The Summer so far
As pre-season looms ever closer, www.walthamforest-fc.co.uk takes a look at the goings on around the division.
AFC Sudbury: Finished close to the play-offs last campaign, but their inconsistency was their downfall. Indeed, we took four points off them. It has all been a bit quiet at the MEL Group Stadium so far; defender Lee Kersey has left for Heybridge Swifts, but the majority of last season’s squad has signed up for another season. Sudbury manager Nicky Smith has apparently set his sights on about four players in the Blue Square Premier, but seems somewhat surprised that the majority of those players are not willing to take a pay cut to play at Step 4.
Brentwood Town: After an extra time defeat to Wingate & Finchley in last season’s play-off final, Brentwood will be looking to go one better. They have already signalled their intensions by pulling off arguably one of the division’s biggest transfers. Joining the Blues is former Great Wakering Rovers captain Dan Trenkel, who despite spending a period of the tail end of last season injured, still had a goal tally in double figures.
Chatham Town: Chatham have once again made the move from Division 1 South of the Ryman League, and like Waltham Forest, were reprieved by the FA. Chatham appointed former Concord Rangers full-back Kevin Watson as manager towards the end of last season, but he was unable to stop them from finishing in 21st place. Interestingly, Chatham finished with 40 points, a tally which would have seen them finish in 16th in Division 1 North. Since their reprieve, Chatham have signed John Pilbeam from Tunbridge Wells, in addition to many of last season’s squad signing on again.
Cheshunt: Since their relegation from the Southern League Premier Division a few seasons ago, it is fair to say that Cheshunt have not really excelled. However, a combination of low wages and solid management has seen them retain their step 4 status without really taking any large risks. Cheshunt manager Bob Dearie has been linked with as many as seven Ware players, but among those, only Ryan Wade and Matt Turpin are expected to sign.
Enfield Town: Town will be buoyed by the news that they may finally be playing at their own ground this season. Work on the Queen Elizebeth II ground is almost complete, and their days playing at Brimsdown Sports and Social Club are over. They will be playing at Cheshunt for the first few months of the season while the finishing touches are being put on their new ground. The Town fans will be happy with the news that their all-time leading appearance maker and goal scorer, Rudi Hall, will be delaying hanging up his boots, until Christmas at least. Like many other clubs, inconsistency blighted Town, and manager Steve Newing has come out saying that he believes only a few changes are needed for a squad capable of challenging for promotion. Town were one of the clubs who missed out on the signing of Dan Trenkel, and have not announced any signings so far.
Grays Athletic: Grays’ high wage bill was no secret last season, and finishing 10th was no doubt a disappointment. Soon after the end of the season, Julian Dicks departed as manager, and Forest fans will no doubt be happy to see Hakan Hayrettin back in management, the former Thurrock manager taking over at Grays. Hayrettin has been busy since taking over, releasing many players but signing a few more. Joao Carlos has signed from Thurrock, and Kenny Beaney returns after being at Aveley. Joe Sweeney was also one of the early signings at Grays. Hayrettin believed he has signed Kris Newby… but then so did Canvey Island. In the end, neither side signed Newby, as he moved to Thurrock. Undeterred, Hayrettin pushed on with the summer signings, with Craig Pope and Lee Flynn moving from Thurrock, while goalkeeper Steve Northwood re-signed. Most recently, former Stag Papy Kanyuka has once again teamed up with Hayrettin.
Great Wakering Rovers: Rovers have worked their way up the table in recent seasons, but the loss of boss Ian O’Connell saw them fall back down to the bottom third of the table. In addition to the departure of Dan Trenkel to Brentwood, Rovers have also lost Ross Wall to Maldon & Tiptree, John Bradley (Witham Town), Marc Gorbell (East Thurrock), and Joe Gardner (Brentwood Town).
Harlow Town: Harlow were undoubtedly one of the in-form sides at the end of last season, and only lost to eventual play-off winners Wingate & Finchley in extra time. Hawks manager Danny Chapman has so far only made two signings this summer, but they could prove to be key ones. Harlow were in negotiations with Maldon & Tiptree stopper Tony Tucker, but Chapman chose to sign former Waltham Forest goalkeeper Elliott Justham instead, who Chapman has promised the number one shirt. In addition to Justham, Max Mitchell has signed from Ware.
Heybridge Swifts: In addition to the return of experienced midfielder Luke Hammond from Leiston, Heybridge have been busy agreeing terms with many of their current players. Former Forest players Michael Toner and Jason Willis have agreed to stay at Heybridge for the forthcoming season, as have Russell Pond and Gareth Street. Swifts have also signed Lee Kersey, who returns to the club for a second spell.
Ilford: For the first time in three seasons, Ilford did not finish the season in 21st position. Encouraged by a rise in performance, Ilford have stuck with manager Colin Walton, who believes the club can build on last season and achieve even more this season. Other than this piece of news, there has been no information from Ilford so far this summer, as they are expected to keep virtually the same squad as last season. Ilford had some good news at the Ryman League Ball, as they were given the Ryman League Respect Campaign award for going the entire season without collecting a single booking for dissent.
