Phil Starkey says Folkestone have nothing to fear in the Ryman League Premier Division.

Starkey won that league with Maidstone last season and lifted the Conference South title during his time at Braintree.

The 28-year-old also counts Tonbridge and Dover among his former clubs and has no doubt Invicta will be competitive at Step 3.

Starkey said: "The team are well-equipped to deal with anything in the league above.

"We took Tonbridge to a replay (in the FA Cup) with 10 men and showed, especially at their place, that we can’t be too far off.

"I don’t think there’s that big a gap, as long as you’ve got good organisation and a good defence with the flair players up top. We’ve got Carl Rook who’s a big, strong boy and the little players like Ashley Miller and Ian Draycott.

"We’ve got a good mixture here and everyone is a good age, mid-20s. Rooky and myself are getting on but the age of the squad bodes well for the future."

Starkey joined Folkestone last summer and has started 34 league games during the campaign.

He said: "I changed position this year. I was right-back for most of my career and this is the first year I’ve consolidated at centre-mid.

"I wanted to be at a club where I could play centre-mid. It’s where I played when I was a teenager.

"It’s been a learning curve and it’s been about wrapping my brain around it. It took a long time to get used to it but as the season progressed, I have.

"In the holding role, you’ve got to be aware of a lot of things defensively and I’m a defensive-minded player. I much prefer that position to right-back and I’m glad I got the opportunity to do it."