New Maidstone signing Callum Driver played 90 minutes for West Ham in an FA Cup tie at Nottingham Forest only last year.

He was United’s No.1 target to replace Craig Stone at right-back following promotion to National League South.

And after joining from Kent rivals Dartford, the 22-year-old is determined to show the form that convinced Sam Allardyce to hand him his Hammers debut in front of 15,000 fans at the City Ground.

Driver was one of the few players to emerge with credit from West Ham’s 5-0 defeat in a third-round tie in January last year.

A Premier League career looked a possibility but Driver was released at the end of the season.

He said: “We lost 5-0 but I had a lot of good feedback from that Forest game.

“I was hoping it might be the start of something and I may have more opportunities but it wasn’t to be.

“Sam Allardyce was good to play under. He’d tell you exactly what he wanted and everybody knew their jobs.”