Goalkeeper Dan Colmer accepts improved early-season form will be vital in Whitstable’s 2025/26 promotion push.

The Southern Counties East League Premier Division team missed out on an Isthmian League return for the first time since 2022, despite an historic FA Vase victory, as they came third and then suffered play-off semi-final shootout heartache.

A play-off finish for Jamie Coyle’s Oystermen was, nevertheless, a fine achievement after a slow start to the new management team’s regime.

And Colmer is confident they will come out the traps quicker next time around.

“I would like to hope so,” he said. “Obviously, a few players will be going and a few players will be coming in but, hopefully, we can start off absolutely flying.

“We were something like 11th at Christmas and finished third. If we can take that form into this season, we’ll be absolutely flying.

“That’s the aim because we know we’ve got to go up, otherwise we cannot really say the year has been a success.”

If Whitstable can replicate their form in the season run-in, rather than the disappointing spell earlier in the campaign, they’ll undoubtedly be a force to be reckoned with.

Colmer said: “There’s no better feeling than winning every week. Since Christmas, that’s pretty much been the feeling in our changing room and you have got to just ride that wave.

“When you’re winning and winning, you don’t want it to stop.

“Unfortunately, it had to at some point - but doing that at Wembley was absolutely brilliant.

“It really has made me hungrier for this year.”

Colmer also praised the Whitstable supporters as he reacted to being crowned KentOnline’s Player of the Year.

He made the Team of the Year and won the vote for star player with a whopping 38 percent.

“It’s a credit to the fans more than anything,” he said.

“They’re the ones that blew it up for me so I’m more grateful to them.”

It’s easy to forget former Dartford youngster Colmer, still only 23, is still fairly new to senior football.

He said: “I had a season at Corinthian and, although we got relegated (from Isthmian South East), personally, I felt I did all right.

“The season before last, I had a mix between VCD and Sevenoaks. VCD didn’t go fantastically well - but Sevenoaks did go really well and, after that, I started to get more phone calls.

“For this year, it’s nice to be on a contract at Whitstable because I’ve only had three or four years in men’s football.”

Having played a key role in Whitstable’s run to Vase glory, Colmer - who revealed the squad went away together following the conclusion of their campaign - was involved in their open-top bus victory parade last month.

He said: “We got there and it was absolutely mental!

“There were a good couple of thousand, with people hanging out of their windows.”

While there will be plenty of familiar faces remaining at Whitstable for their 2025/26 campaign - Colmer having committed to stay alongside captain Jake McIntyre, Finn O’Mara, Will Thomas, Mikey Dalton, Reece Gillies, Bradley Schafer, Fin Cotton, Harvey Smith, Dean Grant, Ricardo Thompson, Jayden Boulton and Connor Wilkins - Coyle and assistant manager Matt Longhurst have already moved to bring three new faces in.

Midfielder James Miles arrives after a successful spell at Erith Town while British Virgin Islands international forward Javaun Splatt and former Chatham and Lordswood playmaker Callum Peck are on board, as well.

Colmer said: “I’ve asked a couple of the other players about them.

“Personally, I’ve never played with them but I’m sure they are good lads.

“I know Coyley and Matt wouldn’t integrate someone into the group, unless they were a good lad.”