Enfield Town boss Steve Newing doesn’t expect his side to be dragged into a Ryman Premier relegation battle come the end of the season.

Enfield currently sit 14th in the table following promotion from the Ryman South Division.

It has been a solid start to life in the division and Newing is pleased with how his side have adapted.

He said: “We have done ok and have competed well in the majority of our games this season. We have got results and points against the sides that are around us in the division.

“The only thing that I would say is a little bit disappointing is that against the more fancied sides in the league, we have not taken our chances.

“We have played well in a lot of games against the better sides and it would be nice to pick up a few points from those games because the team deserve it and it might give them a little more confidence.

“But at the beginning of the season I said that I thought we could finish in the bottom half of the table. We have a little cushion to those in the bottom two and we have taken 17 points from our first 14 matches.

“If we can replicate that throughout the rest of the season then I am excepting us to be fine by the end of the campaign.”

Enfield let a two-goal lead slip at the weekend as they suffered a 3-2 defeat against Lowestoft Town.

Jonathan Hunt put the hosts ahead with a fine free-kick before Adam Wallace added a second.

Jack Defty pulled a goal back for Lowestoft but Newing’s men went in at the break with a 2-1 advantage.

However, the second period was controlled by the visitors and they scored the equaliser two minutes after the restart as Christopher Henderson found the net.

On loan Brighton & Hove Albion goalkeeper Daniel East produced several stops to keep Enfield level but Lowestoft scored the winner on 82 minutes as Michael Frew fired home.

Newing said: “For the first 35 minutes, it was the best football we have played all season. We moved the ball well, scored twice and created two clear chances to add two more goals.

“But we didn’t take our chances and they scored just before half-time which was important.

“Then they got the equaliser in the first few minutes of the second half and they then controlled the game.

“We didn’t really create anything in the second half and they got the third which killed off the game.”

He continued: “It is a bit frustrating but I knew we couldn’t keep up the way we played in the first 35 minutes.

“At half-time they changed a few things and showed why they were one of the pre-season favourites to win the league.”

Including Saturday’s defeat, Enfield are in Ryman Premier action eight times in December. It could prove an important month as the Towners face three of the division’s top five sides.

Enfield welcome Thurrock to the Queen Elizabeth Stadium on Saturday and will be looking to bounce back from their first league defeat in just under a month.

The Fleet currently sit 20th in the table but Newing is anticipating a tough match from the side which were relegated from the Blue Square South last season.

“It could be an important month for us,” Newing said. “We face some top sides and although Thurrock have started slowly they have started to pick up results.

“We also have to face Concord Rangers who are one of the form sides in the division and then a tough match against Wealdstone, who will be in the top five come the end of the season. At the end of this month we will have the chance to reassess where we are and what we can do in the second half of the season.”