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

You get:
– Matches LIVE streamed
– One share/one vote
– Discounts in Lewes & online
– Downloadable Share Certificate, Owner’s App and Gift Box

TO BECOME AN OWNER, CLICK HERE: https://lewesfc.com/become-an-owner/

A warm welcome to the Dripping Pan to everyone especially our guests from Kingstonian.

It seems a long time since our last home game at the Pan when nearly two thousand of you good people witnessed the draw against Whitehawk.

Since then the team have been on the road and went more than 180 minutes without scoring a goal. But just like buses two came in quick succession during added time in Tuesdays victory at Canvey. Here is hoping that the goals keep flowing in this afternoon’s game and the Rooks can lay on an entertaining show.

If you head over to the Club website you will see that we will be opening the Dripping pan gates for the bank holiday weekend of May 4th and 5th for a Fenix Trophy extravaganza with funds being raised towards the cost of sending our team to Lake Garda for the final stages of the tournament. Please spread the word and let’s make the weekend a huge fun filled success.

Come on you Rooks!

Trevor

Good afternoon everyone and welcome to today’s fixture against Kingstonian. Here are my thoughts from our recent games

We fell well short of what is acceptable last Saturday, and I don’t remember ever being as angry after a game. We let a lot of people down on Saturday, and it isn’t so much the losing because anyone can do that. It was the manner of it. I did go over and apologise to the fans, but I think that made it worse in a way because they didn’t shout or moan at me; in fact, they thanked me for coming over. That shows how lucky we are to play in front of people like that.
I won’t go into too much info as it is only right. Some things must stay in-house, but the fallout from Saturday wasn’t pretty. Keiran Murtagh has now left the club, and we called the rest of the players to a meeting Monday night. It went on for an hour and a half, and as you can imagine, we had a lot to talk about. One of the things I spoke about is the importance of the fans; for me, they are the most important people at the club, and if you lose them, then you are done, and performances like Saturday are a sure way to speed that process up. I chatted with Will Salmon the other day, and he said how much he misses Lewes. He said you don’t realise how good it is until you leave. That’s what I was pressing home to the players: we are all lucky to be here. Lewes is a special place.
The Canvey game took on so much importance because we had all done a lot of talking following Saturday’s game, so it was time to show it. I told them to go long from goal kicks partly because of the pitch, but also because I wanted us to fight for each inch on that pitch, so us driving the game wasn’t going to give us a chance to do it, so let’s put it in the mix and fight. The Canvey game turned into the perfect test for us. Canvey hadn’t played for ten days, so they were fresh. The pitch wasn’t the best, and we had to make three subs all in the first half due to injury; plus, there was a 25mph wind coming across the pitch. I almost didn’t care if we won or not. If I’m being honest, all we spoke about is keeping a clean sheet and showing fight. In the last two away games, we were 2-0 down at half time, so we said before the game if we scored a goal, great, but we don’t concede. The fullbacks didn’t go on, and two of the midfielders sat in, and we said we would assess it at halftime. It wasn’t pretty, and it won’t go down as the greatest halves of football, but it was so important what we had just done. We were still talking about a clean sheet at halftime and about staying in the fight and that we felt chances would come for us if we stayed in the game. As the half went on, we started to turn the screw, and after their keeper had made two great saves to keep them in it, we finally got the goal. We went on to get a second a few minutes later to cap off a good and very important night.
I read Facebook comments about how Kalvin, apparently after he scored, said sorry to the fans about Saturday, and the rest of the team followed after the final whistle doing the same. Hand on heart, we didn’t tell the players to apologise to the fans; I wouldn’t do that because it would just be empty words, so it brought a smile to my face reading that because I didn’t know that had happened. I’m glad they did it because I know it came from the right place. I don’t want the players to apologise every time we don’t win because that wouldn’t be right. I’m happy because they understood we all let everyone down Saturday, and it’s important to recognise it. They are a good group of people who, if anything, are too nice. I want them to hold each other more accountable during games and training sessions to drive standards rather than it just coming from me and Joe. That’s building a culture, and Saturday was a lesson for many of them that I hope we can learn and grow from. There is a core of 9 in this group who you can build something special around, but if they are lost at the end of the season, you are back to square one. It’s been a long, hard season, maybe the hardest I have had in 14 years of doing this; I feel like I have been firefighting from the moment last season finished. Today’s game will be a lot different, and we have to drive the game for the most part, so a bit of adjustment is needed, but we can still take things from Tuesday; we took pride in protecting Nathan’s goal and that needs to continue. After a hard week on the road on tricky pitches, it is so nice to be home; we can’t wait to see you all. Enjoy the game.

