v gateshead 23/04/10

fleetifeOfficial Matchday Programme

Saturday 17th April 2010Issue 24

£2.50

Ebbsfleet United v GatesheadThe Fleet

1. LANCE CRONIN2.WILL SALMON

3. JORDAN COLLINS4. GAVIN HEEROO5. DEAN POOLEY

6. PAUL MCCARTHY7. MICHAEL WEST8. MAGNO VIEIRA

9. MOSES ASHIKODI11. ISHMAEL WELSH

12. SCOTT GINTY14. KANE WILLS

15.ALEXANDER STAVRINOU16. RICKY SHAKES17. CHRIS HENRY

18. STEVEN SPRINGETT19. CHARLIE READ

21. MATTHEW LAMPRELL22. LEON CROOKS23. STEFAN BAILEY

24. DARIUS CHARLES26. CLINT EASTON27. PETER HOLMES

28.AIDAN SHERLOCK29.TOM PHIPPS

MANAGER: LIAM DAISH1ST TEAM COACH: PAUL McCARTHY

COLOURS: RED & WHITE

Gateshead

1 JIM PROVETT2 CRAIG BAXTER4 KRIS GATE5 JAMES CURTIS6 CARL JONES7 MARTIN BRITTAIN8 PHIL TURNBULL9 GRAEME ARMSTRONG10 STEVEN RICHARDSON11 WAYNE PHILLIPS12 ANDY PARKINSON13 PAUL FARMAN14 ALEX FRANCIS15 CHRIS SWAILES16 STEVEN BAPTIST17 NEALE MCDERMOTT19 PHIL CAVE20 WAYNE BUCHANAN21 RIKKI BAINS22 JAMES SINCLAIR23 BRIAN WAKE25 DARYL CLARE26 PETER WINN27 PAUL HECKINGBOTTOM28 ANDY FERRELL30 GAVIN HURREN

MANAGER: IAN BOGIEASSISTANT: JEFF WRIGHTSONCOLOURS: BLUE AND BLACK

Today’s Other Fixtures

Today’s OfficialsREFEREE: MIKE BULL (CHELMSFORD)ASSISTANTS: NICK COOPER & CARL FITCH4TH OFFICIAL: ADRIAN OLDERSHAW

Saturday, 17 April 2010Barrow v Salisbury, 15:00Cambridge Utd v Hayes & Yeading, 15:00Crawley Town v Tamworth, 15:00Ebbsfleet United v Gateshead, 15:00Forest Green v Histon, 15:00Kettering v Eastbourne Boro, 15:00Kidderminster v Stevenage, 15:00Luton v Altrincham, 15:00Oxford Utd v Mansfield, 15:00Wrexham v Rushden & D’mnds, 15:00York v Grays Athletic, 15:00

THE TEAMS

BSP League TableP W D L GD PTS

1 Stevenage Borough 40 26 9 5 50 87 2 Luton Town 42 26 8 8 44 863 Oxford United 41 23 11 7 31 814 York City 42 22 11 9 28 775 Rushden & Diamonds 42 21 12 9 36 756 AFC Wimbledon 42 18 10 14 16 647 Kettering Town 41 17 11 13 8 628 Crawley Town 41 18 8 15 -6 629 Mansfield Town 42 17 10 15 11 6110 Kidderminster Harriers 40 15 10 15 7 5511 Wrexham 41 14 13 14 7 5512 Altrincham 40 13 14 13 8 5313 Cambridge United 42 13 14 15 7 5314 Salisbury City 41 18 5 18 -11 4915 Hayes & Yeading U. 41 12 11 18 -22 4716 Tamworth 41 10 16 15 -8 4617 Barrow 40 11 12 17 -20 4518 Histon 42 11 12 19 -21 4519 Eastbourne Borough 42 10 13 19 -27 4320 GATESHEAD 41 12 7 22 -21 4221 Forest Green Rovers 42 11 9 22 -27 4222 EBBSFLEET UNITED 42 10 8 24 -35 3823 Grays Athletic 42 4 12 26 -57 22

THE FINAL WORD

46 Official Matchday Programme Of Ebbsfleet United Official Matchday Programme Of Ebbsfleet United 03

Contact DetailsClub Address – Ebbsfleet United FC,

Stonebridge Road, Northfleet,

Kent, DA11 9GN

Phone – 01474 533796

Fax – 01474 324754

Website – www.ebbsfleetunited.co.uk

My Football Club Website –

www.myfootballclub.co.uk

Club email – [email protected]

Club PersonnelChairman – Duncan Holt

Vice Chairman - Roly Edwards

Director - Brian Kilcullen

Club Secretary – Peter Danzey

Matchday Secretary – Richard Hills

Hon. President – Trevor Bonneywell

Vice Presidents – Jason Botley,Adrian

Felstead, Roly Edwards, Duncan Holt, Mick

Ward, Mark Lindop, Charles Webster, David

Holden, Peter Hammond, Gary Russell,

Steve Sullivan,Alan Roberts,Alan Parker,

Carol Parker, Barry Stevens.

General Manager – Cheryl Wanless

Promotions & Marketing – Barry Wickenden

Bar and Catering Manager - Jo Wilson

Matchday Magazine Editor – Rachel Willett

Caretaker – Colin Stevens

Groundsman – Peter Norton

Club Photographer – Dave Plumb

Webmaster – Ed Miller

50/50 – Harry Houckham

Tannoy – Graham McQueen

Programme Printing – Queensway Publishing

Maintenance – Maurice Cox

Football Personnel1st Team Manager – Liam Daish

1st Team Coach – Paul McCarthy

Goalkeeping Coach – Ron Hillyard

Head Sports Therapist – Stuart Phazey

Club Doctor – Dr. Langley

EAS Coordinator - Mick Chatwin

Youth Team Manager - Ian Docker

Youth Section Chairman – Ray Tuffield

Head Steward – Duncan Cole

Football In The Community – Rachel Willett

LIAM DAISH

GOODAFTERNOON

EVERYONE ANDWELCOME TO OUR LAST HOME GAMEOF THE CURRENT SEASON, 2009/10,AGAINST OUR OPPONENTSGATESHEAD. I’D LIKE TO WISH IANBOGIE AND HIS TEAM, AND ALLCONNECTED WITH THE CLUB ANENJOYABLE STAY WITH US AND A SAFETRIP HOME TO THE NORTH EAST.

I’m sure you’re all aware of the importance of theresult today for both teams, and what is at stake.

Our last home game against Eastbourne Boroughhad everything for the neutral, and saw bothteams giving everything for their causes.We couldhave finished the game in a more comfortablefashion considering we were 3 -1 ahead in thesecond half. But you know we have to make lifemore difficult than it already is here.The result is all that matters at this point, nothingelse.

Unfortunately last Saturday we were unable togain anything from our visit to play off contendersRushden & Diamonds.We must give credit toRushden, they are not where they are by luck, butI felt that we could have caused them moreproblems and given them more to think aboutthan we did.

We are know in a position where we do notknow what the future holds on and off the pitch,all we can do is focus on winning our last twogames and then we will see.

It’s been a tough year, and season; the toughest inmy football career, and now, close to the end ofanother season I’d like to thank everyone for theirsupport throughout the year. I appreciate yourpatience, understanding, frustration, belief,encouragement and enthusiasm.

This year many have decided this club was not forthem, stepped in and then stepped out, ducked inand then ducked out.To those who have stuck byus through thick and thin, you know who you are,and thank you again.

Enjoy, encourage, and……

BELIEVELiam

“I APPRECIATEYOUR PATIENCE,UNDERSTANDING,FRUSTRATION,BELIEF,ENCOURAGEMENTAND ENTHUSIASM”

GREETINGS FLEET FANS, AND A VERY WARMWELCOME TO STONEBRIDGE ROAD FOR THE FINALHOME FIXTURE OF THE 2009/10 SEASON IN THEBLUE SQUARE PREMIER.

I’d like to extend a warm welcome to all those Gateshead fans whohave made the long journey down for this afternoon’s fixture, I wishthem a pleasant stay in North Kent, and a safe journey back to theNorth East at full time.

I’m trying to work out exactly where the season has gone. It doesn’tseem like 9 months ago we kicked off the season in the bright sunshineaway at Altrincham, and now here we are with just two games to go.Asmuch as I enjoy a break from the football, I think we all do, the closeseason isn’t the most enjoyable of times.Things go quiet for a while, andthen it gets really busy in fits and starts, before a major push before preseason begins. Most people assume that because the season ends, thewhole place shuts down for three months, but that definitely isn’t thecase.The backroom team, myself included, continue to work through thesummer making sure that everything is in place for the new season.

On to other things though, and I read with interest aboutPortsmouth’s F.A. Cup final predicament.They’re rumoured to have anumber of high profile players within their squad with various clauses intheir contracts which will cause problems with them playing.The biggestof those is Aruna Dindane, whose appearance in the final would trigger a£4million ‘bullet’ payment to his former club Lens, which should comeafter 22 appearances for Pompey.The current situation of Portsmouthmeans that they obviously can’t afford to pay that, and the players withbonuses etc are already having them deferred to a later date once theclub is back on a better financial keel.The big question is whether Lenswill do the same. If they don’t, then Dindane won’t be able to appear inthe cup final, which would be a shame for the player, and a massive lossfor Portsmouth.

Talking of the F.A. Cup, there’s been massive criticism of the state ofthe pitch at Wembley since the two semi – finals were played on it. It’sbeen reported that the pitch will once again be re-laid before the final,which will cost around £100,000 to do. But will it really solve theproblem? It’s been tried so many times, and doesn’t seem to have beensuccessful, so surely it’s about time they started looking for alternativesolutions rather than just keep digging the pitch up and re-laying it

But that’s enough waffle from me for another season. I hope you allhave a thoroughly enjoyable close season, and return refreshed and upfor another rollercoaster season in 2010/11.

Until then, C’mon you Reds!Rachel

TRAVELLERS TALES

Official Matchday Programme Of Ebbsfleet United 45

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Ground Address – The Lamb Ground, Kettlebrook,Tamworth, B77 1AA

Take the M42 to Junction 10, then followthe A5/A51 to the town centre. Followthe signs to Kettlebrook and TamworthFC.

Nearest train station is Tamworth (0.5miles from the ground.)

TAMWORTH (LAST VISITED SEPTEMBER 2006)

The Main Stand is a tidy little all seated coveredstand that straddles the halfway line of the pitch. Ithas a capacity of 426 seats.The other side is a smallcovered terrace, known by the fans as ‘The Shed’.

The Castle End is an open terrace, whilst the otherend is a partly covered terrace (to the rear).Thisend, the Meadow Street End, is given to awaysupporters.The pitch has a slope running up from theCastle End to the Meadow Street Terrace.Theground is overlooked in one corner by the sizeableTamworth Snowdome. It gets its unusual name from

a former public house called the Lamb Inn that usedto be situated near to the entrance to the club carpark.

Away fans are mostly housed in the Meadow Endwhere up to 1,200 supporters can beaccommodated.This small terrace is partly coveredand also comprises some flat standing areas.Thegood thing is that the fans are situated close to theplaying action.The facilities are okay and refreshmentsare provided by the obligatory burger van. In additionto the terrace a small number of seats are madeavailable to away supporters in the Main Stand.

Scott Poleykett (AKA Drummer Scott)

GETTING TO TAMWORTH FC

GROUND REVIEW


A FLEETING GLANCE

GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE AND AVERY WARM WELCOME TO YOU ALLFOR MAKING IT TO TODAY’S GAME.YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT OF THEFOOTBALL CLUB IS VERY MUCHAPPRECIATED AND LONG MAY ITCONTINUE. I HOPE EVERYONEASSOCIATED WITH GATESHEADFOOTBALL CLUB HAS A GOODAFTERNOON AND WISH YOU ALL ASAFE JOURNEY HOME.

As you will know I am a My Football Club (MyFC)representative who was asked towards the end ofNovember 2009 to help out at the club. During thelast few months I have taken on the role of a fullDirector of the football club and it certainly hasbeen a challenge. Results have considerablyimproved over the second half of the season and itis shame that we had such a poor start to theseason; otherwise we would not be in the difficultsituation we find ourselves today.

Off the field, the financial situation is not a good oneand we have struggled but with a little juggling ofpaying the bills we have hung on in there. It ispleasing to see crowds also on the rise just a little,and a gate of over 1,200 for the game againstEastbourne was very good to see.The loss ofincome from the Chester home game didn’t helpthe club either.The reality is that we need toimprove the income streams for the football cluband that particularly means income on non-footballdays.

You probably will have seen that we have nowissued our season ticket prices for season 2010/11.We would encourage fans to buy their tickets assoon as possible both to benefit from the discountswhere applicable but also enabling the club to put inplace the finance to build a base for a team for nextseason.We fully appreciate the differing financialcircumstances of fans and have tried to establish apricing structure that covers all age ranges, familiesand regularity of watching games.We can’t promiseto have covered everyone’s situation but we havetried our best.

Over the coming month I will be working on morefinancial matters including next year’s budget andclosing everything out in terms of the May 2009accounts.This has been very disappointing to me

that this was allowed to drift on, without resolution,as long as it did. I can assure everyone that with mein place this will not happen in respect the May2010 accounts and I have already spoken briefly toour external accountants to ensure that we cancomplete these through July and August. One of theproblems the club faces is that with just two fulltime office staff we struggle to get everythingcovered in a timely manner. Hopefully, with me onboard things will start to improve, but I’m not formaking promises. I prefer to try to achieve resultsand take satisfaction from that.

Let us hope next season gets off to a better startthan this season and long may we continue tocompete against clubs far bigger than ourselves inthis league.We all know it is a challenge but we havebeen competing in this league now for 8 seasonsand that must say something about the character ofthe club.

Get behind the team and enjoy the match.

Phil Sonsara

DON’T FORGET.......Ebbsfleet United F.C. are offering a fantastic

opportunity to play at the home of ‘The Fleet’, andexperience the quality of Stonebridge Road in person.

Bank Holiday Monday 3rd May 2010

Your Fleet Experience: A day packed full ofhigh energy, quality football fun with professional

tutition from the EUFC coaching team.

£20 for the day, 10am - 3pm.

Open to boys and girls aged 5 - 12 years old.

The day will offer full access to Ebbsfleet United F.C., Stonebridge Road,

Northfleet, Kent, DA11 9GN.

For more info or an application form pleasecontact Tina Martin - 07732 148011.

Email - [email protected]


BOUNCING ROUND THE BLUE SQUARE

GRAYS ATHLETIC DEDUCTED TWOPOINTS BY CONFERENCEGrays Athletic have been deducted two pointsby the Football Conference for fielding threeineligible players.The Essex side, who have already been relegated from theBlue Square Premier, were also fined £500 for five breachesof Conference rules.The club’s punishment results from fielding Daryl Robsonand Callum Leahy against Barrow in October and SamCutler in three matches.The decision was finalised afterGrays withdrew an appeal against the charge.

HOLDSWORTH SHOCKED BY DONSDEFEATMansfield Town manager David Holdsworth wasleft scratching his head after a 1-0 defeat toAFC Wimbledon at Field Mill on Saturdayafternoon.The Stags created a whole host of goalscoring opportunitiesbut a lack of cutting edge ultimately cost them as an earlygoal from Danny Kedwell earned Wimbledon all threepoints.The Dons conceded two late penalties but goalkeeper SebBrown saved both spot kicks to ensure his side claimed allthree points.Holdsworth told the Evening Post:“‘How did we lose thatgame?’ is a question I’ve asked.You think, ‘What more canyou do?’ and the answer is, you can’t do any more.“It’s gobsmacking to come out of it with nothing.We hadsomething like 20 opportunities to finish Wimbledon off. Ihave to congratulate their keeper on two fantastic saves, butthey are massive moments and they have cost us.We’ve hadother chances, hit the bar and the keeper has been man ofthe match.They defended in numbers but in the last part ofthe second half we played very well.”

ROVERS BOSS TARGETS THREE WINSForest Green Rovers manager David Hockadayhas issued a rallying cry following their 2-0defeat to league leaders Stevenage Borough atthe weekend.The defeat leaves Hockaday’s side languishing in the dropzone with 39 points from 41 games, trailing their nearestrelegation rivals Gateshead by three points.However, Hockaday had positives to take from Saturday’sdefeat and has issued a rallying cry as they aim to win theirlast three fixtures.He told the Gloucester Citizen:“They (Stevenage) are thetop team in the league for a reason and we had to weathera ferocious storm after going a goal down, but we changed itslightly in the second half and had a go.“We had a few half-chances and balls across the box, andthen from nowhere one of my players (Platt) makes one ofthose crazy decisions again. I can’t ask for any more effortbut we have to be cleverer - we keep shooting ourselves inthe foot.“I’m very proud of the boys for their efforts and the mainthing is we’ve got three games left and we’ve got to winthem. It’s Crawley at home first and if we win that the worldis a brighter place.We’ll re-group, re-energise and look forthree points.”

