Haywards Heath Town manager on the play-offs: 'There will be other clubs more concerned with it than us'

Karly Akehurst brings the ball out of defence against Hythe Town as Shaun Saunders watches on. Picture by Grahame Lehkyj

The Heath manager was commenting on how the play-offs will work this year when he revealed it's not something the club are looking into.

Winning the play-offs this season will not guarantee promotion this season with two of the triumphant Bostik League sides facing the heartbreak of NOT being promoted.

A restructure of the non-league pyramid last summer will have knock-on effects in the 2018/19 promotion and relegation outcomes due to the extra divisions.

The main issue at Step 4 is the addition of the new Bostik League South East Division. When combined with the Evo-Stick leagues both Northern Premier League and Southern Football League it takes the total to seven divisions now at Step 4.

You can read how the Bostik League promotions and relegations will work hereBut Saunders, whose side are currently sixth in the South East Division, says he is not worried about the play-offs.

He said: “It’s not something we have been looking into. Our plan when for this season after going up was always consolidation and making sure we are in this league next year.

“We will then be better placed to push for play-offs next season.

“There will be other clubs more concerned with it than us. If it comes our way and we made the play-offs it would be an unbelievable season for us.

“But anything above mid-table would be a fantastic season for us in our first year at this level.

“If that was the case, you would be massively disappointed if you won the play-offs and didn’t go up. It makes a mockery of having the play-offs in my opinion.

“But this season if we did make the play-offs and win them and didn’t go up, it wouldn’t be the end of the world for Haywards Heath Town, we would be stronger for it next year.”