Injury updates:
Arthur spent a lot of the night in A&E having stitches put in the side of his head, and Sam took a blow to the shin, so both are doubtful for the game

Enjoy the game!

Tony

Ten-man Lewes saw their play-off hopes dealt a potentially fatal blow as despite taking the lead three times, they were forced to settle for a point after a 3-3 draw against Kingstonian at the Pan, reports Tom Harper.

Tony Russell made one change to the side that drew 2-2 at Cheshunt in their previous game, with Juevan Spencer replacing the suspended Kenneth Yao in the starting line-up.

There were few chances of note for either side early on, with a comfortable save from Lewis Carey to deny Walter Figueira being the closest either side came to taking the lead during the opening exchanges.

Lewes soon began to take control of the game though, and should arguably have gone in front through Razz Coleman De-Graft, who was just unable to round Julian Schwarzer and finish at the end of a sweeping passing move.

The Rooks took the lead on 27 minutes through Deshane Dalling, who cut in from the left before seeing his powerful strike from the edge of the area fumbled over the line by Schwarzer.

Lewes continued to enjoy the better chances after the break and came close to doubling their lead, Dalling having a strike parried by Schwarzer before De-Graft saw his effort on the rebound blocked.

Kingstonian made the most of this by equalising on 57 minutes through Ollie Cook, who finished at the far post from close range after a corner from the right had been flicked on at the near post.

The game became more stretched at this point, with both sides looking capable of scoring every time they went forward.

Lewes could have regained their lead as Michael Klass saw a close-range strike saved by Schwarzer and from the resulting clearance, substitute Daniel Ajakaiye ran through and saw his cross-shot cleared from almost on the line by Will Salmon.

The Rooks did go back in front on 70 minutes, as excellent play down the right by Dalling ended with the winger crossing for Joe Taylor to head past Schwarzer from inside the six-yard box.

Lewes had the visitors on the ropes and Schwarzer was forced into a smart save to keep out a powerful strike from Ollie Tanner which seemed destined for the far corner.

Once again, Kingstonian made Lewes pay by levelling the scores on 76 minutes. Figueira was the scorer, finishing low past Carey from the edge of the box after good play down the left by Ajakaiye.

The Rooks were dealt a major blow with four minutes remaining, as Mitchell Nelson was shown a second yellow card for a rash challenge in midfield, leaving Lewes to look for a winner with ten men.

To their credit, Lewes kept their heads up and nearly went in front for a third time through Tanner, who saw a strike hit the inside of the post after being teed up by De-Graft.

The Rooks kept the loose ball alive, and were then awarded a penalty when Taylor Maloney was fouled just inside the box at the start of injury-time.

Taylor took the penalty and sent Schwarzer the wrong way from the spot to give the ten men of Lewes the lead for a third time, sending the home fans into raptures.

Lewes managed the game well for the majority of injury-time but disaster struck with the final meaningful action of the game in the 97th minute, as a Kingstonian cross from the left was inadvertently headed past Carey by Michael Klass to level the scores and leave the Rooks three points adrift of the play-off places with only two games remaining.