CRAWLEY CHASING BROADFIELDSPONSORCrawley Town co-owner Susan Carter hasconfirmed the Blue Square Premier club arecurrently in talks to sell the naming rights tothe Broadfield Stadium.The Red Devils secured a new six-year lease on theBroadfield Stadium recently and a new sponsor for theground would go along way towards helping them remain afull-time outfit.Carter told this is sussex:“We are talking to companiesabout it and it makes sponsoring Crawley a more attractiveproposition.We are currently in talks with a number ofcompanies about the possibility and finding a shirt sponsorfor next season.”Carter has also revealed that the decision to remain a full-time club has been a hotly contested issue for much of theseason.She added:“It was something we discussed at every boardmeeting this season. But we felt that going part timewouldn’t lead to anything other than relegation as it wouldbe impossible to compete with some of the bigger sides inthe division. It has been tough and it is going to be eventougher next year but hopefully now that we are out ofrecession things will look up.”

A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE


HAVING PLAYED OUR ONE ANDONLY PREVIOUS GAME AGAINSTGATESHEAD MERE WEEKS AGO, ITSEEMS SOMEWHAT POINTLESS TOTAKE A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANEFOR SUCH A RECENT OUTING.

But that 600-mile round trip did get me thinkingabout some of the other epic journeys down theyears that weary Fleet players and fans haveundertaken in the 65-year quest for two or threepoints.

This season has, of course, also seen an equally longtrip to the opposite coastline, 630 miles there andback to Barrow – a journey that heartbroken Fleetfans also made in 1982 when the unforgiving natureof the fixture calendar decreed that it would be atBarrow, 315 miles from home, that the Fleet wouldbe relegated from the Alliance Premier League.

But both of these trips fallshort of the longestdistance travelled by a Fleetside, that being 335 milesto Barrow’s Cumbrianneighbours Carlisle in2005.That was Liam Daish’sfirst game in charge andMatt Lovell’s screamer ofan equaliser earned a pointagainst the eventual play-offwinners whose promotionmeant our hard-pressedcoach driver wouldn’t haveto repeat the odyssey thefollowing season.

We had, however made the same journey in 1963when Tony Sitford’s goal gave us a shock win in theFA Cup Third Round.That was followed nearly threeweeks later by a 300-mile trek to Sunderland for aFourth Round replay that we of course lost 5-2.Thatwas almost 1,300 miles in two games during aparticularly bad winter.This was before luxurycoaches, gritted roads, orbital motorways, toll roads,high-speed trains and the like and no mean feat forplayers who probably had to be at work a few hoursafter they returned home.

Of course the Conference being a national league,there have been numerous other long trips, BangorCity, Morecambe, Scarborough, Chester and Farsleyamong them. But before our brush with a nationwideleague, the Fleet’s travels were mainly confined to thesouth, with the longest trips coming in usually at

about 150-200 miles.

But in the Fleet’s early seasonsin existence, it was visits toWales – Barry, Llanelli, MerthyrTydfil and Bridgend – that werethe longest hauls at 210-220miles or thereabouts. Similarly,journeys to Torquay and Exeterreserves, Minehead andelsewhere in the west countryalso clocked up the miles.

The Fleet had a temporary respite from the road onjoining the Ryman League in 1997 where the trip toHuddersfield in the FA Cup was about the furthestexperienced in a division where league trips toOxford City, Basingstoke, Bishops Stortford andFarnborough left us positively giddy with travelexcitement.

But our record trip to Carlisle was almostovershadowed in the summer of 2008 when apotential pre-season tournament in Annan, Scotland,was mooted.Another 16 miles on from Carlisle andin a different country altogether, it almost made itinto the Fleet’s history books.

by Ed Miller

THE PHYSI-CALLAFTERNOON EVERYONE, AND WELCOME TO THEFINAL PHYSI – CALL OF THE SEASON. I’VE GOT PLENTYTO REPORT ON, IT’S BEEN A BUSY COUPLE OF WEEKSIN THE TREATMENT ROOM SINCE OUR LAST HOMEGAME WITH EASTBOURNE BOROUGH.Michael West missed our fixture withEastbourne Borough due to an ankle injurywhich he sustained after coming on againstSalisbury on Good Friday. Michael hasrecovered from this and returned totraining last Tuesday.

Lance Cronin suffered a back spasmduring the game with Eastbourne, andplayed through the pain barrier at times lastSaturday at Rushden & Diamonds. Followinga lot of soft tissue release and stretchingLance managed to return to training in timefor the visit of Gateshead today.

Magno Vieira came off in the latterstages of last Saturday’s trip to Nene Parkwith an injury to his knee. On examination,the full extent of the injury was notsignificant and he returned to training onThursday.

Clint Easton is still making progress onhis return, however he is still unable to fullyrun due to the pressure that the operationhas caused.An exact date for him to returnto full training is at this stage unclear.

Jordan Collins received some bad newsprior to our trip to Salisbury over theEaster weekend. Having seen a specialistand undergoing another x-ray, it was

discovered that Jordan has suffered anotherstress fracture of his 5th metatarsal.Thismeans that he will require an operation inorder to prevent this injury recurringthroughout his career.

That’s it……a wrap to my first season atEUFC. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it, although Iwould have liked the treatment room to bea little quieter! Enjoy the ‘summer’ break,and we’ll see you in August.

Enjoy the game,Stuart

INJURY REHABILITATION AND PREVENTION

STUART PHAZEY BSC (HONS) GSRS P O R T S R E H A B I L I T A T I O N

07971 189 [email protected]

PLAYER SPONSORS


Name: Chris Henry

Home Kit:Away Kit:Tracksuit:Sockties:

Name: Charlie Read


Name: Matthew Lamprell

Full Kit: Alexander Glockner

Sockties:Lauren Handley

Name: Stefan Bailey

Home Kit: James Moore

Away Kit: James Moore

Tracksuit:Sockties:

Name: Davis Abbey

Home Kit: Away Kit:Tracksuit:Sockties:

Name: Ricky Shakes

Full Kit: P Hayles & 353 others

Name: Steven Springett


Name: Leon Crooks

Full Kit:Stan Wickenden (All the

best to you and the boys)

Name: Darius Charles

Full Kit: John Moore – OCO, would

like to wish Darius and the

Boys the very best this

coming season

Name: Stuart Phazey


Name: Ian Docker

Home & Away Kit: Tracksuit & Sockties:

Name: Peter Holmes

Full Kit:Gail & Ed Konrady

Name: Ron Hillyard

Full Kit: Phil Sonsara

Name: Clint Easton

Home & Away Kit: Tracksuit:Sockties: Alexander Glockner

PLAYER SPONSORS


COMMERCIALLY SPEAKING

Name: Liam Daish

Full Kit: Mark Lindop

Name: Paul McCarthy

Home & Away Kit:Roy Farthing

Tracksuit:Sockties:

Name: Lance Cronin

Home & Away Kit:JT Associates

Tracksuit & Sockties:Kate & Brent Konrady

Name: Dean Pooley

Full Kit: M Povey & 353 others

Name: Michael West

Full Kit: Adrian Felstead

Name: Moses AshikodiHome Kit: Paul Hawkins,Meadow Mace Ltd,Away Kit: Lily,Theo &Peter PriceTracksuit & Sockties:The Roly 60

Name: Ishmael Welsh

Home & Away Kit: Alan &

Carol Parker

Tracksuit & Sockties:Bobbi & Rachel

Name: Gavin Heeroo

Home,Away and Tracksuit:Phil Sonsara

Sockties: Alistair & Gregory Hills

Name: Will Salmon

Full Kit:Phil Moss - PMC-UK.net

Name: Jordan Collins

Home Kit:The Plough End Chorus

Away Kit:The Plough End Chorus

Tracksuit:Sockties: Alistair & Gregory Hills

Name: Magno Vieira

Full Kit:Jessica, Graham, James &

Charlene

Name: Scott Ginty

Home Kit: Chris Jackson

Away Kit: Chris Jackson

Tracksuit:Sockties:

Name: Kane Wills

Home Kit:Nathan Rickard

Away Kit:Nathan Rickard

Tracksuit:Sockties:

Name: Alex Stavrinou

Full Kit: Roly 60

PITCH HIREYou could be playing at Stonebridge Road.Yes,that’s right, we’re hiring out the hallowed turf formatches.A limited number of dates are available fromSunday 18th April 2010. Please call or text mefor more information on 07595 420501.

THE FLEET LOUNGEAn exclusive offer for next season, there are only 50Fleet Lounge packages available, which include:•Admission to all 23 home league games•Admission to 2 home cup games, subject to cupdraws •Admission to the Main Stand for no additionalcharge •Matchday access to the Fleet Lounge•Dedicated cash bar available throughout eachmatchday •25 post match complimentary ‘one drink’vouchers included •Post match complimentary food•Post match ‘Man of the Match’ presentation in theFleet Lounge.The Fleet Lounge is a dedicated sectionof the Club Bar (and will double up as a post matchPlayers’ Lounge).

•ALL THIS FOR JUST £575, OR TWOINSTALLMENTS OF £325 (2ND PAYMENT30TH NOVEMBER 2010).Please contact me if you are interested in taking upone of these packages.

KICK RACISM OUT OF FOOTBALL DAYSaturday 1st May 2010•03-30Free Entry from 2pm.Bar Open ALL DAY til LateWatch this space for more info.

HI YA FLEET FANS, AND WELCOME TOSTONEBRIDGE ROAD. WELCOME TO ALLTHOSE FROM GATESHEAD TOO FOR TODAY’SFINAL HOME GAME OF THE SEASON. I HOPEYOU ALL ENJOY THIS AFTERNOON’S FIXTURE,IT’S CERTAINLY AN IMPORTANT ONE.

I’d like to take this opportunity to welcome our matchsponsors for this afternoon, King & Taylor. King & Taylor arethe club’s accountants, based in Gravesend.They are one ofthe largest independent firms in North West Kent.Asubstantial firm on Chartered Accountants, they pridethemselves on understanding the needs of the BusinessCommunity. I’d like to extend a warm Fleet welcome to KevinHayman and his guests this afternoon.

FLEET GO LEGALThe Fleet have teamed up with two ofGravesend’s most established firms,Martin Tolhurst Partnership, Solicitors andWalker Croft, Estate agents, to providevital fund for the Club’s finances.

It’s simple – if you, or any of your friends,neighbours or relatives are thinking ofmoving or buying a property, by usingWalker Croft to sell your home and MartinTolhurst to do the conveyancing, thesefirms will make a donation to the Clubfrom their combined fees of £500.00 on asale and purchase and £150.00 on just apurchase. Please tell all your friends aboutthis scheme, and help these firms to helpthe Fleet, the more people we can getusing this service, even if they are justarmchair supporters, the more money wecan get in for the Club.

To get matters under way or for anyqueries just call Simon Franklin at MartinTolhurst on 01474-546012 and he will takematters from there and be pleased toanswer any questions.

Please tell all your friends about thisscheme.

Enjoy this afternoon’s encounter,and remember Fleet fans, supportthe companies that support theFleet!Have a good summer,

[email protected];[email protected];07595 420501

IF YOU’RE READINGTHIS IT PROVESADVERTISING WORKSconsideradvertising with us -contact me today

Ebbsfleet Business Park,Supporting The Fleet

TERRACE TALK

Hello everyone and welcome to our lasthome game of what has been a traumaticseason, although not unexpected.

Prior to playing Eastbourne I felt we needed at least 9points from our last four games to have any chanceof staying up, and even then it might depend onresults elsewhere. I can only hope we gotsomething at Rushden & Diamonds.

When we were promoted 7 years ago some ofthe local cynics predicted instant relegation, sowe have not done bad and in that timenotched up a number of notable victories. ButI said in my last set of notes it’s having a clubhere that’s important, rather more than whatleague we are in.If we are to be relegated I look for thepositives rather than the negatives, andthere are at least two.The first is that it willbe shorter distances to travel and secondlyno more transfer windows to worry about.

Anyway, by around 5pm next Saturday wewill be a lot wiser, hopefully the club will be

on a sounder financial footing which will enableus to get a decent side regardless of what division

we are in. I think Liam and Macca have done a fair jobunder very difficult circumstances, and I’m sureeveryone connected with the club will keep workinghard to improve things.I hope you, the supporters, will remain patient andkeep supporting the club as much as you can.

May I wish you all a great summer with lots ofsunshine, before we know where we are thefriendly matches will be here and it would be nice ifwe could get one or two really attractive ones such

as Premiership clubs’ reserve sides.

Anyway, as I said, have a great summer, and see you inAugust.

As always, it’s Up The FleetAlan Parker

This page sponsored by BILLY SNOWDROP PROMOTIONS

12 Official Matchday Programme Of Ebbsfleet United

GATESHEAD FCINSIDER’S GUIDE

PAUL FARMAN –GoalkeeperA promising 20 year old goalkeeperwho signed for Gateshead during thesummer from local rivals Blyth Spartans.Farman made 17 appearances for BlueSquare North club Blyth last season,including two against Gateshead. Hepreviously played three games forNewcastle United U.18s in 2007 andkept a clean sheet on his Gatesheaddebut against Rushden & Diamonds inSeptember. Named Blue Square PremierPlayer of the Month for October.

JIM PROVETT - GoalkeeperSigned for Gateshead in February from

Harrogate Town.A 26 year oldgoalkeeper with extensive FootballLeague experience at Hartlepool Unitedand Bury. Provett made 78 appearancesfor Hartlepool where he was Player ofthe Year in 2004 and won the NorthEast Save of the Season award. He thenplayed 41 games for League Two sideBury in 2007-8 before he moved intonon-league football for the first time atHarrogate.

CRAIG BAXTER –DefenderAn attacking defender now in hisfourth season at Gateshead followinghis release by Premier Leagueneighbours Newcastle United in thesummer of 2006. Baxter has made theright-back position his own with someexcellent displays both defensively andgoing forward.The 23 year old wasGateshead’s only ever-present in lastseason’s Blue Square North promotioncampaign.

PAULHECKINGBOTTOM -DefenderThe vastly experienced left back hasmade over 300 Football Leagueappearances for six clubs and joinedGateshead on loan in January 2010 untilthe end of the season from MansfieldTown.The 32 year old made over acentury of appearances for Darlingtonduring a three year period and a similaramount for Bradford City in two spells.Heckingbottom, whose career began atSunderland, has also played for NorwichCity, Sheffield Wednesday andhometown club Barnsley.

PHIL CAVE – DefenderA regular in Gateshead’s 2007-8UniBond promotion campaign theaccomplished left back, 22, rejoined the

Tynesiders on loan midway through lastseason from Scottish first division clubLivingston, where he had made ahandful of starts. Cave scored 11 goalsin 54 appearances in his first season forGateshead, including seven from thepenalty spot.A graduate of theNewcastle United Academy he rejoinedGateshead on a permanent basis in theclose season.

CHRIS SWAILES –DefenderA veteran central defender who joinedhometown club Gateshead during theclose season from SPL club HamiltonAcademical for whom he made 63appearances over the last two seasons.The 39 year old began his career atIpswich Town and he then returned toPortman Road six years after he hadleft in 1991 following spells atPeterborough United and DoncasterRovers. Swailes rejoined the Suffolk clubfor £225,000 and then linked up withBury in a £200,000 move. RotherhamUnited was his next port of call and heplayed 184 games for the Millers beforehe moved on to Oldham Athletic andthen Hamilton before returning to hisnative Tyneside.

JAMES CURTIS – DefenderThe longest serving player at the clubhaving joined Gateshead in the summerof 2003 from Northern League sideWashington, after he had started hiscareer at Kennek Ryhope. Curtis, 27, isa towering central defender who hasbecome a firm favourite of theGateshead fans with consistently strongperformances that have brought himseveral accolades including Player of theYear. He has remained loyal toGateshead and made his 300thappearance against Crawley Town inNovember, having played in fourdifferent leagues for the club.

WAYNE BUCHANAN -DefenderExperienced central defender Buchanansigned for Gateshead in January 2010following a brief spell in Australia.Aformer Northern Ireland under 21 andunder 23 international the 28 year old’scareer began at Bolton Wandererswhere he made one appearance, againstTottenham Hotspur in the FA Cup.Athree game loan spell at Chesterfieldwas followed by six years at LisburnDistillery in the Northern IrelandPremiership where he picked up severalawards, including Player of the Year, andcaptained the side.

CARL JONES – DefenderA pacy defender who joined the club ina permanent deal from York City inFebruary 2008 and went on to play akey role in Gateshead’s promotion fromthe UniBond premier division withsome outstanding displays at the heartof the defence.The 23 year old beganhis career with with Hartlepool Unitedwhere he made two appearances beforehe moved on to York in the summer of2007. He was unable to make an impactat Bootham Crescent due to a longterm injury but has been an importantpart of Gateshead’s back-to-backpromotions.

