PETER Taylor has told News Shopper how much he is looking forward to taking his Crystal Palace side to face Dartford next Friday.

The former England under-21 boss began his managerial career with the Darts more than 20 years ago and now he is set to face his old side in the opposition dugout.

Taylor said: "I spent four tremendous years there and it will be nice to see a lot of familiar faces again.

"I still keep in contact with some of the friends I made there and I speak quite regularly to Tony Burman.

"Tony was an impressive player for me and I have no doubt he will be a successful manager as well."

Taylor believes the potential of Dartford has always existed and the new ground at Princes Park could finally unlock it.

He added: "The club has always got a chance because the fan base is there.

"When I was in charge, success was measured by how many people came through the gate and I think I did quite well because attendances went up from 400 to more than 1,000.

"We won lots of cups, although we were unable to get a promotion."

The Palace boss will not be the only Eagle going back to Dartford next week with Dave Martin also set to make a nostalgic return in Palace colours.

Taylor has been impressed with the winger since he took the huge step up from Ryman League to the Championship last season and believes Martin has a bright future.

He said: "Dave has a great chance to make it, but it is up to him whether he wants to grab it or not.

"He has worked incredibly hard since he came here and I'm expecting his fitness and strength to keep on improving with full-time training.

"If he keeps working as hard as he has so far, his ability and knowledge will improve and he will definitely get 45 minutes at Princes Park."

Taylor has gone on to bigger things since starting out with Dartford two decades ago, but has no doubt non-league football is the perfect way for budding managers to cut their teeth.

He explained: "I learnt a lot from my time with Dartford and then Enfield, so it is definitely something I would recommend.

"Some of the brightest managers around today have come through from non-league and I was speaking to one of them today, Martin Allen, who began at Barnet."

Meanwhile, Taylor confirmed he is on the lookout for two new players as Palace bid to regain their top flight status.

He said: "I'm still trying to get another centre half and a striker before the start of the season, but nobody else is leaving.

"The target for this year is to improve on what we did last time.

"We lost quite a few games at Selhurst in the first half of last season and not because teams rose their games against us, but because we just were not good enough.

"There was a noticeable improvement during the second part of the season and if we can maintain those levels of consistency, then we have a real chance."