Danny Kedwell missed out on a proper Gillingham farewell but tonight's Kent Senior Cup final is an opportunity to leave Priestfield on a high.

Ten years on from scoring the crucial goals to send the Gills to the 2012-13 League 2 title, he’s returning to the ground he loves, this time as player-assistant manager at Chatham Town, who take on Margate for the prestigious county final.

Kedwell left the Gills 18 months after that title success, leaving midway the season and joining non-league Ebbsfleet United. It was a low-key exit for a player who fulfilled a dream, playing and excelling for his boyhood club.

Following his Gills exit he spent three and a half years at Ebbsfleet – winning promotion in the play-offs at the second attempt - had a spell at Havant & Waterlooville cut short when Covid stopped football and a brief period playing in the SCEFL Premier Division with Hollands & Blair before the pandemic halted play again. He was at Cray Wanderers as player-manager but that didn’t last long.

It’s now gone full circle for the 39-year-old, back with Chatham Town, the club where it all began as a youth player. His presence in the team during the run-in helped them to the Isthmian South East title and now he’s hoping to be celebrating at the ground of his home-town club.

“I can’t wait,” he said. “It will be nice to take part - whether I start or not I don’t know - but it will be nice to be back there.

“It will be nice to actually finally get to say goodbye. I still go to watch games and I was there a couple of weeks ago. It will be nice to see some Gills fans there supporting us, it will be great for me.

“It was my childhood club, I loved the place, every day was unreal, just being there.

“I was a bit gutted the way it ended, I got a bit shafted to be honest by certain people, footballing staff, to be treated the way I was left me feeling a bit sour, having been my boyhood club. I had watched them when I was five, then for that to happen wasn’t very nice.

“I was gone, that was it, cheers, I didn’t even get to say goodbye.”

He had been eyeing a Priestfield return in the Kent Senior Cup once Chats got to the latter stages. They beat Welling United to clinch their place. His only ever return since leaving has been in a charity game or as a fan.

Keds said: “I knew the final was at Priestfield and when we beat Welling it was like, ‘yes mate, back at Priestfield!’

“I was there for four years nearly, but to go back to your childhood club it doesn’t matter what age you are, you will always get that excitement.

“It will be nice to be in the home changing room, I hope we get that - I’ve never been in the away one! I don’t want to either. There are still pictures of me on the wall inside the club, lifting the League 2 trophy.”

Winning that title with the Gills gave him the knowledge of how to help Chatham get across the line in the league this year. When there was a slight wobble Keds knew they needed to keep their experienced men involved - including himself.

Gillingham’s title-winning team was built on some big characters. Kedwell knew he needed to play again and although he wasn’t fit, he put the shirt back on and the team responded. They won the last seven games.

“We needed that experience on the pitch,” he said. “Results were coming away from us. We needed someone to take charge on the field and around the changing room to get the boys firing. That was the point of coming back in and it worked.

“I said to Kev (Hake, the manager) that we needed to play experience players who had been there and done it. When I was at Gillingham I had done it before at 25-26 but we had Stuart Nelson, Adam Barrett, Deon Burton, Andy Frampton, they would help us get over the line. There was a moment where we dropped off at Gillingham, we lost to Port Vale (who took over at the top), it was like ‘oh, no!’ but with that experience it got us over the line.

“It was a gamble (at Chatham). I hadn’t played for six or seven months, I was overweight! I was always a big boy but that was ridiculous and I was embarrassed, I didn’t feel comfortable but if I can help the team, like at Gillingham I have always worn my heart on my sleeve, it was a bit like that.

“It worked. If it hadn’t I would probably have been battered! But those are the chances you have to take in football and I am glad this one worked.”

Kedwell knew Chatham always had a chance of success this season - he had that feeling again as he did during Martin Allen’s successful 2012/13 campaign.

He said: “That was a special year, we had that buzz and I felt it here at Chatham, before the season started I knew we had a chance, that togetherness in the camp.

“That year at Gills we had everything, there were no egos, everyone got on, we had time for each other. We trained how we played, we had that mentality that we were all winners. We had experience.

“I remember at the beginning of the season I was speaking to some fan in pre-season and he was like, ‘oh mate, we have too many old players, they are all past it.’ I never saw him again! I would love to see him.”

Chatham have been getting some big crowds this season. There were 2,500 at Maidstone Road to watch the top-of-the-table clash against Ramsgate and another 2,300 showed up five days later for a key game against Cray Valley - a win that clinched the title.

Kedwell certainly prefers to play infront of a decent crowd.

He said: “When you go and play lower levels, at my age, you can hear everyone battering you! I am thinking, ‘why am I here getting battered by this geezer, with his dog, I don’t need it!’

Kedwell’s sure to get a good reception tonight and he’s glad to have played his part for the Chats on the field, and off it. They finish the season with a big challenge against Margate.

“This won’t not an easy game,” he said. “It should be a very good game, we will get to see where we are because we are in the same league as them (next season) and it will be good to see where we are.

“It will be strange to be back and I don’t know how I will feel walking out there again - but I am sure it will be exciting.”