RIKKI BAINS - DefenderA 22 year old central defender on loanfrom Darlington until the end of theseason having signed for Gateshead inJanuary. Bains came through the ranks athometown club Coventry City andreached reserve level before he wasreleased in 2006.He made a handful of appearances inLeague Two for Accrington Stanley andMacclesfield Town before he joinedDarlington in the summer.Themidlander had previously gainedConference experience with Tamworthand also played non-league football forCorby Town and on loan at King’s Lynnand Leek Town.Bains played four games for Darlingtonat the start of the season but finished2009 on loan at Blue Square North clubBlyth Spartans before he joinedGateshead in the middle of January.

ANDY PARKINSON -MidfielderParkinson, 30, linked up with Gatesheadin February 2010 following his releasefrom Cambridge United having played inlast season’s Conference play-off finalfor the U’s.The Merseysider originallyspent seven years at Tranmere Roverswhere he made almost 200 appearancesand played in the narrow 2000 LeagueCup final defeat against Leicester City atWembley.A brief spell at SheffieldUnited was followed by two seasons atGrimsby Town where the wide manclocked up 92 games and scored 13goals.The pacy winger also featured inthe Mariners single goal League Twoplay-off final defeat against CheltenhamTown at the Millennium Stadium in2006. Parkinson spent the next twoyears at Notts County where he played71 games before he signed forCambridge United and then Gateshead



ALEX FRANCIS –MidfielderA 20 year old midfield prospect whowas released by Premier Leagueneighbours Newcastle United at the endof the 2007-8 season where he hadbeen a regular in the Magpies Academyside.A Gateshead-born player whosepreferred position is in the centre ofmidfield, though he can also play at theback. Francis was a key player for theEngland Colleges side last season whenhe made 14 starts for Gateshead. Had aloan spell at Blyth Spartans inDecember.

KRIS GATE – Midfielder(captain)Gate joined Gateshead in September2007 after he was released fromhometown club Newcastle United andhas played a major role in Gateshead’stwo promotion campaigns.The 25 yearold is a former Newcastle reservescaptain and went on to make thesubstitutes bench in the Premier Leaguehaving made senior appearances infriendlies against Glasgow Rangers andMalaga.A skilful box-to-box player Gatewas named Gateshead captain lastseason and led the side to promotion tothe Blue Square Premier.

ANDY FERRELL -MidfielderThe combative 26 year old’s careerbegan at hometown club NewcastleUnited and he then spent a season atWatford.A move to HerefordUnited saw Ferrell help the Bulls reclaimtheir Football League status in the firstof his two seasons at Edgar Street. Lastseason the Tynesider was a regular inthe Kidderminster Harriers engineroom and he made 74 appearances intwo years for the midlands outfit.Asummer move took the midfielder toYork City from where where he joinedGateshead during the 2010 transferwindow for a £3,500 fee.

GAVIN HURRENLoan signing Hurren made 93appearances during a three year spell atKidderminster Harriers following hisrelease from Nottingham Forest.A briefspell at Mansfield Town then saw themidfielder join Crawley Town on loanand then Tamworth during the closeseason. Opportunities at the Lamb werelimited and Hurren was offered acontract at Conference North club AFCTelford United until the end of theseason after a successful loan spell.The24 year old decided instead to return toTamworth and joined Gateshead onloan in March making his debut in the 3-1 win over Forest Green Rovers.

JAMES SINCLAIR -MidfielderA right sided player with genuine pacewho signed for Gateshead during theJanuary 2010 transfer window.The 22year old spent the last three years atBolton Wanderers where he madesubstitute appearances at Chelsea andWest Ham in the Premier League and atRed Star Belgrade in the Uefa Cup.Returned to his native North East after acareer in America was scuppered due toinjury and made his debut againstKettering Town.

PHIL TURNBULL –MidfielderTurnbull,24, joined Gateshead for asecond spell in February 2008 when hesigned on loan from York City.The dealwas made permanent in March when hewas released from his contract with theMinstermen. He had previously made fiveappearances for Gateshead in the2005/2006 season when on loan fromHartlepool United, and when he failed tobreak into the first team at Victoria Parkhe moved on to Conference Premierside York where injury hampered hisprogress.A skilful central midfield playerwho is a regular in the Gateshead engineroom.

WAYNE PHILLIPS –MidfielderLive wire left-sided player Phillips is nowin his third season with Gateshead afterhelping Whitley Bay to the NorthernLeague title in 2007. He had joined Bayfrom Blyth Spartans in the 2004/2005season where he first came toprominence as a teenage talent.An influential player inGateshead’s consecutivepromotions, Phillips, 24, scored the lategoal that saw Gateshead beat AFCTelford in the Blue Square North play-offfinal in May.

PETER WINN - MidfielderThe 21 year old left sided player initiallyjoined Gateshead on loan fromScunthorpe United in October 2009before re-signing on loan for the rest ofthe season in January.The Grimsby-bornplayer scored two goals in ten gamesduring his first loan spell on Tyneside,including the last gasp equaliser againstBrentford in the FA Cup.Winn, who hasmade four substitute appearances forScunthorpe, has also had loan spells atBarrow and Northwich Victoria.

GRAEME ARMSTRONG –StrikerA 26 year-old striker who joinedGateshead in the summer of 2007 in adeal worth £5,000 from NorthernLeague neighbours Dunston Fed.Armstrong was Dunston’s top scorer in

each of his three seasons at FederationPark and became their all time recordscorer bagging 84 goals in total. Hisprevious clubs include Scottish outfitsQueen of the South and Annan Athletic.He found the net 20 times in Gateshead’sUniBond promotion campaign andscored 18 goals last season.

BRIAN WAKE - StrikerWake returned to English football inJanuary when he joined Gateshead fromScottish 1st division club GreenockMorton having just played in a narrowScottish Cup defeat against Celtic.Originally with Tow Law Town Wake’sfirst professional club was CarlisleUnited where his hat-trick atShrewsbury in 2004 kept the Cumbriansin the Football League.A season atGretna, where he averaged a goal everytwo games, was followed by a brief spellat Scarborough.A season and a half atHamilton Academical, where he made 29starts and 47 substitute appearances, sawthe 27 year old join Morton in January2008 and then Gateshead.

STEVEN RICHARDSON –StrikerA Gateshead-born striker who returnedto his hometown club in the summerfrom UniBond outfit Durham City in adeal that should eventually total £4,500.Richardson had been top scorer atDurham for the past three seasonsscoring exactly 100 goals, and wasnamed Player of the Year and PlayersPlayer of the Year last season.The pacy23 year old first played for Gateshead asa central midfield player between 2004-6where he made 54 appearances,including 14 off the bench.

DARYL CLARE - StrikerA 31 year old striker with a provengoalscoring pedigree, having twice wonthe Conference Golden Boot, Clareinitially joined Gateshead on loan inOctober having scored 175 Conferencegoals for six different clubs.The Eireunder 21 and B international made 93appearances for Grimsby Town, over halfoff the bench, during five years atBlundell Park.After loan spells atNorthampton Town and Cheltenham hestarted the first of two spells at BostonUnited.The first brought 25 goals in 48games and he then scored a magnificent49 goals in 64 appearances during twoproductive years at Chester City.Thegoals continued to flow at Crawley Townand Burton Albion, Clare scoring 37goals in 93 games for the Brewers.Afterscoring a goal every other game atRushden & Diamonds last season in justten starts he moved on to MansfieldTown, and signed a permanent dealwith Gateshead during the Januarytransfer window.

GOALKEEPING SPECIAL BY PAUL HARRISON


The last time I wrote a similar article on ourgoalkeepers was back in 1999 so a new one is welloverdue. Before we start though, a couple of teasersfor you involving current goalkeepers in the PremierDivision and connections with Fleet.

1.Which 16 year old goalkeeper made his senior debutagainst Fleet in a Conference match?2.Which on loan goalkeeper made 7 appearances forFleet in the Ryman League in 2000/01?

Now onto our top goalkeepers - I’ve seen them allsince 1955 and would put Lance on a par with LeeSmelt and just ahead of Lee Turner at the very top ofour tree with Peter Heathcote and John Cowan next.Can’t comment on the two Cyril’s - Griggs and Gouldbecause they were even before my time!

The top ten appearances and clean sheets up to andincluding Eastbourne are:

89 different goalkeepers have played for Fleet since1946, with Matthew Lamprell becoming the latest onthat list when he played in the Kent Senior Cup gameagainst Maidstone United.All those goalkeepers whohave made over 50 appearances in the Fleet’s coloursbut don’t make the top 10 are: Jamie Turner (93); CyrilGriggs (81); Fred Blowers and Paul Wilkerson (both76); Phil Brooman (73) and Eddie McAlpine (Fleetsonly goalkeeping player manager (66).

The answers to the teasers were 1.Joe Hart made hisdebut for Shrewsbury v Fleet at Gay Meadow in 2004before later being snapped up by Manchester City and2. Portsmouth goalkeeper Jamie Ashdown played 7times for Fleet whilst at Reading.

INSIDER’S GUIDE

FOLLOWING THAT BRILLIANT DISPLAYBY LANCE CRONIN AGAINSTEASTBOURNE BOROUGH LAST WEEK, ITHOUGHT IT’S TIME TO SEE HOW HECOMPARES WITH PAST FLEET HEROESBETWEEN THE ‘STICKS’.

APPEARANCESPlayer AppsPeter Heathcote 275 Lee Turner 224 Cyril Gould 208 Lee Smelt 208 Brian Hughes 207 Lance Cronin 196 Keith Hepple 180 Paul Burnham 168 Colin Lewington 118 John Cowan 116

CLEAN SHEETSPlayer C/SheetsLee Turner 75 Lee Smelt 69 Brian Hughes 62 Keith Hepple 60 Peter Heathcote 59 Lance Cronin 52 John Cowan 51 Cyril Gould 50 Paul Burnham 46 Jamie Turner 36

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ALL IN THE PAST HOOKY’S JUNIOR FLEET


T he original GatesheadAFC was formed in1930 when neighbours

South Shields, members ofthe Football Leagues oldThird Division North, movedto Gateshead’s RedheughPark because of financialdifficulties.

The newly formed “Tynesiders”almost capitalised immediately on theirgood fortune when only Lincoln City’ssuperior goal average deprived them ofpromotion to the second division in onlytheir second season of League football.

However, it was to be the FA Cupthat was to provide the club with itsfinest hour when cup fever gripped theTyneside town in 1953.

After accounting for Liverpool in thethird round, Gateshead progressed tothe quarter-final only for their Wembleyaspirations to be denied by a single NatLofthouse goal for eventual finalistsBolton Wanderers.

A sell out Redheugh Park crowd of17,692 had witnessed the spectacle butwithin five years the North Easternersfound themselves founder members ofthe newly formed fourth division afterthey missed the cut for the third divisionby just one point.

Despite an average placing of 9th in21 Third Division North campaigns,interrupted by the second world war,two years following the introduction ofthe fourth division came Gateshead’sshock dismissal from the FootballLeague.

The club had applied for re-electiononly once before in a relativelysuccessful thirty-year period, but werenevertheless unceremoniously removedin favour of the more geographicallyacceptable Peterborough United.

An unsuccessful bid to join theScottish Football League was followed bya brief spell in the Northern CountiesLeague and then six years in NorthRegional League.

In 1968 Gateshead became foundermembers of the Northern PremierLeague but their stay in the newcompetition lasted only two years.

Their place was, ironically, taken byanother former Football League outfit,Bradford Park Avenue, and they wereforced to replace their own reserve

team in the Wearside League.Finishing as runners up the Tynesiders

then spent a season in the MidlandLeague until in 1973, seven leagues and43 years after its inception, GatesheadAFC ceased to exist.

A new club called Gateshead Townplayed the following season in the localNorthern Combination League but,astonishingly, history was soon to repeatitself.

South Shields, then members of theNorthern Premier League, sold theirSimonside headquarters and moved to anew home at Gateshead Stadium.

Renamed Gateshead United the clubsoon became a force in the NorthernPremier League while accounting forFootball League clubs Grimsby Town andCrewe Alexandra in the FA Cup.

However in 1977, after only threeyears of operation, came the shockannouncement that United were todisband - the third body blow to hitGateshead supporters in less than 20years.

Constantly in the shadows of NorthEast football giants Newcastle Unitedand Sunderland it looked like the end ofsenior football in the town until anotherphoenix, this time in the form of thecurrent Gateshead FC, rose from theashes.

Replacing Gateshead United in theNorthern Premier League for the 1977-8 season the new club won theChampionship in 1983 with a record100 points and 114 goals.

After two years in the Conference,the Tynesiders returned to the NorthernPremier League and lifted the title forthe second time in 1986.

Their second spell in the Conferencelasted just one season, though they werequick to bounce back, and reclaimedtheir top-flight status in 1990.

The accustomed role of Conferencestrugglers was transformed with 7thand 5th spots reached in successivecampaigns, 1994/95 and 1995/96, as wellas quarter-final appearances in the FATrophy three times in four seasons.

It was Gateshead’s most successfulperiod as a non-league club but aproductive period ended in 1998 whenthe club was relegated back to theNorthern Premier League after eightconsecutive seasons of Conferencefootball.

The Tynesiders very existence wasthen threatened early in the newmillennium when long-time sponsorsCameron Hall Developments pulled out.

Relegation to the Northern PremierLeague first division followed but, afterone season, Gateshead were back in theNLP top flight following the introductionof a geographically split first division.

A club with a proud, if chequered,past is now set for a bright future underthe guidance of wealthy Gateshead-bornchairman Graham Wood and managerIan Bogie.

An ambitious Wood will overseeGateshead’s relocation from their11,850 all seater, council ownedInternational Stadium base to a newpurpose built, centrally located, 9,000capacity stadium in the next few years.

The former Sunderland vice-chairman is also determined forGateshead to reclaim the FootballLeague place which was unjustly takenfrom them in 1960.

After just three years at the helmWood’s vision for Gateshead is close tobecoming reality following back-to-backpromotions.

Gateshead finished third in theUniBond Premier division, NLP, in 2007-8 when they were joint-top goalscorersin the top ten divisions of seniorEnglish football including thePremiership and Football League.

The Tynesiders struck 93 leaguegoals, the same as Conference Northchampions Kettering Town, and thenbeat Buxton 2-0 in the play-off final infront of a large four figure InternationalStadium crowd.

Last season the rejuvenatedTynesiders finished runners-up in theBlue Square North where they finishedjoint top scorers with Alfreton Townwith 81 goals..

A second promotion was clinchedwhen Gateshead beat Southport in thetwo-legged semi-final and then AFCTelford United 1-0 in the ConferenceNorth play-off final in front of a 4,000plus crowd.

Gateshead, now just one promotionaway from a coveted return to theFootball League, will mark the 50thanniversary of their harsh expulsionfrom the Football League in 1960 bybecoming a full-time club from nextseason.

Ahoy there shipmates.Welcome aboard our fine shipStonebridge for the final time thisseason. I’s supposin’ I ought towelcome those landlubbers from theNorth East, Gateshead, aboard shipthis afternoon, and I’s hopin’ they’sbrought their sea legs with them.Things be lookin’ a bit choppy out thereaccordin’ to Peter Norton!

I has to say, I thoroughly enjoyed meEaster Egg hunt on the island, althoughI did eat far too much chocolate, andfelt a bit ill swingin’ in me hammockafterwards. I was sooooo stuffed Iforgot to leave for kick off, which be thereason I wasn’t around before t’gameto enjoy t’atmosphere. I’s heard I alsomissed out on more eggs in t’luckydip….. I’s hopin’ you all won greatprizes?!

I can’t believe we’s at the end ofanother season already though….itseems like only yesterday I wasswingin’ in me hammock on me island int’summer sun, thinkin’ about all theexcitin’ games we had to face…..andnow I’s got to go back to swingin’ inme hammock for another summer!

I’s wantin’ to thank all my junior fleetmembers for their support this season,and also all me new deckhands whocame on board throughout the season,I’s hopin’ you all had a great time.

Well, until we sail into port again inAugust….

Keep Sailin’Hooky

HOOKY’S QUICKFIRE QUIZ 1. Which Blue Square Premier side has scored themost goals this season?