Lewes: Carey, Spencer, Carlse (Tanner 62), Salmon, Nelson, Pettit (Phipp 74), Klass, Pritchard (Maloney 62), Dalling, De-Graft, Taylor.

Unused Subs: Olukoga, Addy.

Booked: Spencer, Nelson, Taylor, Phipp.

Sent off: Nelson.

Kingstonian: Schwarzer, Clunis (Samuels 57), Cooper, Young, Cook, Beaney, Addai (Pearch 77), Sow, Figueira, Theobalds, Kurtaran (Ajakaiye 57).

Unused Subs: Ebuzoeme, Whitnell.

Booked: Cooper, Beaney, Kurtaran.

Attendance: 1,021

Lewes FC launches fundraiser to help get the men’s team to the Fenix Trophy finals in Italy!

Today Lewes FC shares details of a club fundraiser to help cover the men’s trip to Italy to compete in the finals of the Fenix Trophy, taking place in Lake Garda, May 10-12.

Whether by sipping on a pitch-side Aperol spritz, donning a special edition bucket hat, chaperoning kids to play in youth football festival at the Pan or dusting off your boots to be on the team sheet itself out in Italy there are many ways fans can contribute.  

There are three main ways you can help (and you can take part in all three!). 

• Donations and Rewards

By making a donation to the cause, you can pick up a special edition bucket hat, cap or t-shirt. See all donation and merch offers here. 

You can also purchase specific once in a lifetime opportunities – such as being a mascot, being part of the playing squad itself, or nabbing a limited-edition embroidered match worn shirt. Head over here to check out the offers. 

• Youth 5 a-side Football Festival

On Saturday May 4, the Dripping Pan will host a youth 5 a-side tournament for age groups from U7s all the way up to U15s, overseen by Tony and Joe and refereed by our own first team players! Team tickets will open on Tuesday next week so get them while they last. Aside from on-pitch tekkers, the day will see plenty of food and drink options as well as fun football themed competitions. Team tickets will be available from Tuesday but anyone can drop in on the day to see how it’s going!

• Festa Italia

Kicking off the Bank Holiday in style, the Dripping Pan will host an Italian-themed festa, ‘Birra Magnifica’, on the evening of Friday May 3rd, showcasing and celebrating the best of our local breweries, cider mills and distilleries – come to sample a range of Sussex beers, spirits and Italian cocktails, and enjoy a variety of super fresh Italian food offerings whilst dancing to DJ Beach coming all the way from Brighton! 

And since this is a big weekend, what better way to cap it off than a big Picnic on the Pan, on Sunday May 5th, 11am-3pm. With food and drink options available, bring a blanket and enjoy the Bank holiday sunshine (fingers crossed!). This is your chance to experience the pitch up close and a free for all kick around. 

We will have stalls dotted about in the grounds, so if you fancy a little light shopping or browsing, we’ve got that too! 

Get this in your diary now – tickets and more details available soon. 

Finally, if you want to make a no strings attached donation to help send the team to Italy and make club history, you can do here and we will be very very grateful! 

Many of the above are limited in number – when they’re gone they’re gone, so get in quick!

Ci vediamo lì!

