Soccer Shorts: Fans' outrage as players refuse to donate their wages back to the club

Tonight’s Soccer Shorts brings you news from Bromley, Margate, Ashford Town, Ramsgate, Sittingbourne, Dartford, Whitstable Town, Beckenham Town, Slade Green and Thamesmead Town.

FANS of Blue Square South club Bromley are outraged that “a minority” of their players have refused to “donate” their wages back to the club - to allow fans to watch the visit of Braintree Town tomorrow free of charge - following two heavy defeats this month.

Bromley have suffered two 6-1 defeats during February; a league game at Hayes & Yeading and against tenants Cray Wanderers in the semi-finals of the Kent Senior Cup in midweek.

A statement issued by the club on it’s website at www.bromleyfc.net, said: “Following the embarrassing showing against Cray Wanderers on Tuesday, the players were invited to donate their wages for the week to pay for the fans to enter the Braintree Town match on Saturday.

“The club cannot afford to admit everyone for free on the day and pay the team but with all the players’ co-operation would have been happy to allow free entry.

“The Football Conference agreed to waive the minimum admission charge for the game but after discussions at training last night a minority of the squad declined the offer.

“The club is very disappointed that these players have rejected this chance to make a suitable gesture to the fans who watched them lose 6-1 twice in February.”

MARGATE player-manager Robin Trott is relishing tomorrow’s visit to Bourne Park to tackle Maidstone United.

A last-gasp Andy Martin tap-in ensured the Stones won the return match at Hartsdown Park earlier in the season, and Trott, speaking to www.margate-fc.com recalled: “They got an unbelievable result against us last time; 3-1 up and we lose 4-3.

He added: “Derby games are always great but we owe them one and we want to get back to winning ways.”

ANYONE who was at Homelands in September to see Jimmy Bottle jump off the bench to superbly lob Ashford Town into the lead against Tooting & Mitcham would have realised that the club had found a gem. Performances since have simply confirmed it.

Bottle has taken the Ryman League Division One South by storm this season by showing lightning pace and a goal-scoring prowess, and the 18-year-old winger is enjoying the tough induction to first-team action.

“It’s been physically tough stepping up from the reserves but it’s been brilliant,” Bottle told www.ashfordtownfc.co.uk.

“Finally the team is really coming together and it’s great to be a part of that. I know I need to develop the physical side of my game but I’m happy to be doing that here at Homelands.

The fleet-footed attacker was given his debut by former Ashford Town manager Clive Walker after impressing in the newly formed reserve team led by Ernie Batten.

And after being thrown into a struggling team Bottle is enjoying the changes that Steve Lovell has made since his arrival.

“We are certainly playing a better style of football. The gaffer asks us to get the ball on the deck and play attractive football,” said Bottle.

“Earlier on in the season we were hoofing it upfield too much and weren’t really getting anywhere. Now, with a solid backline aswell, we are more confident and feel as though we can compete against the top sides like Dover.”

Ashford still harbour slight hopes of making the play-offs this season and Bottle genuinely believes they are in with a chance.

He said: “Hopefully we can sneak into the play-offs, we need to go on a great run but we are confident enough now to do that. If we just miss out I’m sure that we will be pushing for automatic promotion next season. With the team we are building we will be up their.”

With young left footed wingers a rarity in England, Bottle is certainly someone to keep an eye on at the moment but for precocious talent he is concentrating only on Ashford.

“I’m really happy where I am at the moment and am just enjoying playing football. With the board and the management we have now got the club are going in the right direction and we will be looking for success.”

RAMSGATE sponsors Airport Connections have kindly agreed to lay on a coach for the club’s supporters to travel to the Ryman League Cup semi-final at Walton Casuals next Tuesday.

The team coach will be leaving at 4pm and subject to sufficient numbers an additional coach for supporters will leave at 5pm.

However, vouchers to travel free of charge to Walton-on-Thames will be available at the Carshalton Athletic match tomorrow.

RICKY SPILLER is expected to return to Ryman League Division One South club Sittingbourne and if he does will join his brother Lee, whose on loan from Ashford Town, at Bourne Park.

The Brickies who travel to Molesey tomorrow have unveiled that defender Toby Ashmore looks set to sign for Kent League side Deal Town following his recent departure.

WALTHAM FOREST visit Princes Park tomorrow with the statistic that they’ve already registered 107 players this season and are now on their fourth manager!

Dartford, table topping the Ryman League Division One North table prepare for the Princes Park clash in confident manner, having had two training sessions this week.

“Our opponents have had a bit of a rough time lately off the field with the chairman and managers leaving but now they have a manager in place who has got a couple of good results in the last few games,” warned Darts boss Tony Burman, when speaking to www.dartfordfc.co.uk.

“Regardless of anyone’s position in this league we will approach the game in the same way, although we have ten games left the most important one is tomorrow.

