SKIPPER Ryan Beck wants New Milton to focus on their own game against Sarisbury Athletic tomorrow – despite the prospect of a backlash from the title-chasers.

Reigning champions Athletic were this week knocked off their Division One perch after receiving a 10-point penalty for captain Dave Banks’s dissent in the recent match with Liphook & Ripsley.

Officials also handed Banks a five-match ban – which begins against Milton – the second highest individual punishment dished out by the Southern League following an eight-match ban for Havant’s Ben Walker two seasons ago.

The sanction leaves Sarisbury, defeated just once this season, narrowly behind Burridge at the top of the standings.

And while Beck fully expects his side to face a wounded animal, the Fernhill captain does not want his charges distracted by Sarisbury’s determination to settle a score.

Asked whether he expected Sarisbury to be fired up by their punishment, Beck told the Daily Echo: “You’d think so, but we’re just going out there to enjoy our cricket and I don’t want us worrying about what other teams are doing.

“We’ve got to concentrate on ourselves and we’re looking at consolidation now. It would be nice to finish as high as we can, hopefully, in the top three, so we can look at going up next season.

“Dave (Banks) is a great player and a great captain and we have never experienced a problem with him. But, there is more than one man in the Sarisbury team and, while I am sure they will miss his presence, they are not near the top and title holders for nothing.”

Meanwhile, Beck received a timely boost on the injury front this week with the news that his brother Lee should return to action next week.

Initial fears that Lee Beck had broken his finger in the recent thrashing of Lymington in the President’s Cup final proved unfounded with the all-rounder only suffering a dislocation.

And while he joins unavailable Nick Gargaro on the sidelines against Sarisbury, both should return to ensure New Milton are at full strength for their trip to Rowledge in eight days.

New Milton: N Park, House, J Park, Edwards, R Beck, Loader, Elliott, T Prodomo, G Watts, Staniford, Waller.

  • Elsewhere, Alex Allum and Anschuman Singh replace the unavailable Shambeel Choudhry and Jake Hurley as Bournemouth host Hampshire Academy, while Ali Jaffer welcomes back left-arm seamer Dave Kidner as Lymington welcome Totton & Eling.

Bournemouth: Keath, Miller, Scott, Hand, Langen, Allum, Rogers, Watton, Wainwright, Smith, Singh.

Lymington: Henry, Treagus, Jaffer, Beetham, Grierson, Cowley, Edwards, Ellis, Freeman, Metcalfe, Kidner.