2. In which month did Magno Vieira win the BlueSquare Premier Player of the Month?

3. Lionel Messi scored 4 goals against which club inthe Champions League?

4. Which League club plays their home games atBlundell Park?

5. The following are anagrams of Blue SquarePremier Clubs, but which ones?a: hated sageb: avenge setc: a tenebrousd: merited drinkse: busy liars

ANSWERS:1.LUTON TOWN,2.JANUARY,3.ARSENAL,4.GRIMSBY TOWN,

5.a - GATESHEAD;b:STEVENAGE;c:EASTBOURNE;d:KIDDERMINSTER;e:SALISBURY

FLEET TRUST A SCOUTING PERSPECTIVE


The last home game of theseason marks the end ofwhat has been a long anddifficult season for this club.

The threat of relegation has been with usfor many months and as we enter ourlast two games the possibility ofConference South football next seasonseems ever closer. However it would notbe the first time that the clubs finishing inthe relegation positions find themselvesstill in the Premier Division next season.If we are to finish in the bottom three itwill be much better, at this stage, to bethird from bottom.The apparent turmoilat Histon, the financial problems at morethan one other club above us in theleague could see the AGM in Junedeclaring a Premier division for nextseason that is not a strict reflection ofthe end of season league table.Altrincham were reprieved on threeconsecutive occasions by the misfortunesof other clubs.Would this club be in aposition to take advantage of such areprieve should it occur? Only time willtell.

At the other end of the table it nowlooks as if Stevenage will be promotedautomatically, although this piece iswritten before their game withAltrincham on Wednesday evening.Personally I feel it is good for theconference if they go up.They are aconference, rather than an ex leagueclub, and deserve their opportunity tojoin the likes of Burton Albion in having acrack at league football.This will leavefour former league clubs to battle it outin the play offs and at this stage it isdifficult to choose between them. Onething is sure we will be losing one of ourbetter grounds. It is no surprise that allfour clubs have good striking options,although it could be argued that Oxfordhave struggled since the turn of the yearby having too many options. I have seenall four recently and my money is on YorkCity to be triumphant at Wembley onMay 16th.Finally, it has been very disappointing forthe conference to lose Chester City andFarsley Celtic this season. The farce thathas been Chester City dragged on for fartoo long. In hindsight the Conference

should have bitten the bullet at the startof the season and not allowed them tostart.Asking the member clubs to votefor their inclusion did not prove to be adecision that enabled Chester to functionas a football club at this level. Once theyhad been removed the decision toexpunge their records was, in myopinion, the only fair option available.Farsley Celtic is a somewhat differentsituation and as I write no date has beenfixed for Fleetwood Town’s appeal againstthe removal of their record. Looks likebeing a straightforward task to arrangethe Conference North play offs then.Whilst it is sad to see two clubsdisappear it is surely only right that allorganisations should face up to theirfinancial responsibilities. Clubs should notbe allowed to carry huge debt, no matterwho they owe the money too and thenuse administration to lessen the burdenwhen their dream becomes a nightmare.The Conference is right to insist that allclubs pay their debts in full.

Enjoy the game,Geoff Seal

GOOD AFTERNOON TO YOU ALL. WELLTHESE ARE THE LAST NOTES FOR THISSEASON AND PROBABLY ONE OF THEMOST DIFFICULT SETS TO WRITE.

It has been a real roller-coaster of a season, with theinitial results so difficult to deal with and then themagnificent run when we produced some great winswhich stunned many of the clubs that were achievingbetter results that we were.The end of the season asthey say is nigh and whatever happens I will still bearound next season.It was always going to be difficult and practically re-building a team was always a big ask. I was amazed theother day when I realized just how young a squad wehave.What a shame it will be if we cannot maintain themajority of the boys and see them grow and flourish intothe team I am sure they could be.

I think the whole management team is to be applaudedfor bringing us so far. I am sure many of you will wonderwhy I say that, well, regardless of results the whole squadhave represented the club magnificently and it has been apleasure to see them each and every week working andtraining hard and slowly but surely building a great teamspirit which was clear, especially for those of us lucky toenough to have seen the players training, talking toyoungsters who visited the ground on match days,attending the Christmas party , which was such a highlightfor the children lucky enough to have been there.I have been privileged to have been given the opportunityto work and be involved in the running of the footballclub, a real dream, for someone who is simply a fan.

It is indeed a hard job and I have huge admiration foreveryone working at the club, they are a dedicated bunchand quite often get a raw deal as many people think theyspend all day drinking coffee and chatting. I can tell younothing is further from the truth. Everyone goes above

and beyond, every day and those of us that help!Certainly have many hard acts to live up to.There is of course tension, sometimes, as there is in allwork places, but everyone works their collective socksoff and maybe that is something we forget, it is a place ofwork for them and when we talk about the club,sometimes in such a dismissive way we should mayberemember that.

I would like to end with a plea – This is our club, if youare old GNFC, new EUFC or even newer MyFC. Onething that should bind us all together is the football club,but over the past few months it has certainly caused usto sometimes tear strips off each other.I get royally roasted for being too much EUFC and notenough MyFC, others get moaned at for being biasedtowards MyFC. I have always said, we should all try andpull in the same direction, but cracks have appeared,members of MyFC have disappeared some regularsupporters have turned away, blaming poor results, MyFCinvolvement, not buying Leeds United, you name it theyblame it and the club finds itself in a similar position as itwas this time last year. Recently a few friends and I ran aboot fair, we raised £300, not a king’s ransom, but everylittle helps, if we could all just raise an extra £300, itwould make a huge difference, 10 of us, 100 of us, runninga boot fair, doing a sponsored run, anything but sitting andmoaning, blaming everyone else, waiting for everyoneelse.

We can all blame someone else, the club, Duncan, Roly,Liam, Pete Danzey, the Team, me, the cat, yes its easy, I canthink of so many so quickly, but this is our club, yours ,theirs and mine, so maybe together we should try andsave it. I suppose it really is up to us, where will we be inAugust 2010, playing at Stonebridge Road, question is willyou be there?If you would like to help. Come and see me in the shop.

Jessica

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Northfleet,

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NOTICE BOARDContact: WICKSY Club: 01474 533796 Mobile: 07595 420501 Email: [email protected]

J HamnettW BrooksF Mazzeo

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THE ROLY 60 sponsoring Alex Stavrinou and Moses AshikodiThe names listed below are those who have contributed to ‘The Roly 60’.Thank you very much for your support.

YOUR CLUB NEEDS YOU!!!!!

Dear Supporter, Save money AND help your club by purchasing

your 2010/11 season tickets at this season’s prices.

Early bird prices are available with

immediate effect and will be available up to

and including 15th June 2010.

We would encourage season ticket holders to renew as soon as is

possible. Letters will be sent out to current season ticket holders.The

earlier you renew your season ticket the better chance the club has of

building a competitive squad for next season’s campaign.

Junior Fleet member ship - £25 – this is restricted to 5 to 12

year olds inclusive (born after August 1998) (under 5s’ are free)

Teen Fleet season ticket - £92 – this covers everyone aged 13 to

17 inclusive (born before August 1998) The season ticket book will

include vouchers, soft drink, one free programme.

Terrace - £230 (equivalent to £10 per game).The early bird price for

this ticket is £207 (equivalent to £9 per game)

Terrace concession - £115 (equivalent to £5 per game).The early

bird price for this ticket is £103.50 (equivalent to £4.50 per game)

Main stand - £253 (equivalent to £11 per game).The early bird price

for this ticket is £230 (equivalent to £10 per game)

Main stand concession - £126.50 (equivalent to £5.50 per game.

The early bird price for this ticket is £115 (equivalent to £5 per game)

NEW ADDITIONS……

In addition we are also offering a Platinum (10 year) season ticket as

follows:- Main stand £2,200 Terrace £2,000

(The above package will also include the title of Vice President)

There will also be Gold (5 year) season tickets as follows:-

Main stand £1,100 Terrace £1,000

WHERE ARE THEY NOW???


NICK BURTON (2001-03) by Ed Miller

This afternoon we look back at acentral defender who featured the lasttime Stonebridge Road bore witness toa do-or-die relegation battle, a much-travelled player who helped us winpromotion to the Conference andplayed in the 1-0 victory over Halifaxthat kept us in it in 2003.

Born in Suffolk, Nick Burton began his career on thebooks of Portsmouth but moved to Torquay in 1993,scoring on his league debut against Carlisle. Hecouldn’t command a regular place at Plainmoor,however, and left for non-league Yeovil in 1995 havingfeatured 18 times in the league for the Gulls.He was on the move again, this time to Aldershot in1996, where he was almost ever-present in his firstseason but losing his place midway through thefollowing season, he continued his eastward trajectory,landing at Hampton & Richmond where he was madecaptain.

He guided them to promotion to the Ryman PremierDivision in a four-year spell that ended when the clubhad financial problems and Fleet boss Andy Fordsnapped him up for his promotion-chasing squad inOctober 2001. Nick came straight into the side as afull-back and made his debut in a 3-0 win overBraintree.

He was in and out of the starting XI to begin with buthis adaptability to play across defence and occasionallyin midfield saw him stake a regular claim as the season

wore on and he racked up 34 appearances, scoringonce against Histon in the FA Trophy, and helped theFleet lift the Ryman League shield.

He had a competent first season in the Conferencewith the Fleet, scoring twice in a 3-0 demolition ofHereford and once in a 4-2 win over Woking. Heplayed 30 games in 2002-03 but in the close season,the signings of Lee Shearer and Robin Trottsurprisingly left him surplus to requirements and hewas installed as skipper at Farnborough.

He turned out 50 times in the Conference for themand then played for Crawley, Eastleigh and St Albans(2005) and followed that with a brief spell at StainesTown in 2006. He was back at Farnborough inConference South in 2006-07, playing another 36games and had a third spell there in 2008-09 after aseason with Harrow Borough in between.

He left Farnborough in 2009 to move to WaltonCasuals of the Ryman League Division One Southwhere, aged 35, he still plays while also holding down ajob as a salesman (the Sunday Independent oncefamously described him as a “glue salesman”!).AtWalton he was reunited with former Fleet teammateFrancis Duku for a spell.

His career has stretched back 16 years and in thattime he has clocked up more than 400 appearancesfor 12 clubs and scored in the region of 30 goals.

FLEET RECORDApps: 64 (+3) Goals: 4

K. Johnson, supporting Ebbsfleet Unitedthroughout the 2009 - 2010 season

The AngusLawson

MemorialTrust

are proud to support Ebbsfleet United

Football Clubwww.almt.org or [email protected]

THE ANGUS LAWSON MEMORIAL TRUSTRegistered No. 1117735 Charity Aid Foundation (CAF)

No. 268369

New, Refurbished andGraded Appliances

Perry Street, Northfleet, Kent

•Washing Machines•Tumble Dryers•Dishwashers

•Cookers•Fridges

•Fridge Freezers

Monday - Saturday 9am - 5.30pmTel: 01474 747 696

Email: [email protected]: dadsltd.co.uk

Commercial and General Printers

Northfleet Press

5&6 Stonebridge Road, Northfleet, Kent, DA11 8DR

Tel: 01474 534 484 Fax: 01474 325 826

Scottish & Newcastle UK

are proud to be associated

with

EBBSFLEETUNITED

FOOTBALL CLUB for the 2009/2010 season

in the Blue Square Premier.

Contact Customer Care Centre -

0845 878 7072

Best Western Manor HotelIt’s Best..... At the Manor for.....

FitnessHeath Club

AccommodationPrivate Dining

Wedding & Conference Venue

Tel: 01474 353100Email: [email protected]

•Fully stocked and staffed Bar provided •Self catering possible•Maximum capacity 150 people

•Ideal for parties, christenings and family celebrations.•Ideal for the smaller company Xmas party!

•We accept 16th - 21st Birthday parties, although registered doorsecurity personnel are required for these events.

Prices start at £100, plus a returnable £100 damage deposit.For more information contact:

The Fleet Social Club, Ebbsfleet United FCStonebridge Road, Northfleet, Kent DA11 9GN

Tel: 01474 533796 or email: [email protected]

The Fleet Social Club Hall is availablefor hire for all occasions at any time.

DATE OPPOSITION ATTENDANCE SCORE

Sat 8 Aug Altrincham 914 1-1 Cronin Salmon Collins Charles Crooks Shakes Heeroo Welsh ShultonY Forshaw Vieira Lamprell West Lindie1 Wills Pooley

TUES 11 AUG CAMBRIDGE UNITED 1523 1-3 Cronin Salmon Collins CharlesY Crooks1 Shakes Heeroo Welsh Shulton Lindie Vieira Lamprell West Forshaw Wills Pooley

SAT 15 AUG KIDDERMINSTER HARRIERS 865 0-0 Cronin Salmon Collins Crooks Charles Heeroo Welsh Shulton Shakes Linde Vieira Lamprell West Forshaw Wills Pooley

Tues 18 Aug Stevenage Borough 1704 0-3 Cronin Salmon Collins CrooksY CharlesY Heeroo WestY Bailey Shakes Forshaw Vieira Lamprell Wills ShultonY Ginty Pooley

Sat 22 Aug Mansfield Town 3269 0-3 Cronin Salmon Collins Crooks Charles HeerooY West Welsh Shakes Thomas Vieira Lamprell Forshaw Ginty Wills Pooley

SAT 29 AUG HAYES & YEADING UNITED 884 1-2 Cronin Salmon Collins Crooks Charles Heeroo Pooley Welsh Shakes Thomas Vieira1 Lamprell GintyY ForshawY Henry Shulton

Mon 31 Aug Eastbourne Borough 1165 2-1 Cronin Salmon Collins CrooksY Pooley Heeroo Shulton Welsh Shakes Thomas1 Vieira1Y Lamprell Ginty Forshaw Wills Read

SAT 5 SEPT OXFORD UNITED 1468 0-2 Cronin Salmon CollinsY Crooks Charles Pooley Heeroo Welsh Shakes Vieira Thomas Ginty Wills Shulton Forshaw Read

TUES 8 SEPT RUSHDEN & DIAMONDS 863 0-0 Cronin Pooley Collins Crooks Charles Wills Heeroo WelshY Bailey Vieira Thomas Lamprell Ginty Forshaw Lindie Shakes

Sat 12 Sept Forest Green Rovers 762 0-0 Cronin Pooley Collins Crooks Charles HeerooY Wills Bailey Welsh Vieira Thomas Ginty Salmon Shakes West Linde

SAT 19 SEPT AFC WIMBLEDON 2005 2-2 Cronin Salmon Pooley Crooks Charles Heeroo Welsh Wills Bailey Linde Cumbers1 Vieira1 Forshaw Abbey Shakes Thomas

Tues 22 Sept Histon 647 0-1 Cronin Salmon Pooley Crooks Charles HeerooY Welsh Wills Bailey Vieira Cumbers Shulton Abbey Ginty Shakes ForshawY

Sat 26 Sept Kettering Town 1345 0-3 Cronin Salmon McCarthy Crooks Charles Wills BaileyY WelshY ShakesY Vieira Cumbers Lamprell Ginty Shulton Heeroo Pooley

TUES 29 SEPT SALISBURY CITY 792 1-2 Cronin McCarthy1 Heeroo Crooks Charles Wills Welsh Bailey Shakes Vieira Cumbers Lamprell Forshaw Shulton Ginty Pooley

SAT 3 OCT CRAWLEY TOWN 987 0-0 Cronin Pooley Crooks Charles McCarthy Heeroo Welsh Shulton Wills Shakes Cumbers Vieira Bailey West Ginty Abbey

Sat 10 Oct Cambridge United 3668 0-4 Cronin Heeroo Crooks Charles McCarthyY Holmes Welsh Shulton Wills Shakes Cumbers Lamprell Salmon Ginty West Abbey

Sat 17 Oct Barrow 1241 0-2 Cronin HeerooR Crooks Charles McCarthy Henry Holmes Shulton Wills Charles Ginty Salmon Shakes Vieira West Welsh

Sat 24 October Bromley FA Cup 1133 0-3 Cronin Shakes Easton Charles Crooks Henry West Wills Welsh Ginty Charles Lamprell Bailey Vieira Salmon Riley Sherlock

SAT 31 OCT WREXHAM 969 0-1 Cronin Heeroo Easton Charles CrooksR Willis Holmes Henry Welsh Vieira CharlesR Ginty West Shakes Pooley Bailey

Sat 14 Nov York City 2629 0-1 Cronin Heeroo Smith CharlesY Pooley West Holmes Bailey Welsh Vieira Shakes Lamprell Forshaw Salmon Willis Ginty

SAT 21 NOV TAMWORTH 867 0-1 Cronin Crooks Smith CharlesR Heeroo Bailey West Holmes Welsh Vieira Shakes Lamprell Ginty Forshaw Easton Wills

Tues 24 Nov AFC Wimbledon 2942 0-3 Cronin Salmon Heeroo SmithY Pooley Holmes West BaileyY Welsh Vieira Shakes Lamprell Forshaw Ginty Wills Read

SAT 28 NOV MANSFIELD TOWN 850 2-1 Cronin Salmon Heeroo Smith Pooley Holmes1 West Stavrinou BaileyY Vieira1 Shakes Lamprell Ginty Welsh Wills Read