• The Kingstonian club came into being in 1919 as a result of the merger between Kingston Town FC and Old Kingstonians FC. However, the club can trace its origins even further back and celebrated its centenary in 1985; the reason for this is that one of its forerunners, Kingston & Surbiton YMCA FC played its first match on a ground in Bushy Park in November 1885. In 1887 the YMCA changed its name to Saxons FC. Then in 1890 it changed to Kingston Wanderers FC and once again to Kingston-on-Thames Association Football Club (KAFC) in 1893. Unfortunately, in the early 1900s there was trouble in the camp and in 1908 the club split in two with Kingston Town playing at Norbiton Sports Ground and Old Kingstonians on what became known as the “back pitch” at Richmond Road.
• At the beginning of the 1997-98 season, the club appointed Geoff Chapple as manager. He brought about an exciting change of fortune for the club. In his first season, he took the club to the Isthmian League Premier Division Championship. In the following season, their first in the Football Conference, the club finished a creditable 8th, but they capped it all off by winning the FA Trophy at Wembley in May 1999 with a 1-0 victory over Forest Green Rovers. The following season 1999/2000, in the last FA Trophy Final between the famous Twin Towers, the K’s retained their title with an exciting 3-2 win over Kettering Town, giving Chapple his 5th FA Trophy Final win in seven seasons (the other three with Woking). The club also reached their highest position of 5th in the Conference.
• However, season 2000/2001 proved to be extremely mixed. The K’s made the headlines again with a tremendous run in the FA Cup. A home win against Devizes Town was the start of an incredible run that saw the K’s defeat Brentford, Southport and Southend United all away from home. In the Fourth Round, K’s were thwarted in the last kick of the game at Ashton Gate as Bristol City scored a very last gasp equaliser before winning the replay at Kingsmeadow in a live televised match. Unfortunately, the club’s league form proved to be exactly the opposite, as the K’s finished next to bottom and were relegated back to the Ryman Football League.
• At the beginning of the 2018-19 season, Kingstonian moved back to the Royal Borough of Kingston-upon-Thames and started a ground share with Corinthian-Casuals at King George’s Field. A difficult season saw K’s have three managers, as Leigh Dynan was replaced by Dean Brennan and then very quickly by stand-in manager Kim Harris – K’s moved from second place in the table on New Year’s Day to escaping relegation by a single place after a horror run of results.
• The 2019-20 season may have been curtailed by the COVID-19 pandemic, but new manager Hayden Bird’s arrival gave the club an enormous boost, and the K’s supporters were rewarded amply with fine runs in both the FA Cup and the FA Trophy – the club reached the First Round of the FA Cup for the first time since 2000-01, and defeated Macclesfield Town 4-0 at Moss Rose in Round One before bowing out in Round Two at home to AFC Fylde on a day that saw the club host that afternoon’s edition of BBC Football Focus. Their FA Trophy run also ended in Round Two but was most notable for a fine 3-1 victory over Alan Dowson’s Woking team at King George’s Field. The 2020-21 season was curtailed even more than the previous season, ending in November with K’s sitting in fourth position in the Premier Division.
• The 2021-22 season started out extremely well, with K’s topping the Premier Division for a lengthy period before Christmas, but form then disappeared, and the club had to settle for an ultimately disappointing tenth place and a place in the Surrey Senior Cup Final, which was lost on penalties to Dorking Wanderers after a 1-1 draw. During the summer, the club moved temporary home once again, this time to Imperial Fields at Tooting and Mitcham United, and Lee O’Leary was appointed manager after the resignation of Hayden Bird. A difficult season ensued, Lee O’Leary stepped down due to personal reasons, to be replaced by Spencer Knight, who also resigned for personal reasons a couple of months later and was replaced by former Westfield manager Simon Lane, who saved the club from relegation.

Eddie Dsane

Eddie Dsane originally played for Kingstonian in the 2019-20 season, making 17 appearances including his debut against Merstham on 7th December and scoring three goals. A former Crystal Palace junior, Eddie moved to Ireland in 2017 and played for Longford Town and Finn Harps before returning to England in 2018 and having spells with Chipstead, Whyteleafe, Maldon & Tiptree and Leatherhead before his time with K’s. After leaving Kingstonian, Eddie joined Horsham in September 2021, had a brief spell with Margate in September 2022 and returned to Horsham two months later. Dsane, now back at Kingstonian, has scored 23 goals so far this season.

