NEWS FROM FLEET TOWN FC
OCTOBER 2006 – CONCENTRATING ON THE LEAGUE!
October is a funny month for football. A lot of cup competitions are at their early stages and replays decimate your league fixtures. We have had to endure a number of postponements this month, our match with Tooting & Mitcham having been changed three times due to their cup results! However we did manage to get two league games in beating Kingstonian 2-1, and drawing 1-1 with Molesey in a fiery game that saw two of our players sent off by an inexperienced referee and some robust football from opponents that included three former Fleet players in their line-up. Our game at Burgess Hill on Tuesday 31 st completes our October programme but the great news is that Fleet Town are still top of the league!
Our playing record now reads P9 W7 D1 L1 with a goal difference of +12 putting us ahead of Dartford , on goal difference.
We had an up and down month in the cups. Losing at Hornchurch in the prestigious FA Trophy (2-1) after we had exited the League Cup 4-3 at home to Enfield in extra time - a game in which the players and fans alike were exhausted at the end. We did however progress in the Russell Cotes cup, comfortably seeing off Hamble Association from the Wessex League 3-1, to progress to the 3 rd Round.
Andy Sinton was deservedly named Manager Of The Month for September, but in typical fashion underplayed his achievements, praising his team of players and citing two keys to our success so far as being a) our fitness and b) our team spirit. With a hard winter programme we will need both of these, plus, if we are to get promotion. Already we are getting injuries but the depth of Andy's squad means we have quality players covering most positions now.
Our success has brought us a lot of good quality press coverage in both the local papers and the non-league journals too. Our crowds are on the up as well, indeed the Molesey match had a crowd 55% higher than last seasons corresponding game.
If you want to join the crowd then the team has four home games in November:
- Saturday 11 th v Chatham Town League
- Saturday 18 th v Whyteleafe League
- Tuesday 21 st v Burgess Hill Town League
- Tuesday 28 th v Hastings United League
And how are our other teams doing? In the Suburban League (North) our Reserves have 7 wins (including a 1-0 victory over league leaders Potters Bar), a draw and 3 defeats so far and are in 3 rd spot. A good reserve team means you have a good club – it is where first team players can regain competitive fitness and is an important link for our future stars to make the jump from youth to adult football in a very competitive league.
The Youth team have two wins, a loss and two draws from their league matches and currently lie in 3 rd place too.
Our young people's teams are still in the early months of their campaigns. The u11 Girls are one of the top performers currently, being undefeated and topping their division. One of our Colts' managers, Keith Botevyle, in between managing both an u9 and an u13 team is also responsible for the Colts charity, KitAid, wherein they send unwanted football kit to children and adults across Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe . This is a great way of sharing the benefits of football worldwide. His u9's team incidentally have only had one defeat in eight games so far.
In the Club House we have a number of events planned for the month:
- General Knowledge Quiz Night on 3 rd November
- Casino Night on 18 th November
A reminder that the Andy Sinton Golf Challenge takes place at the end of the month (30 th) at Wentworth Golf Club and we have space for one more team.
Finally a date for your diary – this seasons Sponsors Appreciation Match will be the game against Kingstonian on 17 th March 2007.
October 2006 draws to an end and Fleet Town are again top of the league – its good to be a part of a winning team, isn't it!
Hope to see you at the Park. Up the Blues!
Mike Gardner
Commercial Manager
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