Welcome to The Dripping Pan for today’s Bostik Premier League game with Margate. Here is your complimentary e-programme.Â
CONTENTS
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Get your Rooks Christmas raffle tickets
Get your badges online or at the back of the Philcox
DARREN FROM THE DUGOUT
As it’s Christmas, we’ve got a feature-length interview with Darren for you, in which we talk about the season so far, the youth players coming through and the players’ Christmas party. Click Play below to listen.
TODAY’S MATCH MUSIC
Today’s festive playlist has been created by our resident director-cum-DJ, John Peel. He’s even thrown in a bit of Wham! It truly is Christmas.
JOIN THE LEWES FC VETS!
CHAIRMAN’S NOTES
Good afternoon and welcome back to The Dripping Pan for this afternoon’s game against Margate. I’d like to welcome the fans, players, management team and officials from the Kent coast and hope the transport Gods have given them a smooth journey here, and obviously a similar trip home. I would also like to personally welcome Browny back – you couldn’t ask to meet a nicer person and he was a pleasure to work with.
That being said, it is hard to knock anything our current management team are doing. On Wednesday night we delivered one of the best 45 minutes of football I have ever seen a Lewes side produce. I don’t think it would have mattered who we were playing, our passing, possession and clinical finishing would have put most teams in our division, and a number in the league above, to the sword. I don’t know what Darren said to them before the game but whatever it was, it worked!!!
We obviously knew the result we wanted to go top and that was of course in our minds, but first and foremost you have to not concede, which is a mantra of the management team. Lewis and the back four did their bit. Our midfield were once again rampant, and switching Luke with Jonte worked very effectively too. As Darren said after the game, even he would have paid to have watched that (he did also say he’d want a refund for the second-half but we will not mention that anymore!).
As most of you will know, we don’t get carried away with the achievements. Football is a fickle game, and we ended Wednesday night with ten men after losing a few more players to injury. But I can assure everyone that as a club we are constantly striving for improvements. I’m a very big fan of marginal gains, the management methodology used by Sir Clive Woodward and Sir Dave Brailsford, which means on and off the pitch improvements. Much of what we do happens behind the scenes from the efforts of many, unseen to most. But when everything comes together it is beautiful to see, as it was on Wednesday night.
Yesterday we announced the appointment of our new Women’s manager. Fran Alonso joins us from the University of Liverpool where he has been their head coach. Fran’s pedigree in the game is almost as impressive as his passion for the game. He was Southampton’s First Team Technical Coach under Ronald Koeman and followed the Dutchman to Goodison Park where he also worked under Sam Allardyce. He has also served for a few years as Southampton Women’s FC Technical Director and I’m delighted to have been able to persuade him to join us. Not only will his coaching experience bring a new dimension to our Women’s team but his contacts in the Men’s game may come in very useful for Darren (Wayne Rooney is one of his followers on Twitter!).
You may have also seen this week the launch of a new series of short-films, commissioned by Twitter, featuring Lewes FC. This again underlines the huge amount of work that happens off the pitch to help drive the club forward on it. As fans and owners we have so much to be proud of at the moment and we hope to see more good stuff in the coming months.
This is our last home game in 2018 and what a year it has been. I may be tempting fate by saying this, but only four teams have beaten us here this year – Carshalton Athletic (twice!), Worthing, Haringey Borough and Brighton & Hove Albion Under23s. That is out of a total of 25 games, which is impressive in anyone’s book. Let’s hope 2019 brings more of the same!
It’s been hard to pick out my three favourite moments of the year but here goes.
1. The promotion party after the game versus Chipstead. Yes, it may have been an anti- climax and one of our less impressive performances of the season, but it was brilliant to see so many people celebrating on the field and in the town after the game.
2. The game two weeks ago against Manchester United when nearly 2,000 squeezed into the Pan and for 90 minutes we held our own against a global giant. After the game seeing so many young fans waiting to get the autographs of our players was also a hugely proud moment, realising what we have built here.
3. Cray Wanderers back in January. First versus second, Wanderers on a run of nine consecutive wins and having just put nine past Ashford United. 38 seconds into the game and Omarr Lawson skips through the centre of the home defence and scores, setting us on the way to a 2-1 win and regaining top spot, but the impressive part was the huge away support we had that day. Well over 150 and over half the crowd were behind the Rooks on that chilly day in Bromley. If that wasn’t enough to realise what we had done on the Men’s side, then I don’t know what is.
