Welcome to The Dripping Pan for this afternoon’s Isthmian Premier League game against Haringey Borough. Here is your complimentary e-programme.

NOTES FROM THE CHAIR

This afternoon we return to Isthmian Premier League action as we welcome Haringey Borough to the Pan. I would like to extend the warmest of Lewes welcomes to the Players, officials and fans of Haringey.

I would also like to thank all the Lewes supporters who made the trip to Whitehawk last Saturday. It was a game the started with much promise from a Lewes perspective, but in the end turned out much like the weather that afternoon. Grey, damp and dreary, ending our involvement in domestic cup competitions for another season.

The Lewes Team will be clad in a full white strip this afternoon in recognition of the White Ribbon day “#Change The Story” campaign towards Ending Violence Against Women and Girls. You will also notice that white ribbons will be adorned around the ground to mark this event. I would urge everyone to reflect on the horrendous consequences of violence against women and girls and take some time to visit the whiteribbon.org.uk website to see how our choices and actions can change the story.

As a reminder to those of you looking forward to the Tuesday night’s derby against Horsham, their reinstatement into the 2nd Round of the FA Cup means our game has been postponed, and a new date for the match will be announced in due course.

Come on you Rooks!

Trevor Wells

MINUTES APPLAUSE

Please join us in a minute’s applause to celebrate the life of former player Andy Lower before the start of the game

Good afternoon everyone and welcome to today’s fixture against Haringey Borough.

Whitehawk – It was once said, ‘football is a simple game’, and I tend to agree. If you do the basics well in a game of football, it allows you to add the bits on top that make you a good side. At the moment, we are a good side that isn’t doing the basics very well, so you end up with a game where you come away a little confused with what you have seen, and Saturday was a good example of that. Let’s look at the game; we start the game on the front foot, working openings. We were getting in good areas, getting shots off and controlling the game. Ola then gets fouled in the box, and somehow, the ref doesn’t give a pen. We then scored a good goal to go 1-0 up. We press the keeper, who kicks it to Kalvin, who is in on goal, but he takes too many touches, and then Tommy Wood puts one just wide. 25 minutes in, and all is going well! Then, from the resulting goal kick, the keeper pumps it long, and no one deals with the ball, and before you know it, the ball ends up in our 18-yard box without touching anyone. The forward scores from the goal kick from 8 yards out with no one touching the ball. It’s a goal you expect to see at an under 10’s game.

Now, all the good work you have done in the first 25 minutes is undone, and the wind gets taken out of everyone; the second goal is from a long free kick put into our box that we are not set up right for. It was a mirror image of the Wingate winning goal the week before. We had addressed it in training and put things in place to stop that from happening again. They had a free kick 5mins before from pretty much the same place. The boys did the setup, and we dealt with it with no problem, but for the 2nd free-kick, we forgot to do the set-up, so from a Long free kick, it ended up with a player diving in right on the edge of the 18-yard box and the ref this time gives a pen, and now we are 2-1 down, after having had a decent start to the game, all from two long balls not dealt with. It takes the wind out of everyone; until we start defending correctly, we won’t win many football games. For the 3rd goal, you have to tip your hat and say it’s a great strike. We came in at halftime having played okay, and I thought we were the better side, but we were 3-1 down.

In the Second half, we come out, and Jake headers hit the bar and post, and it comes out, and you know it’s going to be that sort of day. Credit to Whitehawk, who worked hard and took their chances, and we wish them well in the next round. As for us, something has to change. I would always give players every chance to be successful with us. We will provide them with the platform, coaching and encouragement and in return, they have to deliver performances. Some have run out of time with us, so it’s time we shake the tree a little and bring in some new faces to help us. I told the players we don’t mind if you are not perfect; we don’t mind if you make mistakes. It’s all part of learning, but what we won’t accept is people not learning and improving.  We need to defend better as a group because if we don’t stop conceding poor goals, we can’t win football games. If you can’t deal with long balls in non-league as a team, you are in for a long season because 90% of teams kick it long from goal kicks and will pump balls into your box from free kicks. We are a big side, so it’s not because of size. It’s communication and organisation on the pitch. We need more leaders out on the pitch. We also need to upgrade in some areas; this is the hard part of football. We are blessed to have a group of really good people in the dressing room, but the bottom line is we are here to win football games, and it’s clear we are short in a few areas.

