Hibernian Egg Chasing

 With Covid 19 lockdown restrictions slowly being lifted across the UK fans are now being let back into sports stadia in limited numbers, not only for football, but also for other sports such as Rugby Union. My mate Nige let me know he was able to get some cut price tickets for the London Irish game against Exeter at the new Brentford Stadium which they share with Brentford FC. I know nothing about Rugby, but the Irish connection and the chance to visit a new ground was enough for me to say yes.

I hadn’t been to a sporting even with a crowd since the two Bromley games in December and I hadn’t been on a train or tube for well over a year, so this was a bit of an adventure. I headed in to London Victoria from Bromley South, noticing that even though it was fairly busy, passenger numbers were nothing compared to what they used to be. I found a seat on my own on a rush hour train and started listening to Amon Amarth. The tube to Gunnersbury was the same, although the atmosphere was one of caution, everybody keeping their distance and looking even more solemn than usual.

Once I’d met Nige at the station we initially headed off in the wrong direction as there was no sign posting for the new ground at all and just to add to it the rain started pouring down. Once we found the right way the ground wasn’t too far at all, but despite a large number of stewards milling about it was very difficult to find out where to go. We went to the wrong entrance first, which involved walking through a construction site, the standard response from any steward was ‘you have to walk all the way round’! Around the ground there is loads of building work going on with flats and other developments.  

Soaked to the skin we finally found Entrance P and scanned our E-tickets on the electronic turnstile. Disappointingly there was no club shop open and only an on-line programme available. Inside the stadium you have to wear a mask and keep a 2metre distance, but this all got forgotten about in the queues at the bar, which are all cashless. A pint of Guinness and a Chicken Balti pie came in at just under a tenner and were both excellent quality. You have to specifically ask for napkins or a fork, neither were handed over willingly. Looking round at the punters there were a few wax jackets and people wearing jeans with shoes and a jacket, but there were also a lot of people who wouldn’t have looked out of place at football. It was also nice to hear a few different Irish accents.  

We headed up to our seats just before kick off an as it was a Rugby game we were allowed to take our drinks with us, which was nice. The stadium was very impressive, a large main stand where the players came out of, with the other three sides of covered seating that all gave an excellent view. Multi coloured seats gave the illusion that there was more than the 4,000 fans in attendance, which is 25% of the total capacity. Although games are supposed to be only open to home fans at the moment, there were a number of Exeter fans there and all wearing club colours. We were near the back of the stand behind the goal and just behind us were lots of Brentford flags that have been left up for the behind closed doors matches during the season.

I didn’t have much of a clue as to what was going on once the match started, the only previous Rugby Union game I had been to was back in 2000 when I saw Ireland play Japan at Landsdowne Road, but Nige provided expert commentary, explaining that Exeter were near the top of the table and ruthlessly efficient at what they do. Whenever Irish got close to the try line the noise in the stadium sounded like far more than 4,000 and Exeter fans also made some noise, including the Native American war chant inspired by their Chiefs nick name, which annoyed Nige immensely. Exactly what the link is between a city in Devon and Native Americans I have no idea, it did seem a bit inappropriate. The action was pretty ferocious at times, the tackles were hard and when there were breaks, some of the players showed real pace and skill, but I was still a little puzzled by it all. There was a bunch of teenage kids behind us who were Brentford fans and were trying to wind people up by cheering for Exeter and making snide comments about the Irish, but no one rose to the bait and they got bored.    

The use of TMO put the farcical implementation of VAR in football to shame, decisions were made quickly with clear information on why the Ref had given his verdict and the action was played back on the big screens in the stadium.  

By half time all of the drink and food had sold out in our section, although I did manage to get a last coffee, which was nice although a bit steep at £2.50. I guess with only this game and Brentford’s up coming play off semi final as the two games they are hosting with fans before the summer it would have been difficult to judge demand.  

Exeter won the game comfortably in the end 31-12, playing with an intensity and professionalism that you need to be right near the top of the game. The fans applauded both sides off the field at the end of the match before heading off to the exits. I would definitely go again, hopefully when the fans are back in bigger umbers and the facilities are all open.

To be honest the best bit was getting to catch up with an old mate, chatting nonsense, having a drink and actually being out. 