Finally, I’d like to wish all of our volunteers, fans, owners, players, management and staff a Happy Christmas and a Prosperous New Year – you have all been stars in the last twelve months. See you all on New Year’s Day for the visit of Burgess Hill Town.
Come on you Rooks!
Stuart
BRINKY’S CHRISTMAS QUIZ
As has become a Christmas tradition, Paul Brinkhurst has set us a Christmas quiz. And because we’re now in the brave new era of the Progcast, you can answer the questions on screen and get your score at the end. Answer each question in turn and click Finish at the bottom to get your score. We’ll have ten more questions in the New Year’s Day game versus Burgess Hill. Good luck!
Results
Congrats, you’re a bigger Lewes nerd than Cardigan Kev.
Poor show. Best buy or renew your season ticket for next year now, so you can brush up.
#1. Who scored the club’s first league goal of the season?
#2. How many FA Cup games did the team play this season?
#3. Who knocked Lewes out of the FA Cup?
#4. Name the player who signed on loan from Woking?
#5. Which first team player am I? My previous clubs include Crawley Town and Gloucester City?
#6. Who have Lewes (men) had their biggest home league attendance against this season?
#7. What happened on Tuesday 16th October 2018 for the first time in a league game since 1st March 2014?
#8. Who scored the winning goal at Bishop’s Stortford?
#9. Who, to date, played his only game for the club at Bath City?
#10. Which of these players has scored the most goals for the Rooks this season?
LAST ORDERS FOR YOUR CLUB SHOP GIFTS!
If you’re looking to fill a few stockings with Rooks gifts this Christmas, it’s time to pull your finger out! We’ve still got stocks of Christmas jumpers (pictured above), cards, crackers and lots more.
Final ordering dates from our online club shop are:
International – Wednesday 12th December
UK – Tuesday 18th December
If you want to visit the club shop in person, the final Christmas opening hours are:
Wednesday 12th December from 6.30pm til Full Time*
Thursday 13th December from 7 – 9pm*
Saturday 15th December from 1pm til Full Time
Wednesday 19th December 7-9pm*
Saturday 22nd December 10am til 3pm*
*As long as match is on that day
GET YOUR ROOKS CHRISTMAS RAFFLE TICKETS!
Today is your last chance to enter the Supporters Club Christmas raffle!
First prize is ÂŁ100 cash prize, and there are a number of other excellent prizes up for grabs. The cash prize has been donated by a well-wisher so every ÂŁ1 you spend on a ticket will go into the Supporters Club funds that help sustain Lewes FC.
We’ll have three volunteers selling tickets tomorrow and the winning numbers will be announced at half-time. Good luck!
RECENT MATCH REVIEW
Lewes 5 vs Brightlingsea Regent 0, Bostik Premier League, 12th December 2018
Our impressive run of form continued with five first-half goals versus Brightlingsea
Here’s Darren reaction to the game:
ROOKS UNITED
In the first of an updated series of articles, Stuart Fuller looks at how other teams in the famous Red and Black stripes are faring across the world. This week he starts in Bromma, in the Western suburbs of Stockholm, the capital of Sweden
We can consider ourselves somewhat unique in having adopted the red and black stripes we today proudly wear for over 120 years. There are few occasions where we face a team who also sport red and black stripes, although for the first time in decades we did just that when we took on Brightlingsea Regent last Wednesday. It seems that Red and Black striped shirts are about as common in other football leagues across the world.
Currently back in the Swedish Allsvenskan, the top flight in the land of Abba, Ikea and the fascination for crayfish, is Idrottsföreningen Brommapojkarna, or IP Bromma to its friends. The club are based in the western suburbs of Stockholm and, whilst their heritage in the Swedish footballing honours is relatively modest, they lay claim to being the biggest football club in Europe. Yep, you read that right. Bigger than Manchester United, Real Madrid, Barcelona and even those Scottish giants who shall remain nameless for fear of reprisals.
