The final part of the preview looks at the sides that Fisher face towards the middle portion of the season, as well as late additions Corinthian. And you can read The Fish’s verdict on, er, the Fish!
Sevenoaks Town
Last season: 14th
Home ground: Greatness Park
Having been founder members of the Kent league 1883, Sevenoaks left after only a season and it took them 120 years to regain their place. Having achieved Kent Premier status in 2003, Town have bumped around in lower mid-table and look likely to continue to do so for the foreseeable future. The club have a Michael Smith on the books, though extensive googling has not yet established whether this is the same fiery-tempered midfielder who stomped through the Dr Martens League East a few years ago, with a very attractive WAG watching from the sidelines. We can only hope that it is, and that she hasn’t yet dumped him.
The Fish predicts: 14th – again
Tunbridge Wells
Last season: 10th
Home ground: Culverden Stadium
Replacing Mike Robbins at the helm, new Wells manager Martin Larkin has brought in new recruits who will be following the not entirely unique formula of mixing up pace and power. Wells, like Fisher, are a members-run club who will be operating on a shoestring this year and they will be looking to build on last season’s 10th place finish. Much will depend on whether Larkin’s new boys are up to the task, and if so whether Wells can hang on to them when clubs with a bit more spending power show an interest.
The Fish predicts: 8th
Deal Town
Last season: 12th
Home ground: Charles Sports Ground – though for just £250 you can win the chance to change that!
It’s a very, very long way to Deal, and when you get there you’ll find yourself just over the water from Calais. But if you want to make a splash without taking a dip in the Channel, you could enter the sponsorship draw to win naming rights to the ground – just £250 for your chance to name a football ground after yourself (for a year, anyway). Deal’s horrible flash-driven website is short on news about changes for this season, but Town will be hoping to improve on a disappointing 2008/9 campaign. Having won the division, and the FA Vase, 10 years ago Deal will be keen to challenge again but this will not be their season.
The Fish predicts: 11th
Norton Sports
Last season: 11th
Home ground: The Safety Net Stadium aka Winch’s Field (groundshare with Herne Bay)
Sports have only been in the Kent Premier since 2008, and did not trouble the upper half of the division in their first season. Another club running on very tight finances, it’s difficult to see Norton achieving anything other than another mid-table finish this season.
The Fish predicts: 13th
Holmesdale
Last season: 5th
Home ground: Oakley Road
Closer to home, Holmesdale are based in Bromley and won promotion to the Premier League in 2006/7. After a season of consolidation in 2007/8, last season’s 5th placed finish was an excellent achievement. It remains to be seen whether Holmesdale can repeat their success this year – and maybe their participation in the FA Cup, for the first time ever, will prove a distraction in the early going.
The Fish predicts: 10th – a slip back to mid-table beckons for Holmesdale
Corinthian
Last season: n/a
Home ground: Gay Dawn Farm
“Pro omnium benificio”. That, as any fule kno, is Latin for ‘for the benefit of all’ and is the Corinthian motto. But it was primarily for the benefit of the Kent Premier League that Corinthian were co-opted into the 2009/10 set-up via the back door, at an EGM just days before the start of the season. That put the size of the league back up to 16 clubs, after Slade Green’s late withdrawal. The chances of Corinthian putting out a competitive side this season appear slim, and they may battle Sporting Bengal for the wooden spoon. Though if they can unearth the modern-day equivalents of former stars Andy Hessenthaler and Jimmy Bullard, they may yet surprise a few of their competitors.
The Fish predicts: 15th – Corinthian will be grateful for the continued presence of Sporting Bengal in the league.
Fisher FC
Last season: n/a
Home ground: Champion Hill (groundshare with Dulwich Hamlet)
That the Fish are back is reason to be cheerful, and the new supporter-owned model for running the club is even better news. On the pitch, it’s hard to tell quite how well the Fish will do with a hastily assembled squad. But in Gary Lisney, Fish have an experienced and well-connected manager and both he and assistant Donna Powell have been keen to stress the importance of playing attractive football. The main hope for the season has to be that the club continues to strengthen off the pitch, with progress made towards finding a more permanent home and no trips to the courts. Fish could surprise a few this year, and should be good enough for a top half finish.
The Fish predicts: 6th – a solid season, but not a title threat this year
The Fish 
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