We got back to Gunnersbury very quickly and at least it was dry, but my ticket got stuck in the machine as it was still wet! Luckily the lady working there sorted it out for me and I got back to Victoria ok. Sadly a real reminder of the financial impact of Covid came with the fact that just about every food and drink outlet had closed down, no upper crust baguette or Cornish pasty for the journey home. With my clothes still soaked I picked up a cab for last bit of the journey home from Bromley South,

‘You been to Chelsea mate?’ the Cabbie asked, ‘No, London Irish Rugby’, ‘Oh, I’m a football man me’, ‘Yeah me too mate, me too.’

 

Col.        

The Raven That Rose from The Ashes

The original version of this article appeared in the Farnborough & Orpington Local magazines in Match 2021.  

The Raven That Rose from The Ashes

October 1992 was the start of a very difficult period for Bromley FC, having just started their centenary year it should have been a time of celebration, but instead it was marred by the loss of the main stand to two separate fires.

The first destroyed most of the old wooden and the bar, the second a few weeks later put paid to what was left. The club had to play their home games at Croydon FC’s Arena, Dulwich Hamlet’s Champion Hill and on one occasion Walton & Hersham’s Stompond Lane. All cup matches were played away from home that season and the club had to keep going on virtually no income, with players going unpaid for months.

Despite this George Wakeling’s side manged to avoid relegation on the final day of the season with a 2-2 draw at Marlow and also reached the Kent Senior Cup Final against Ashford Town at Priestfield, Gillingham.

The spirit that the team, the club and the supporters showed that season saw Bromley through and it was needed in abundance over the next decade. The Ravens returned to Hayes Lane the following year, but the main aim every season was survival on and off the pitch.

After long serving manager George Wakeling departed for Ashford in January 1999 things on the pitch took a dip for the worse. The season ended in relegation to the Isthmian League Division One where The Ravens would stay for six years. Attendances dipped to below 150 and most season were spent with the club near the bottom of the table, but when former player Jerry Dolke took the club over in 2001/02 things slowly started to improve.

Under manager Stuart McIntyre the club won the London Senior Cup in 2003 with a 1-0 win over Ford Utd at Dagenham, their first trophy in 7 years, and they began to look up rather than down the table. In December 2004 George Wakeling & Billy Smith returned as managers and by May Bromley were promoted back to the Isthmian League Premier Division via the play offs with a 3-1 win at Horsham. A phenomenal achievement given they were fifteenth when the new managers took over. The following year saw consolidation in the Premier Division and they also won the Kent Senior Cup with a 3-2 extra time win over Gravesend & Northfleet.

By now the club had regained ownership of Hayes Lane and were making a series of improvements to the ground and facilities under the guidance of Jerry Dolke. When Mark Goldberg took over as first team manager in 2006/07 the club were eyeing promotion into the Conference South with some high profile singings and this was achieved in dramatic fashion as Bromley beat Billericay Town on penalties in the Play Off Final of May 2007.

Bromley had seemed to have found their natural level in the Conference South with the occasional success in cup competitions, but after a brush with a relegation battle in 2013, the club then started to compete at the top end of the table eyeing promotion to the National League. In 2013/14 they lead the league for a long time before eventually losing in the play offs, but a year later they won automatic promotion as champions.

In their first season in Non League Footballs top division The Ravens finished ninth, with Neil Smith taking over as manager from Mark Goldberg in the February. Smith remained in charge until March this year, with regular mid-table finishes in the league he also took his home town club to Wembley Stadium for the 2018 FA Trophy Final, which they lost on penalties to Brackley Town having lead 1-0 with 21 seconds of injury time remaining. Andy Woodman took over the reins in md-March and has started his term in some style with five wins, two draws and only one loss thus far.

Robin Stanton-Gleaves took over as the club’s owner in 2019, with Jerry Dolke still involved as Director of Football. Major improvements have been made to the Hayes Lane ground with a new stand behind the goal and an extension to the main stand. The players are now full time, with 3G training pitches between the ground and Norman Park, along with an Academy set up and Ladies Teams, plus a superb Community Scheme.    

Due to Covid Restrictions the club have only been able to have two home games with fans in attendance so far this season, screening games live via their website for £9.99, but hopefully they will be back for the next campaign. With the average pre-Covid 19 home attendance up around 2,000 the club are now looking to progress on to the next level again and compete for a place in the Football League. Given how far Bromley FC have come in the last twenty years, you wouldn’t bet against them doing just that. 

Col

Holmesdale Putting Down Roots

 

This article originally appeared in the Farnborough & Orpington Local Magazines.  

Along with Bromley & Cray Wanderers, BR2 also boasts another senior football club in the shape of Holmesdale FC. Based in Oakley Road, Bromley Common, ‘The Dalers’ currently play in the Southern Counties East Football League Division One (level six), although they may be due for promotion if restructuring proposals go ahead across non league football in May.