RECENT HEAD TO HEAD

16th Aug 2023	Isthmian Premier League	Kingstonian	1	Lewes	3
7th Dec 2022	Isthmian Premier League	Kingstonian	1	Lewes	3
16th Apr 2022	Isthmian Premier League	Lewes	3	Kingstonian	3
3rd Jan 2022	Isthmian Premier League	Kingstonian	2	Lewes	2
7th Mar 2020	Isthmian Premier League	Lewes	1	Kingstonian	2
16th Nov 2019	Isthmian Premier League	Kingstonian	3	Lewes	1

Kingstonian League Stats Away From Home:

• Conceded the second most amount of goals in the last 15 minutes (8)
• Haven’t won away all season
• Scored 53, but conceded 92, the most in the league.

We asked Lewes fans “What was your favourite Sussex Derby game this season, and why?” Here are their responses…

“Whitehawk away in the league” – Ollie Smith

“Hastings away, superb vibes” – Harvey Lock

“Whitehawk limbs” – James Campbell

“Bognor, classic and always exciting” – Liam

“Whitehawk away win!!!” – Ollie Horton

“Away to Hastings. Their ‘welcoming’ fans made the win very satisfying” – Chris Sallis

“Hastings and Whitehawk both away. Memorable for the wins and the Rooks fans celebrating” – Dave

“Hastings away! Bad pitch, great win. Big crowd, lots of Lewes fans, we made a lot of noise!” – Chris Roberts

“Horsham vs Lewes, away fans were class and Archie Tamplin” – Tim Greenyer

“Hastings away nothing comes close” – Fin Smith

“Hastings good day out and great limbs” – Gus

“Horsham away, industrial estate pints, missing kick off due to road works and a Rooks masterclass” – Ben Cook

“Either Hastings or Horsham away. Big wins, great limbs, fantastic away support” – Perry Anderson

“Whitehawk away (league)” – Ollie Audis

A second-half equaliser from Marcus Sablier saw Lewes come from behind to earn a hard-fought point against local rivals Whitehawk in front of a HUGE crowd at the Pan.

There were few chances of note for either side in a quiet first half, the first of the half-chances created falling to Joey Taylor, who saw his powerful strike from a tight angle saved by Nathan Harvey.

Lewes’ best chance of the half came from a set-piece, as a deep Sablier corner from the left picked out Arthur Penney at the far post, and he saw his header deflected behind by a combination of Mitch Walker in the Whitehawk goal and a covering defender.

The visitors were pressing high and making it difficult for Lewes to play their usual patient passing game at the back.

This high press led to a presentable chance just before the break, with Charlie Harris winning the ball on the edge of the penalty area and Rob O’Toole scuffing his effort straight at Harvey.

Whitehawk took the lead four minutes into the second half, as Charlie Walker saw his powerful strike from just outside the box take a wicked deflection and loop over Harvey but just under the bar to spark jubilant scenes among the away fans behind the goal.

Lewes equalised almost immediately, Mitch Walker getting down low to his left to turn an Ayo Olukoga strike round the post.

Harvey was called into action at the other end minutes later to keep Lewes in the game, making a superb stop to deny Charlie Walker at the end of an incisive counter-attack, before keeping out Hamish Morrison’s attempt on the rebound.

The introduction of Kalvin Lumbombo-Kalala had immediately given Lewes more of a cutting edge going forward, but it was Chris Whelpdale who came close to an unorthodox equaliser, seeing his overhit cross from the left touched over the bar by Mitch Walker.

Walker was then forced into a double-save of his own minutes later, reacting superbly to turn a deflected Lumbombo-Kalala strike onto the post before denying Whelpdale from a tight angle on the rebound.

Lewes finally scored the equaliser their pressure had been threatening on 74 minutes, as a spell of possession ended with Lumbombo-Kalala firing a powerful cross-shot in from the right for Sablier to apply the finishing touch from close range.

Both sides pushed for the winner they could justifiably claim their spells of pressure at different stages of the game had deserved, with Harvey making another fine save to tip a long-range strike from Harris over the bar, before substitute Walter Figueira crossed for Sablier to volley wide at the other end.

Lewes came closest to finding an equaliser late on, hitting the post from close range deep into injury-time, but were forced to settle for a point that was arguably a fair result on the balance of play.