Leiston: After strolling to first place in the Eastern Counties League last season, Leiston will no doubt be one of the early favourites on Division 1 North, continuing a recent trend which has seen Bury Town, AFC Sudbury, Lowestoft and Needham Market all perform well when moving up to step 4. Lieston have only so far added one player to the squad, in the form of defender Joe Jefford. Jefford has most recently been at Norwich United, but has signed a two year contract at the Ridgeons League champions. Leiston have lost Luke Hammond to Heybridge Swifts
Maldon & Tiptree: If the rumours are anything to be believed, Maldon & Tiptree are one of the clubs who are splashing the cash this summer. It did not take Maldon long to start making the signings, and as early as the 2nd of June, they announced that they had sign Dave Collins from Brentwood and Lee Townrow from Redbrdige. They also thought they had signed Jason Fontaine from Grays, but Fontaine soon made a U-turn, and decided to stay put. Last season’s top scorer Joe Sweeney initially agreed to stay with the club, but it has now been claimed that he is with Grays. The club have gone on to sign Billy Burgess, who was Dartford’s vice-captain last season, along with centre backs Ian Cousins and Adam Flanagan, who both sign from Billericay Town.
Needham Market: There have also been several changes at Needham Market. The club have lost the services of last season’s league top goal-scorer Craig Parker, who netted an astonishing 41 times last season. Goalkeeper and player of the season Danny Gay, Michael Steward, Rhys Henry, have all left the club, while the management team has also seen changes: coaches Kevin O’Donnell and Matthew Fenn have both left, to be replaced by former Team Bury manager Neil Reader. Coming into Market are 40-year-old former Ipswich midfielder Gavin Johnson, Andrew Plummer from Glenavon in the Irish League, Scott Chaplin and Ashley Sloots, who both join from Bury Town. Deakan Napier has signed from Soham Town Rangers, Duane Wright has moved from Hadleigh United and Ryan Foster has joined the club, also moving from Bury Town. The summer of upheaval at Needham Market has clearly taken an effect on the players, and now Danny Thrower has handed in a transfer request to the club, who are expecting a fee for the player. Whatever happens, it is clear that the Needham Market we see this season will be very different from the one which finished second last campaign.
Potters Bar: Potters Bar reached uncharted territory last season as they made it up as high as 2nd in the table, after good form autumn-winter months. However, they soon wilted, but still managed to finish a credible 13th. Town boss Adam Lee hopes that around 90% of the squad he finished the season with will remain with the club and he believes the club can push for a play-off place.
Redbridge: Redbridge started poorly last season, and languished at the bottom of the table with us for a long time. However, the appointment of Jody Brown as manager was a decision which helped pull the club out of trouble, and achieve safety. Interestingly, Brown will not be continuing as manager this season, as he has been replaced by former Stanstead manager Terry Spillane. Spillane won the Essex Senior League with Stansted in 2009-10, and only missed out on last season’s title after being deducted three points for fielding an illegible player. Spillane has, as expected, brought much of his Stansted squad with him to Redbridge. So far, Lewis Dark, Tommy Spillane, Billy Sendall, Aaron Best, John Bricknell, James May, Ryan Murray and former Stag Vinnie Durrant have all followed Spillane out of Stansted. Last season’s top scorer Dwight Gayle has yet to agree terms with Redbridge, as the former Arsenal schoolboy is rumoured to be the target of several Football League clubs. Redbridge have also signed forward Ben Bradbury from Tilbury.
Romford: It has all been very quiet so far from the side that finished 12th last season. It seems that the majority of their squad will be kept at the club.
Soham Town Rangers: Soham Town Rangers were one of the last-minute changes to the division as Rushden and Diamonds’ problems affected the entire pyramid. Rangers boss Andy Furnell has “welcomed the decision” to move his side into the Ryman League, and is confident that less travelling will enable his side to be in a stronger position this season. Andy Furnell has only recently been appointed as first team manager at the club, but he had previously scored 97 goals in 289 games as a player for them. He has appointed Andy Coleman, who has also previously played for Soham, as assistant manager.
Thamesmead Town: Thamesmead have been busy this summer, hoping to improve on a 17th placed finished. Mead boss Keith McMahon has signed former Luton Town and Welling United midfielder DSean Standen from Maldon & Tiptree, in addition to Richard Butler from Needham Market and Danny Penny from Chatham Town. Sam Mott has committed himself to the club next season, along with Ashley Probets, Lea Dawson and Lewis Tozer.
Tilbury: The only news known so far at Chadfields is that forward Ben Bradbury has decided to move to Redbrdige. However, other than that, Tilbury manager Paul Vaughan has decided to keep quiet about his new signings. The Tilbury web site has released a statement saying that four signings will be announced before next week.
Waltham Abbey: Like many clubs last season, inconsistency was one of Waltham Abbey’s main problems. A 5-4 victory over us showed their promise, but also showed their problems, as their young team lacked a bit of experience. So far, ten of last season’s squad have re-signed for another season, including top scorer Emanuel Osei. The club have also strengthened their youth set-up, joining in a partnership with Harlow College.
Waltham Forest: First team manager Olawale Ojelabi has been working hard to keep some of the better players from last season’s side and bring back some former players. However, it is clear that Forest will be working in a division where wages have been inflated by some big spenders who push for a promotion place. As soon as signings are confirmed, they will be announced on the club website.
Ware: Ware thought they would be playing in the Southern League for the coming season, until a late switch saw them return to the Ryman League. The club was rocked by the departure of manager Tony Faulkner who took up the assistant manager post at Winagte & Finchley. Ware acted quickly in appointing former Spurs defender Stuart Nethercott as successor. As previously covered, midfielder Max Mitchell has moved to Harlow Town, but goalkeeper and player of the season, Obey Murefu has announced that he is keen to stay at th
Images thanks to Jancyclops.