In the last two seasons under manager Lee Roots, Holmesdale have competed near to top of the SCEFL Division One, before both campaigns were cut short by Covid 19, picking up an impressive points per game average of 2.2, which sees them occupy second in the table over all. Dale play some really attractive attacking football, which was starting to pull in larger attendances before things came to an abrupt halt in November 2020 with the team on an impressive unbeaten run.   

Holmesdale began their current existence in1956 at The Oaks in the Shirley area of Croydon, picking up the history of the original club which had folded in the 1920s, before making the move over the border to Bromley Common in 2000. As well as moving up the football pyramid, all the way to the Kent League Premier Division at one stage (level 5), the club have also steadily improved facilities at their Oakley Road ground with a nice bar, excellent playing surface, floodlights and a new main stand built two years ago that replaced the iconic scaffolding structure which had been put up just over a decade earlier.

The club also has an extensive youth set up and an Under 23s side to provide a pathway into the first team for up and coming local football talent. With many players in the current squad having progressed this way.

Last season admission for games was only £7 for adults and £4 for concessions and prior to the campaign being cut short Holmesdale had progressed to the third round of the FA Vase, which is the furthest the club had ever progressed in the national cup competition that has it’s final held at Wembley Stadium.

The club is run by a friendly band of hard working volunteers and a warm welcome is guaranteed for supporters who make the journey to the ground, which is set back from the main road in a very green and pleasant part of the borough. The ground is surrounded by fields, just down the road from Bromley Common Cricket Club. Dale recently appointed Keith Bird as Chairman who had previously been involved on the coaching side at Bromley & Cray Wanderers.

Hopefully by the start of next season in August 2021 things will be back to some kind of normal, at least to an extent that see fans return to watching football at this level and Holmesdale FC can continue to progress on and off the field whether that’s in the SCEFL Division One or Premier.

Col      

 https://www.holmesdalefc.com/     

London Oldest Club Looking to the Future

 

This article appeared in the Farnborough, Orpington & Petts Wood Local Magazines in March 2021.

London Oldest Club Looking to the Future

 

Cray Wanderers FC were formed in 1860 by workers on the rail line from London to Kent, who were constructing the impressive viaduct that still towers over St Mary Cray village today. Their affiliation with the London FA means they are London’s Oldest surviving football team. The club have lived a somewhat nomadic existence over their 160 year history, which has seen them play at eight different home grounds in the area, the most recent being Bromley FC’s Hayes Lane stadium which The Wands have called home since 1998, having moved there from Oxford Road in Sidcup, which had been their base since 1973.

 

The wandering is due to end within the next couple of years though, as club Owner Gary Hillman has secured a new home ground they can call their own at Flamingo Park on the A20 between Sidcup and Eltham. Along with plans for a main stadium with a 3G pitch, there will also be a number of other pitches and facilities available for the whole community. Although building work has yet to begin on the main stadium the club is already using the pitches on site for pre-season games and their impressive youth set up which runs from Under 7s to Under 18s. The youth system has already produced a number of players who have stepped up into the first team squad and some have moved on to the Football League. 

 

A number of former  professional footballers have graced the Cray ranks including Simon Osborn who played for Crystal Palace, Wolves & QPR, plus ex-Charlton Athletic men Grant Basey, Danny Haynes and currently Bradley Pritchard who  has regularly put in impressive performances in midfield over the last couple of seasons.    

 

Since The Wands move to Bromley, 5 miles form the area they take their name from, Cray have gone from strength to strength on the pitch, rising from the Kent League and now playing in the Isthmian League Premier Division, the highest level in the club’s history (two divisions below the Football League). Last season, first team manager Tony Russell’s side were challenging for promotion to National League South, sitting in second place, when Covid 19 saw the season halted in March with eight games to go and all results declared null and void. They had started this season in similar fashion and had good runs in the FA Cup & Trophy also, only for the campaign to be stopped in it’s tracks again by the virus. With no decision on the rest of the season yet made, it looks likely that again they will see the results wiped from the history books and The Wands won’t be back in action until at least the late summer, when fans are hopefully allowed back in to Hayes Lane for the 2021/22 season.

