After an excellent first season in charge of our U23 team it was sad news that Rich Williams was leaving the club for health reasons. The club is grateful for the work Rich and his assistants Dan Hart and Keith Clark put in with our young players and wish them all well for the future.

As to our future as the U23 North season kicks off with a trip to Horley Town on Thursday evening, we welcome our new manager, Ryan Lovejoy. If the name is familiar it is because Ryan has been with the club since the back end of the 2021/22 season and has played for both the First Team and the U23s since he arrived. He was the U23 captain last season making 12 appearances and scoring 4 goals.

So let us find out some more about Ryan

When did you start playing football and which teams have you played for if not just Lingfield? Are you still playing?

I started playing football at a young age – just 4 years old and played at Kent County level for Snodland Town, Cuxton 91 and Guru Nanak FC, before going to play semi pro in Germany for 1. FCA Darmstadt, and then on to sign a professional contract with ASD Roccella in Italy. I currently play for Cuxton 91 in the Kent County Premier Division and Lordswood of the South East Counties League Premier Division.

1. FCA Darmstadt play in the Gruppenliga Darmstadt, a Tier 7 league in the city of Darmstadt in the state of Hessen in central Germany. ASD Roccella are a team in the town of Roccella Ionica in Calabria in the south of Italy and play in a regional Tier 5 league, the Excellenza Calabria.

How did you end up going to Darmstadt and then to Italy?

I had a friend who had just played pro football in Gibraltar, who came and trained with the team I was at. He saw potential in me and helped me get a trial with Darmstadt and it went from there. While out in Germany I got signed by an agent who sent me for trials in Milan for the Italian professional academy, and from there got scouted by Roccella.

What has inspired you to become a coach and when did you start doing your coaching courses? What are your aims as a coach/manager?

I have always wanted to be involved in football, so when I am not playing I loved the idea of coaching and currently do it for a job so it’s a win-win! I started my coaching courses three years ago and want to further my qualifications as much as possible. My aims as a coach and manager is just to develop as many young talents as possible. As a captain last year I worked very closely with certain young players, helping them grow in confidence on and off the pitch.

You said that your job is coaching - at what level and with whom?

I work for a coaching company called Skills Academy in Orpington. Just doing after school clubs and PE provision, as well as an elite session with our best players.

How has the pre-season and player recruitment been? Are you pleased with your squad with a lot of new faces I presume?

Pre-season has been quite successful this year for the club as a whole I believe, and that is what we consider ourselves as, rather than being two separate teams - we prefer to operate as one. There is a good core from last year, especially with some of the younger players like Jack Lazarus and Ellis Newbold who are exciting young players, but also new faces that I cannot wait to see in league action. Overall I am very pleased with our squad!

What are your ambitions for this season? What benchmarks are you setting for the team?

My ambitions for this year are to push as many of my young players into the first team as possible, creating healthy competition for the first team and getting the younger players valuable experience. I believe we have a very strong squad that can compete for everything we are presented with.