STEVE Butterworth is keen for Great Wakering Rovers to bounce back to winning ways when they welcome Dereham Town to Burroughs Park tomorrow.

Wakering got the campaign underway with successive victories but have since suffered back-to-back defeats.

And Butterworth, whose side are seventh in the Isthmian North standings, feels Wakering cannot take 17th-placed Dereham lightly.

The Wakering player-manager said: “Dereham are a very good side and I know that Aveley, who are being widely tipped for promotion, were lucky to get a point against them at the start of the season.

“They have had really difficult games against good teams so far, so I think they’re in a bit of a false position when you look at the league table.

“Dereham have only lost one game, so it will be a difficult game and we are aware of that.

“But we have also made a good start to the season, winning two and losing one.

“If I had been offered six points from the first nine on offer against the teams we have played, I would have snapped your hand off.”

Brandon Diau and Henry Fisher are set to miss out after being dismissed in the FA Cup preliminary round defeat to Essex Senior League side Walthamstow last weekend.

But Reece Conway and Anthony Furlong will come back into contention.

And Butterworth is eager to erase the memories of the 6-1 defeat at Dereham on the final day of last season by picking up all three points.

“They slapped us in the final game of last season, so we want to get the better of them this time around,” added Butterworth, whose first clash in permanent charge of Wakering came in the resounding loss.

“We will have a stronger defence tomorrow as Reece will be available for the first time this season and Anthony is also back.

“It will be the first time this season where we won’t have a makeshift back four and it’s great to have our full-backs returning because I’ve had to play central defenders there recently.

“The fact I will be able to play everyone in their preferred position bodes well.”

And Butterworth is keen to put the defeats to Walthamstow and Coggeshall Town behind him.

Butterworth admitted: “We put in our worst performance of the season at Walthamstow.

“We finished the game with nine men and lacked a bit of fight, which was frustrating.

“We went back to basics at Coggeshall, but they’re a good side.”