Be patient. That’s the message to Enfield Town fans from manager Billy Holland as the new league campaign gets under way Saturday with the eagerly anticipated visit to Lewes after a highly encouraging pre-season.

Billy admits his team have been given a tough start after they were handed an away trip to the delightfully named Dripping Pan followed by a pair of home fixtures against heavily resourced St Albans and ambitious Ramsgate.

 “We certainly haven’t had it easy as far as August is concerned. Lewes may have had a bad season by their own high standards last season but I can’t see them replicating that,” said Billy for whom this is new territory but who is full of positivity for the journey ahead, coupled with an air of calm authority.

Town fans have certainly been mightily impressed with the exciting style of play the new management team have brought but nothing can be judged on pre-season success or otherwise.

“I’m looking forward to seeing what the level is like and what we’re up against,” said Billy. “Pre-season was mainly to get the players to understand what’s being asked of them, get them to bond and find out who can do what.”

Billy concedes there will be players who will be disappointed at not being in the squad for Lewes, much depending on fitness levels.

“I’ve got 19 first-team players signed so to keep everyone happy is going to be very tricky. I don’t like letting people down but I tried to explain to the boys yesterday that the first month or so is when players can pick up injuries so please don’t just pack your bags and leave. Obviously it’s up to them but I try to be up front.”

Whilst the search for a second striker to join Luke May-Parrott is still ongoing, there is no sense of panic. “We scored eight goals in three games without one,” Billy argues. “Okay it was pre-season but the group is very together in terms of buying into what we want. I knew people would question some of those I brought in because of their previous level but I know what they can achieve. It was a question of mixing that with what we already had at the club.”

And the goal?  “The message is pretty clear. Our target is to finish in the top 10 and push for the playoffs. Yes we’ve had a good pre-season but we don’t really know what we’re up against. Lewes have four to five extremely dangerous players and are expecting big things this season. We won’t know until after 10 games or so what level the league is at.”

AW