DOVER ATHLETIC are delighted to announce the signing of John Keister.

The former Sierra Leone international, 35, penned a one-year contract tonight (Tuesday) and is Whites’ first signing of the summer.

Keister, who was released by Margate earlier this week, is a strong and skilful utility man, who can also play in defence.

His career highlights have been playing in two World Cup qualifying games for Sierra Leone against Nigeria and Morocco, as well as scoring the winning penalty for Margate against Leyton Orient at Crabble in the FA Cup first round replay in 2002.

Keister played for Tigres in Brazil, before coming to England where he played 124 Football League games for Walsall, Chester and Shrewsbury. Keister joined Margate in 2001 from Stevenage and played a vital role in the Thanet club’s success on the field under the management of Chris Kinnear.

Dover boss Clive Walker told doverathletic.com: “Keister is a player I’ve been after for some while. He is very experienced and has the know-how to play in a number of positions and systems.

“He will allow me to adjust the system more and gives me a lot of options, as he can play across the park. He’s just the type of player we need.

“John has quality and will give us something different in midfield, and he adds more experience to the squad. It’s been difficult to get the right balance between youth and experience in the team but we are getting there now.”

Whites chairman Jim Parmenter knows Keister well and believes he will be a success at Crabble: “Clive said all along that he is looking for specific players in specific positions. John is one of those. He was a Sierra Leone international and has the qualities we need.

“I know about him from my time at Margate, where he was a key player for them. He’ll fit in well here, as he has an excellent attitude and vast experience.

“Clive is after a couple more players to improve the quality of the squad. We hope to sign another player this week but we’ll just have to wait and see on that.”