NEW manager Tony Reid is in the process of assessing the players currently at Farnham Town, and busy attracting new talent to The Memorial Ground to put together a squad capable of challenging for promotion next season.

"I’ve been looking at the players here, in matches and in training while we have been working on new things," he said. "We have brought back Owen Dean from Badshot Lea and I have some feelers out for new players.

"Some of them aren’t playing at the moment and are getting over knocks, and others have been away or have had Covid.

"I like to work with a big squad because what we are putting our players through I’m not sure if they will cope with two games in a week, because their bodies are going to be recovering because of the high intensity.

"We will still have some more players coming in and so far only one player has told me he wants to leave - he hadn’t really featured anyway and said he wanted to go to get first-team football somewhere.

"He wanted to play up front but when I have players like Max Blackmore to call upon, his chances are going to be limited. Max is only half fit at the moment and will give me probably 60 minutes, but in those 60 minutes he frightens the life out of defenders.

"As a team, we need to start getting some consistency on our game now. We have long-term plans here - we want to finish as high as we can this season, and look to start really well the following season.

"We’re planning for the next season but along the way yes, we are all going to work hard, but we will all enjoy what we are doing."

Town’s next game is a home clash with Sheerwater today (Saturday) at 3pm.

Badshot Lea go into the second half of the season with one message to their players - be more clinical in front of goal.

But they will have to make do without the influential Dean Rule, who has signed for high-riding Walton & Hersham.

Swans manager Scott Harris - who also signed winger Ollie Twum from Sutton Common Rovers - said: "Signing Ollie and Dean gives a huge boost to everyone at the club, and is a sign of the club’s intent.

"Both have huge potential but most importantly are proven at this level and will be able to help us immediately."

Baggies co-manager Gavin Smith wants his team to show their ruthlessness as they aim to remain among the promotion contenders. He said: "At the moment I feel if we go 1-0 up in a match we will win it, because we relax. But we have gifted too many goals and if you do that you will end up drawing or losing matches.

"In our last game, we lost 3-2 to Fleet but I don’t think they had to play that well to win - they just capitalised on our mistakes.

"We have played well this season - I thought we were better than Jersey Bulls and matched Walton. We have shown good qualities but we just need to be ruthless against teams we should beat, because that could be our downfall.

"I’d love to get promotion this year, but to do that we would need to go on one heck of a run, and beat all the teams we need to beat, and all the teams we should beat.

"There are a lot of good team in the league - I can’t see Walton & Hersham and Beckenham losing many games, sides like Guildford are really starting to pick up so it’s going to be really hard.

"We have to believe in what we are doing. Whatever happens will happen."

The Baggies are next in action today (Saturday) when they travel to play Balham at 3pm.