I should of course define “big” in this instance. It’s not on revenue, playing budget, fans, stadium or egos. It is based on the number of active teams the club has. Whilst Lewes are going into new territory this season with our U16 and U15 girls teams, IP Bromma can boast around 245 teams in all age groups in both sexes, or approximately 3,100 players. The start of season group photo must be a bit of an issue.
Originally formed at the turn of the 20th century as a general sports club who played Ice Hockey and that well know global sport, Bandy (a type of hockey played whilst high on Brandy by all accounts), they adopted football in 1942 and have never looked back. They were promoted to the top division in 2006 and have since led a yo-yo existence. They finished bottom of the top tier in 2014 and two years later were in the regional leagues.
However, back to back promotions have seen them return to the top flight for this season (at the time of writing they are in the bottom three). Five years ago they qualified for Europe on the “fair play rule” for the first time, and surprised a few people by beating VPS of Finland, and Crusaders of Northern Ireland (another one of our red and black bretheren), before exiting in the 3rd qualifying round to Torino.
The club had an unofficial tie-up with Manchester City and have supplied them with a number of young players in the past few seasons, including John Alberto Fernando Andres Luigi Olof Guidetti (that’s a few hundred pounds to have his name on the back of your shirt) who, of course, didn’t play a single game for City since joining them in 2008 until he left in 2015, instead being farmed out across Europe (he is currently with Alaves in Spain).
They are a modestly supported club, attracting an average of 1,500 to their games at the attractive Grimsta ground with its 3G pitch and fine array of sausages. But be warned, any similarity with the Rooks ends when it comes to the beer. Sweden has some of the tightest alcohol restrictions in Europe and the beer on sale at the ground is 2.5% lager.
So next time you find yourself in Sweden keep an eye out for BP as they are known, and should the opportunity arise go and see them, welcoming them onto the pitch with a hearty “Kom På Dig Rooks!!!”
TODAY’S OPPONENTS: MARGATE
Margate Football Club was founded in 1896, joining the Kent League after the First World War. Reformed in 1924 (as Margate Town) and again in 1929, when Margate moved to their current home at Hartsdown Park.
From 1934 until 1938 Margate, by now playing in the Southern League, served as the official nursery side for Arsenal. Under this arrangement the London club regularly loaned promising young players to Margate and famous players such as Eddie Hapgood also turned out for Margate whilst regaining match fitness after injury. In the second season of this arrangement, 1935-36, Margate reached the third round proper of the FA Cup for the first time, losing 3–1 to Blackpool after defeating QPR and Crystal Palace in the earlier rounds, but shortly after this the club had to step back down to the Kent League for financial reasons.
In 1959 Margate returned to the Southern League after the Kent League folded, and in 1963 won the Division One title and promotion to the Premier Division. Two years later the club turned full-time professional but this proved financially untenable when the team were relegated back to Division One in 1966. Nonetheless, they won promotion at the first attempt and returned to the Premier Division in 1967.
During the 1970s Margate endured financial problems and a series of poor league seasons, but took part in two famous FA Cup ties. In 1971 they lost 11–0 to Bournemouth, with Ted MacDougall scoring a cup record nine goals. Then, a year later, Margate reached the third round, playing Tottenham Hotspur, then UEFA Cup holders. A record crowd of around 14,500 packed into Hartsdown Park for a match which Margate lost 6–0.
On several occasions in the 1970s Margate had discussed a merger with neighbours Ramsgate to form a new team representing the whole Isle of Thanet as a solution to the financial problems being experienced by both clubs. The negotiations floundered, however, and Ramsgate ultimately had no involvement in the formation of Thanet United FC in 1981, which turned out to be purely a name change for Margate.
When Thanet District Council announced that it would not be prepared to put any funding into Thanet United, the two clubs finally abandoned the idea of a merger. The Thanet United era saw a run of generally mediocre seasons in the Southern League Southern Division, with financial problems continuing unabated and a series of managers coming and going. In 1989 a new board took over, who reverted the club’s name to Margate Football Club.
In 1997-8 Margate reached the first round proper of the FA Cup, playing Fulham in a home tie that drew a crowd of 5,100. Although the Margate took the lead, the Cottagers eventually won 2–1. The following season saw the club win promotion to the Southern League Premier Division, winning the championship in 2001 and promotion to the Football Conference.
