Can the Fleet record their first League
win of the season at the third time of asking? Well, that depends on
whether they can win at Priory Lane on Saturday against Eastbourne,
who have won their opening two matches.
Let's take a look at the opposition...
Eastbourne Borough FC
Founded – 1964
(as Langney FC)
Nickname – The
Sports
Stadium – Priory
Lane
Manager – Tommy
Widdrington
Captain – Ollie
Rowe
Last season's finish - 12th
Current position - 4th
A brief look at
their history...
Langney FC were
founded in 1964 after a group of lads from the Langney and Friday
Street youth side were too old to play. The friends wanted to
continue playing so formed their own team and joined the Eastbourne
and District Football League, where they competed in Division Two.
Four years later,
they became Langney Sports FC and moved from the local recreation
grounds to Princes Park. The Club won promotion to the Premier
Division of the Eastbourne and Hastings League in the 1973/74 season.
The Club would
play in the Sussex County League's from 1983 – 1999, before gaining
promotion to the Southern League structure in 2000.
The name change and qualification
for the Conference South
In May 2001, the
chairman Len Smith announced that they'd be renamed Eastbourne
Borough FC to reflect the town that the Club played in. After a few
years in the Southern League structure, the Sports qualified to be
founder members for the newly structured Conference South in 2004/05.
The Club almost followed Grays Athletic up from the Division into the
Premier, but lost to Conference North side Altrincham in the Play-Off
final.
The Club did
eventually gain promotion to the top of Non-League, thus completing a
rise they can be proud of. From the start of the 2008/09 season until
January, the Sports were unbeaten in the League and sitting
comfortably at the top. They lost to Lewes at the beginning of the
month, and their fellow East Sussex Club went onto win the League.
Boro' gained promotion through the play-offs after beating Hampton
and Richmond Borough 2-0.
After a couple of
season's in the Premier Division, they were relegated back to the
South in their third season and have been there since. After
finishing 12th last season, the Sports will be looking to
improve on that this time round.
The Squad
Goalkeepers – Craig
Ross, Mateusz Szafranski
Defenders – Matt
Aldred, Ollie Rowe, Ian Simpemba, Lewis Tallack
Midfielders – Sam
Cole, Charlie Gorman, Simon Johnson, Elliott Levy, Chris Shephard,
James Stinson, Adam Watts
Attackers – Emmanuel
Akokhia, Tony Garrod, Gary Hart, Darren Lok, Frankie Raymond
The season so far
The Sports have
won both of their opening matches as they look to build a good run.
All three of their goals scored so far have come in the second half.
Their fans have been happy with the fitness levels of the squad, so
there's every chance they could become a 'second-half side'.
Weston Super-Mare
0-1 Eastbourne Borough
Eastbourne
Borough 2-1 Tonbridge Angels
FORM – WW
Key players
One stand out
player for the Sports so far has been goalkeeper Craig Ross. Fans of
the Club have praised him after both matches, and without him I don't
think they'd have won both of their opening matches.
Another player who
could prove vital for the Sports is Ian Simpemba. The defender signed
from Dover in the Summer after a successful spell there. Before that,
he had a poor spell with the Fleet, which I was quite surprised about
as he had an excellent few years at Havant. Perhaps he's a Conference
South defender and no more, although at this level he's a solid
defender. The Fleet attack will need to be on form to beat him and
the in-form Ross.
Team News
Club Captain Ollie
Rowe serves the last of his three game suspension. Simpemba replaces
him as captain. Striker Tony Garrod is on the way back from a leg
injury, but could feature on Saturday.
Last time out
Eastbourne Borough
2-1 Tonbridge Angels
The Boro produced
a remarkable comeback as they scored two goals in the final ten
minutes of the match to beat Kent outfit Tonbridge Angels.
Nathan Green's
deflected free kick gave the visitors the lead after just six minutes
and they looked to be heading for a victory until the 80th
minute.
Frankie Raymond's
cross was only half cleared, allowing Elliott Levy to smash home a
volley. As the game came close to the end, a counter attack from the
visitors forced Craig Ross into a brilliant save, and the Sports went
up the other end and scored! A 'perfect' square ball from Matt Aldred
allowed Simon Johnson to hammer home in the 91st minute,
an effort that clearly delighted the home faithful!
Attendance: 678
Now let's take a
look at the Fleet...
