With a potential cup treble in their sights, Chatham Town Women began their triple assault on silverware in some style last week with a 5-0 drubbing of holders Billericay Town in the final of the Isthmian League Cup and now manager Keith Boanas has challenged his side to claim that treble.

What made the result even sweeter was that the final was held at Billericay’s New Lodge ground and was the first trophy that Keith Boanas’s has won in the name of the Chats. 

We caught up with the manager after the trophy presentation and he was beaming from ear-to-ear as we examined his side’s incredible performance.

He told us, “I’m totally over the moon after that performance, proudest I have ever been of a football team!” 

Jess King was the hat-trick hero and drew glowing praise from her manager. “Thats the Jess King I know,” said a beaming Boanas.

“I just had a feeling about her tonight. I told her at our last game (away to Ashford Town (Middlesex)) that I was saving her for tonight and I hoped it would be her game.

“She agreed that and despite having a little run out in a charity game in the week that she tried to keep quiet, I think it put the edge on her. She told me before the final that she would score goals, and she said to let her have the free-kicks and I’ll score the free-kicks, she self-predicted everything – great night!” 

“We hammered into the girls beforehand that we have lost the League, and shouldn’t have,” Boanas explained.

“In my opinion every single one of this squad are good enough for Tier Three and if we had had this squad last year we could not have been relegated, and all they have to do is to prove me right and be the best that they can be. And if they go out there on Wednesday night and do that, we knew that we could win it! We didn’t say that we could just win it we said that we would dominate it, we said it!” 

And didn’t the Chats do just that from the off as King opened the scoring reacting clinically after her initial shot had been blocked and after Lucy Jones scored the second straight from a corner, another Jones corner saw a King header beaten out before she sensationally volleying home the rebound to give the Chats a 3-0 half time lead.

A lead that then became 4-0 as skipper Grace Coombs bundled home and then King kept her promise to her manager by magnificently completing her hat-trick with a stunning free-kick to complete the rout! 

“Everything we said beforehand and talked about came to fruition, and that’s why I am so proud of every single one of them!” 

“It was impossible to pick a player of the match really! Jess would have probably got it because of her hat-trick, but I though Jas Auguste was absolutely phenomenal but a lot of them were!” 

“It just shows what we are capable of and where we should and that’s what I said to them; show them where you should be, show them where you want to be, and you cannot ask more than that.” 

“I don’t think any team has won three Cups – we now have that chance! At whatever level you put it at, the bottom line is that it is still silverware and it’s the first one with Chatham Town’s name on it and I know that Kev (chairman Kevin Hake) is really chuffed about that… and so am I! It is kind of my way of thanking him for the faith that he has shown in me!”