 

Manager Russell and his coach Joe Vines both played for Cray Wands during their careers and alongside coach Nathan White and physio Ally Maloney they have formed a strong back room team. Widley praised for their attacking and possession based style of play, Cray’s brand of football has many admirers and the entrance fee of only £10 for adults and £5 for concessions means it’s an affordable afternoon’s entertainment for the family, with a friendly welcome from the club’s loyal band of volunteers who keep everything running. The club also issue an excellent programme for every home game priced at just £2 and full of interesting stats and articles. Club historians Jerry Dowlen and Peter Gorringe have also produced several books on Cray Wanderers extensive history and links with the Cray area.             

 

Not deterred by the Covid set backs, which has also understandably seen vital sponsorship form local businesses hit, the club’s CEO Sam Wright recently announced a partnership with V Bet that will help The Wands grow their community links with the area they are set to move to and revamp the club’s merchandise, which should hopefully see their famous amber & black colours being worn by many more locals. Cray Wanderers already has a superb Community Scheme for children in the Cray area, which has been running for over 10 years and engages with youngsters through sport & education.    

 

With so much positive work going on and promising plans for the future, despite these difficult times, Cray Wanderers look set to be on the path to even bigger things on and off the pitch as they head towards their 161^st anniversary this summer eyeing National League football and a home ground of their own.      

 Home Grounds – Star Lane, Fordcroft, St Mary Cray Rec, Foots Cray, Fordcroft, Grassmeade, Oxford Road, Hayes Lane. 

   

https://www.cray-wanderers.com/

 

Just for Kicks – Season 1994/95

It’s probably hard for anyone who wasn’t watching Isthmian League Football in the 1994/95 season to believe that this actually happened, but I assure you that it did. For one season the league agreed with the FA to trial the use of ‘kick ins’. The law change basically meaning that a player could choose to ether throw the ball in as normal or kick it instead. The kick would be treated as a throw in, meaning players could not be offside when receiving the ball, but also you could not score direct with a kick in. The idea being that it would provide more goal mouth incident and encourage more attacking play.

The consequence of the new initiative was that teams quickly worked out if you filled your team with 6ft plus, well built giants, you could use any restart from within 70yards of the opposition goal as a set piece and pump the ball into their box. Most Isthmian League games became a 90 minute series of set pieces and goal mouth scrambles. There were a few teams who refused to use them initially, sticking to the principles of football, but the majority embraced the route one nature encouraged by the rule.

Bromley manager George Wakeling saw his team challenge near the top of the table for the majority of the season, helped by the superb set piece delivery of Joe Francis and the aerial prowess of strikers Carl Richards, Micky Brown, Trevor Aylott and Richard Cherry.

There was one game at home to Molesey where Francis scored, or was directly involved in, three goals within a space of five minutes as Bromley won 4-3. One of the goals saw Francis drive the ball from a kick in directly towards goal, if The Moles keeper had left the ball it wouldn’t have counted, but in attempting to tip the ball over the bar he only got his finger tips to it and pushed the ball into the roof of the net for an own goal! Another incident that is carved into Bromley folklore happened away at local rivals Sutton Utd. With the game tied at 1-1 in the final few minutes, Bromley were awarded a penalty. Richard Cherry saw his spot kicked saved and cleared over the touch line by a home defender. Francis quickly returned the ball into play via a perfectly weighted kick in, which found Cherry still stood on the penalty spot distraught, the striker looked up just in time and headed the ball over the stranded Sutton keeper into the net to make it 2-1 to Bromley and win the game, heralding chaotic scenes behind the goal as the Bromley support went crazy.   

It wasn’t easy for teams to adapt to not using kick ins when playing in other cup competitions and teams selections had to change to allow for different types of players. Bromley entered six cup competitions along with a 42 game league campaign, they exited the FA Trophy, Kent Senior Cup, Club Call Cup and Diadora League Cup at the first time of asking, going one round further in the London Challenge Cup before losing 6-4 away at St Albans City. In the FA Cup The Ravens did beat Bognor Regis Town 3-2 at home before losing in a second replay 1-0 to Gravesend & Northfleet Utd, the home game being watched by 805. The biggest home gate of the season came on Boxing Day when 916 watched second place Bromley lose 2-0 at home to Dulwich Hamlet. The lowest home league attendance being the 253 hardy souls who turned up in the pouring rain for a midweek 6-0 home loss to bottom of the league Marlow at the end of March. The game should never really have been played with standing water all over the pitch, but the Ref insisted it went ahead and the visitors adapted better to the conditions.      