The Squad
Goalkeepers
– Preston Edwards, Brandon Hall
Defenders
– Joe Howe, Aiden Palmer, Osei Sankofa, Paul Lorraine, Shane
Huke
Midfielders
– Chris Sessegnon, Dominic Green, Anthony Cook, Michael
Corcoran, Stacy Long, Tom Phipp, Dean Rance, Daryl McMahon
Attackers
– Ben May, Billy Bricknell, Alex Osborn (on loan from
Dagenham), Michael Thalassitis (on loan from Stevenage)
The
season so far
It's
been a slow start for the boys in Red, with just one goal scored in
the opening two matches. On paper, it's a tough start although I do
feel the Fleet should have picked up a win in the opening two
matches. The next three matches are ideal for them to pick up some
points to set them in good stead.
Ebbsfleet
United 0-0 Havant and Waterlooville
Dover
Athletic 2-1 Ebbsfleet United
FORM
– DL
Key
players
Anthony
Cook is proving to be the Fleet's most valuable player at the moment,
with his passion, commitment and desire, not to mention his ability
with the ball at his feet! The young winger grabbed his first goal in
the Red of Ebbsfleet on Tuesday and will be looking to add to that as
soon as possible. Also he'll be looking to assist the returning Billy
Bricknell, who should make his first start of the season. The former
Dover striker had an excellent pre-season, but has only played a
handful of minutes of the season, due to an injury. He'll be looking
to get amongst the goals from the off.
Team
news
Billy
Bricknell is set to return to the starting eleven after coming on as
a second half sub against Dover, while Ben May (back) will more than
likely miss out again. It is unknown whether Michael Corcoran, who
picked up a knock against Dover, will be fit to play.
Last
time out
Dover
Athletic 2-1 Ebbsfleet United.
The
first Kent Derby of the season was the one everybody was looking
forward to. After the huge swap between the two Clubs in the Summer,
it was three players who have no connection to the opposition that
scored the goals!
Centre
back Richard Orlu met Ashley Carew's corner eight yards out to give
the Whites the lead after just six minutes of the game. Former
Margate winger Tom Murphy very nearly made it two, but for a fine
finger tip save from Preston Edwards.
That
spurred the Fleet on and just a minute later, they were level. Stacy
Long's brilliant flick allowed Anthony Cook to smash home from inside
the area.
In
a second half where chances were very hard to come by, Murphy took
the only chance that the hosts had as he turned and volleyed home
from outside the box, with Edwards off his line. His goal delighted
the home fans and the 300 or so away fans fell silent.
Cook
hit an effort just wide, in what was the last kick of the game.
Attendance:
1,562.
Key
battle
Billy Bricknell v Ian Simpemba. Should he play,
the striker will be out to cause the Boro defence a lot of problems.
If Simpemba can keep him quiet then there's every chance the hosts
can walk away with three points from the match.
Previous
matches
The two Clubs have barely met over the years,
with just four League meetings occurring between them and three cup
matches. The Fleet have the upper hand with seven five victories and
two draws.
Ebbsfleet United 3-2 Eastbourne Borough –
Blue Square Premier – 05.04.10
Eastbourne Borough 1-2 Ebbsfleet United –
Blue Square Premier – 31.08.09
Eastbourne Borough 0-1 Ebbsfleet United –
Blue Square Premier – 02.04.09
Eastbourne Borough 1-3 Ebbsfleet United –
Setanta Shield – 04.11.08
Ebbsfleet United 1-1 Eastbourne Borough –
Blue Square Premier – 23.09.08
Memory
match
Eastbourne Borough 1-2 Ebbsfleet United.
A deflected goal in the fifth minute of second
half injury time gave the Fleet all three points, something they
wouldn't experience again for another three months.
Magno Vieira put the visitors up early in the
second half with a penalty but Jamie Taylor, now at Sutton United,
equalised soon after.
The game looked to be heading for a draw, until
a shot from outside the box deflected off loanee Simon Thomas and
rolled over the line, sending the few Fleet fans behind the goal
crazy.
The Fleet then went on a run of eight
matches without scoring!
Attendance: 1,165.
Terrace talk
I managed to speak to Eastbourne
fan, and BBC Sussex worker, Kevin Anderson. Here's what he had to
say:
“Eastbourne
Borough had a wobbly 2012-13, but in the last quarter of the season
they were improving, and their progress has slipped under a lot of
people’s radar. Manager Tommy Widdrington had a huge rebuilding job
to do after replacing the legendary Garry Wilson eighteen months ago,
but he has kept the core of last year’s team and has added to it
astutely. Keeper Craig Ross has come in from Cambridge United. Ian
Simpemba, with a long and distinguished CV in non-league, is a
terrific signing and is, with ex-Brighton veteran Gary Hart, the only
over-30 in the squad. The rest are young, fit and eager: not
world-beaters but they should be comfortably good enough for a
mid-table slot in this year’s Conference South. Anything higher
would be a bonus – and a bit of a worry for a club who were almost
ruined by the previous three-year stay in Conference Premier, with
all its overnight stays and long hauls (bear in mind that Eastbourne
is 60 miles further away from civilisation than the Fleet!).