TUES 1 DEC STEVENAGE BOROUGH 836 2-1 Cronin Heeroo Charles Smith Crooks West Stavrinou Holmes Bailey2 Vieira Shakes Lamprell Welsh Ginty Wills Pooley

Sat 5 Dec Oxford United 5188 2-4 Cronin Heeroo Charles Smith Crooks West Stavrinou HolmesY Welsh Vieira1 Shakes Lamprell Wills Ginty1 Pooley Salmon

Sat 12 Dec Stevenage Boro FAT1 809 0-2 Cronin Salmon Charles Smith Crooks Heeroo Holmes BaileyY Welsh Vieira Shakes Lamprell Wills Forshaw Ginty Pooley

SAT 26 DEC GRAYS ATHLETIC 937 2-1 Cronin Salmon Charles Crooks Pooley Stavrinou Holmes Bailey Welsh Vieira1Y Shakes1 Wills Forshaw Heeroo Ginty Easton

Mon 28 Dec Hayes & Yeading United 369 2-4 Cronin Salmon Charles Pooley Crooks Stavrinou Holmes Bailey Welsh Vieira1 Shakes Lamprell Forshaw Ginty1 Wills Easton

Fri 1 Jan Grays Athletic 793 3-0 Cronin Salmon Easton Crooks Pooley Stavrinou Holmes1 Bailey West Vieira1 Shakes1 Forshaw Henry Wills Welsh Ginty

SAT 16TH JAN ALTRINCHAM 873 1-2 Cronin Salmon Easton Crooks Pooley Bailey Holmes Stavrinou WestY Vieira ShakesY Ginty1 Wills Welsh Charles Heeroo

TUES 19TH JAN KETTERING TOWN 587 1-2 Cronin Salmon Easton Crooks Pooley Stavrinou West Holmes Charles Ashikodi1 Shakes Ginty Wills Heeroo Welsh Bailey

SAT 23RD JAN FOREST GREEN ROVERS 790 4-3 Cronin Salmon Charles Pooley Crooks1 Stavrinou Holmes Bailey1 Shakes Vieira2 Ashikido Heeroo West Welsh Ginty Wills

TUES 26TH JAN MAIDSTONE UNITED (KSC) 260 1-3 Lamprell Collins Heeroo Springett Crooks West Henry1 Bailey Wills Ginty Welsh Hagan Forshaw Salmon Phipp Sherlock

Sat 30th Jan Luton Town 6658 3-2 Cronin Salmon Easton CharlesY Crooks Stavrinou Holmes Bailey Shakes Vieira2 Ashikido1 Collins Heeroo West Ginty Wills

Sat 6th Feb Chester City 460 2-1 Cronin Salmon EastonY Crooks Charles Stavrinou Holmes Baliey Shakes Vieira2 Ashikodi Ginty West Pooley Heeroo Welsh

TUES 9TH FEB HISTON 738 0-1 Cronin Salmon Easton Crooks Charles Stavrinou HolmesY Baliey Shakes Vieira Ashikodi Heeroo West Pooley Welsh Ginty

SAT 13TH FEB YORK CITY 1226 1-0 Cronin Pooley Easton Charles Crooks Heeroo Holmes Bailey Shakes Vieira Ashikodi1 Collins West Welsh Ginty Wills

Sat 20th Feb Gateshead 533 3-1 Cronin Pooley Collins Charles Crooks Heeroo Holmes BaileyY Shakes1 Vieira1 Ashikodi1 Lamprell West Ginty Wills Salmon

SAT 27TH FEB BARROW 1146 1-4 Cronin Pooley Collins CharlesY Crooks Stavrinou Holmes Bailey Shakes Vieira Ashikodi1 Ginty Welsh Wills West Salmon

Tue 2nd March Kidderminster Harriers 1163 2-2 CroninY PooleyY Collins Charles Crooks Stavrinou Holmes Bailey Shakes Vieira Ashikodi1 Ginty1 Salmon Heeroo Welsh Wills

Sat 6th March Wrexham 2345 1-1 Cronin Salmon Collins Charles Crooks Pooley HolmesY Bailey StavrinouY Ginty Ashikodi1 Hagan Wills Heeroo West Welsh

Sat 13th March Crawley Town 983 1-2 Cronin Pooley Collins Charles CrooksY Stavrinou Heeroo Bailey Shakes Vieira Ashikodi1 Solmon Ginty Welsh West Wills

SAT 20TH MARCH LUTON TOWN 2142 1*-6 Cronin HeerooY Collins Crooks Charles Holmes Stavrinou Bailey ShakesY Vieira AshikodiY Salmon West Welsh Ginty Wills

Fri 2nd April Salisbury City (3pm) 1088 1-3 Cronin SalmonY Pooley Charles Crooks Stavrinou HolmesY Wills Shakes Vieira1 Ashikodi West Ginty Bailey Heeroo Welsh

MON 5TH APRIL EASTBOURNE BOROUGH 1214 3-2 Cronin Salmon PooleyR CharlesY Crooks Wills Holmes Bailey1 Shakes VieiraY Ashikodi2Y Heeroo Ginty Welsh Stavrinou Read

Sat 10th April Rushden & Diamonds 1440 0-2 Cronin Salmon HeerooY Charles Crooks Wills Holmes Bailey Shakes Vieira Ashikodi Lamprell Ginty Stavrinou Read Welsh

SAT 17TH APRIL GATESHEAD

Sat 24th April Tamworth

2009/10 2009/10


1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 14 15 16 17

Key: Player in Blue= 1st Sub Player in Green= 2nd Sub Player in Orange= 3rd Sub Goals Scored=1 Y=Yellow Card R=Red Card KSC= Kent Senior Cup SS=Setanta Shield

*DENOTES OWN GOAL

Scottish & Newcastle UK

are proud to be associated

with

EBBSFLEETUNITED

FOOTBALL CLUB for the 2009/2010 season

in the Blue Square Premier.

Contact Customer Care Centre -

0845 878 7072

Best Western Manor HotelIt’s Best..... At the Manor for.....

FitnessHeath Club

AccommodationPrivate Dining

Wedding & Conference Venue

Tel: 01474 353100Email: [email protected]

•Fully stocked and staffed Bar provided •Self catering possible•Maximum capacity 150 people

•Ideal for parties, christenings and family celebrations.•Ideal for the smaller company Xmas party!

•We accept 16th - 21st Birthday parties, although registered doorsecurity personnel are required for these events.

Prices start at £100, plus a returnable £100 damage deposit.For more information contact:

The Fleet Social Club, Ebbsfleet United FCStonebridge Road, Northfleet, Kent DA11 9GN

Tel: 01474 533796 or email: [email protected]

The Fleet Social Club Hall is availablefor hire for all occasions at any time.

K. Johnson, supporting Ebbsfleet Unitedthroughout the 2009 - 2010 season

The AngusLawson

MemorialTrust

are proud to support Ebbsfleet United

Football Clubwww.almt.org or [email protected]

THE ANGUS LAWSON MEMORIAL TRUSTRegistered No. 1117735 Charity Aid Foundation (CAF)

No. 268369

New, Refurbished andGraded Appliances

Perry Street, Northfleet, Kent

•Washing Machines•Tumble Dryers•Dishwashers

•Cookers•Fridges

•Fridge Freezers

Monday - Saturday 9am - 5.30pmTel: 01474 747 696

Email: [email protected]: dadsltd.co.uk

Commercial and General Printers

Northfleet Press

5&6 Stonebridge Road, Northfleet, Kent, DA11 8DR

Tel: 01474 534 484 Fax: 01474 325 826

WHERE ARE THEY NOW???


NICK BURTON (2001-03) by Ed Miller

This afternoon we look back at acentral defender who featured the lasttime Stonebridge Road bore witness toa do-or-die relegation battle, a much-travelled player who helped us winpromotion to the Conference andplayed in the 1-0 victory over Halifaxthat kept us in it in 2003.

Born in Suffolk, Nick Burton began his career on thebooks of Portsmouth but moved to Torquay in 1993,scoring on his league debut against Carlisle. Hecouldn’t command a regular place at Plainmoor,however, and left for non-league Yeovil in 1995 havingfeatured 18 times in the league for the Gulls.He was on the move again, this time to Aldershot in1996, where he was almost ever-present in his firstseason but losing his place midway through thefollowing season, he continued his eastward trajectory,landing at Hampton & Richmond where he was madecaptain.

He guided them to promotion to the Ryman PremierDivision in a four-year spell that ended when the clubhad financial problems and Fleet boss Andy Fordsnapped him up for his promotion-chasing squad inOctober 2001. Nick came straight into the side as afull-back and made his debut in a 3-0 win overBraintree.

He was in and out of the starting XI to begin with buthis adaptability to play across defence and occasionallyin midfield saw him stake a regular claim as the season

wore on and he racked up 34 appearances, scoringonce against Histon in the FA Trophy, and helped theFleet lift the Ryman League shield.

He had a competent first season in the Conferencewith the Fleet, scoring twice in a 3-0 demolition ofHereford and once in a 4-2 win over Woking. Heplayed 30 games in 2002-03 but in the close season,the signings of Lee Shearer and Robin Trottsurprisingly left him surplus to requirements and hewas installed as skipper at Farnborough.

He turned out 50 times in the Conference for themand then played for Crawley, Eastleigh and St Albans(2005) and followed that with a brief spell at StainesTown in 2006. He was back at Farnborough inConference South in 2006-07, playing another 36games and had a third spell there in 2008-09 after aseason with Harrow Borough in between.

He left Farnborough in 2009 to move to WaltonCasuals of the Ryman League Division One Southwhere, aged 35, he still plays while also holding down ajob as a salesman (the Sunday Independent oncefamously described him as a “glue salesman”!).AtWalton he was reunited with former Fleet teammateFrancis Duku for a spell.

His career has stretched back 16 years and in thattime he has clocked up more than 400 appearancesfor 12 clubs and scored in the region of 30 goals.

FLEET RECORDApps: 64 (+3) Goals: 4

NOTICE BOARDContact: WICKSY Club: 01474 533796 Mobile: 07595 420501 Email: [email protected]

J HamnettW BrooksF Mazzeo

K JakobsenW NortonC DaviesR TveterP Hayles

R WatertonN Adams

J LewP Santer

T Nesirky

M Lindop IM Lindop II

P HuttD RutnamT MahnenJ GranadeA RoomeM StewartA SassoS Leach

S WassellG WatkinsK Franklin

N MonksL Clark

G AbbottP PriceR Sen

C JacksonA Woods

A GlocknerG Howatson

J TeichterR Ward

A BradfordA Wilkin

P NashP SkinnerG SidwellR Edwards

D LeesP DanzeyJ HustonS Gee

D DuffyB RobertsM Edwards

F CarringtonM Lynam

C BritteonM King

A FelsteadD McLoughlin

S Brown

I CockerillH Payne

B KilcullenA Handyside

S LutzI Taylor

S FowlerS Lam

P Laycock-SmithA Hemfrey

D HoltN MarkR Cooke

D KieswetterC Spencer

C CaldecottD HamletD Owen

P RawdingC BuggsH FrancisG Buxton

G Buxton IIG Buxton III

H SidwellE SillgeR Orr

M PoveyP Bevis

F MorrisD BrombyP Sonsara

R GonggrijpD Bobby

THE ROLY 60 sponsoring Alex Stavrinou and Moses AshikodiThe names listed below are those who have contributed to ‘The Roly 60’.Thank you very much for your support.

YOUR CLUB NEEDS YOU!!!!!

Dear Supporter, Save money AND help your club by purchasing

your 2010/11 season tickets at this season’s prices.

Early bird prices are available with

immediate effect and will be available up to

and including 15th June 2010.

We would encourage season ticket holders to renew as soon as is

possible. Letters will be sent out to current season ticket holders.The

earlier you renew your season ticket the better chance the club has of

building a competitive squad for next season’s campaign.

Junior Fleet member ship - £25 – this is restricted to 5 to 12

year olds inclusive (born after August 1998) (under 5s’ are free)

Teen Fleet season ticket - £92 – this covers everyone aged 13 to

17 inclusive (born before August 1998) The season ticket book will

include vouchers, soft drink, one free programme.

Terrace - £230 (equivalent to £10 per game).The early bird price for

this ticket is £207 (equivalent to £9 per game)

Terrace concession - £115 (equivalent to £5 per game).The early

bird price for this ticket is £103.50 (equivalent to £4.50 per game)

Main stand - £253 (equivalent to £11 per game).The early bird price

for this ticket is £230 (equivalent to £10 per game)

Main stand concession - £126.50 (equivalent to £5.50 per game.

The early bird price for this ticket is £115 (equivalent to £5 per game)

NEW ADDITIONS……

In addition we are also offering a Platinum (10 year) season ticket as

follows:- Main stand £2,200 Terrace £2,000

(The above package will also include the title of Vice President)

There will also be Gold (5 year) season tickets as follows:-

Main stand £1,100 Terrace £1,000

We are the appointed auditorsfor Ebbsfleet United FC. You arewelcome to contact us aboutour other services, whichinclude advising on:


Northfleet,

Competitive

FLEET TRUST A SCOUTING PERSPECTIVE


The last home game of theseason marks the end ofwhat has been a long anddifficult season for this club.

The threat of relegation has been with usfor many months and as we enter ourlast two games the possibility ofConference South football next seasonseems ever closer. However it would notbe the first time that the clubs finishing inthe relegation positions find themselvesstill in the Premier Division next season.If we are to finish in the bottom three itwill be much better, at this stage, to bethird from bottom.The apparent turmoilat Histon, the financial problems at morethan one other club above us in theleague could see the AGM in Junedeclaring a Premier division for nextseason that is not a strict reflection ofthe end of season league table.Altrincham were reprieved on threeconsecutive occasions by the misfortunesof other clubs.Would this club be in aposition to take advantage of such areprieve should it occur? Only time willtell.

At the other end of the table it nowlooks as if Stevenage will be promotedautomatically, although this piece iswritten before their game withAltrincham on Wednesday evening.Personally I feel it is good for theconference if they go up.They are aconference, rather than an ex leagueclub, and deserve their opportunity tojoin the likes of Burton Albion in having acrack at league football.This will leavefour former league clubs to battle it outin the play offs and at this stage it isdifficult to choose between them. Onething is sure we will be losing one of ourbetter grounds. It is no surprise that allfour clubs have good striking options,although it could be argued that Oxfordhave struggled since the turn of the yearby having too many options. I have seenall four recently and my money is on YorkCity to be triumphant at Wembley onMay 16th.Finally, it has been very disappointing forthe conference to lose Chester City andFarsley Celtic this season. The farce thathas been Chester City dragged on for fartoo long. In hindsight the Conference

should have bitten the bullet at the startof the season and not allowed them tostart.Asking the member clubs to votefor their inclusion did not prove to be adecision that enabled Chester to functionas a football club at this level. Once theyhad been removed the decision toexpunge their records was, in myopinion, the only fair option available.Farsley Celtic is a somewhat differentsituation and as I write no date has beenfixed for Fleetwood Town’s appeal againstthe removal of their record. Looks likebeing a straightforward task to arrangethe Conference North play offs then.Whilst it is sad to see two clubsdisappear it is surely only right that allorganisations should face up to theirfinancial responsibilities. Clubs should notbe allowed to carry huge debt, no matterwho they owe the money too and thenuse administration to lessen the burdenwhen their dream becomes a nightmare.The Conference is right to insist that allclubs pay their debts in full.

Enjoy the game,Geoff Seal

GOOD AFTERNOON TO YOU ALL. WELLTHESE ARE THE LAST NOTES FOR THISSEASON AND PROBABLY ONE OF THEMOST DIFFICULT SETS TO WRITE.

It has been a real roller-coaster of a season, with theinitial results so difficult to deal with and then themagnificent run when we produced some great winswhich stunned many of the clubs that were achievingbetter results that we were.The end of the season asthey say is nigh and whatever happens I will still bearound next season.It was always going to be difficult and practically re-building a team was always a big ask. I was amazed theother day when I realized just how young a squad wehave.What a shame it will be if we cannot maintain themajority of the boys and see them grow and flourish intothe team I am sure they could be.

I think the whole management team is to be applaudedfor bringing us so far. I am sure many of you will wonderwhy I say that, well, regardless of results the whole squadhave represented the club magnificently and it has been apleasure to see them each and every week working andtraining hard and slowly but surely building a great teamspirit which was clear, especially for those of us lucky toenough to have seen the players training, talking toyoungsters who visited the ground on match days,attending the Christmas party , which was such a highlightfor the children lucky enough to have been there.I have been privileged to have been given the opportunityto work and be involved in the running of the footballclub, a real dream, for someone who is simply a fan.

