Faversham joint-boss Phil Miles believes Ryan Huckle has what it takes to fulfil his ambitions of becoming a professional footballer.

The defender has re-signed for the Lilywhites after spending time on loan at the club last season from Gillingham.

Huckle made 22 appearances for Town in the Bostik South East before being released by his parent-club at the end of the campaign.

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Miles said: “He’s an old style defender, very aggressive, loves a tackle. He’s young and keen, he wants to do really well.

“We’ve got him at a young age, he’s still got visions of being a professional footballer so I think this is his stepping stone.

“Josh Hare is a classic example, he’s just signed for Bristol Rovers, there’s no reason why in two or three years that can’t be Ryan Huckle.

“We’re happy to give him that stepping stone and try and improve him and move forward.

“He’ll give us that bit of aggression, tackling has come out of the game a bit but Ryan still loves a tackle.

“In this league you’ve got to be able to put your foot in, be brave and be strong. That’s what Ryan gave us last year and he’ll continue to give us that this year.”

Faversham have also strengthened through the arrival of centre-back Josh Dorling, who played at Sevenoaks last season, and attacking midfielder James Miles, who returns after a loan stint with Rusthall in Southern Counties East.

While waiting on answers from existing players regarding their future, Faversham remain interested in adding another striker to their ranks if the opportunity to do so arises.

Miles added: “If somebody comes up that we think is the right fit for the club then maybe we can push the boat out and go for it.

“We’ve got two or three lads coming in on trial as centre-forwards. Hopefully one of them will turn out to be really good.

“We’ve got young Jack Sellens who joined us last year. He was at Gillingham as well. He’s got good technical ability, he had a bit of an injury so hasn’t played for a year properly.

“He’s a centre-forward that once he gets a pre-season behind him is more than capable of playing at this standard as well.

“We’re not panicking. Defensively we’re sorted and in midfield we’re fine. It’s just up top, it would be nice to have a recognised centre-forward in this league.”

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