Scott Lindsey has told how he turned down an interview at Dartford in favour of taking the Chatham job.

Darts, who play three levels above Chats in National League South, wanted to speak to Lindsey about their vacant manager’s job, which has since gone to Steve King.

But the former Forest Green assistant boss, who’s returned to Kent for family reasons, declined the opportunity once he knew of Chatham’s interest.

Lindsey said: “Dartford wanted to interview me. But I ended up not going to the interview because the Chatham thing came up quite quickly and I made a decision based on what suited me.

“For sure, that says something about Chatham. It’s a club that’s moving forward, it has a real direction and there’s a good feel about the place.

“It’s a job that excited me because I’ve got good people around me, which is important, and it just felt right. I made a decision and I think it’s going to be a very good ride here.”

Lindsey helped Forest Green win promotion to the Football League two years ago and they made the League 2 play-offs last season.

He achieved great things in partnership with Rovers boss Mark Cooper but this is a new chapter in his career.

“You end up working at a level for a certain amount of time and you get used to that level,” said Lindsey.

“But I stepped away from where I was working because the distance was too big from my family.

“Do I miss League 2? Not really, because I’m one of those people who wants to get my teeth into something new.

“It was a beautiful area to live and I enjoyed creating history at a small club on the top of the hill in a small village in the Cotswolds.

“It’s something to be proud of but I’m enjoying this challenge now.”

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Chatham are in cup action this Saturday with a trip to West Wickham in the Kent Senior Trophy.

Wickham are top of the Southern Amateur League Division 1 but holders Chats are favourites to progress.

Lindsey said: “I don’t know a lot about them but we concentrate on ourselves more than the opposition.

“If we get our own house in order we should be OK. There will be opportunities for players who need more game-time.”

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