Squad update

With Ryan Gondoh & Marcus both making excellent strides with their rehab, it’s looking like we could have them both back within the next 2-4 weeks, so we have brought two short-term loan deals in to cover this period. Luke Dreher joins us from Wealdstone to cover for Marcus, and Lewis White joins us from Welling to cover for Gondoh. That’s the thinking behind the two loans

Alfie Egan & Deshane Dalling have left the club; I really enjoyed having both in. They were really good people but weren’t having the impact we were hoping for.

We feel two areas need upgrading. That won’t be done by this weekend, but we will definitely have one in for the following week and are working on targets for the second player as I write this. That would mean two current players in the squad will be leaving once we have done the deals for the new players. Football is a harsh business, but I hate not winning football matches. It upsets me a lot, maybe too much at times, so I will continue to push this group as much as I can, and if need be, I will continue to shape this team until we get going. As I said at the start of the season, this side of Christmas will be like this. We had to bring in 15 new players, so it was never going to be easy. Managing Lewes is like playing snakes and ladders. You get your team together and get to the end of the season and lose most of them and have to start again every summer.

I asked you, the fans, last season for a bit of help, and I am going to need you again on Saturday. We are a little low on confidence at the moment, so if we have a setback or a period where we are not playing great, get behind them. They really appreciate it, and it helps. Cheer your loudest when the team needs it the most.

Enjoy the game!

Tony.

PHONE SCREENSAVER

WHITE RIBBON DAY

We are pleased to share that our home match with Haringey Borough will be in support of White Ribbon Day with our Sistership, Survivors Network.

We are once again teaming up with Survivors Network to kick off the UN’s 16 days of activism against gender-based violence, marked by White Ribbon Day.

For the game, our players will wear the white away kit, with the captain wearing a special white ribbon armband. As well as this, white ribbons will be tied around 1 in 4 seats in the seated stand, to signify the 1 in 4 women that are survivors of gender-based violence.

Culture change doesn’t happen overnight, but we can work together to end men’s violence against women and girls in our lifetimes.

This year, for White Ribbon Day we are encouraging men and boys to #CallHimOut in an effort to #ChangeTheStory for women and girls, so that they may live their lives free from the fear of violence.

Violence experienced by women and girls takes many forms. Some behaviours and words may seem ‘harmless’ but normalising them ignores the short- and long-term effects on women and can lead to more extreme violence.

Stand together with Lewes FC and Survivors’ Network this White Ribbon Day #CallHimOut.

THE FACTS

• Haringey Borough Football Club is based in Tottenham, in the London Borough of Haringey.

• It was not until 1970 that a team competed under the name of Haringey Borough, when Wood Green Town, who had played at Coles Park since 1930, changed their name to Haringey Borough. A merger with Edmonton FC, resulted in a brief change of name to Edmonton & Haringey FC until 1976, when the present name was re-adopted.

• In 2004, after an unsuccessful attempt to move the Club to the nearby New River Sports stadium and a walk out of the existing Committee, Aki Achillea, who had commenced his association with the Club in 1995, was appointed to lead the Club forward and together with George Kilikita and Secretary John Bacon, the club sought to engage more with the local community and tap into the talent locally.

• Current manager Tom Loizou has been in charge since July 2008.

• 2017/18 was to be one of the Club’s best ever seasons, and culminated in promotion to Step 3 via the play-off route with a 3-1 win over Canvey Island, after automatic promotion had been missed by just two points.