In 2002 they began groundsharing at Dover Athletic, enjoying more FA Cup success in beating Leyton Orient in the first round before going out 0-3 to Cardiff City. The following season, despite finishing sixteenth, Margate were relegated one division due to the ongoing delays and problems with the redevelopment plans for Hartsdown Park. Margate spent the 2004-05 season in the Conference South, groundsharing at Ashford Town, and suffering relegation to the Isthmian League.
In August 2005 Margate returned to Hartsdown Park after a three year absence. Late in 2008 the club narrowly avoided being subject to High Court action over unpaid debts to HM Revenue and Customs. The club finished the season 19th in the table, but were reprieved from relegation due to other clubs folding. The following season, Margate once more finished in the bottom four but were again reprieved from relegation.
In 2015, under manager Terry Brown, Margate finished in third place in the Isthmian League Premier Division, securing promotion to the National League South with play-off victories over Dulwich Hamlet and Hendon. They avoided relegation by goal difference in their first season, but were relegated a year later in 2017 having finished bottom. Last season Margate finished in seventh place in the Isthmian League Premier Division, missing a play-off place by two points.
MEET THE SQUAD
Mike Sandmann & Steve Brown – Joint Managers
Lucky Margate have not one but two Managers! The club announced their joint management team back in May for the 2018/19 season. Rooks fans will be watching closely this afternoon to ensure Margate only present 11 on-field players at any one time, because duplication such as this can get out of hand. Both men worked alongside former boss Steve Watt before he left by mutual consent last May, former Panhandler, Steve, as assistant, and Mike Sandmann as first team coach. Steve, of course, was manager here at Lewes, saving us from relegation at the end of the 2014/15 season, before leaving ten games into the following season.
Louis Wells – Goalkeeper
Experienced veteran keeper, Louis, joined the Blues in December from Billericay Town. Listed amongst his previous clubs are Hayes, Aldershot, Basingstoke, Concord Rangers, Leatherhead and Dartford.
Jack Paxman – Defender
Jack joined Margate this summer after impressing for Deal Town in a friendly against the Blues. The pacey full-back enjoys getting forward and will look to cause trouble when attacking down the right.
Tom Mills – Defender
Tom joined Margate last summer from Maidstone after making over 350 appearances for the Stones. An injury hampered first season meant he missed large parts of the season as the Blues narrowly missed out on the Isthmian Play-offs.
Liam Friend – Defender (Captain)
The 30-year-old centre-half played over 500 games for Folkstone Invicta before joining the Blues last summer, and named the Margate captain for the 2018/19 season. Sort of a Frankie Chappell-type career, but obviously not as good.
Ben Swift – Defender
Ben started his career at Maidstone United Academy before earning a move to the Premier League with Aston Villa, but was unfortunate with an injury plagued stint there. A summer signing, the centre-half was a key player for Margate when they narrowly missed out on the Isthmian Play-offs.
Tom Wynter – Defender
Tom began his career at Gillingham. He joined from National League South side Dartford in summer 2017, and has played all roles across the Gate back four.
Connor Dymond – Defender/Midfielder
Connor is described as a dynamic defensive midfielder. The 24-year-old is a former Crystal Palace U21 captain who has also played for Bromley and Welling, and joined Margate in December.
George Brown – Midfielder
Son of Steve and a former Rook under his dad in 2015. Now on loan to the Gate from Colchester Utd.
Lee Prescott – Midfielder
Lee joined Margate one summer from Cray Wanderers, and renewed his stay by signing a one-year deal this summer. He is regarded as a fan’s favourite with his solid performances.
Chris Barnard – Midfielder
Chris joined the Blues this summer on a dual registration with National League side Dover Athletic.
Alex Brown – Midfielder
Margate added Alex Brown to their ranks this summer after the midfielder left National League South side Dartford. Alex started his career at Gillingham and, in addition to brief loan spells elsewhere, he has also played for Maidstone.
James Rogers – Midfielder
James played for Margate in 2010/11, and rejoined from rivals Maidstone in February 2017 as one of former manager Steve Watt’s first signings. He has also played for Dover, Folkestone, and Dartford.
Kane Haysman – Midfielder
Kane started his career at Gillingham, but joined Margate midway through last season from Isthmian Premier League rivals Kingstonian. Originally signing on a non-contract basis, Kane is now on a deal until the end of the 2018/19 season.
