Kent club's left frustrated as cold snap wipes out entire football programme

Saturday 18th December 2010

BECKENHAM TOWN secretary Peter Palmer says he feels frustrated as the club’s FA Carlsberg Vase Third Round tie against King’s Lynn Town was postponed for the third time, writes Stephen McCartney.

ARTICLE ALSO INCLUDES PIECES ON MARGATE, TONBRIDGE ANGELS AND MAIDSTONE UNITED

Every single football match in Kent this weekend was postponed due to the second cold snap of the season and the Kent League club will now have to wait until 8 January 2011 to see if their clash against the Linnets will go ahead at Eden Park Avenue at the fourth attempt.

Last Saturday afternoon, the long-serving stalwart swiftly re-arranged a home league game against Fisher for the Monday evening, so that influential midfield pair Danny Lawson and Nick Curren could play against King’s Lynn today.

However, the move backfired as only 33 people watched Fisher come away with a 2-1 win to end a seven-match losing streak.

“We had high expectations as well,” Mr Palmer told www.kentishfootball.co.uk. “Earlier in the week, as you know, we played Fisher. The pitch was perfect on Thursday and come to Friday it was fine.

“Last night’s defrost, with the forthcoming snow, the referee decided that it was too far for King’s Lynn to even start making the journey.

“We’re very frustrated as it could have been a decent crowd this time of Christmas.”

Mr Palmer revealed the financial cost of yet another postponement is not too bad.

“We’ve got no budget so that always helps,” he said. “Clubs have contract players and they always have problems (as they will have to pay players when games are postponed), but we’ve got no budget, which always helps us.

“It’s just rent to the council and rates that always have to be found, but you’ve just got to battle on like any other club.”

“Hopefully we end up having a game in before we play King’s Lynn. Our next home game is that game on the 8th. We’ve got an away game (in the London Senior Cup) this Tuesday at Barking and we’ve got an away game (at Erith & Belvedere) on Boxing Day.

“We might have Epsom & Ewell (in the Surrey Senior Cup) on 1st January, but at the moment it’s not been confirmed.

“We’re just as frustrated as any other club, but you just have to grin and bear it because no-one can know what this weather’s going to do. You can always get away with it with rain as you can play through wet pitches but you can’t play through this - you just have to get on with it really.”

MARGATE’S home Ryman Premier League clash against Hendon fell victim to a frozen pitch at Hartsdown Park this morning.

Club secretary Ken Tomlinson told www.kentishfootball.co.uk: “The pitch is like concrete. We’ve had no snow (over-night), it’s just been snowing hard (this morning) and it’s forecast snow showers all day now and the pitch itself is absolutely frozen solid. The temperature is not going to rise. All in all it’s a bit of a naughty one again, isn’t it?”

Only one game took place on 4 December - when Ramsgate defeated Eastbourne Town 3-0 at Southwood Stadium.

“On the coast we sometimes miss a lot,” added Mr Tomlinson. “The temperatures rise that little bit so you get a game in. But last night it was a very heavy frost, everything was covered in white last night.

“They’ve (Hendon) got to travel, the players have to travel, and it’s not easy.

“The playing conditions is absolutely like concrete, there no give at all in the pitch.

“It’s just going from one disaster to another!”

He added: “We’ve got a Christmas lunch here. We invited the opposition down for lunch but we’re still going to have it.

“My wife is going to Canterbury to spend a lot of money (Christmas shopping), but I think I’m not going up there, but she may get stuck up there. You can always watch the cricket, that’s not too bad!”

TONBRIDGE ANGELS’ last game was a 1-1 draw against Kingstonian at Longmead Stadium back on 27 November, as their games against Dartford (twice), Maidstone United, Wealdstone, Concord Rangers and today against Canvey Island were called off due to the weather and Wealdstone’s Cup commitments.

The Angels have to wait until 27 December for their next game - away to Hastings United.

Manager Tommy Warrilow told the Kent & Sussex Courier Newspaper that his patience is wearing thin.

“I am joking with the team that we should be renamed Tonbridge Harriers, what with all the running we are doing when we have got together,” he said.

“All we seem to be doing is running up and down - it is very difficult to do anything else. We worked the boys for an hour on Tuesday evening and did try and do some ball work, but it was limited.

“It is difficult to plan training - it is just a bit of a nightmare.

“All in all I think we have had 40 days rest since the season started and we are only five months into the season.

“I know a lot of teams have had it bad with a lack of football, but I think we might have been one of the most affected.

“At this rate, we have got a game every Saturday and Tuesday until February and that depends on the weather also.”

MAIDSTONE UNITED boss Andy Ford hopes their Kent Senior Cup tie against Ebbsfleet United goes ahead at Homelands Stadium on Tuesday night - so he can cast his eye over some trialists.

He told www.maidstoneunited.co.uk: “Recently we have been busy signing and releasing players but things have been a bit quieter over the last few days. I went to watch Hythe play and Aveley’s game as week as there were two players who had been earmarked in those fixtures but unfortunately nothing fruitful came from those matches.

“We have put in a seven days approach for a player and that comes up next Tuesday and I was hoping to get four trialists involved in training last night but because of the bad weather that was not possible.

“I am desperately hoping that Tuesday’s Kent Senior Cup game goes ahead because I want to have a look at the trialists in a game situation. Players can look really good in training but it is not until you put them into a match that you really find out if they are up to this level of football.

“We are also taking a look at a striker called Billy Driver. Billy is well known in local football circles in the Maidstone area as he can definitely finish inside the box. He has never been given a chance to play at a higher level but he will need bit of help and coaching before he is ready to be given an opportunity in a game.

“Because the weather has been so unpredictable at the moment we had already arranged a training session in case today’s game was called off. We have wrapped James Peacock up in cotton wool while we have had the bad weather but he will take part in the training session today.

“One final bit of news is that Simon Glover is still out but we are trying to get some more medical reports on his injury. The good news is that things don’t look as bad as first feared and so he might only be out for another three to four weeks but we just need to get that confirmed.”

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