• An FA Cup run in 2018/19 season took Haringey into the First Round Proper, where it was ended rather cruelly by AFC Wimbledon’s last minute goal at Coles Park in front of a record crowd of 2,710. The game finished 1-0.

ONE TO WATCH?

Matt Young

“Matt is a classy midfielder who was twice loaned to us by Leyton Orient in 2022/23. Having been released by the O’s at the end of the season he has now signed directly for us.”

Having already netted 12 goals in all competitions so far this season, Young is one to watch. Here is a quote from a recent Haringey match report on Young – “He showed tremendous composure to control the ball and as a defender raced across to close him down, turned inside, leaving the defender on his backside, take another touch and then slide under the advancing keeper. A finish of high quality in the conditions.”

RECENT HEAD TO HEAD

15th Apr 2023	Isthmian Premier League	Lewes	4	Haringey	0
3rd Dec 2022	Isthmian Premier League	Haringey	1	Lewes	2
12th Mar 2022	Isthmian Premier League	Haringey	2	Lewes	2
13th Nov 2021	Isthmian Premier League	Lewes	4	Haringey	2
11th Mar 2020	Isthmian Premier League	Lewes	2	Haringey	1
4th Jan 2020	Isthmian Premier League	Haringey	0	Lewes	1

DID YOU KNOW?

• Haringey Borough FC offer all fans a free season ticket to the Coles Park Stadium.

OUR LAST GAME

To find out more, please visit: https://branchingoutadventures.co.uk/

Welcome to ‘1 on 1’, where 2 players go head to head, to see which Rook would fare better in a pub quiz. Each week, 2 players will be asked 8 questions. 6 on general knowledge, and 2 on football, to see who will eventually be crowned the ‘1 on 1’ champion. So far, we’ve seen Deon, Ryan and Tommy progress to the next round. Who will join them next?

” Easy win Vs Kalv” Jake said with confidence. Is he right? Let’s see…

1. What was the most downloaded app of 2020?

Jake: Zoom

Kalvin: TikTok

2. In the Star Wars series of films what is the name of Han Solo’s Wookie co-pilot?

Jake: N/A

Kalvin: Chewbacca

3. From which country do ABBA originate?

Jake: Sweden

Kalvin: X

4. What does the dish Chilli con carne mean in English?

Jake: Chilli with meat

Kalvin: Chilli with meat

5. Which seminal British band released the album “Parklife” in 1994?

Jake: Oasis?

Kalvin: X

6. Who is the Greek god of thunder and lightning?

Jake: Zeus

Kalvin: Zeus

7. What is the nickname of Bournemouth?

Jake: Cherries

Kalvin: The Cherries

8. How was the Semi Final of the 1968 Euros decided? a) A coin toss b) a player assaulted the referee, thus disqualifying the team c) a player was fielded ineligibly

Jake: C

Kalvin: A (I got no idea btw)

Well, I can confirm that the winner is…

KALVIN LUMBOMBO-KALALA

After a very suspicious last answer from Kalvin, he takes the ball round Jake, and places it in the top corner, to confirm his place in the next round, after a 6-4 win.

The Answers:

1. TikTok
2. Chewbacca
3. Sweden
4. Chilli with meat
5. Blur
6. Zeus
7. The Cherries
8. A

ON THIS DAY IN FOOTBALL HISTORY – 25th NOVEMBER

Friday Night Lights

Looking for a Friday night football fix, our intrepid Football Tourist heads across the Irish Sea to take in a top of the table clash in the Northern Irish Premiership.

Sitting in 340th place in UEFA’s Rankings, one place about Floriana from Malta, one below Iceland’s Vikingur, you can find Northern Ireland’s current champions, Larne FC. When they lined up in Helsinki for the Champions League First Qualifying Round against HJK in July 2023, it was a remarkable turnaround for a club that five years previously was staring at life in the third tier of Northern Irish football.

