Ton host VCD at Homelands this Saturday (3pm) looking to make a flying start to the new year.
It was a 4-2 defeat in the reverse fixture at the end of October that triggered Ton’s climb up the Southern Counties East Premier Division table.
They made some changes and went on a six-game unbeaten run before losing 3-0 at Whitstable.
Dan Scorer’s side bounced back by twice coming from behind to draw 2-2 at Lydd on Saturday, Kimsley Gatakata and Rajan Sahni with the goals.
Now 15th, four points above the relegation zone, they’re ready to test themselves against the long-time leaders.
“We go into an incredibly tough month of January with some really big games against tough opposition,” said boss Scorer.
“It doesn’t get much tougher than top-of-the-league in the first game of the year.
“The game against VCD last time around was a real eye-opener as to where we were and what we needed to change.
“We were really disappointed with our performance but that, first and foremost, was the catalyst for the progress we’ve made in the last two or three months.
“We’re looking forward to showcasing what we’ve done and I think it will be an opportunity to show how far we’ve come in that short period of time.”
Scorer was pleased with the point at bottom side Lydd, who sacked boss Nicky Southall before the game after only 39 days and four matches in charge.
He added: “It’s not a bad way to finish off the year.
“It keeps the gap between us and them to nine points and also most of the results around us went in our favour as well. I think pretty much everyone drew.
“We’re one step closer to moving further up the table and putting ourselves in a position where we can hopefully enjoy the last few months of the season without that stress of worrying whether we’re going to stay up or not.
“We’re not quite out of it yet but the work we have put in over the last couple of months has given us a platform to do that.
“Other than the Whitstable game, it’s been a really good couple of months.
“So while that result was disappointing, we use that as a massive opportunity to learn and allow the boys to recognise that when we’re not at it and we’re not doing the things we’ve asked them to do, then unfortunately you don’t deserve to come away with anything.
“That was pretty much the case against Whitstable.
“We weren’t at our best at all, there were too many players who didn’t show up on the day, so we got punished for that and rightly so.”
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