Magic Wands take to the road to celebrate success

Friday 08th May 2009

CRAY WANDERERS chairman Gary Hillman has revealed that the club will be celebrating their promotion to the Ryman Premier League in style with an open-top bus parade on Saturday, 23rd May, writes Stephen McCartney.

The Magic Wands' completed their Ryman League Division One South campaign in a record breaking second place, but capped off their campaign with play-off wins over Worthing and Metropolitan Police.

Stunning strikes from Jamie Wood and Simon Osborn secured 1-0 wins at Hayes Lane and Ian Jenkins' men claimed the second promotion spot alongside champions Kingstonian.

And the long-serving chairman will make sure that everyone can celebrate the club's most successful campaign.

"It's a great way to celebrate and to kick off our 150 Years celebrations in 2010," Mr Hillman told www.craywands.co.uk.

"As the club has been playing at Bromley FC for ten years, it is important to remember our roots and to get the local (Cray) community involved.

"They can also, hopefully, look forward to our planned return to The Cray’s in 2014 at Sandy Lane (St Paul's Cray)."

This will be the first such parade by Cray Wanderers in living memory, and with promotion to a higher level of football coming just at the right time for the 150-years-in-exsistence anniversary, the open-top bus ideas must be seen as an excellent initiative.

Mr Hillman added, "Everyone is welcome to turn out and celebrate with us on the designated route and pick-up points."

The route and pick-up points are as follows:

11:00 Meet Conservative Club, Oxford Road, Sidcup Hill

Drive through Sidcup High Street

12:00 The Bull Inn, St Mary Cray

12:30 The Broomwood, St Paul's Cray

Drive through Cotmandene Crescent

13:00 Mary Rose Inn, St Mary Cray

Drive through Orpington High Street

American Light Lunch at El Macs

14:30 The Bull, Chislehurst

15:00 The Queens Head, Chislehurst High Street

15:30 Mottingham Playing Fields

Drive through Eltham High Street

16:30 Jolly Fenman, Blackfen

17:00 Kings Head, Bexley High Street

18:00 Return to Conservative Club, Oxford Road, Sidcup Hill - the club's traditional home

The last Kent non-league club to celebrate this way were Ebbsfleet United 12 months ago, who paraded their heroic FA Carlsberg Trophy winning team on an open-top bus around Gravesham, after Liam Daish's side defeated Torquay United 1-0 at Wembley Stadium exactly a year ago tomorrow.

Visit Cray Wanderers' website: www.craywands.co.uk