This season we are following the fortunes of non-league side Bromley for our third season of our Grass Roots feature. Here is Matt Hall with his latest update on how the last few weeks have been for their first season in the National League side.
Since I last wrote, we have probably had our toughest period of the season so far which I hope we are on our way out of.
It all started with the live BT Sport televised match against Altrincham at Hayes Lane in the middle of November. The camera crew had been setting everything up at the ground in the week leading up to the match, and on my Friday night visit to the club, I noticed a rather large gantry behind the dugouts, as well as large cameras, mounted upon the roofs of each stand behind the goal.
Naturally, being a televised match meant our kick off time changed from the usual 3pm to 12:45pm. For us staff, that meant arriving much earlier than usual to prepare for the big day. As well as we presented ourselves as a club, and as smoothly as the coverage went, we were unfortunately unable to perform as well on the pitch as we had off it, eventually slumping to a 3-1 defeat with frustrating defensive errors at fault for all three goals conceded. Of course, it was a fantastic experience for us to be broadcast live on national television for the first time, but we were all gutted by the result.
The next two National League matches were away from home, and both were towards the North of the country. Funnily enough, both matches ended in the same 2-0 scoreline, 2-0, and unfortunately these were both defeats. Macclesfield and Guiseley both managed to take all three points from their encounter with the Ravens, the latter of which was in abysmal weather conditions.
It was then time for a break from the league, as Whitstable Town were the visitors in the Kent Senior Cup. This fixture had to be rearranged twice, as the original fixture two weeks prior (at Whitstable Town!) was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch, and just a week later, the rearranged fixture was abandoned with just sixteen minutes played due to floodlight failure.
Hence, the Kent FA decided that the fixture should be played at Hayes Lane, which gave Bromley fans their only chance to see their team at home for a significant period due to a large proportion of recent and upcoming fixtures being away from home. The Ravens eased to a 4-0 win thanks to a hat-trick from Alex Wall and a Bradley Goldberg effort, meaning we will face Charlton Athletic at home in the next round. This was Bromley’s first win in five, and supporters hoped this would be the confidence boost the team needed to improve results in the league.
Fans were then rocked by the news of Anthony Cook’s departure of the club, and his return to National League South high flyers Ebbsfleet United. However, the club did soften the blow significantly with the signing of Adam Cunnington from Ebbsfleet, and winger Steve Pinau, formerly of Monaco, Genoa and Hibernian, as well as a host of other clubs.
A tough test awaited Bromley at the weekend, as Southport were the opponents, meaning another long trip up North for fans, staff and players alike. Unfortunately, despite scoring three times, the Ravens were beaten. Southport managed to score five times, and eventually came from behind to seal the three points. Alex Wall, Rob Swaine and Lee Minshull were the scorers for Bromley.
Another series of postponements was in order when it came to the Ravens’ FA Trophy fixture away to Braintree Town. The match had been postponed twice due to the state of the Essex side’s pitch, but was eventually played (still in shocking conditions) on the 22nd December. A last minute goal-line scramble resulted in Sean Marks bundling the ball home to knock Bromley out of the trophy and send the home side through to the next round. It was frustrating for Bromley who, despite missing key players, had put in a good performance.
The losing run was soon to come to an end. High flying Eastleigh were the visitors on Boxing Day who had knocked Bromley out of the FA Cup. This time Bromley draw first blood courtesy of a good finish from Moses Emmanuel (who had already had a goal dubiously ruled out for offside) put the whites a goal up at half time, before a sensational Paul Rodgers strike doubled the lead just ninety seconds into the second half. However, two goals from Ben Strevens levelled things up for the Hampshire outfit, and they could easily have won it late on, as Strevens somehow blasted the ball over the bar from close range when it seemed easier to score. However, due to Eastleigh’s phenomenal away form and position in the league table, most Bromley fans were able to see this as a point earned.
After Christmas, we travelled to Dover Athletic for a Kent Derby which was sure to get a bit feisty, and did, on and off the pitch. After an early period of domination by Bromley, a defensive error allowed Ricky Miller to put the hosts ahead. Dover were shell-shocked a few minutes later, as Stefan Payne was sent off for a stamp on Lee Minshull. His side were made to pay for this just before half time, as Adam Cunnington slid in his first Bromley goal after Andy Rafferty had parried Moses Emmanuel’s shot into his path.
Bromley, wearing all red for this match, were ahead midway through the second half, as Dover failed to clear a corner and Jack Holland was able to back-heel the ball over the line to send the away fans into raptures. It was heating up between the home support and the travelling Bromley army now, as various chants were being exchanged at one end of the ground. Soon after, the hosts were level, once again thanks to Miller, despite suggestions of a handball prior to the goal. Bromley were not done there though as substitute Reece Prestedge entered the fray with a little over ten minutes to play. With his first touch of the ball, he headed Bromley in front following a pinpoint delivery from a corner. The Ravens managed to dominate the remainder of the game and could easily have gone 4-2 up, but Cunnington’s close range effort was well saved by Rafferty. Eventually the match ended 3-2 to Bromley, a much needed three points to end the year on.
We were scheduled to play Eastleigh in the return fixture at the Silverlake Stadium on New Years Day but it was a familiar story as the game was called off due to a waterlogged pitch. We take on Southport at Hayes Lane this Saturday, subject to weather conditions. Here’s hoping the turnaround in form can continue.
COME ON YOU RAVENS!
Continue to follow the fortunes of Bromley right here on TEB as Matt will report back to us every few weeks until the end of the season.
