EASTER WEEKEND PREVIEW

The Hoops go into their two-match Easter weekend programme in buoyant mood after a run of just one defeat in their last 11 league games.

And manager Derek Hares says the team’s morale has been boosted even further after scoring five goals in both their last two matches. He said: “The spirit in the dressing room is good and the more games you win boosts confidence.

“And it’s even better when you are scoring four or five goals, not just one or two.”

Deal are away to bottom-of-the-table Beckenham on Saturday before entertaining Rochester United at the Charles Ground on Easter Monday (3pm), and in view of Becks’ current plight Saturday’s game clearly looks another very winnable fixture for the Hoops but Hares offered a note of caution, saying: “Beckenham is not a place we have done well at in the past, including losing 2-1 there last season, so we want to improve on that.”

And Deal will be without skipper Dean Hill, who is suspended for both the Easter matches while fellow defender Kane Smith is also ruled out of the Beckenham game because of work commitments. But Lee Scott and Liam Hark both return to the squad after being unavailable for last Saturday’s 5-2 win over Croydon.

Monday’s opponents’ Rochester United go into the Easter programme on the back of a bad run of six defeats in their previous seven league games, and they face another tough test on Saturday at home to fourth-placed Cray Valley PM before travelling to the Charles Ground 48 hours later where last season they suffered a 4-1 defeat in the corresponding fixture.