The traditional post Christmas slump saw The Ravens challenge for the top fade, slipping to seventh by the Spring before securing a sixth place finish with a decent run in, including a 5-0 win over Walton & Hersham thanks to goals from Mickey Brown (2), Pat Gordon, Keith Sharman & Frank Coles. Club Legend Coles along with Carl Richards, Andy Salako, Dean Francis, Ollie Adedji and Keith Sharman all played over 40 matches in the 52 game season. Joe Francis finished the season as top scorer.                

Unsurprisingly the Kick Ins experiment only lasted one season before being scrapped. For the football purist it was an anathema, it stifled any creative midfield play at all. For the likes of myself, who like the rough and tumble of lower league football, it was a lot of fun, but we knew it wouldn’t last.                

PREMIER DIVISION

 Pos  Name                            Pld    W    D    L   GF   GA  Pts

   1  Enfield                          42   28    9    5  106   43   93

   2  Slough Town                      42   22   13    7   82   56   79

   3  Hayes                            42   20   14    8   66   47   74

   4  Aylesbury United                 42   21    6   15   86   59   69

   5  Hitchin Town                     42   18   12   12   68   59   66

   6  Bromley                          42   18   11   13   76   67   65

   7  St Albans City                   42   17   13   12   96   81   64

   8  Molesey                          42   18    8   16   65   61   62

   9  Yeading                          42   14   15   13   60   59   57

  10  Harrow Borough                   42   17    6   19   64   67   57

  11  Dulwich Hamlet                   42   16    9   17   70   82   57

  12  Carshalton Athletic              42   16    9   17   69   84   57

  13  Kingstonian                      42   16    8   18   62   57   56

  14  Walton & Hersham                 42   14   11   17   75   73   53

  15  Sutton United                    42   13   12   17   74   69   51

  16  Purfleet                         42   13   12   17   76   90   51

  17  Hendon                           42   12   14   16   57   65   50

  18  Grays Athletic                   42   11   16   15   57   61   49

  19  Bishop's Stortford               42   12   11   19   53   76   47

  20  Chesham United                   42   12    9   21   60   87   45

  21  Marlow                           42   10    9   23   52   84   39

  22  Wokingham Town                   42    6    9   27   39   86   27

 

Enfield won the league, but turned down promotion with Slough taking their place in the Conference. Chesham, Marlow & Wokingham were relegated to Division One.

Twenty six years on Bromley & Sutton Utd are highest placed, competing in the National League. Only Dulwich Hamlet & St Albans compete at the equivalent level. Hayes & Yeading merged in 2009, Enfield split into two clubs, the fan run Town in the Isthmian League with the other in the Essex Senior League.

Wokingham (now merged with Embrook) along with Walton & Hesham have slipped the furthest down the pyramid to county league division one level, while Purfleet changed their name to Thurrock before eventually folding in 2017.      

Col

     

Boxing Day Football

 

Boxing Day Football

Boxing Day always used to be a special date in the football calendar. Stuffed with Christmas excess it was a chance for fans to get some fresh air and meet up with mates to cheer on their team. For players I guess it wasn’t always so great, having to be careful what they consumed the previous day and then prepare for what was traditionally a morning or early afternoon kick off.

It was always pretty obvious if some players had been less committed to their dietary restrictions than others as they struggled to move around the pitch and there was also the case on one Bromley player in particular who would always seen to time his fifth booking of the season or a red card to coincide with being banned for the Christmas fixtures.    

There were also some freak results at these matches, Bromley beating Thurrock 8-1 in 2007 one notable score, made even stranger by the 2-1 loss for The Ravens in the reverse fixture five days later on New Years Day.  

With public transport either non existent or greatly reduced, you were reliant on lifts for away games or walking to home matches. I can remember my friends Nige & Martin walking over from New Eltham to call for me on the way to a Bromley Boxing Day home fixture against old rivals Dulwich Hamlet back in 1996. Nige had a box full of sausage rolls to share out made by his Mum. They were delicious and when we asked what the secret ingredient was, the answer was ‘Lard’. I was glad of the walk after that to try and work it off!     

The game kicked off at 11am and it was very cold, as the match went on the pitch at the benches end began to freeze. You could see the white frost forming on the grass during the second half, creeping up to the six yard box and then the penalty spot. The game probably wouldn’t have started if it had kicked off later in the day, but the Ref stuck with it and I’d imagine the Dulwich Keeper must have picked up some bruises diving on the rock hard surface. The match ended in 0-0, watched by what was a good crowd back then of 600.  

We walked back home on frozen feet, chatting all the way, ready for the Boxing Day buffet waiting for us at home.