Borough come into Saturday’s game on a run of nine straight wins – if you include the final match of last season plus six pre-season victories, leading into a campaign which has opened strongly. A 1-0 win at Weston – always a tricky ride for visiting teams – was followed by a thriller on Tuesday night at Priory Lane. Eastbourne fell behind early to a shoddy goal against Tonbridge, battled their way back and after a genuinely thrilling second half they nicked the points with goals in the 80th and 93rd minutes. With Fleet still bedding in new players, this may not be the best time for a visit to the seaside....
Off the field, the match has added flavour through the Kuwaiti investment issue. The group which has now stepped in at Stonebridge Road was a long way down the track in discussions with Eastbourne Borough back in the New Year, before the negotiations failed, for reasons too complex to go into here. There is no particular ill feeling among any of the parties, but Saturday will still be rather interesting!”
Borough come into Saturday’s game on a run of nine straight wins – if you include the final match of last season plus six pre-season victories, leading into a campaign which has opened strongly. A 1-0 win at Weston – always a tricky ride for visiting teams – was followed by a thriller on Tuesday night at Priory Lane. Eastbourne fell behind early to a shoddy goal against Tonbridge, battled their way back and after a genuinely thrilling second half they nicked the points with goals in the 80th and 93rd minutes. With Fleet still bedding in new players, this may not be the best time for a visit to the seaside....
Off the field, the match has added flavour through the Kuwaiti investment issue. The group which has now stepped in at Stonebridge Road was a long way down the track in discussions with Eastbourne Borough back in the New Year, before the negotiations failed, for reasons too complex to go into here. There is no particular ill feeling among any of the parties, but Saturday will still be rather interesting!”
I spoke to Fleet fan David Rutnam
about his thoughts on the Summer at Stonebridge Road and his
expectations for the season.
When
I contrast how I felt then with how things are now, I feel like
someone who has been reprieved from a death sentence. It is only
football so it is would be wrong to overstate things, but I do know
that to me and lots of the Fleet faithful, the fortunes of our club
are very important.
So
my first thought is thank goodness we are alive and kicking. Well
thank you to KEH and Peter Varney really. A huge thank you.
Just
to be playing should be enough and I keep telling myself that, except
that of course it isn’t. I want us back in the Conference National
as soon as possible. Then we can start dreaming about getting into
the Football League! I do understand the need to be realistic and
patient and truly that is where my head is. My heart of course isn’t
listening.
It
was easy to get carried away with all the talk about us being one of
favourites, but the first two games have been a reality check. I was
disappointed by the way we played against Havant & Waterlooville.
Having seen some of the pre-season friendlies, I had really expected
to see us try and pass the ball around. Instead it was just like last
season with aimless punts forward to a lone striker surrounded by two
or three defenders.
Tuesday’s
game against Dover was far more encouraging and we passed the ball
much better. I thought we were the better side on balance and, given
that Dover fancy themselves as promotion candidates, that is no bad
thing. From the little evidence I have seen, I still think a play-off
place is realistic, if, and it is a big if, we can knock a few goals
in.
I
expect us to get something from Eastbourne on Saturday. KEH were
apparently looking at Eastbourne before they found the attractions of
North Kent irresistible. Perhaps that will add a little something to
Saturday’s match, but I am sure we will draw at worst.
Then
on Monday we have Maidenhead at home. I would love it, just love it,
if we beat them convincingly. There were 200 or 300 extra people at
SBR last Saturday. Good results will encourage them to keep coming,
and hopefully a good few more.
Apart
from the Fleet, I am tipping Bromley to do well this season. Mark
Goldberg says this is his best ever team. We go to see them on Boxing
Day and I have made the necessary booking at home already so I can be
there!
Up
the Fleet”
If you're attending the match, then matchday prices are as follows:
Adults - £12
Concessions - £8
Under 16s - £1
If you're unable to attend then follow @EUFCofficial or @EBFCtheSports for match updates. Don't miss out!
Enjoy the game.
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