Alex Flisher – Forward
Alex joined the Blues one summer from Maidstone in what was considered a huge coup for the club, only to suffer a dreaded ACL injury that ruled him out of the whole of the 2017/18 season; returned to action this pre-season.
Frannie Collin – Forward
31-year-old Frannie renewed his stay at Margate this summer for a further year after joining from Hastings United last summer. The talisman striker started his career at Gillingham, and has also played for Dover, where he scored 21 goals as they won the Isthmian Premier League, Tonbridge and Maidstone United.
Tom Murphy – Forward
The versatile attacker returns to the Gate on loan from Dartford and has hit the ground running, scoring once and assisting twice in his first three games.
Liam King – Forward
Liam is a young striker who joined the Blues in January from fellow Isthmian Premier League team Tonbridge Angels, bringing pace and sharp finishing to the team.
GET YOUR BADGES ONLINE OR AT THE BACK OF THE PHILCOX!
Lewes FC is blessed to have a pair of great badge sellers, and now you can buy online as well as in person at The Dripping Pan.
Badgeman Brian has a website selling rare Rooks badges and badges from other clubs. If you’re missing something from your collection, pay a visit to Skoorbadges or Brian’s eBay site.
If you’re more of a bricks-and-mortar badger, than Gary Blaber’s huge range of badges can be seen at the top of the main Philcox stand, just as you enter the ground. Brian and Gary both make generous donations to the 12th Man Fund from the profits they make, so you’re helping the club while building your collection.
SPONSOR A LEWES FC PLAYER
It costs only ÂŁ50 to sponsor a player or manager for home or away Kit. ÂŁ25 for training kit and boots. All funds raised go to Lewes FC Supporters Club, helping to fund Lewes FC throughout the season.
Contact: david.arnold@me.com or see David or Barbara on match days.
DARREN FREEMAN
HOME: REG FREEMAN
AWAY: DAVE LAMB
ROSS STANDEN
HOME: DAVID & BARBARA ARNOLD
AWAY: CATHY FELTHAM
STEVE BRINKHURST
HOME: RON PIDGEON
AWAY:
TRAINING KIT & BOOTHS: ETHEL TREAGUS
FRANKIE CHAPPELL
HOME: ED BRIGGS
AWAY: ED BRIGGS
TRAINING KIT & BOOTS:Â ED BRIGGS
DAYSHONNE GOLDING
HOME KIT: HAIR FOR MEN, 16 MARKET ST, LEWES
NICO COTTON
HOME: JAMES BRIGGS
AWAY: JAMES BRIGGS
TRAINING KIT & BOOTS: JAMES BRIGGS
JAMES HAMMOND
HOME: ROOK, CANNON AND HORSE ASSOCIATES LTD
AWAY: LUCAS WARNER
TRAINING KIT & BOOTS: LUCAS WARNER
LUKE BLEWDEN
HOME: SUSIE ARLETT
AWAY:
TRAINING KIT & BOOTS: SUSIE ARLETT
LLOYD COTTON:
HOME: STUART FULLER
AWAY: STUART FULLER
TRAINING KIT & BOOTS: STUART FULLER
BILLY MEDLOCK
HOME: DAVE LAMB
AWAY: DAVE LAMB
STACEY FREEMAN
HOME: ROGER WARNER
AWAY: ROGER WARNER
TRAINING KIT & BOOTS: ROGER WARNER
HARRY REED
HOME: ANDY ROSSITTER
AWAY: SAM & JOE BARKER
TRAINING KIT & BOOTS:
LEWIS CAREY
HOME: DAVID & BARBARA ARNOLD
AWAY:
TRAINING KIT & BOOTS:
RONNIE CONLON
HOME: NEIL FINNEY
AWAY: LUCAS WARNER
TRAINING KIT & BOOTS: SUSIE ARLETT
JONTE SMITH
HOME: BARRY HAFFENDEN
AWAY: JASON FOULKES
TRAINING KIT & BOOTS: LUCAS WARNER
OMARR LAWSON
HOME: TONY HARMAN
AWAY: YEOVIL JOHN
TRAINING KIT & BOOTS: LUCAS WARNER
MICHAEL DOME-BEMWIN
HOME: DAVE EVANS
LEON REDWOOD
HOME: WILL & COLIN KEMP
CLUB SHOP MANAGER, BARRY HAFFENDEN
PROUDLY SPONSORED BY HAIR FOR MEN, 16 MARKET ST, LEWES
If you wish to sponsor a player, contact David Arnold at the Supporters Club.
