Ben Only Missed Out On 1 Player
Re: Ben Only Missed Out On 1 Player
im sure this may of been an interesting read matt....but nothing came up on my link apart from the headlines and adverts
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Undercover Elephant
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Re: Ben Only Missed Out On 1 Player
Worked fine for me.
Re: Ben Only Missed Out On 1 Player
Dartford manager Ben Greenhalgh enjoys near-perfect strike rate in the summer transfer market
Craig Tucker
Published: 05:00, 26 June 2026
Dartford manager Ben Greenhalgh has landed all but one of his transfer targets this summer.
It’s an impressive strike rate for the new Darts player-boss since succeeding Ady Pennock at Princes Park.
Winger Lorenzo Duncan is the latest addition, arriving after scoring 23 goals and providing 10 assists for Fisher in the Southern Counties East Premier Division last season.
He joins hot on the heels of forwards Luca Botti, Max Fiddes and Louie Atkins, who have signed from Wingate & Finchley, Dover and Margate respectively.
“In reality, I think we’ve recruited really well,” said Greenhalgh.
“We’ve only missed out on one player that we approached, who chose to go elsewhere.
“Everyone else we wanted, we’ve brought in, and it’s a really good group.
“We started pre-season on Saturday and you could tell straight away the changing room was positive and there were good vibes.
“We’re not complete - you’re always still looking - but it’s not the case where we’re searching around for people.
“We’ve got good depth in lots of positions, so it’s a really positive place to be.”
Greenhalgh’s attacking additions have taken a bit of time but that’s often the case with forwards.
They’re the players everyone wants and patience was essential in getting them over the line, particularly after losing Eddie Dsane and Olly Box.
“They’re always going to take longer because they’re the attacking threat and the players who score goals and win games,” said Greenhalgh. “You’ve got to make sure you get the right ones and, in the end, we got there.
“There could have been a couple of chaotic moments if players had ended up saying no and then we’ve lost other options that would have been back-ups but luckily the ones we wanted came through.
“Every single player has been massively positive in terms of wanting to play for us.
“We were losing a certain amount of goals - 16 from Olly, 15 from Eddie and eight from Callum Jones - so goals were a big thing we were looking to add.
“Botti got 21 last season, Fiddes scored 16, and that was despite having to change clubs due to loans, Lorenzo got 23 at Step 5, I got 23 in the league below, and I’ve got to throw Louie in there because his goal ratio at Margate was unbelievable.
“I think he started 11 games and scored 14 goals, he had a five-month injury and came back and scored two in two at the end of the season.
“He’s in a good position to step up and come back to Dartford, where he scored more than 100 goals in the academy.
“We’ve got four forwards (Dan Smith having agreed new terms) and we need to work on how we can get the most out of them and how we can play most of them.
“It’s not the case that each week we play one and the other three are on the bench.”
Wideman Duncan is stepping up a couple of levels after impressing at Step 5 with Fisher but Greenhalgh is in no doubt his latest recruit has what it takes to deliver.
“He’s someone we were watching all of last year at Margate, someone we were always going to approach no matter where we were,” said Greenhalgh.
“I think he’s ready to step up when you hear how highly people talk of him from Step 5 and the amount of contact I’ve had since saying what a good player he is.
“I knew he was a good player, that’s why I went in for him, but when there’s so much positive stuff over one player, there’s obviously something there.
“It’s a big step to jump two levels to a club like Dartford but we’re going to be patient and give him those opportunities and do the right things for him.”
Greenhalgh, 34, looks likely to play a significant role on the pitch after making a success of the player-manager role at Margate.
If anything, his game went to another level with the added responsibility, while he’s able to count on assistant manager Adam Flanagan in the dugout.
“I will always plan to make sure I’m fit enough to play as much as I can, for the benefit of the team,” said Greenhalgh.
“I count myself as a player, just as much as anyone else. I did the session on Saturday and felt very fit.
“I feel as good as ever. Age hasn’t hit me yet.
“The biggest positive of the last five years is that I played over 250 games for Margate.
“You can talk about goals and assists but that was the biggest positive, being available for every single game bar three for a red card and I missed three games for the birth of my kids.
“It’s something I want to try and give Dartford as well.
“Player-manager is very different to 25/30 years ago, when it was maybe the captain and the leader taking over.
