Chatham manager-chairman Kevin Hake admitted he felt their derby defeat to Folkestone on Bank Holiday Monday wasn’t one for the neutrals.

Their unbeaten Isthmian Premier start to their season ended as they were edged out 2-1 at home by Jay Saunders’ Invicta side.

Hake reflected: “It wasn’t a great game to watch, was it? For both supporters - home and away - it wasn’t a feast of football.

“But sometimes, you can get that in derbies and we’ve just come out the wrong side of it, which is disappointing.”

The match attracted another huge crowd of 1,808 to the Bauvill Stadium.

They saw forward Tope Fadahunsi put the hosts into a first-half advantage, only for Folkestone to swiftly hit back through captain Kevin Lokko, before striker Ade Yusuff - once of Chatham - got the game’s all-important third goal.

“They’re incredible,” Hake said on Chatham’s fans. “Despite it being a pretty dour game - not just because we lost - I just don’t think that was a feast of football at all.

“For the fans to stick with us all game, that was amazing.

“But it’s what they do. They back the team, they back everything we do and it’s really great to see.

“It’s something that we’ll never take for granted.

“Our away support is good. To be fair to them, Folkestone’s away support was good and it makes for a nice occasion.

“I just wish it could have been a game of football.”

Former Watford youth-team man Fadahunsi, who will turn 26 on Friday, smartly lifted the ball over visiting keeper Ted Collins to give Chatham a great start on 12 minutes - before their afternoon soured.

“It’s a great move,” said Hake. “We just didn’t do that enough.

“I thought we played into their hands a lot, serving balls up to their centre-halves, which is exactly what they want. The one time we do get the ball over the top, we score a goal.

“But we didn’t do it enough.”

With the score at 1-1, Chats could also have been awarded a penalty when Invicta’s teenage Ebbsfleet loanee Maxx Manktelow clattered into midfielder Lewis Chambers, only for referee Deryll David to dismiss penalty protests.

Hake said: “These are the big decisions. You hope they go for you and, unfortunately, it didn’t.

“The whole ground thought it was a penalty - but I’m not going to blame that as the reason why we didn’t win.”

Chatham’s next game will be at home against Southern League Central Marlow, edged out 3-2 by Beaconsfield Town on Bank Holiday Monday in the league, in Saturday’s FA Cup first qualifying round tie.