Lewes: Harvey, Ming, Elliott, Penney, Oguntayo, Olukoga, Pritchard (Tamplin 55), Sablier, Gondoh (Lumbombo-Kalala 56), Ogunwamide (Figueira 68), Whelpdale.

Unused Subs: Vint, Briscoe.

Booked: Whelpdale.

Whitehawk: M. Walker, Morrison, Taylor, Brewer (Worrall 25), Tennent, Cocoracchio, Daly, Harris O’Toole, C. Walker (Nandhra 86), Kayani.

Unused Subs: Jennings, Malins, Lambert.

Booked: O’Toole.

Attendance: 1,975

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

ON THIS DAY IN FOOTBALL HISTORY – 13th APRIL

Over the hills and far away

There’s a myth that Denmark has no hills.  Flat as a pancake goes the story, but don’t believe that.  During my time living in Copenhagen, I once came across such a steep decline that someone was dry skiing down it.  I found out later it was man-made and so the story remained true.

Less than an hour after arriving in Vejle I could faithfully say that I’d busted the myth, as I sat halfway up a very steep incline in the Nørreskoven (“Old Forest”) on my way up to Vejle Stadium.  I wouldn’t say I was at peak fitness but twice a week trips to the gym to work on my cardio meant running up the stairs at home no longer left me panting like a dog.  But this was different gravy. 

Thanks to issues at Stansted with freezing fog then an unwillingness for the ground staff to do their job, my flight to the global HQ of Lego, Billund, smack-bang in the middle of the Jutland peninsula departed almost 3 hours late, the knock-on effect was I had less time to explore Vejle.

Not many people head for Vejle, Denmark’s 9th biggest city.  The whole city could go to a game in the London Stadium at the same time and still bring a friend or two, but that would be a really cruel punishment for anyone guilty of simply wanting to live on the east coast of Jutland.  Once known as the Manchester of Denmark, for its cotton mills rather than the guns, it is a compact city with decent transport links in all directions.  Rising to the north and south of the city are the forested hills, remnants of the ice age, that plunge steeply into the Vejle Fjord.  And it was on the north face of the hill I was currently “resting” on.

From my view point I could see the floodlights through the trees ahead and down the hill were the Bølgen, the iconic wave housing blocks that are one of the defining sights of the city.  I had to push on, with less than 30 minutes to kick off.  I wasn’t alone – a few other fans were feeling the effects, but we pushed through, leaving no man behind and finally, we made it.

The Vejle Stadium, opened in 2008, sits atop the hill, surrounded by the old forest.  It’s smart, functional with a modest capacity of 11,000.  The ground is not dissimilar to many others you’d see around the European top leagues – three stands that wrap around in uniformity, with the main stand housing the posh seats and hospitality lounge.

The stadium doesn’t give any real clues to the glorious history of the club that happened BC.  In Danish footballing terms, BC is 1992, the year that FC Copenhagen were formed by a merger of KB and B1903 and the subsequent relocation to Parken, the national stadium.  Even the league’s second biggest club, Brøndby IF, didn’t exist before 1964.  Vejle started life as a cricket team back in 1891 before realising there was no teams to play and converted to football in 1902. 

In 1977 former youth prodigy Allan Simonsen and a member of the famous Danish Championship winning sides of 1971 and 1972 because the first, and only Dane, to win the prestigious European Footballer of the Year award.  The club went on to win the title again in 1978 and 1984, before finishing runners up in 1996-97, the nearest the have got to any honours since the creation of FC Copenhagen.

In today’s modern Danish SuperLiga, every season is a challenge for Vejle, and other clubs of a similar size such as Viborg, Hvidovre and Randers.  They returned to the topflight in the summer and came into the game second from bottom, with just 15 points.  Today’s visitors Silkeborg were enjoying another good season, happy in 6^th place and had the support of a few hundred noisy fans who took up their spot on the east terrace behind the goal.

