Heybridge Swifts v Walthamstow preview

Walthamstow make the journey to Heybridge Swifts on Saturday in the Isthmian League Division One North.

Both teams have had a rough start to this season, with Stow sitting in 18th and Heybridge in 20th, just two points separating the two sides. Heybridge recently appointed Jason Maher as head coach, after sacking Julian Dicks in October.

Stow picked up their first win since October after a 3-0 win in midweek at home against Mildenhall Town. A brace from Callum Ibe and a singular goal from Chris Manangu wrapped up a deserved win for the Stow.

Heybridge took on local rivals Witham Town on Saturday but came out as 3-2 losers. Ben Allen and Rowan Dorling gave Witham a two-goal advantage, before Ben McCrow got two goals in two minutes for the Swifts. Ziad Bakkar would wrap up the three points for Witham with just five minutes from time.

The last two meetings between Stow and Heybridge have ended in wins for both sides. Stow made the trip into Essex a year ago, with the hosts coming victorious in a 2-1 win. Andrew Fennell and Scott Sloots gave the Swifts a two-goal lead going into half time. Ali Njie pulled one back for Stow on the 64th minute but couldn’t find an equaliser. The reverse fixture took place in January with Stow winning 3-2. Bilal Sayoud got the opener before Scott Sloots made the game level. Louie Johnson regained Stow’s lead before a Finn Rushton own goal. The win was sealed with just under fifteen minutes left thanks to Bilal Sayoud and his second of the game.

In April 1999, we beat Swifts 2-0 in the semi-final of the Essex Thameside Trophy, and we’d go on to win the final too.

We met in another semi-final seven years later, this time the Essex Senior Cup. Two goals from Jermain Hughes helped us to a 3-0 victory. At the time, neither side knew that the semi would in-effect be the final. With Chelmsford City and Braintree Town’s semi-final being abandoned due to a ’22 man brawl’, both clubs were ejected from the competition, and the trophy was handed to Forest.

Then there was the ‘ghost’ goal.

There was perhaps a sign of things to come when Andre Humphries-Modeste was sent off for Forest after just 14 minutes for deliberate handball, with the resulting penalty giving Swifts the lead.

Rob Carter equalised on the stroke of half-time for Forest, but midway through the second half, Swifts thought they’d taken the lead again. But as the ball beat the Forest keeper, it squeezed through a hole in the net, and out behind the pitch.

Perhaps owing to Heybridge’s lack of real celebration, the referee awarded a goal kick, much to the bemusement of everyone else in the ground.

As the game entered injury time, the referee was then knocked out when he was hit in the head from a free kick. Whether it was intentional or not, we’ll never know… In the end that season, Swifts finished six points behind the last play-off place, while Forest finished a disappointing 16th, after an excellent first few months.