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Folkestone Invicta boss Neil Cugley hopes the return of Ian Draycott and Sam Hasler can help his side rediscover their form

Folkestone boss Neil Cugley has backed Ian Draycott and Joe Taylor to fire their side up the Ryman League, Premier Division.

With Wednesday night's game at Leatherhead postponed due to a frozen pitch, Cugley will welcome double Golden Boot winner Draycott back after surgery on a broken hand for Saturday's visit of Lowestoft to the Fullicks Stadium (3pm) and is also boosted by the return of midfielder Sam Hasler after suspension.

Draycott hasn’t played since the win over Billericay – in which Hasler scored the only goal – on November 22 which was Invicta’s fourth straight win in a superb month.

Ian Draycott Picture: Gary Browne
Ian Draycott Picture: Gary Browne

Since then, though, Invicta have claimed just six points from eight league games – five of which Hasler missed through suspension – and scored 11 goals in that spell, two fewer than they scored in those four November wins alone.

Cugley said: “You hope as a manager when they come back you won’t have to put them into the side because you’ve been doing so well but it’s safe to say they’ll be the first names on the team sheet this week.

“We want to go back to where we were in November. We were winning games, playing some good football and looked more than capable of playing at this level.

"We have two home games in a row and want to get back to playing good football to get the crowd behind us.”

With Hasler and Draycott back, Carl Rook is set to be allowed to leave to join Ramsgate or Faversham in Division 1 South, while Cugley revealed other players may be allowed out on loan.

He said: “We’ve only ever really needed a squad of 15 or 16. The quality you have on the pitch tends to be more important than the strength of your bench. Your bench doesn’t win you too many games.

“We’ve missed Draycs and Hasler. Rooky has done all right up there but not set the world alight and Ashley Miller has not really got the goals we were hoping for. Miles Cornwell has been playing up there but he’s more of an attacking midfielder.”

Carl Rook and Ashley Miller have scored just one league goal between them this season but with Draycott back with seven league goals and 94 for the club in little over two years, plus Joe Taylor in form with 12 league goals since arriving in September, Cugley is confident his side will hit the goal trail.

He said: “With those two, I’m confident we will score the goals to push on. The first goal is to get those four or five wins to hopefully keep us away from trouble and then see how far we can go."

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