My email request for a press pass got slightly lost in translation as when I arrived I was handed a photographer’s bib and directed to pitch side.  Armed with just my iPhone I looked slightly out of place but wasn’t going to turn a gift horse in the mouth and spent the first half roving around the edge of the pitch with imposter syndrome trying to avoid getting in the way of the TV cameras, the bench and the ad boards.

My interest in Vejle peaked when Nathan Trott trotted out for the warmup.  The on-loan West Ham keeper had quickly become a favourite of the Crazy Reds, the hardcore Vejle fans since joining in 2022, the only English export on the field for both sides. 

The away side started strongly and were awarded a penalty on the half-hour mark when the ball appeared to hit the hand of Gundeland.  The referee played on and then appeared to receive a “word in his ear” that it was a penalty.  He pointed to the spot then was called to the pitchside monitor, where he changed the decision once again – no penalty.

Gundeland then played a figurative hand in the next attacking move that led to the home side’s opening goal, flicking the ball in from the right for the Greek Emmanouilidis, being watched by a scout from Panathinaikos, who I was chatting to before the game, to smash home at the near post.

I retreated to the main stand in the second half, grabbing one of the free blankets that everyone seemed to have.  The temperature had dropped significantly but the performance of the home side warmed up the majority of the 7,859 crowd.  The away side almost equalised when a shot from Tonni Adamsen’s shot hit the post and rolled across the line.  Then Trott pulled off a superb save from Thordarson.   Just when it looked as if an equaliser had to come, home side sealed the 3 points in the 79th minute when Raúl Albentosa turned in a loose ball from a corner.  Silkeborg had their chance to get back into the game two minutes later when Sonne brought down Onugkha in the area, but Nicolai Larson missed the spot kick.  Three valuable points for the home side secured.

What goes up, must come down and so my journey back to the city centre was much swifter down the hill and onto the train for a trip north to Århus for game two of a Danish Double.

ON THE ROAD TO…HARINGEY BOROUGH

How was last season?
Haringey’s season started poorly, taking just one point from their opening three games, then stabilised, so much so that in the second half of the season they never rose above 13^th, and only dropped below 15^th for one week.  They never troubled any of the promotion-chasing sides but were always too good for the teams at the bottom – a hallmark of consistency! 

After finishing in the Play-offs in their first season at Step 3 in 2019, they’ve struggled to break into the top half of the table.  With a limited budget and so much local competition for players it will be tough for them to challenge this season.  But it’s a decent day out and the club have some excellent supporters who travel away in numbers and make some noise.

Isthmian Premier League – 15^th – P 42 W 13 D 12 L 17 GS 67 GA 75 GD -8 PTS 51

• FA Cup – First Qualifying Round – Maldon & Tiptree (A) 1-2
• FA Trophy – First Qualifying Round – Billericay Town (H) 1-3
• London Senior Cup – Finalists – Charlton Athletic (A) 3-5
• Isthmian League Cup – Quarter Final – Potters Bar Town (A) 1-3

When did we last meet Haringey Borough?
The Rooks did the double over Haringey last season, with a hard-fought victory in North London and a walk in the park in April.  In the first meeting in December it was the home side who took the lead in the 10^th minute thanks to William Dupray but TQ Addy stole in to equalise and score his first goal for the club.  Razz Coleman De-Graft pulled another long-range special out of the bag to give the Rooks all three points in the 51^st minute.

In the final home game of the season in front of a bumper 1,300 crowd Lewes scored three goals in the opening 17minutes in April thanks to Razz Coleman De-Graft (yep, another special), Joe Taylor and a fantastic team move finished off by Jaydn Mundle-Smith.  Archie Tamplin scored his first for the club in the last minute to cap off a comprehensive victory.