It is indeed a hard job and I have huge admiration foreveryone working at the club, they are a dedicated bunchand quite often get a raw deal as many people think theyspend all day drinking coffee and chatting. I can tell younothing is further from the truth. Everyone goes above

and beyond, every day and those of us that help!Certainly have many hard acts to live up to.There is of course tension, sometimes, as there is in allwork places, but everyone works their collective socksoff and maybe that is something we forget, it is a place ofwork for them and when we talk about the club,sometimes in such a dismissive way we should mayberemember that.

I would like to end with a plea – This is our club, if youare old GNFC, new EUFC or even newer MyFC. Onething that should bind us all together is the football club,but over the past few months it has certainly caused usto sometimes tear strips off each other.I get royally roasted for being too much EUFC and notenough MyFC, others get moaned at for being biasedtowards MyFC. I have always said, we should all try andpull in the same direction, but cracks have appeared,members of MyFC have disappeared some regularsupporters have turned away, blaming poor results, MyFCinvolvement, not buying Leeds United, you name it theyblame it and the club finds itself in a similar position as itwas this time last year. Recently a few friends and I ran aboot fair, we raised £300, not a king’s ransom, but everylittle helps, if we could all just raise an extra £300, itwould make a huge difference, 10 of us, 100 of us, runninga boot fair, doing a sponsored run, anything but sitting andmoaning, blaming everyone else, waiting for everyoneelse.

We can all blame someone else, the club, Duncan, Roly,Liam, Pete Danzey, the Team, me, the cat, yes its easy, I canthink of so many so quickly, but this is our club, yours ,theirs and mine, so maybe together we should try andsave it. I suppose it really is up to us, where will we be inAugust 2010, playing at Stonebridge Road, question is willyou be there?If you would like to help. Come and see me in the shop.

Jessica

RADIO COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS LTDQUALITY AND VALUE FOUND IN A PERSONALISED SERVICERadio Communication Systems Ltd sell, lease, design, hire and service cost effective two way radio products and

communication solutions. Established in 1990 we are one of the Uk’s largest and leading two way radio distributorsaccredited to ISO9001:2000 all of our equipment comes from a professional and well-organised company, which still

believes in the old tale of “quality and value found in a personalised service.

Contact RadioCommunicationSystems Ltd

Tel : 01435-867400

Email: [email protected]

ALL IN THE PAST HOOKY’S JUNIOR FLEET


T he original GatesheadAFC was formed in1930 when neighbours

South Shields, members ofthe Football Leagues oldThird Division North, movedto Gateshead’s RedheughPark because of financialdifficulties.

The newly formed “Tynesiders”almost capitalised immediately on theirgood fortune when only Lincoln City’ssuperior goal average deprived them ofpromotion to the second division in onlytheir second season of League football.

However, it was to be the FA Cupthat was to provide the club with itsfinest hour when cup fever gripped theTyneside town in 1953.

After accounting for Liverpool in thethird round, Gateshead progressed tothe quarter-final only for their Wembleyaspirations to be denied by a single NatLofthouse goal for eventual finalistsBolton Wanderers.

A sell out Redheugh Park crowd of17,692 had witnessed the spectacle butwithin five years the North Easternersfound themselves founder members ofthe newly formed fourth division afterthey missed the cut for the third divisionby just one point.

Despite an average placing of 9th in21 Third Division North campaigns,interrupted by the second world war,two years following the introduction ofthe fourth division came Gateshead’sshock dismissal from the FootballLeague.

The club had applied for re-electiononly once before in a relativelysuccessful thirty-year period, but werenevertheless unceremoniously removedin favour of the more geographicallyacceptable Peterborough United.

An unsuccessful bid to join theScottish Football League was followed bya brief spell in the Northern CountiesLeague and then six years in NorthRegional League.

In 1968 Gateshead became foundermembers of the Northern PremierLeague but their stay in the newcompetition lasted only two years.

Their place was, ironically, taken byanother former Football League outfit,Bradford Park Avenue, and they wereforced to replace their own reserve

team in the Wearside League.Finishing as runners up the Tynesiders

then spent a season in the MidlandLeague until in 1973, seven leagues and43 years after its inception, GatesheadAFC ceased to exist.

A new club called Gateshead Townplayed the following season in the localNorthern Combination League but,astonishingly, history was soon to repeatitself.

South Shields, then members of theNorthern Premier League, sold theirSimonside headquarters and moved to anew home at Gateshead Stadium.

Renamed Gateshead United the clubsoon became a force in the NorthernPremier League while accounting forFootball League clubs Grimsby Town andCrewe Alexandra in the FA Cup.

However in 1977, after only threeyears of operation, came the shockannouncement that United were todisband - the third body blow to hitGateshead supporters in less than 20years.

Constantly in the shadows of NorthEast football giants Newcastle Unitedand Sunderland it looked like the end ofsenior football in the town until anotherphoenix, this time in the form of thecurrent Gateshead FC, rose from theashes.

Replacing Gateshead United in theNorthern Premier League for the 1977-8 season the new club won theChampionship in 1983 with a record100 points and 114 goals.

After two years in the Conference,the Tynesiders returned to the NorthernPremier League and lifted the title forthe second time in 1986.

Their second spell in the Conferencelasted just one season, though they werequick to bounce back, and reclaimedtheir top-flight status in 1990.

The accustomed role of Conferencestrugglers was transformed with 7thand 5th spots reached in successivecampaigns, 1994/95 and 1995/96, as wellas quarter-final appearances in the FATrophy three times in four seasons.

It was Gateshead’s most successfulperiod as a non-league club but aproductive period ended in 1998 whenthe club was relegated back to theNorthern Premier League after eightconsecutive seasons of Conferencefootball.

The Tynesiders very existence wasthen threatened early in the newmillennium when long-time sponsorsCameron Hall Developments pulled out.

Relegation to the Northern PremierLeague first division followed but, afterone season, Gateshead were back in theNLP top flight following the introductionof a geographically split first division.

A club with a proud, if chequered,past is now set for a bright future underthe guidance of wealthy Gateshead-bornchairman Graham Wood and managerIan Bogie.

An ambitious Wood will overseeGateshead’s relocation from their11,850 all seater, council ownedInternational Stadium base to a newpurpose built, centrally located, 9,000capacity stadium in the next few years.

The former Sunderland vice-chairman is also determined forGateshead to reclaim the FootballLeague place which was unjustly takenfrom them in 1960.

After just three years at the helmWood’s vision for Gateshead is close tobecoming reality following back-to-backpromotions.

Gateshead finished third in theUniBond Premier division, NLP, in 2007-8 when they were joint-top goalscorersin the top ten divisions of seniorEnglish football including thePremiership and Football League.

The Tynesiders struck 93 leaguegoals, the same as Conference Northchampions Kettering Town, and thenbeat Buxton 2-0 in the play-off final infront of a large four figure InternationalStadium crowd.

Last season the rejuvenatedTynesiders finished runners-up in theBlue Square North where they finishedjoint top scorers with Alfreton Townwith 81 goals..

A second promotion was clinchedwhen Gateshead beat Southport in thetwo-legged semi-final and then AFCTelford United 1-0 in the ConferenceNorth play-off final in front of a 4,000plus crowd.

Gateshead, now just one promotionaway from a coveted return to theFootball League, will mark the 50thanniversary of their harsh expulsionfrom the Football League in 1960 bybecoming a full-time club from nextseason.

Ahoy there shipmates.Welcome aboard our fine shipStonebridge for the final time thisseason. I’s supposin’ I ought towelcome those landlubbers from theNorth East, Gateshead, aboard shipthis afternoon, and I’s hopin’ they’sbrought their sea legs with them.Things be lookin’ a bit choppy out thereaccordin’ to Peter Norton!

I has to say, I thoroughly enjoyed meEaster Egg hunt on the island, althoughI did eat far too much chocolate, andfelt a bit ill swingin’ in me hammockafterwards. I was sooooo stuffed Iforgot to leave for kick off, which be thereason I wasn’t around before t’gameto enjoy t’atmosphere. I’s heard I alsomissed out on more eggs in t’luckydip….. I’s hopin’ you all won greatprizes?!

I can’t believe we’s at the end ofanother season already though….itseems like only yesterday I wasswingin’ in me hammock on me island int’summer sun, thinkin’ about all theexcitin’ games we had to face…..andnow I’s got to go back to swingin’ inme hammock for another summer!

I’s wantin’ to thank all my junior fleetmembers for their support this season,and also all me new deckhands whocame on board throughout the season,I’s hopin’ you all had a great time.

Well, until we sail into port again inAugust….

Keep Sailin’Hooky

HOOKY’S QUICKFIRE QUIZ 1. Which Blue Square Premier side has scored themost goals this season?

2. In which month did Magno Vieira win the BlueSquare Premier Player of the Month?

3. Lionel Messi scored 4 goals against which club inthe Champions League?

4. Which League club plays their home games atBlundell Park?

5. The following are anagrams of Blue SquarePremier Clubs, but which ones?a: hated sageb: avenge setc: a tenebrousd: merited drinkse: busy liars

ANSWERS:1.LUTON TOWN,2.JANUARY,3.ARSENAL,4.GRIMSBY TOWN,

5.a - GATESHEAD;b:STEVENAGE;c:EASTBOURNE;d:KIDDERMINSTER;e:SALISBURY

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ALEX FRANCIS –MidfielderA 20 year old midfield prospect whowas released by Premier Leagueneighbours Newcastle United at the endof the 2007-8 season where he hadbeen a regular in the Magpies Academyside.A Gateshead-born player whosepreferred position is in the centre ofmidfield, though he can also play at theback. Francis was a key player for theEngland Colleges side last season whenhe made 14 starts for Gateshead. Had aloan spell at Blyth Spartans inDecember.

KRIS GATE – Midfielder(captain)Gate joined Gateshead in September2007 after he was released fromhometown club Newcastle United andhas played a major role in Gateshead’stwo promotion campaigns.The 25 yearold is a former Newcastle reservescaptain and went on to make thesubstitutes bench in the Premier Leaguehaving made senior appearances infriendlies against Glasgow Rangers andMalaga.A skilful box-to-box player Gatewas named Gateshead captain lastseason and led the side to promotion tothe Blue Square Premier.

ANDY FERRELL -MidfielderThe combative 26 year old’s careerbegan at hometown club NewcastleUnited and he then spent a season atWatford.A move to HerefordUnited saw Ferrell help the Bulls reclaimtheir Football League status in the firstof his two seasons at Edgar Street. Lastseason the Tynesider was a regular inthe Kidderminster Harriers engineroom and he made 74 appearances intwo years for the midlands outfit.Asummer move took the midfielder toYork City from where where he joinedGateshead during the 2010 transferwindow for a £3,500 fee.

GAVIN HURRENLoan signing Hurren made 93appearances during a three year spell atKidderminster Harriers following hisrelease from Nottingham Forest.A briefspell at Mansfield Town then saw themidfielder join Crawley Town on loanand then Tamworth during the closeseason. Opportunities at the Lamb werelimited and Hurren was offered acontract at Conference North club AFCTelford United until the end of theseason after a successful loan spell.The24 year old decided instead to return toTamworth and joined Gateshead onloan in March making his debut in the 3-1 win over Forest Green Rovers.

JAMES SINCLAIR -MidfielderA right sided player with genuine pacewho signed for Gateshead during theJanuary 2010 transfer window.The 22year old spent the last three years atBolton Wanderers where he madesubstitute appearances at Chelsea andWest Ham in the Premier League and atRed Star Belgrade in the Uefa Cup.Returned to his native North East after acareer in America was scuppered due toinjury and made his debut againstKettering Town.

PHIL TURNBULL –MidfielderTurnbull,24, joined Gateshead for asecond spell in February 2008 when hesigned on loan from York City.The dealwas made permanent in March when hewas released from his contract with theMinstermen. He had previously made fiveappearances for Gateshead in the2005/2006 season when on loan fromHartlepool United, and when he failed tobreak into the first team at Victoria Parkhe moved on to Conference Premierside York where injury hampered hisprogress.A skilful central midfield playerwho is a regular in the Gateshead engineroom.

WAYNE PHILLIPS –MidfielderLive wire left-sided player Phillips is nowin his third season with Gateshead afterhelping Whitley Bay to the NorthernLeague title in 2007. He had joined Bayfrom Blyth Spartans in the 2004/2005season where he first came toprominence as a teenage talent.An influential player inGateshead’s consecutivepromotions, Phillips, 24, scored the lategoal that saw Gateshead beat AFCTelford in the Blue Square North play-offfinal in May.

PETER WINN - MidfielderThe 21 year old left sided player initiallyjoined Gateshead on loan fromScunthorpe United in October 2009before re-signing on loan for the rest ofthe season in January.The Grimsby-bornplayer scored two goals in ten gamesduring his first loan spell on Tyneside,including the last gasp equaliser againstBrentford in the FA Cup.Winn, who hasmade four substitute appearances forScunthorpe, has also had loan spells atBarrow and Northwich Victoria.

GRAEME ARMSTRONG –StrikerA 26 year-old striker who joinedGateshead in the summer of 2007 in adeal worth £5,000 from NorthernLeague neighbours Dunston Fed.Armstrong was Dunston’s top scorer in

each of his three seasons at FederationPark and became their all time recordscorer bagging 84 goals in total. Hisprevious clubs include Scottish outfitsQueen of the South and Annan Athletic.He found the net 20 times in Gateshead’sUniBond promotion campaign andscored 18 goals last season.

BRIAN WAKE - StrikerWake returned to English football inJanuary when he joined Gateshead fromScottish 1st division club GreenockMorton having just played in a narrowScottish Cup defeat against Celtic.Originally with Tow Law Town Wake’sfirst professional club was CarlisleUnited where his hat-trick atShrewsbury in 2004 kept the Cumbriansin the Football League.A season atGretna, where he averaged a goal everytwo games, was followed by a brief spellat Scarborough.A season and a half atHamilton Academical, where he made 29starts and 47 substitute appearances, sawthe 27 year old join Morton in January2008 and then Gateshead.

STEVEN RICHARDSON –StrikerA Gateshead-born striker who returnedto his hometown club in the summerfrom UniBond outfit Durham City in adeal that should eventually total £4,500.Richardson had been top scorer atDurham for the past three seasonsscoring exactly 100 goals, and wasnamed Player of the Year and PlayersPlayer of the Year last season.The pacy23 year old first played for Gateshead asa central midfield player between 2004-6where he made 54 appearances,including 14 off the bench.

DARYL CLARE - StrikerA 31 year old striker with a provengoalscoring pedigree, having twice wonthe Conference Golden Boot, Clareinitially joined Gateshead on loan inOctober having scored 175 Conferencegoals for six different clubs.The Eireunder 21 and B international made 93appearances for Grimsby Town, over halfoff the bench, during five years atBlundell Park.After loan spells atNorthampton Town and Cheltenham hestarted the first of two spells at BostonUnited.The first brought 25 goals in 48games and he then scored a magnificent49 goals in 64 appearances during twoproductive years at Chester City.Thegoals continued to flow at Crawley Townand Burton Albion, Clare scoring 37goals in 93 games for the Brewers.Afterscoring a goal every other game atRushden & Diamonds last season in justten starts he moved on to MansfieldTown, and signed a permanent dealwith Gateshead during the Januarytransfer window.

GOALKEEPING SPECIAL BY PAUL HARRISON


The last time I wrote a similar article on ourgoalkeepers was back in 1999 so a new one is welloverdue. Before we start though, a couple of teasersfor you involving current goalkeepers in the PremierDivision and connections with Fleet.

1.Which 16 year old goalkeeper made his senior debutagainst Fleet in a Conference match?2.Which on loan goalkeeper made 7 appearances forFleet in the Ryman League in 2000/01?

Now onto our top goalkeepers - I’ve seen them allsince 1955 and would put Lance on a par with LeeSmelt and just ahead of Lee Turner at the very top ofour tree with Peter Heathcote and John Cowan next.Can’t comment on the two Cyril’s - Griggs and Gouldbecause they were even before my time!

The top ten appearances and clean sheets up to andincluding Eastbourne are:

89 different goalkeepers have played for Fleet since1946, with Matthew Lamprell becoming the latest onthat list when he played in the Kent Senior Cup gameagainst Maidstone United.All those goalkeepers whohave made over 50 appearances in the Fleet’s coloursbut don’t make the top 10 are: Jamie Turner (93); CyrilGriggs (81); Fred Blowers and Paul Wilkerson (both76); Phil Brooman (73) and Eddie McAlpine (Fleetsonly goalkeeping player manager (66).

The answers to the teasers were 1.Joe Hart made hisdebut for Shrewsbury v Fleet at Gay Meadow in 2004before later being snapped up by Manchester City and2. Portsmouth goalkeeper Jamie Ashdown played 7times for Fleet whilst at Reading.