“We’ve got a really good balance of how it works and we’ve only signed players who respect and understand how it can work.
“We’ve put together a number of meetings across pre-season, for the players to understand everything, and player-management will come into the conversation.”
Craig Tucker
Published: 05:00, 26 June 2026
Dartford manager Ben Greenhalgh has landed all but one of his transfer targets this summer.
It’s an impressive strike rate for the new Darts player-boss since succeeding Ady Pennock at Princes Park.
Winger Lorenzo Duncan is the latest addition, arriving after scoring 23 goals and providing 10 assists for Fisher in the Southern Counties East Premier Division last season.
He joins hot on the heels of forwards Luca Botti, Max Fiddes and Louie Atkins, who have signed from Wingate & Finchley, Dover and Margate respectively.
“In reality, I think we’ve recruited really well,” said Greenhalgh.
“We’ve only missed out on one player that we approached, who chose to go elsewhere.
“Everyone else we wanted, we’ve brought in, and it’s a really good group.
“We started pre-season on Saturday and you could tell straight away the changing room was positive and there were good vibes.
“We’re not complete - you’re always still looking - but it’s not the case where we’re searching around for people.
“We’ve got good depth in lots of positions, so it’s a really positive place to be.”
Greenhalgh’s attacking additions have taken a bit of time but that’s often the case with forwards.
They’re the players everyone wants and patience was essential in getting them over the line, particularly after losing Eddie Dsane and Olly Box.
“They’re always going to take longer because they’re the attacking threat and the players who score goals and win games,” said Greenhalgh. “You’ve got to make sure you get the right ones and, in the end, we got there.
“There could have been a couple of chaotic moments if players had ended up saying no and then we’ve lost other options that would have been back-ups but luckily the ones we wanted came through.
“Every single player has been massively positive in terms of wanting to play for us.
“We were losing a certain amount of goals - 16 from Olly, 15 from Eddie and eight from Callum Jones - so goals were a big thing we were looking to add.
“Botti got 21 last season, Fiddes scored 16, and that was despite having to change clubs due to loans, Lorenzo got 23 at Step 5, I got 23 in the league below, and I’ve got to throw Louie in there because his goal ratio at Margate was unbelievable.
“I think he started 11 games and scored 14 goals, he had a five-month injury and came back and scored two in two at the end of the season.
“He’s in a good position to step up and come back to Dartford, where he scored more than 100 goals in the academy.
“We’ve got four forwards (Dan Smith having agreed new terms) and we need to work on how we can get the most out of them and how we can play most of them.
“It’s not the case that each week we play one and the other three are on the bench.”
Wideman Duncan is stepping up a couple of levels after impressing at Step 5 with Fisher but Greenhalgh is in no doubt his latest recruit has what it takes to deliver.
“He’s someone we were watching all of last year at Margate, someone we were always going to approach no matter where we were,” said Greenhalgh.
“I think he’s ready to step up when you hear how highly people talk of him from Step 5 and the amount of contact I’ve had since saying what a good player he is.
“I knew he was a good player, that’s why I went in for him, but when there’s so much positive stuff over one player, there’s obviously something there.
“It’s a big step to jump two levels to a club like Dartford but we’re going to be patient and give him those opportunities and do the right things for him.”
Greenhalgh, 34, looks likely to play a significant role on the pitch after making a success of the player-manager role at Margate.
If anything, his game went to another level with the added responsibility, while he’s able to count on assistant manager Adam Flanagan in the dugout.
“I will always plan to make sure I’m fit enough to play as much as I can, for the benefit of the team,” said Greenhalgh.
“I count myself as a player, just as much as anyone else. I did the session on Saturday and felt very fit.
“I feel as good as ever. Age hasn’t hit me yet.
“The biggest positive of the last five years is that I played over 250 games for Margate.
“You can talk about goals and assists but that was the biggest positive, being available for every single game bar three for a red card and I missed three games for the birth of my kids.
“It’s something I want to try and give Dartford as well.
“Player-manager is very different to 25/30 years ago, when it was maybe the captain and the leader taking over.
“We’ve got a really good balance of how it works and we’ve only signed players who respect and understand how it can work.
“We’ve put together a number of meetings across pre-season, for the players to understand everything, and player-management will come into the conversation.”