EASTLEIGH boss Richard Hill reckons young midfielder Cavaghn Miley won’t stay under the radar for long if he keeps performing as he did in yesterday's 2-2 National League draw at Ebbsfleet United.

The 21-year-old Jersey skipper was a surprise inclusion for the trip to Stonebridge Road which saw the Spitfires share the points for the third time in eight days.

His mature performance drew praise from Hill who signed the youngster over the summer on the recommendation of his good friend, former Aston Villa manager Brian Little, who had a spell in charge of Jersey.

“I get a lot of criticism for signing older players, but this lad is 21 and he’s been impeccable,” said Hill.

“Brian (Little) raved about him and said to give him a chance, but I had to handle it properly.

“I kept him back because of the seven games (in August) and I thought it was the right time to bring him in today.

“If I’d put in him early, perhaps against Tranmere or Dagenham, it could have ruined him.

“He’s a bit of a hidden player, but, if he plays like that, he won’t be for long.

“I don’t want to go over the top because we’ve all seen young players have good debuts and not progress.

“But it’s up to Cav now.

“He’s very well thought of by the senior lads, which tells you something.”

It was a game of mixed emotions for Hill, frustrated not to have come away with all three points, yet proud of his side’s battling qualities.

Having expertly hooked in Eastleigh’s 18th-minute opener from Mark Yeates’s free-kick, Constable bundled a second over the line only for Chris Zebroski to be ruled offside.

Ebbsfleet’s Jack Powell levelled in first-half stoppage time with an exquisitely struck free-kick awarded, somewhat harshly, against Danny Hollands and, with the Spitfires’ defence switching off, Danny Kedwell nosed the home side ahead on 68 minutes.

But it had taken a superb double save from Fleet’s former Gosport Borough goalkeeper Nathan Ashmore to thwart Mark Yeates and James Constable and Eastleigh’s willingness to keep pressing forward was rewarded ten minutes from time when Reda Johnson’s driven shot rebounded in off sub Craig McAllister.

In Hill’s book the equaliser was the least the Spitfires deserved.

“No disrespect to Ebbsfleet, but we were probably the better team,” he said.

“We’re a different type of team this season. We were still trying to win at the end of the game, which was refreshing.

“James Constable thinks he should have scored a second but sometimes you’ve got to give the goalkeeper credit and he (Ashmore) has made an unbelievable save.

“And don’t forget we’ve gone there without (injured quartet) Ben Williamson, Sam Togwell, Gavin Hoyte and Paul McCallum who are all big players for us."

Eastleigh are 12th, three places and one point above Daryl McMahon’s newly-promoted Ebbsfleet who have drawn seven of their eight league fixtures.

McMahon, a former Spitfires’ skipper, said: “Eastleigh are a very good side. You go through their team and they’ve got hundreds, if not thousands, of League games in their squad.

"Our remit was to go into the division and be competitive and I think we’ve been more than competitive so far."

Eastleigh: Graham Stack, Ayo Obileye (Ross Stearn, 74), Andrew Boyce, Callum Howe, Reda Johnson, Mark Yeates (Sam Matthews, 64), Danny Hollands, Cavaghn Miley, Sam Wood, Chris Zebroski (Craig McAllister, 65), James Constable. Subs (not used): Michael Green, Ben Strevens.

Referee: Samuel Allison.

Attendance: 1,423.