TODAY’S TEAMS
LEWES
| LEWIS CAREY | 1 |
| STEVE BRINKHURST | 2 |
| HENRI WILDER | 3 |
| LIAM WILSON | 4 |
| FRANKIE CHAPPELL © | 5 |
| THOMAS DAY | 6 |
| DAYSHONNE GOLDING | 7 |
| JAMES HAMMOND | 8 |
| JONTE SMITH | 9 |
| LUKE BLEWDEN | 10 |
| KIERON PAMMENT | 11 |
| CALLUM OVERTON | 12 |
| MARCUS ELLIOTT | 14 |
| HARRY REED | 15 |
| ROSS BARCLAY | 16 |
| SAM KARL | 17 |
MARGATE
| 1 | LOUIS WELLS |
| 2 | JACK PAXMAN |
| 3 | THOMAS MILLS |
| 4 | CONNOR DYMOND |
| 5 | LIAM FRIEND © |
| 6 | BEN SWIFT |
| 7 | GEORGE BROWN |
| 8 | JORDAN ROBINS |
| 9 | ALEX FLISHER |
| 10 | FRANCIS COLLIN |
| 11 | THOMAS MURPHY |
| 12 | OWEN KALLMEIER |
| 14 | DAVID MARTIN |
| 15 | CHRISTOPHER BARNARD |
| 16 | LIAM KING |
FORTHCOMING FIXTURES
| Opponents | H/A | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Merstham | A | Weds 19th December, 7:45pm |
| Bognor Regis Town | A | Weds 26th December, 3pm |
| Burgess Hill Town | H | Tues 1st January, 3pm |
| Enfield Town | A | Saturday 5th January, 3pm |
Full season fixtures, results and stats embedded below
MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM US ALL AT LEWES FC!
Credits and legal info
The Bostik League strongly support recent FA statements that there should be a zero tolerance approach against racism and all forms of discrimination. Accordingly, any form of discriminatory abuse, whether it be based on race or ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, faith, age, ability or any other form of abuse will be reported to The Football Association for action by that Association. (The FA 0800 085 0508/Kick It Out 020 7253 0162)
Lewes 2000 FC Limited. Registered in England and Wales with Company Registration Number 03790979.
Honorary President Terry Parris
Chairman Stuart Fuller
Directors
Charlie Dobres, Eddie Ramsden, Stuart Fuller, John Peel, Barry Collins, Ed Briggs, Jon Ruben, Roger Warner, Galia Orme
Club Secretary Barry Collins
Youth Secretary Kevin Brook
Operations Manager Duncan Thompson
Life Members
Mr and Mrs Brook, Vic Blunt, Pat Dartnell, Gary Elphick, Gordon Fowlie, Peter Hiscox, Billy Nixon, Derrick Parris, Terry Parris, Jimmy Quinn, P. Swaysland, Steve Ibbitson, Jason Hopkinson, Steve White, Martin Elliot, Kevin Fingerneissl, Kevin Powell, David and Barbara Arnold, Roger and Cathy Feltham, Ethel Treagus, Roy Dartnell RIP, Ron Moore, Derek Southouse, Ray Smith, Ken Carter
Manager Darren Freeman
Assistant Manager Ross Standen
First Team Coach Tony Coade
Physiotherapists Paul Baskin & Debbie Adams
Performance Analyst Matthew Strong
Development Squad Manager Steve Eke
Development Squad coach Luke Carter
Development Squad/Under-18s sports therapist Chris Dumbrell
Under-18s Manager Dale Hurley
Under-18s Assistant Manager Craig Stevens
Under-18s coaches Jake Legrange and Johnny Buggy
Golden Rook Rob Read
Web Editor Stuart Fuller
Progcast Editors Paul Sheppard and Duncan Thompson
Progcast Designer Barry Collins
Club Photographer James Boyes