Crowds for Non League games were always bigger than usual, the games were often against local rivals to minimize the travelling and it was sometimes the one game a season fans of  Premier League clubs might fancy watching some local football. 

For myself family commitments and the like have made Boxing Day football a little more tricky to attend these days, but I will always remember that special buzz around the place at the games the day after Christmas.      

Col.

        

 

The Last Game Before Lockdown 2

 

Wednesday 28th October 2020 – The second week of half term means that Mikey can join my Dad and myself for a midweek game at Hayes Lane, where Cray Wanderers take on Merstham in the Isthmian League Premier Division. 

Covid-19 rules mean that I can’t go into my parents house, but I can go to football with my Dad as long as he sits in the back of the car, I mask up and we sit 1 metre plus away in the stand! 

Mikey is excited about going to a night game, he’s already picked up that there is something special about a game under the floodlights. We arrive at the ground just after 7pm and I find one of the few parking spaces left, the whole area is bathed in the artificial light from the ground. You can feel a buzz and hear the music from the PA, the chatter of fans and the thumping of footballs being kicked about in the warm up. 

We see Peter on the turnstile, (his family have been involved with Cray for decades), we say hello to Sam a former plater and now CEO, buy Golden Goals tickets from Steve and get a programme from Phil. We have a quick chat with all of them mostly about the disappointing FA Cup exit at Canvey Island the previous Saturday. There are hand sanitiser stations dotted around the ground and plenty of signs.  

A quick hello to Mark and I pick up a team sheet to help with my match report for KSN and say Hi to Adrian the kit man. I nod and wave to Ally the physio, then Tony, Joe & Nathan the management team, normally we would exchange handshakes, but in this Covid era that’s not allowed. Mikey would usually stand by the tunnel and high five the players as they head in for the final team talk, but he can’t do that either. We are not allowed in the main stand, which is set aside for officials, so we head to the new Glyn Beverly stand behind the goal to find our seats. 

We settle in and find a good vantage point, more than 2metres away from everyone else, but close enough to say hello to the familiar faces there. Mikey wants some chips, amazing seeing he just had a massive bowl of pasta at home, but I won’t say no. I head over to the Pizza Hatch and pick them up to Stuart who had worked on the catering side at Hayes Lane for well over ten years. He did a fantastic job for my wedding reception there is 2008, which was in the brand new facility at the back of the main stand. I have a quick catch up with Gary the Cray Wands owner, who brought Cray to Hayes Lane to groundshare with Bromley in 1998 and after a lot of knock backs has finally secured his club a new stadium at Flamingo Park on the A20, which should be ready in a couple of years.    

The game gets underway and Cray mean business from the off, clearly stung by the cup exit and manager Tony Russell’s criticism of the performances and lack of clean sheets. Merstham are struggling at the foot of the table and they look visibly rattled by the intensity of The Wands attack. It’s 2-0 after nine minutes, Ben Mundele and Bradley Pritchard on the score sheet. Jay Leader heads a third from a corner after half and hour. The visiting supporters near us take it all in good heart, there’s no anger, finger pointing or waving of arms, there is just genuine encouragement for their young side. 

The second half is pretty much the same, Rhys Murrell-Williamson scores once and top scorer Joe Taylor adds two more to his impressive tally to make it 6-0. Merstham bring on a familiar face up front in Barry Hayles, the former Millwall, Bristol Rovers and Fulham striker. He is now well in his 40s, but clearly loves playing the game still, for some reason the Ref seems to take an instant dislike to him ad calls him up for fouls every time he challenges for a ball, even the Cray players look surprised at some of the decisions. Although his introduction did provide some spark up front, The Wands hold on to their clean sheet and secure a comfortable three points with a stylish display. The win takes them up to fifth in the table with 15 points from 7 games, well placed for a promotion push.  

We clap the players off and head for the exit, little did we know at the time that there would be no more Cray Wanderers games for us to watch this year. The Wands won 3-0 at Whitehawk in the FA Trophy the following Saturday and then came the second lockdown, followed by a Tier system that would see the Isthmian League programme halted until January 2021 at least. 

All the hard work of the people at the club seemingly for nothing for a second season in a row. This one seems harder to take. Teams in the league above carry on playing with money given to subsidise their loss of income, as the game a level lower is left to try and survive on nothing. 

My Dad has been supporting Cray Wands since he was ten, it's a very special club, his Dad also was a supporter before him. Myself & Mikey are happy to carry it on into a third and fourth generation. I just hope The Wands survive this and make it beyond the 160 years they have already clocked up, making then London’s oldest football club.  

Col.