INSIDER’S GUIDE

FOLLOWING THAT BRILLIANT DISPLAYBY LANCE CRONIN AGAINSTEASTBOURNE BOROUGH LAST WEEK, ITHOUGHT IT’S TIME TO SEE HOW HECOMPARES WITH PAST FLEET HEROESBETWEEN THE ‘STICKS’.

APPEARANCESPlayer AppsPeter Heathcote 275 Lee Turner 224 Cyril Gould 208 Lee Smelt 208 Brian Hughes 207 Lance Cronin 196 Keith Hepple 180 Paul Burnham 168 Colin Lewington 118 John Cowan 116

CLEAN SHEETSPlayer C/SheetsLee Turner 75 Lee Smelt 69 Brian Hughes 62 Keith Hepple 60 Peter Heathcote 59 Lance Cronin 52 John Cowan 51 Cyril Gould 50 Paul Burnham 46 Jamie Turner 36

TERRACE TALK

Hello everyone and welcome to our lasthome game of what has been a traumaticseason, although not unexpected.

Prior to playing Eastbourne I felt we needed at least 9points from our last four games to have any chanceof staying up, and even then it might depend onresults elsewhere. I can only hope we gotsomething at Rushden & Diamonds.

When we were promoted 7 years ago some ofthe local cynics predicted instant relegation, sowe have not done bad and in that timenotched up a number of notable victories. ButI said in my last set of notes it’s having a clubhere that’s important, rather more than whatleague we are in.If we are to be relegated I look for thepositives rather than the negatives, andthere are at least two.The first is that it willbe shorter distances to travel and secondlyno more transfer windows to worry about.

Anyway, by around 5pm next Saturday wewill be a lot wiser, hopefully the club will be

on a sounder financial footing which will enableus to get a decent side regardless of what division

we are in. I think Liam and Macca have done a fair jobunder very difficult circumstances, and I’m sureeveryone connected with the club will keep workinghard to improve things.I hope you, the supporters, will remain patient andkeep supporting the club as much as you can.

May I wish you all a great summer with lots ofsunshine, before we know where we are thefriendly matches will be here and it would be nice ifwe could get one or two really attractive ones such

as Premiership clubs’ reserve sides.

Anyway, as I said, have a great summer, and see you inAugust.

As always, it’s Up The FleetAlan Parker

This page sponsored by BILLY SNOWDROP PROMOTIONS


GATESHEAD FCINSIDER’S GUIDE

PAUL FARMAN –GoalkeeperA promising 20 year old goalkeeperwho signed for Gateshead during thesummer from local rivals Blyth Spartans.Farman made 17 appearances for BlueSquare North club Blyth last season,including two against Gateshead. Hepreviously played three games forNewcastle United U.18s in 2007 andkept a clean sheet on his Gatesheaddebut against Rushden & Diamonds inSeptember. Named Blue Square PremierPlayer of the Month for October.

JIM PROVETT - GoalkeeperSigned for Gateshead in February from

Harrogate Town.A 26 year oldgoalkeeper with extensive FootballLeague experience at Hartlepool Unitedand Bury. Provett made 78 appearancesfor Hartlepool where he was Player ofthe Year in 2004 and won the NorthEast Save of the Season award. He thenplayed 41 games for League Two sideBury in 2007-8 before he moved intonon-league football for the first time atHarrogate.

CRAIG BAXTER –DefenderAn attacking defender now in hisfourth season at Gateshead followinghis release by Premier Leagueneighbours Newcastle United in thesummer of 2006. Baxter has made theright-back position his own with someexcellent displays both defensively andgoing forward.The 23 year old wasGateshead’s only ever-present in lastseason’s Blue Square North promotioncampaign.

PAULHECKINGBOTTOM -DefenderThe vastly experienced left back hasmade over 300 Football Leagueappearances for six clubs and joinedGateshead on loan in January 2010 untilthe end of the season from MansfieldTown.The 32 year old made over acentury of appearances for Darlingtonduring a three year period and a similaramount for Bradford City in two spells.Heckingbottom, whose career began atSunderland, has also played for NorwichCity, Sheffield Wednesday andhometown club Barnsley.

PHIL CAVE – DefenderA regular in Gateshead’s 2007-8UniBond promotion campaign theaccomplished left back, 22, rejoined the

Tynesiders on loan midway through lastseason from Scottish first division clubLivingston, where he had made ahandful of starts. Cave scored 11 goalsin 54 appearances in his first season forGateshead, including seven from thepenalty spot.A graduate of theNewcastle United Academy he rejoinedGateshead on a permanent basis in theclose season.

CHRIS SWAILES –DefenderA veteran central defender who joinedhometown club Gateshead during theclose season from SPL club HamiltonAcademical for whom he made 63appearances over the last two seasons.The 39 year old began his career atIpswich Town and he then returned toPortman Road six years after he hadleft in 1991 following spells atPeterborough United and DoncasterRovers. Swailes rejoined the Suffolk clubfor £225,000 and then linked up withBury in a £200,000 move. RotherhamUnited was his next port of call and heplayed 184 games for the Millers beforehe moved on to Oldham Athletic andthen Hamilton before returning to hisnative Tyneside.

JAMES CURTIS – DefenderThe longest serving player at the clubhaving joined Gateshead in the summerof 2003 from Northern League sideWashington, after he had started hiscareer at Kennek Ryhope. Curtis, 27, isa towering central defender who hasbecome a firm favourite of theGateshead fans with consistently strongperformances that have brought himseveral accolades including Player of theYear. He has remained loyal toGateshead and made his 300thappearance against Crawley Town inNovember, having played in fourdifferent leagues for the club.

WAYNE BUCHANAN -DefenderExperienced central defender Buchanansigned for Gateshead in January 2010following a brief spell in Australia.Aformer Northern Ireland under 21 andunder 23 international the 28 year old’scareer began at Bolton Wandererswhere he made one appearance, againstTottenham Hotspur in the FA Cup.Athree game loan spell at Chesterfieldwas followed by six years at LisburnDistillery in the Northern IrelandPremiership where he picked up severalawards, including Player of the Year, andcaptained the side.

CARL JONES – DefenderA pacy defender who joined the club ina permanent deal from York City inFebruary 2008 and went on to play akey role in Gateshead’s promotion fromthe UniBond premier division withsome outstanding displays at the heartof the defence.The 23 year old beganhis career with with Hartlepool Unitedwhere he made two appearances beforehe moved on to York in the summer of2007. He was unable to make an impactat Bootham Crescent due to a longterm injury but has been an importantpart of Gateshead’s back-to-backpromotions.

RIKKI BAINS - DefenderA 22 year old central defender on loanfrom Darlington until the end of theseason having signed for Gateshead inJanuary. Bains came through the ranks athometown club Coventry City andreached reserve level before he wasreleased in 2006.He made a handful of appearances inLeague Two for Accrington Stanley andMacclesfield Town before he joinedDarlington in the summer.Themidlander had previously gainedConference experience with Tamworthand also played non-league football forCorby Town and on loan at King’s Lynnand Leek Town.Bains played four games for Darlingtonat the start of the season but finished2009 on loan at Blue Square North clubBlyth Spartans before he joinedGateshead in the middle of January.

ANDY PARKINSON -MidfielderParkinson, 30, linked up with Gatesheadin February 2010 following his releasefrom Cambridge United having played inlast season’s Conference play-off finalfor the U’s.The Merseysider originallyspent seven years at Tranmere Roverswhere he made almost 200 appearancesand played in the narrow 2000 LeagueCup final defeat against Leicester City atWembley.A brief spell at SheffieldUnited was followed by two seasons atGrimsby Town where the wide manclocked up 92 games and scored 13goals.The pacy winger also featured inthe Mariners single goal League Twoplay-off final defeat against CheltenhamTown at the Millennium Stadium in2006. Parkinson spent the next twoyears at Notts County where he played71 games before he signed forCambridge United and then Gateshead


PLAYER SPONSORS


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PITCH HIREYou could be playing at Stonebridge Road.Yes,that’s right, we’re hiring out the hallowed turf formatches.A limited number of dates are available fromSunday 18th April 2010. Please call or text mefor more information on 07595 420501.

THE FLEET LOUNGEAn exclusive offer for next season, there are only 50Fleet Lounge packages available, which include:•Admission to all 23 home league games•Admission to 2 home cup games, subject to cupdraws •Admission to the Main Stand for no additionalcharge •Matchday access to the Fleet Lounge•Dedicated cash bar available throughout eachmatchday •25 post match complimentary ‘one drink’vouchers included •Post match complimentary food•Post match ‘Man of the Match’ presentation in theFleet Lounge.The Fleet Lounge is a dedicated sectionof the Club Bar (and will double up as a post matchPlayers’ Lounge).

•ALL THIS FOR JUST £575, OR TWOINSTALLMENTS OF £325 (2ND PAYMENT30TH NOVEMBER 2010).Please contact me if you are interested in taking upone of these packages.

KICK RACISM OUT OF FOOTBALL DAYSaturday 1st May 2010•03-30Free Entry from 2pm.Bar Open ALL DAY til LateWatch this space for more info.

HI YA FLEET FANS, AND WELCOME TOSTONEBRIDGE ROAD. WELCOME TO ALLTHOSE FROM GATESHEAD TOO FOR TODAY’SFINAL HOME GAME OF THE SEASON. I HOPEYOU ALL ENJOY THIS AFTERNOON’S FIXTURE,IT’S CERTAINLY AN IMPORTANT ONE.

I’d like to take this opportunity to welcome our matchsponsors for this afternoon, King & Taylor. King & Taylor arethe club’s accountants, based in Gravesend.They are one ofthe largest independent firms in North West Kent.Asubstantial firm on Chartered Accountants, they pridethemselves on understanding the needs of the BusinessCommunity. I’d like to extend a warm Fleet welcome to KevinHayman and his guests this afternoon.

FLEET GO LEGALThe Fleet have teamed up with two ofGravesend’s most established firms,Martin Tolhurst Partnership, Solicitors andWalker Croft, Estate agents, to providevital fund for the Club’s finances.

It’s simple – if you, or any of your friends,neighbours or relatives are thinking ofmoving or buying a property, by usingWalker Croft to sell your home and MartinTolhurst to do the conveyancing, thesefirms will make a donation to the Clubfrom their combined fees of £500.00 on asale and purchase and £150.00 on just apurchase. Please tell all your friends aboutthis scheme, and help these firms to helpthe Fleet, the more people we can getusing this service, even if they are justarmchair supporters, the more money wecan get in for the Club.

To get matters under way or for anyqueries just call Simon Franklin at MartinTolhurst on 01474-546012 and he will takematters from there and be pleased toanswer any questions.

Please tell all your friends about thisscheme.

Enjoy this afternoon’s encounter,and remember Fleet fans, supportthe companies that support theFleet!Have a good summer,

[email protected];[email protected];07595 420501

IF YOU’RE READINGTHIS IT PROVESADVERTISING WORKSconsideradvertising with us -contact me today

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A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE


HAVING PLAYED OUR ONE ANDONLY PREVIOUS GAME AGAINSTGATESHEAD MERE WEEKS AGO, ITSEEMS SOMEWHAT POINTLESS TOTAKE A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANEFOR SUCH A RECENT OUTING.

But that 600-mile round trip did get me thinkingabout some of the other epic journeys down theyears that weary Fleet players and fans haveundertaken in the 65-year quest for two or threepoints.

This season has, of course, also seen an equally longtrip to the opposite coastline, 630 miles there andback to Barrow – a journey that heartbroken Fleetfans also made in 1982 when the unforgiving natureof the fixture calendar decreed that it would be atBarrow, 315 miles from home, that the Fleet wouldbe relegated from the Alliance Premier League.

But both of these trips fallshort of the longestdistance travelled by a Fleetside, that being 335 milesto Barrow’s Cumbrianneighbours Carlisle in2005.That was Liam Daish’sfirst game in charge andMatt Lovell’s screamer ofan equaliser earned a pointagainst the eventual play-offwinners whose promotionmeant our hard-pressedcoach driver wouldn’t haveto repeat the odyssey thefollowing season.

We had, however made the same journey in 1963when Tony Sitford’s goal gave us a shock win in theFA Cup Third Round.That was followed nearly threeweeks later by a 300-mile trek to Sunderland for aFourth Round replay that we of course lost 5-2.Thatwas almost 1,300 miles in two games during aparticularly bad winter.This was before luxurycoaches, gritted roads, orbital motorways, toll roads,high-speed trains and the like and no mean feat forplayers who probably had to be at work a few hoursafter they returned home.

Of course the Conference being a national league,there have been numerous other long trips, BangorCity, Morecambe, Scarborough, Chester and Farsleyamong them. But before our brush with a nationwideleague, the Fleet’s travels were mainly confined to thesouth, with the longest trips coming in usually at

about 150-200 miles.

But in the Fleet’s early seasonsin existence, it was visits toWales – Barry, Llanelli, MerthyrTydfil and Bridgend – that werethe longest hauls at 210-220miles or thereabouts. Similarly,journeys to Torquay and Exeterreserves, Minehead andelsewhere in the west countryalso clocked up the miles.

The Fleet had a temporary respite from the road onjoining the Ryman League in 1997 where the trip toHuddersfield in the FA Cup was about the furthestexperienced in a division where league trips toOxford City, Basingstoke, Bishops Stortford andFarnborough left us positively giddy with travelexcitement.

But our record trip to Carlisle was almostovershadowed in the summer of 2008 when apotential pre-season tournament in Annan, Scotland,was mooted.Another 16 miles on from Carlisle andin a different country altogether, it almost made itinto the Fleet’s history books.

by Ed Miller

THE PHYSI-CALLAFTERNOON EVERYONE, AND WELCOME TO THEFINAL PHYSI – CALL OF THE SEASON. I’VE GOT PLENTYTO REPORT ON, IT’S BEEN A BUSY COUPLE OF WEEKSIN THE TREATMENT ROOM SINCE OUR LAST HOMEGAME WITH EASTBOURNE BOROUGH.Michael West missed our fixture withEastbourne Borough due to an ankle injurywhich he sustained after coming on againstSalisbury on Good Friday. Michael hasrecovered from this and returned totraining last Tuesday.

Lance Cronin suffered a back spasmduring the game with Eastbourne, andplayed through the pain barrier at times lastSaturday at Rushden & Diamonds. Followinga lot of soft tissue release and stretchingLance managed to return to training in timefor the visit of Gateshead today.

Magno Vieira came off in the latterstages of last Saturday’s trip to Nene Parkwith an injury to his knee. On examination,the full extent of the injury was notsignificant and he returned to training onThursday.

Clint Easton is still making progress onhis return, however he is still unable to fullyrun due to the pressure that the operationhas caused.An exact date for him to returnto full training is at this stage unclear.

Jordan Collins received some bad newsprior to our trip to Salisbury over theEaster weekend. Having seen a specialistand undergoing another x-ray, it was

discovered that Jordan has suffered anotherstress fracture of his 5th metatarsal.Thismeans that he will require an operation inorder to prevent this injury recurringthroughout his career.

That’s it……a wrap to my first season atEUFC. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it, although Iwould have liked the treatment room to bea little quieter! Enjoy the ‘summer’ break,and we’ll see you in August.

Enjoy the game,Stuart

INJURY REHABILITATION AND PREVENTION

STUART PHAZEY BSC (HONS) GSRS P O R T S R E H A B I L I T A T I O N

07971 189 [email protected]


BOUNCING ROUND THE BLUE SQUARE

GRAYS ATHLETIC DEDUCTED TWOPOINTS BY CONFERENCEGrays Athletic have been deducted two pointsby the Football Conference for fielding threeineligible players.The Essex side, who have already been relegated from theBlue Square Premier, were also fined £500 for five breachesof Conference rules.The club’s punishment results from fielding Daryl Robsonand Callum Leahy against Barrow in October and SamCutler in three matches.The decision was finalised afterGrays withdrew an appeal against the charge.

HOLDSWORTH SHOCKED BY DONSDEFEATMansfield Town manager David Holdsworth wasleft scratching his head after a 1-0 defeat toAFC Wimbledon at Field Mill on Saturdayafternoon.The Stags created a whole host of goalscoring opportunitiesbut a lack of cutting edge ultimately cost them as an earlygoal from Danny Kedwell earned Wimbledon all threepoints.The Dons conceded two late penalties but goalkeeper SebBrown saved both spot kicks to ensure his side claimed allthree points.Holdsworth told the Evening Post:“‘How did we lose thatgame?’ is a question I’ve asked.You think, ‘What more canyou do?’ and the answer is, you can’t do any more.“It’s gobsmacking to come out of it with nothing.We hadsomething like 20 opportunities to finish Wimbledon off. Ihave to congratulate their keeper on two fantastic saves, butthey are massive moments and they have cost us.We’ve hadother chances, hit the bar and the keeper has been man ofthe match.They defended in numbers but in the last part ofthe second half we played very well.”

