By Luke Cawdell

Whitstable wrapped up their Ryman League Division 1 season at the weekend but the work won’t stop for boss Peter Nott.

After guiding the side to safety this season, Nott now has the task of keeping his squad together so he can mount a challenge at the top end of the division next season.

The club will decide on next season’s player budget in the coming days and Nott will then have a better idea of who he is able to tempt into staying at the Belmont.

Nott (pictured) said: "We’ve done the job we had to do and we brought players in without increasing our budget.

"A few players moved here because they were unhappy where they were and I had a good relationship with them. It’s now a different ball game and they are free to go where they like.

"I am sure some players will receive attractive offers and it could now be a job to keep them.

"Hopefully, they will see that we are close to achieving things here and will choose to stay on.

"The players have seen how we have been playing and points we’ve been winning.

"If we can keep our squad together and add, then we won’t be a million miles away.

"Because we don’t need major changes, we will go into next season with a settled squad and we’ll be ready to go."

Nott arrived at the club when they were second from bottom and ended the season sitting 15th – nine points clear of relegation – after a five-game unbeaten run.