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Folkestone Invicta ready to host title favourites Billericay Town in Bostik Premier

Big-spending Billericay visit Folkestone tonight (Wednesday) with boss Neil Cugley insisting he’s seen it all before.

Ricay owner Glenn Tamplin, who also manages the team, has made headlines with some outlandish boasts since taking over and splashing the cash on players used to operating at much higher levels.

But Cugley’s been around the block enough times not to be fazed by the exploits of the Essex club.

Neil Cugley Picture: Gary Browne
Neil Cugley Picture: Gary Browne

“These sort of days have happened before,” he said. “It used to be Chelmsford with a lot of money so you just get on with it and enjoy it.

“Don’t be afraid of it and if you get something out of the game, they’re bonus points.

“We’ll just go out and play. People expect us not to get anything so if we do, it’s great and then we get back to normality.”

Tamplin, famed for his motivational dressing-room singalongs, is depicted in a giant mural on the walls of Billericay’s home ground and brought Jermaine Pennant to the club last summer.

Pennant and Paul Konchesky have since moved on but Tamplin’s squad still includes Jamie O’Hara, Luke Rooney, Sam Deering, Jake Robinson, Rob Swaine and Adam Cunnington.

“Good luck to him,” Cugley said. “I’ve got no problem with it. I’ve seen it happen before with loads of clubs and hopefully it all comes all right for him. It gets people talking about the league and the clubs, doesn’t it?

“We’ll get more than we would normally for a Wednesday game.

“Is it an unfair playing field? I don’t know. Good luck to them, I suppose. How we run our club and how they’re running theirs is completely different.”

Billericay are one point clear of second-placed Margate with seven games in hand, while Folkestone’s 5-0 win over Wingate on Saturday kept them fifth in Bostik Premier.

Cugley said: “Lose one last week and it whittles it down, win another one and off you go again. That’s how I think it will be until the end of the season.

“There will be good times and bad times but we’ll all pull together again and see where we finish up.

“When we got second, we lost our way a little bit and the confidence drained but we’ve bounced back every time we’ve lost a game.

“Credit to the players, they’ve been superb.”

Sam Hasler (suspended) and Micheal Everitt (injured) both remain sidelined for the Billericay game.

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