thursday.

“Hopefully, there’s a couple of boys that have got a chance for Saturday.”

Whitstable still are hopeful of a top-five finish this term but Coles know there is little to no margin for error now if they are to achieve it.

“If a Lydd or a Bearsted win seven or eight on the bounce, fair play to them,” said Coles.
“Until that happens, we will keep fighting.

“There’s still 12 points up for grabs and that would take us to 73 points. Around 10 games ago, we predicted between 72 to 75 would be enough for the last play-off spot.

“It’s just a case of making sure the attitudes are right.”

Goals from Oloyede and substitute Harvey Smith were not enough for the Oystermen against the Hoops, who twice fought back from behind and then won it at the death.

Coles reflected: “We didn’t deserve to get nothing out of the game, even when we went down to 10 men.

“The boys worked so hard. It’s a cliche - but we have to take the positives out of it.

“We went down to 10 men and both centre-halves went down.

“But, in saying that, the players on the field at the end of the game, we couldn’t ask any more of them. It was always going to be tough with 10 men.”

Jeffrey was dismissed shortly after he’d come on after a push away from a visiting player.

“Unfortunately, nowadays, the referee is only going to do one thing,” Coles admitted.

“When JJ gets the first push, is that a red card if he goes down? I don’t know.

“With JJ just coming on the pitch, it wasn’t necessary. But it is what it is. We have just got to take it.”

While Nimani’s troops are still eyeing a potential promotion spot, Sutton Athletic, managed by 24-year-old former Gillingham, Faversham and Ramsgate defender Ryan Huckle, have still not yet secured survival.

Coles said: “Ultimately, we’re still in for a potential promotion spot.

“I don’t think they go down but, in their heads, I can imagine they probably want another three to five points.

“So, they will be a tough side to play against.

“I know Ryan from his Gillingham days. He’s a good lad and is trying to get his team to play the right way.”

Jeffrey will be available to face Sutton Athletic before his potentially season-ending suspension.