The club had been stripped of its senior status in 2008 after they failed to gain a place in the new IFA Premiership as part of the reorganisation of football in Northern Ireland, only getting their licence back in 2016 when they entered the NIFL Championship.

In 2018 the club was purchased by online estate agent Purplebricks co-founder Kenny Bruce. At that time, the club were sitting bottom of the second tier in Northern Ireland, the future looking very bleak with dwindling attendances. The bonhomie created after the national team’s performance at Euro2016 in France had failed to reach the northeast coast. Always the challenger of the norms, Bruce set a vision of bringing European success to Larne. Many scoffed, but five years later, who was now laughing?

After winning the NIFL Championship in 2019 and returning to the top flight just in time for two seasons of COVID-impacted campaigns. But in April 2023 the club beat Crusaders 2-0 to claim their first ever Irish League title and qualify for the Champions League for the first time.

Whilst their European exploits would be over by the end of July, the main objective for the season was the retention of their title. The NIFL Premiership has 4-5 teams who have the resources to win the league including Larne, in third place before tonight’s game and Cliftonville arriving in second place. However, both will have their work cut out catching Linfield who already had an 8 point lead at the top of the table.

Google Maps is a great friend in 99% of situations but when it goes wrong, it really does go wrong. I’m sure there are other routes that it could have suggested from my port-side hotel to Inver Park rather than walking a mile down the hard shoulder of the major arterial road down to Belfast. I took some comfort from the occasion sign, reminding motorists that there were pedestrians on the road.

I survived and arrived at Inver Park scratch-free. The ground is in the shadow of the motorway, on the side of a hill. A stand, half terraces, half seats runs the length of the 3G pitch, with covered, seated stands at each end. Cliftonville had been given the far end of the ground, whilst the young group of hardcore Larne fans made all the noise in the Church End.

The game started at a rapid pace, with tackles flying in from all sides. The visitors came close in the opening exchanges but it was Larne who took the lead in the 9th minute when Paul O’Neill celebrated his new 3 year deal by powering a header home from a pin-point Thomson cross. O’Neill almost doubled the lead two minutes later, but the outstretched arms of Odomosu saved the day.

Larne kept pressing forward, with Randall hitting the bar from distance before they had their second in the 36th minute, Joe Thomson hitting a low drive home from the edge of the box, earning a yellow card for his celebration, deemed “too excessive” by the fussy referee.

The half-time whistle saw an exodus of away fans, having seen enough it seemed but their team came out all guns blazing. However, Larne keeper Rohan Ferguson was in inspired form, and the woodwork saving them in after 70 minutes.

A flurry of yellow cards gave the final few minutes some real edge. It became even more intense when Ronan Hale took advantage a mistake by the Larne keeper, misjudging the bounce on the 3G pitch and slotted it home. But it was too little too late. Three points to the home side, closing the gap with Linfield at the top of the table to five points.

Football over it was time to walk the highways of Northern Ireland again back to the hotel, via a switch half in the memorabilia- clad walls of the Supporters Club bar. A 50th birthday party was underway back at the hotel, where a group of ladies crowded round the entrance, smoking. I avoided the grabbing hands, as Depeche Mode said, and headed to my room, ready to cross the water for a big day tomorrow.

In today’s Vox Pop, we asked Lewes fans ‘What is your opinion on VAR?‘ – Here are your responses…

“Shit”- Ollie Horton

“Hate it until I watch Lewes games” – Joseph

Was brought in to remove the controversy; still causes controversy. Bin it off” – Gustavo Cabeza de Blanca

“Dreadful, hate everything about it. Although we’d have got that pen at Whitehawk on Saturday with it” – Fergus

“The theory behind it works. It’s blurred by the users and the laws” – Nathan White

“There’s nothing ‘clear and obvious’ about 95% of the VAR decisions in the EPL. If there were, verification would take seconds, not half a lifetime. Not for me.” – Rookmeister

“My conspiracy theory was that the introduction of VAR was in order to have advert breaks in football matches.” – Mike W

