By Joe Harbert

Andy Hessenthaler concedes Dover will be underdogs in many of their games this season, but says he is more than ready for the challenge.

Financial difficulties have plagued the Crabble outfit throughout recent months, with the Whites not only losing a host of star players throughout the summer, but making the rest of their squad available for free transfer at the start of August.

However, the former Gillingham boss admits that while the club are currently struggling on and off the field, he remains optimistic of maintaining their status as a National League outfit come May.

“We've got six weeks before the season is expected to start to try and get ourselves a squad together somehow," Hessenthaler, 55, said.

“We have 11 players currently, including a couple of young boys in Joe Bedford and Marshall Wratten - who himself has just come out of the youth team.

"So there are some young prospects coming into training next week who can stake a claim for the new season, because we need a squad of 18 realistically to compete and the chairman knows that.

“We’ve obviously lost a few defenders and only got two centre-halves now, but we need to pick carefully, especially as we need some firepower too after losing Inih (Effiong).

“More boys could still go, but it’s my job as the manager to keep my head down and start preparing for football at the Crabble next season, hopefully on October 3 with crowds there, where we'll be playing as the underdogs in a lot of games, but I certainly have no problem with that.

“There’s not going to be any expectation on ourselves - everyone knows the situation the club is in so we have to fight for everything, pull together and deal with it without hiding.

“There won’t be many signings too quickly because we have six weeks to bide our time, be patient and box carefully, and then hopefully find some gems out there who are ready for a battle to survive in the division next year."

Hessenthaler, whose side have lost Lee Worgan , Nassim L'Ghoul and Bobby-Joe Taylor in the space of just seven days this month, believes the effects of lockdown could leave all of the teams in the division fighting for two completely different goals as a result.

He explained: “There’s going to be a gap between us and quite a few clubs in the National League - some are going to be able to capitalise on the pandemic situation because they have bigger benefactors to help them.

“I actually think it could be two leagues within the division, with half fighting to stay up and the other half battling for promotion.

“A lot of people have come out and said that the money isn’t filtered down enough from the big enterprise of the Premier League, and I think personally we could have got more help, because nothing has really been done regarding that.

“A certain amount came to us, but that was just the money we were due anyway, so I’m surprised there’s not been a lot of clubs that have gone to the wall by now, but I think if we get another spike there will be clubs who just won’t be able to continue and that’s the worry.

“So it’s going to be a struggle for us, but I see it as a challenge and an opportunity and I’m more than up for that challenge."

The club have announced their pre-season will begin in September, with trips to fellow Kent sides Hythe, Margate, Ebbsfleet, Dartford and Maidstone to come for the team, starting on the first of the month.

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