After a summer of major turnover Saltdean suffered a 2-0 loss away to forest to open this season.
Manager Paul Stevenson oversaw the whole first team squad – with the exception of Jason Edwards and Matt Fleming – leaving, while new arrivals included Mark Saxby (from Lancing), Ben Towner, Dan White, Tommy Cooper (all Lewes), Wayne Collins (Peaceha
ven), Russell Greenwood and Ben Driscell (both Seaford). Stevenson himself is a replacement for last season's boss, Gus McBride.
About their season opening defeat, Stevenson said, "We had chances, certainly.
"We hit the bar and we looked dangerous from set-pieces."
However the outlook was grim before kick-off, with no fewer than eight first team regulars being ruled out, leading to decreased expectations from Stevenson.
He said, "I really didn't expect too much to be honest, we were desperately unlucky with the players we had missing."
When asked about the club's aspiration for the season, Stevenson was very clear about what he would like to see, citing consistency as a major goal.
He revealed, "Consistency throughout the club is important, and I think everyone wants to see a system where players are rewarded for good play in the youth team by gaining a place in the reserves, whilst reserve players can aspire to become first team players because they know good performances will gain them consideration.
"There was to be a system where the sides within the club work together and there is chance of progression, which really didn't happen last season when it was basically just the first team and that was it."
Saltdean host Dorking Wanderers in the league tomorrow.
The full article contains 274 words and appears in Sussex Express Series newspaper.