“We need it” – Mason Walter

“Shambles” – Charlie Sundaram

“It takes the elite game even further away from the game that most play” – Peter Brown

“Tech itself is fine, refs (especially in the Prem) haven’t a clue how to use it” – Harvey Lock

KIT CLASH BY HARVEY LOCK

In this segment of the Progcast, we welcome young Harvey Lock, who throughout the rest of this season, plans to rate each Isthmian Premier team’s home and away kit, as we all know we’ve seen some unique kits during our time…

Home

The traditional yellow and blue is certainly unique, stemming from (I think) the coat of arms of Haringey. It reminds me of something you’d see on a league 2 strip from 2011, a kit that would perfectly fit the blocky font of the older EFL numbering and lettering. Certainly not bad, and a striking colour, but absolutely nothing special. 5/10

Away 

Unfortunately, this away strip falls victim to the curse of just being a colour swap of the home design. The green and black is, in my opinion, a better colour combo than the yellow and blue, and reminds me of some older Lewes away strips back when we wore green and black on the road, but again this isn’t special. Points must be docked for the unoriginality sadly, especially when the design it’s copying isn’t great to begin with. 4/10

THE LEAGUE TABLE AND FORM

ON THE ROAD TO…CONCORD RANGERS – SATURDAY 2nd DECEMBER

How was last season?
After nine seasons, Concord Rangers adventure at Step 2 finally came to an end in April but not without a late fight.  Seemingly dead and buried after a 7-0 defeat at Worthing on Good Friday, Concord faced nine further games in just 22 days to save their season and they almost pulled it off.  They won four of the next seven to give themselves a fighting chance but defeat at Havant and Waterlooville two days before the final Saturday of the season sealed their fate.  No team lost more games than Concord in the league and it will take some work from former Bowers & Pitsea manager Rob Small to stop them falling through the Isthmian Premier League.

National League South – 22^nd – P 46 W 12 D 8 L 26 GS 45 GA 85 GD -40 PTS 44

• FA Cup – Second Qualifying Round – Berkhamstead Town (A) 0-2
• FA Trophy – Second Qualifying Round– Harrow Borough (H) 2-4
• Essex Senior Cup – Finalists – Braintree Town (N) 0-1

When did we last meet Concord Rangers?
It has been over ten years since we last faced Concord Rangers. February 2013 to be precise under the management of Simon Wormull in the Ryman Premier League when Concord nabbed a three-nil win at the Pan to make up for the 6-3 defeat inflicted on them in December 2012 in front of just 108 fans.

Nathan Crabb scored after just 15 seconds, then goals from Ben Godfrey and Chris Breach gave the Rooks a 3-1 half-time lead.  Further goals by John Dollery and two more by Nathan Crabb saw the Rooks beat Danny Cowley’s(he of Lincoln City and Portsmouth fame since) side.

Our last six two meetings

W 1 D 0 L 1 GS 6 GA 6

About The Aspect Arena
Despite their recent spell in the National League South, there’s not much changed about the ground since we last visited ten years ago.  On one side is a small Main Stand, which runs for around half the length of the pitch, sitting astride the half way line. On either side of this stand are two small additional covered seating areas, that look temporary in nature and almost ‘bolted on’ to either end of the Main Stand. They are both quite small having 50 seats each. Opposite on the Caravan Park side of the stadium, it is mostly open with just a flat walkway running down behind the pitch perimeter. Also on this side of the ground are two very small temporary seated stands, that are covered and also contain 50 seats each.

At the South End of the ground there isn’t a terrace as such but a small flat standing area behind the goal that has had a small covered erected, which has a number of supporting pillars. The North End or Clubhouse End is slightly better, having a small, covered terrace located behind the goal.