ROVERS BOSS TARGETS THREE WINSForest Green Rovers manager David Hockadayhas issued a rallying cry following their 2-0defeat to league leaders Stevenage Borough atthe weekend.The defeat leaves Hockaday’s side languishing in the dropzone with 39 points from 41 games, trailing their nearestrelegation rivals Gateshead by three points.However, Hockaday had positives to take from Saturday’sdefeat and has issued a rallying cry as they aim to win theirlast three fixtures.He told the Gloucester Citizen:“They (Stevenage) are thetop team in the league for a reason and we had to weathera ferocious storm after going a goal down, but we changed itslightly in the second half and had a go.“We had a few half-chances and balls across the box, andthen from nowhere one of my players (Platt) makes one ofthose crazy decisions again. I can’t ask for any more effortbut we have to be cleverer - we keep shooting ourselves inthe foot.“I’m very proud of the boys for their efforts and the mainthing is we’ve got three games left and we’ve got to winthem. It’s Crawley at home first and if we win that the worldis a brighter place.We’ll re-group, re-energise and look forthree points.”

CRAWLEY CHASING BROADFIELDSPONSORCrawley Town co-owner Susan Carter hasconfirmed the Blue Square Premier club arecurrently in talks to sell the naming rights tothe Broadfield Stadium.The Red Devils secured a new six-year lease on theBroadfield Stadium recently and a new sponsor for theground would go along way towards helping them remain afull-time outfit.Carter told this is sussex:“We are talking to companiesabout it and it makes sponsoring Crawley a more attractiveproposition.We are currently in talks with a number ofcompanies about the possibility and finding a shirt sponsorfor next season.”Carter has also revealed that the decision to remain a full-time club has been a hotly contested issue for much of theseason.She added:“It was something we discussed at every boardmeeting this season. But we felt that going part timewouldn’t lead to anything other than relegation as it wouldbe impossible to compete with some of the bigger sides inthe division. It has been tough and it is going to be eventougher next year but hopefully now that we are out ofrecession things will look up.”


A FLEETING GLANCE

GOOD AFTERNOON EVERYONE AND AVERY WARM WELCOME TO YOU ALLFOR MAKING IT TO TODAY’S GAME.YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT OF THEFOOTBALL CLUB IS VERY MUCHAPPRECIATED AND LONG MAY ITCONTINUE. I HOPE EVERYONEASSOCIATED WITH GATESHEADFOOTBALL CLUB HAS A GOODAFTERNOON AND WISH YOU ALL ASAFE JOURNEY HOME.

As you will know I am a My Football Club (MyFC)representative who was asked towards the end ofNovember 2009 to help out at the club. During thelast few months I have taken on the role of a fullDirector of the football club and it certainly hasbeen a challenge. Results have considerablyimproved over the second half of the season and itis shame that we had such a poor start to theseason; otherwise we would not be in the difficultsituation we find ourselves today.

Off the field, the financial situation is not a good oneand we have struggled but with a little juggling ofpaying the bills we have hung on in there. It ispleasing to see crowds also on the rise just a little,and a gate of over 1,200 for the game againstEastbourne was very good to see.The loss ofincome from the Chester home game didn’t helpthe club either.The reality is that we need toimprove the income streams for the football cluband that particularly means income on non-footballdays.

You probably will have seen that we have nowissued our season ticket prices for season 2010/11.We would encourage fans to buy their tickets assoon as possible both to benefit from the discountswhere applicable but also enabling the club to put inplace the finance to build a base for a team for nextseason.We fully appreciate the differing financialcircumstances of fans and have tried to establish apricing structure that covers all age ranges, familiesand regularity of watching games.We can’t promiseto have covered everyone’s situation but we havetried our best.

Over the coming month I will be working on morefinancial matters including next year’s budget andclosing everything out in terms of the May 2009accounts.This has been very disappointing to me

that this was allowed to drift on, without resolution,as long as it did. I can assure everyone that with mein place this will not happen in respect the May2010 accounts and I have already spoken briefly toour external accountants to ensure that we cancomplete these through July and August. One of theproblems the club faces is that with just two fulltime office staff we struggle to get everythingcovered in a timely manner. Hopefully, with me onboard things will start to improve, but I’m not formaking promises. I prefer to try to achieve resultsand take satisfaction from that.

Let us hope next season gets off to a better startthan this season and long may we continue tocompete against clubs far bigger than ourselves inthis league.We all know it is a challenge but we havebeen competing in this league now for 8 seasonsand that must say something about the character ofthe club.

Get behind the team and enjoy the match.

Phil Sonsara

DON’T FORGET.......Ebbsfleet United F.C. are offering a fantastic

opportunity to play at the home of ‘The Fleet’, andexperience the quality of Stonebridge Road in person.

Bank Holiday Monday 3rd May 2010

Your Fleet Experience: A day packed full ofhigh energy, quality football fun with professional

tutition from the EUFC coaching team.

£20 for the day, 10am - 3pm.

Open to boys and girls aged 5 - 12 years old.

The day will offer full access to Ebbsfleet United F.C., Stonebridge Road,

Northfleet, Kent, DA11 9GN.

For more info or an application form pleasecontact Tina Martin - 07732 148011.

Email - [email protected]

TRAVELLERS TALES


A seamless approach to risk management, insuranceand continuity planning for your business

Immediate cost savings, a better protected businessand more time to spend at The Fleet

Awarded the Judges’ Special Commendation in theEuropean Risk Service Provider of the Year Awards 2009

Ground Address – The Lamb Ground, Kettlebrook,Tamworth, B77 1AA

Take the M42 to Junction 10, then followthe A5/A51 to the town centre. Followthe signs to Kettlebrook and TamworthFC.

Nearest train station is Tamworth (0.5miles from the ground.)

TAMWORTH (LAST VISITED SEPTEMBER 2006)

The Main Stand is a tidy little all seated coveredstand that straddles the halfway line of the pitch. Ithas a capacity of 426 seats.The other side is a smallcovered terrace, known by the fans as ‘The Shed’.

The Castle End is an open terrace, whilst the otherend is a partly covered terrace (to the rear).Thisend, the Meadow Street End, is given to awaysupporters.The pitch has a slope running up from theCastle End to the Meadow Street Terrace.Theground is overlooked in one corner by the sizeableTamworth Snowdome. It gets its unusual name from

a former public house called the Lamb Inn that usedto be situated near to the entrance to the club carpark.

Away fans are mostly housed in the Meadow Endwhere up to 1,200 supporters can beaccommodated.This small terrace is partly coveredand also comprises some flat standing areas.Thegood thing is that the fans are situated close to theplaying action.The facilities are okay and refreshmentsare provided by the obligatory burger van. In additionto the terrace a small number of seats are madeavailable to away supporters in the Main Stand.

Scott Poleykett (AKA Drummer Scott)

GETTING TO TAMWORTH FC

GROUND REVIEW

THE FINAL WORD


Contact DetailsClub Address – Ebbsfleet United FC,

Stonebridge Road, Northfleet,

Kent, DA11 9GN

Phone – 01474 533796

Fax – 01474 324754

Website – www.ebbsfleetunited.co.uk

My Football Club Website –

www.myfootballclub.co.uk

Club email – [email protected]

Club PersonnelChairman – Duncan Holt

Vice Chairman - Roly Edwards

Director - Brian Kilcullen

Club Secretary – Peter Danzey

Matchday Secretary – Richard Hills

Hon. President – Trevor Bonneywell

Vice Presidents – Jason Botley,Adrian

Felstead, Roly Edwards, Duncan Holt, Mick

Ward, Mark Lindop, Charles Webster, David

Holden, Peter Hammond, Gary Russell,

Steve Sullivan,Alan Roberts,Alan Parker,

Carol Parker, Barry Stevens.

General Manager – Cheryl Wanless

Promotions & Marketing – Barry Wickenden

Bar and Catering Manager - Jo Wilson

Matchday Magazine Editor – Rachel Willett

Caretaker – Colin Stevens

Groundsman – Peter Norton

Club Photographer – Dave Plumb

Webmaster – Ed Miller

50/50 – Harry Houckham

Tannoy – Graham McQueen

Programme Printing – Queensway Publishing

Maintenance – Maurice Cox

Football Personnel1st Team Manager – Liam Daish

1st Team Coach – Paul McCarthy

Goalkeeping Coach – Ron Hillyard

Head Sports Therapist – Stuart Phazey

Club Doctor – Dr. Langley

EAS Coordinator - Mick Chatwin

Youth Team Manager - Ian Docker

Youth Section Chairman – Ray Tuffield

Head Steward – Duncan Cole

Football In The Community – Rachel Willett

LIAM DAISH

GOODAFTERNOON

EVERYONE ANDWELCOME TO OUR LAST HOME GAMEOF THE CURRENT SEASON, 2009/10,AGAINST OUR OPPONENTSGATESHEAD. I’D LIKE TO WISH IANBOGIE AND HIS TEAM, AND ALLCONNECTED WITH THE CLUB ANENJOYABLE STAY WITH US AND A SAFETRIP HOME TO THE NORTH EAST.

I’m sure you’re all aware of the importance of theresult today for both teams, and what is at stake.

Our last home game against Eastbourne Boroughhad everything for the neutral, and saw bothteams giving everything for their causes.We couldhave finished the game in a more comfortablefashion considering we were 3 -1 ahead in thesecond half. But you know we have to make lifemore difficult than it already is here.The result is all that matters at this point, nothingelse.

Unfortunately last Saturday we were unable togain anything from our visit to play off contendersRushden & Diamonds.We must give credit toRushden, they are not where they are by luck, butI felt that we could have caused them moreproblems and given them more to think aboutthan we did.

We are know in a position where we do notknow what the future holds on and off the pitch,all we can do is focus on winning our last twogames and then we will see.

It’s been a tough year, and season; the toughest inmy football career, and now, close to the end ofanother season I’d like to thank everyone for theirsupport throughout the year. I appreciate yourpatience, understanding, frustration, belief,encouragement and enthusiasm.

This year many have decided this club was not forthem, stepped in and then stepped out, ducked inand then ducked out.To those who have stuck byus through thick and thin, you know who you are,and thank you again.

Enjoy, encourage, and……

BELIEVELiam

“I APPRECIATEYOUR PATIENCE,UNDERSTANDING,FRUSTRATION,BELIEF,ENCOURAGEMENTAND ENTHUSIASM”

GREETINGS FLEET FANS, AND A VERY WARMWELCOME TO STONEBRIDGE ROAD FOR THE FINALHOME FIXTURE OF THE 2009/10 SEASON IN THEBLUE SQUARE PREMIER.

I’d like to extend a warm welcome to all those Gateshead fans whohave made the long journey down for this afternoon’s fixture, I wishthem a pleasant stay in North Kent, and a safe journey back to theNorth East at full time.

I’m trying to work out exactly where the season has gone. It doesn’tseem like 9 months ago we kicked off the season in the bright sunshineaway at Altrincham, and now here we are with just two games to go.Asmuch as I enjoy a break from the football, I think we all do, the closeseason isn’t the most enjoyable of times.Things go quiet for a while, andthen it gets really busy in fits and starts, before a major push before preseason begins. Most people assume that because the season ends, thewhole place shuts down for three months, but that definitely isn’t thecase.The backroom team, myself included, continue to work through thesummer making sure that everything is in place for the new season.

On to other things though, and I read with interest aboutPortsmouth’s F.A. Cup final predicament.They’re rumoured to have anumber of high profile players within their squad with various clauses intheir contracts which will cause problems with them playing.The biggestof those is Aruna Dindane, whose appearance in the final would trigger a£4million ‘bullet’ payment to his former club Lens, which should comeafter 22 appearances for Pompey.The current situation of Portsmouthmeans that they obviously can’t afford to pay that, and the players withbonuses etc are already having them deferred to a later date once theclub is back on a better financial keel.The big question is whether Lenswill do the same. If they don’t, then Dindane won’t be able to appear inthe cup final, which would be a shame for the player, and a massive lossfor Portsmouth.

Talking of the F.A. Cup, there’s been massive criticism of the state ofthe pitch at Wembley since the two semi – finals were played on it. It’sbeen reported that the pitch will once again be re-laid before the final,which will cost around £100,000 to do. But will it really solve theproblem? It’s been tried so many times, and doesn’t seem to have beensuccessful, so surely it’s about time they started looking for alternativesolutions rather than just keep digging the pitch up and re-laying it

But that’s enough waffle from me for another season. I hope you allhave a thoroughly enjoyable close season, and return refreshed and upfor another rollercoaster season in 2010/11.

Until then, C’mon you Reds!Rachel

fleetifeOfficial Matchday Programme

Saturday 17th April 2010Issue 24

£2.50

Ebbsfleet United v GatesheadThe Fleet

1. LANCE CRONIN2.WILL SALMON

3. JORDAN COLLINS4. GAVIN HEEROO5. DEAN POOLEY

6. PAUL MCCARTHY7. MICHAEL WEST8. MAGNO VIEIRA

9. MOSES ASHIKODI11. ISHMAEL WELSH

12. SCOTT GINTY14. KANE WILLS

15.ALEXANDER STAVRINOU16. RICKY SHAKES17. CHRIS HENRY

18. STEVEN SPRINGETT19. CHARLIE READ

21. MATTHEW LAMPRELL22. LEON CROOKS23. STEFAN BAILEY

24. DARIUS CHARLES26. CLINT EASTON27. PETER HOLMES

28.AIDAN SHERLOCK29.TOM PHIPPS

MANAGER: LIAM DAISH1ST TEAM COACH: PAUL McCARTHY

COLOURS: RED & WHITE

Gateshead

1 JIM PROVETT2 CRAIG BAXTER4 KRIS GATE5 JAMES CURTIS6 CARL JONES7 MARTIN BRITTAIN8 PHIL TURNBULL9 GRAEME ARMSTRONG10 STEVEN RICHARDSON11 WAYNE PHILLIPS12 ANDY PARKINSON13 PAUL FARMAN14 ALEX FRANCIS15 CHRIS SWAILES16 STEVEN BAPTIST17 NEALE MCDERMOTT19 PHIL CAVE20 WAYNE BUCHANAN21 RIKKI BAINS22 JAMES SINCLAIR23 BRIAN WAKE25 DARYL CLARE26 PETER WINN27 PAUL HECKINGBOTTOM28 ANDY FERRELL30 GAVIN HURREN

MANAGER: IAN BOGIEASSISTANT: JEFF WRIGHTSONCOLOURS: BLUE AND BLACK

Today’s Other Fixtures

Today’s OfficialsREFEREE: MIKE BULL (CHELMSFORD)ASSISTANTS: NICK COOPER & CARL FITCH4TH OFFICIAL: ADRIAN OLDERSHAW

Saturday, 17 April 2010Barrow v Salisbury, 15:00Cambridge Utd v Hayes & Yeading, 15:00Crawley Town v Tamworth, 15:00Ebbsfleet United v Gateshead, 15:00Forest Green v Histon, 15:00Kettering v Eastbourne Boro, 15:00Kidderminster v Stevenage, 15:00Luton v Altrincham, 15:00Oxford Utd v Mansfield, 15:00Wrexham v Rushden & D’mnds, 15:00York v Grays Athletic, 15:00

THE TEAMS

BSP League TableP W D L GD PTS

1 Stevenage Borough 40 26 9 5 50 87 2 Luton Town 42 26 8 8 44 863 Oxford United 41 23 11 7 31 814 York City 42 22 11 9 28 775 Rushden & Diamonds 42 21 12 9 36 756 AFC Wimbledon 42 18 10 14 16 647 Kettering Town 41 17 11 13 8 628 Crawley Town 41 18 8 15 -6 629 Mansfield Town 42 17 10 15 11 6110 Kidderminster Harriers 40 15 10 15 7 5511 Wrexham 41 14 13 14 7 5512 Altrincham 40 13 14 13 8 5313 Cambridge United 42 13 14 15 7 5314 Salisbury City 41 18 5 18 -11 4915 Hayes & Yeading U. 41 12 11 18 -22 4716 Tamworth 41 10 16 15 -8 4617 Barrow 40 11 12 17 -20 4518 Histon 42 11 12 19 -21 4519 Eastbourne Borough 42 10 13 19 -27 4320 GATESHEAD 41 12 7 22 -21 4221 Forest Green Rovers 42 11 9 22 -27 4222 EBBSFLEET UNITED 42 10 8 24 -35 3823 Grays Athletic 42 4 12 26 -57 22

v gateshead 23/04/10

Documents

kidderminster v stevenage

barrow v salisbury

luton v altrincham

crawley town v tamworth

cambridge united

oxford united

oxford utd v mansfield

forest green v histon