Ben Smith has explained why he thinks higher-division football could help Ramsgate provide more senior chances for their youngsters in the 2025/26 season.

Preparations are already well under way as the Isthmian Premier Rams aim to make a strong start to life in a higher league.

Naturally, the higher a club plays in the football pyramid, the harder it generally becomes to give youth-team players first-team opportunities.

While the Rams manager is hopeful they will be competitive, few expect them to instantly compete at the very top-end of a difficult division, which could pave the way for more game-time for the club’s future stars.

Smith has already seen plenty of experience in captain Joe Taylor, midfielder Lee Martin and centre-back Joe Ellul leave this summer.

But the boss, who introduced teenage forward Finley Waddell off the substitutes’ bench in their season-ending 3-3 draw at Sittingbourne, said: “We have got other players in the squad that, suddenly, have been through the two seasons we’ve had and gained that experience.

“Everyone in our dressing room at the moment knows how to win a league. Suddenly, you can tick that box.

“I think the most important thing is keeping some stability and not rushing. We didn’t rush last summer - not through our choice (as Smith resigned, only to re-join weeks later) - but it worked out to be the right thing.

“We’re not going to jump into knee-jerk signings. We have got to sign the right players for the right reasons. We did that last summer and it paid dividends.

“That’s what will continue to happen and we have got some good young players at our club, as well.

“Now obviously, every single point is important but maybe not as important, but we still have ambitions of being successful. We’re not going into the league to make-up the numbers.

“But it will be great to start bringing along some of those youngsters that are now a year older and who knows? We’ll see how we try to work with that balance because it is a community club.

“Like at Maidstone and Dartford, you want to blood those players. Financially, that’s great and, also, it’s the heart of the club.

“We haven’t been able to do that as much as we would have liked because of the sheer situation and I guess the pressure of it.

“After the play-off final, I heard someone say Sittingbourne were heavy favourites for that game and the pressure was on them.

“We have had that on our back for the past two seasons where you’re expected to win every single game and people expect you to win it [the league] by a country mile.

“It’s interesting to hear other people talk about it but, when they have to deal with it, suddenly, it’s different.

“I think a lot of people probably don’t give us enough credit for that.”

Smith admits he will take lessons from what he did three years ago into this summer as he also prepared for Isthmian Premier football after promotion.

He was at Herne Bay, having got the club to Step 3 for the first time through the play-offs.

He made plenty of summer signings back then, some more forced than others as his first-choice defensive partnership missed the start of their next campaign, but quit in November 2022 as Bay headed straight back down.

“I only had 13 league games that year because we had a good FA Cup run,” said Smith. “Every team is different.

“We were massive underdogs at Herne Bay, getting promoted. But we were heavy favourites to get promoted this year and I’m sure a lot of people will be expecting us to do well next year. We have got a lot of work to do.

“We won’t change the way we play - but we need to make it even better - because it’ll be about those marginal gains, won’t it?

“Hopefully, we can keep the stability in the squad and then it’s about fine-tuning what we do.

“I’ve watched countless games in that league now from video footage that I’ve been given and the play-offs so we’ve got an idea of what we need to add.

“But it’s important we don’t go and add players just because they’re names.

“They have got to suit what we do and suit the league.

Ramsgate have bolstered their ranks with the signings of forward Mitchell May and Donvieve Jones while fellow defender Raphe Brown has also linked-up with Smith’s side following his Maidstone exit.

Brown, 25, was among seven players released by the Stones, two days on from defeat in their National League South play-off final.

He initially headed to the Gallagher Stadium after a spell at Herne Bay where he had played under Smith.

Meanwhile May, who scored 31 times as Bourne finished runners-up to the Rams and reached the FA Trophy quarter-finals, rejected an offer of full-time football in National League South to join Ramsgate.

Long-serving right-back Jones has also headed in the same direction, having carved out a reputation as a goalscoring full-back during his three years at Sittingbourne under Nick Davis and then Ryan Maxwell.