How to get to The Aspect Arena
Head to the M25 and then take anti-clockwise route towards Dartford Crossing.  Exit M25 at Junction 30 and take the A13 towards Southend. You will reach a series of mini roundabouts. At these roundabouts, take the A130 towards Canvey Island. After you pass Canvey Island Infant School on your right you will then reach a mini roundabout where you turn right into Thorney Bay Road. Then take the third right into Thames Road. The ground is further down this road on the left. There is a fair sized car park at the ground, or street parking on the road running alongside the ground.

The nearest railway station is Benfleet which is located just under three miles away from the ground. Benfleet station is served by trains from London Fenchurch Street. There is a taxi rank outside the station. It will cost around £10 to the ground. Alternatively First Bus run regular services from Benfleet Railway Station to Canvey Island. Bort services Number 21 (from Bus Stop A) and Number 27 (From Bus Stop C) go along Thorney Bay Road, which is at the top of Thames Road for the ground.

Admission at The Aspect Arena
Admission is £12 for Adults, £7 for Concessions and £3 for accompanied under 16s.

Fancy a beer?
There’s not much in the way of any, let alone good pubs around the ground.    The historic Lobster Smack, as featured in one of Charles Dickens books is on the sea front about a ten minute walk away, other than that the Beach Bar at the ground will tick a couple of boxes.

Legals and Credits

“The Isthmian Football League strongly supports the FA statement that there should be a zero tolerance approach against racism and all forms of discrimination. Accordingly any form of discriminatory abuse whether it by reason of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion and belief, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, sex and sexual orientation 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).The Isthmian League and all Member Clubs in the League are committed to promoting equality by treating people fairly and with respect, by recognising that inequalities may exist, by taking steps to address them and providing access and opportunities for all members of the community.”

Lewes 2000 FC Limited. Registered in England and Wales with Company Registration Number 03790979. Lewes 2000 FC Limited is 100% owned by Lewes Community Football Club.

Honorary President Terry Parris
Interim Chair Trevor Wells
Directors Priscila Aldridge, Willa Bailey, Tim Bradshaw, Ed Briggs, Andy Gowland, John Peel, Trevor Wells
Chief Executive Officer Maggie Murphy
Club Secretary John Peel
Fan Engagement Manager Shrey Nilvarna
Operations Manager Damian Watts

Life Members
Peter Brook, Dorothy Brook RIP, Vic Blunt, Pat Dartnell, Gary Elphick, Gordon Fowlie, Peter Hiscox RIP, Billy Nixon, Derrick Parris RIP, 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 RIP

Manager Tony Russell
Assistant manager Joe Vines
First team coach Nathan White
First team physio Toni Miller
Goalkeeping coach Charlie Himbury
Match logistics Vikram Dogra
First Team Performance Analyst Henderson Russell
Under-18s Manager Jon Miller

Golden Rook Rob Read
Web Editor Stuart Fuller
Progcast Editor Stan Lahood
Club Photographer James Boyes

TODAY’S QUIZ ANSWERS

1. On this day in 2017 in the 12.15 at Ascot the 37-year-old former England international, Michael Owen, made his debut as a jockey. He lost over a stone in a month to make the weight and rode Calder Prince to second place in the Prince’s Countryside Fund race.
2. First Division Peterborough United beat non-leaguers Kingstonian 9-1 in an FA Cup First Round replay with Tony Philliskirk scoring five of the goals. Both were club records – for a few days anyway until the FA declared the match void and ordered a replay behind closed doors. The reason for the punishment  – Kingstonian ‘keeper Adrian Blake had been hit by a coin thrown from the crowd in the 55th minute and was replaced by an outfield player when the score was just 3-0
3. The first tie to be decided by penalties was the First Round tie between Rotherham and Scunthorpe on Tuesday November 26th 1991 when, after two drawn games, Rotherham won the penalty decider 7-6 at the Millmoor replay.
4. Manchester United bought Eric Cantona from Leeds United for £1.2m
5. Lewes lost 3-1 here at the Pan to Truro City in the FA Trophy.