Our last six meetings

W 5 D 1 L 0 GS 15 GA 6

About Coles Park
The ground is slowly being developed by the ambitious owners, including the installation of a 3G pitch,  but it is still a one-sided affair with the main stand which can seat around 300 straddling the half-way line and offering good views of the game, whilst just to the side of this stand is a covered terrace.  Apart from that it is hard standing on the three other sides with very little in the way of shade.  There is a decent sized clubhouse behind the main stand and some excellent food options from a pop-up stand in between the main stand and the covered terrace

How to get to Coles Park
It doesn’t matter which way you choose to get to Coles Park, you will encounter traffic as you try to navigate towards North London.  Head up the A23/M23 and then anti-clockwise around the M25.  Now you have to make a choice.  Either head under the Thames through the Dartford Tunnel and continue around the M25 to junction 25 then head south on the A10 through Enfield until you hit the junction with the A406 North Circular Road OR M25 to junction 2, head London-bound on the A2, through the Blackwall Tunnel, A12 northwards then join the A406 at the Redbridge Roundabout and follow anti-clockwise until the junction with the A10.

Follow the A10 south towards Central London for around a mile and then take a right into White Hart Lane.  The ground is on your left-hand side.  There is a large car park in the ground as well as plenty of street parking if you continue down White Hart Lane and take any of the roads on the left.  It is around 90 minutes from Lewes and a driving time of around 2 hours 15 minutes accounting for the poor traffic.

The nearest train station is probably White Hart Lane, which is a 20-odd minute walk.  Simply head out of the station and turn left into White Hart Lane (don’t get confused by the brand-spanking new Tottenham Hotspur ground).  Alternatively, the nearest tube is Wood Green which is about a mile away.  Exit station and take a left onto Lordship Lane, then a left into Perth Road.  Follow this all the way until it meets White Hart Lane and then a right and the ground is 250 metres on the right.

Admission at Coles Park
Admission is £10 for adults, £5 for concessions (senior citizens and students), and accompanied under 16s admitted free of charge.  

Fancy a beer?
The nearest pub to the ground is The Two Brewers in Scotland Green which doesn’t appear to have much of a choice of beers, whilst the Victoria just a couple of doors away is not a bad option.  The nearest Wetherspoons is the Spouter’s Corner, on Spouter’s Corner which is close to Wood Green tube station.  The Bohem Tap Room is highly recommended but a good 20-minute walk from the ground in Myddleton Road, N22.

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
Chair Trevor Wells
Directors Priscila Aldridge, Jen Kerrison, Tom McJennett, Joe Short, Stan Lahood, Steve Watts, John Peel, Trevor Wells, Ben Hall
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. Luton Town defeated Bristol Rovers 12-0 in a Division 3 (South) match. In his first match as a centre-forward Joe Payne scored 10 of the goals which is still the most goals any player has scored in a League match.
2. Fergie came out with some great excuses for poor Manchester United displays with one of the most bizarre coming at half-time in the Premier League match against Southampton at the Dell on April 13th 1996. He blamed the 3-0 deficit at the break on the grey kit United were wearing saying that his players couldn’t pick each other out against the background of the crowd. He ordered them to change into a blue strip for the second half and to be fair United scored the only goal in the second period.
3. Chesterfield reached the semi-final of the FA Cup and were up against Middlesbrough at Old Trafford. The match was a classic. Middlesbrough had a player sent off in a goalless first half. Chesterfield took a 2-0 second half lead before Middlesbrough pulled one back. Then a major controversy, A Chesterfield shot hit the underside of the crossbar and appeared to cross the line – but it was disallowed. Instead of being 3-1 down Middlesbrough made it 2-2 with a penalty and took a 3-2 lead in injury time. Chesterfield then scored in the last minute to draw 3-3. Sadly though Chesterfield were well beaten – 3-0 – in the replay at Hillsborough.
4. In the first ever international match at Wembley England drew 1-1 with Scotland in front of a disappointingly low crowd of 37,250.
5. Wearing the Number 3 shirt for Lewes on that day was Charles Banya.