“Whether we put in a good or bad performance we want three points at the end of the game and believe me we will do our best go get them.”

Striker Jay May has still got to complete two games of his suspension and midfielder Eddie McClements is still unfit.

But Mark Green, Yohance Lewis, Dave Moore and Brad Potter all played 90 minutes for the under 21s in midweek.

Burman added: “I have been making some enquiries about players coming in but this has not come off yet. Having said that I am more than happy with the squad I have got.”

WHITSTABLE TOWN have begun the search for a new kit person after Bruce Smith and his wife Conney have decided to call it a day.

The pair have been washing the kit for the last fifteen years and the time has come to hand the job to someone new.

“There are a lot of people who want to help at a football club and its time for me to hand the job to someone new,” Mr Smith told www.whitstabletownfc.co.uk.

“This is one of the most important jobs at the club, we mix with the players and management liaise with them over fixtures and generally organise the kit around the team.

“They are a smashing bunch of lads and we take great pride in seeing them running out onto the pitch in nice freshly laundered kit.”

Mr Smith has held many positions at Whitstable Town during his time at the Belmont Road club he has been vice chairman, club secretary, fixtures secretary and groundsman.

He said that he waited 45 years for promotion, and right up to the last game he could not believe it was real: “I still pinch myself when I think that we are a Ryman Club, after all the years I have been around the club I was thrilled when Marc Seager and the lads won the Kent League and last week was the icing on the cake we went to my old club Dulwich Hamlet and they really looked after Conney and myself.

"For us to play them in the same league after all this time was special I can tell you.”

Bruce will continue to look after the pich together with Joe. Anyone interested in doing the kit please contact vice chairman Joe Brownett at the ground tomorrow for the visit of Cray Wanderers - or ask any committee member.

A SEASON’S hard work for Beckenham Town boss Jason Huntley and coach Billy Hughes starts to mount towards its climax during March - starting with tomorrow's Kent Senior Trophy Semi Final against Greenwich Borough.

It's fair to say that the Gavin Rose\Junior Kadi managerial partnership has not been an easy act to follow for Huntley and Hughes.

However, their current second place in the Kent League combined with semi-final dates in both the League Cup and Kent Trophy leaves them on the brink of a silverware haul that Rose and Kadi couldn’t match.

A growing confidence has spread through the current Beckenham squad which is borne out by the fact that apart from their defeat against Ryman League Leyton in the London Senior Cup they are unbeaten in all competitions since December 2007.

It’s an impressive record which Becks will be keen to preserve against their South London neighbours tomorrow.

Greenwich, on the other hand, may well view a place in the Kent Senior Trophy final as some small consolation to balance the disappointment of their recent exit from the last 16 of the FA Vase.

All the ingredients add up to what should be an encounter of the very closest kind. The sides have already met twice this season in the Kent League with a 1-1 draw on the opening Saturday of the season at Harrow Meadow and a narrow 2-1 victory for Becks at Eden Park Avenue in December.

Beckenham Town may not have featured in Saturday's Match of the Day on BBC1. However, you could have spotted a former Beckenham Town striker in the action thriller that followed Saturday's programme.

Former Becks striker Adrian Paul headed the cast as Duncan MacLeod in Highlander: Endgame.

The striker, who played for Becks in their London Spartan League days, has had a string of Cinema and TV hits since going to Hollywood.

SLADE GREEN are delighted to announce the signing of yet another former academy player Rhett Bernstein.

The American born player was previously on the books of Millwall and recently been on trial with Ryman League Division One South giants Kingstonian.

He made his debut in last Saturday’s Kent League match against Greenwich Borough, where he picked up the man-of-the-match award.

Meanwhile, striker Raphael Akala has parted company with the Small Glen club to join Greenwich Borough, after scoring six goals from 14 appearances last season.

Another player who has decided to move on is former Dartford player Javal Stewart due to limited first team opportunities.

THAMESMEAD TOWN boss Keith McMahon is delighted to unveil the signing of former Cray Wanderers full-back Junior Baker.

“He’s a big signing for us, who brings experience of playing at a higher level and scores goals from the back,” McMahon told www.thamesmeadtownfc.co.uk.

Baker began the season at Cray Wanderers but left to sign for their Ryman League Division One South rivals Dulwich Hamlet in December 2007.

Meanwhile, remedial work continues at Mead’s Bayliss Avenue ground with the erection of the perimeter fence.

Articles courtesy of club websites:

www.bromleyfc.net

www.margate-fc.com

www.ashfordtownfc.co.uk

www.ramsgate-fc.co.uk

www.sittingbournefc.co.uk

www.dartfordfc.co.uk

www.whitstabletownfc.co.uk

www.beckenhamtownfc.co.uk

www.clubwebsite.co.uk/sladegreenfc/

www.thamesmeadtownfc.co.uk