Stansfeld 0-1 Erith & Belvedere - We like to go up, we've made no secret about it and I believe in my squad, says table-topping newly-appointed Erith & Belvedere manager Sam Groombridge

Stansfeld 0 – 1 Erith & Belvedere
Location	Badgers Sports Ground, Middle Park Avenue, Eltham, London SE9 5HT
Kickoff	01/10/2025 19:45

STANSFELD  0-1  ERITH & BELVEDERE
Presence & Co Southern Counties East Football League Premier Division
Wednesday 1 October 2025
Stephen McCartney reports from Middle Park Avenue

ERITH & BELVEDERE manager Sam Groombridge says he believes in his squad and he has made no secret of his promotion aspirations after reaching the summit of the Southern Counties East Football League Premier Division table.

Joint-managers Billy Hamlin and Jamie Phipps both stood down after only seven games into the season and coach Groombridge took interim charge for the league games against Faversham Strike Force (4-1), Corinthian (4-2), Fisher (2-3), Sutton Athletic (1-0) and Kennington (2-1) and chairman Paul Springett has confirmed that the 37-year-old has taken the job permanently.

Gary Alexander, 46, who has previously managed Crawley Town, Greenwich Borough, Ashford United, Glebe and Cray Wanderers, has been appointed director of football and was in the dug-out tonight.  Billy French has been appointed player-coach alongwith Craig Boyle (coach) and Peter Springett (goalkeeper coach).

Stansfeld went into this game on a run of six straight losses were a hard nut to crack but Erith & Belvedere deservedly claimed the victory 14 minutes from time, a tap-in at the back post from substitute winger Tyller Davis-Whitlock, his second goal of the season to seal a single-goal win double over their local rivals.

The crowd of 104 at Middle Park Avenue were treated to a game of little quality but Erith & Belvedere got the three points they needed to move two points clear of Bearsted in this ninth-tier League with Keith Stevens’ side having a couple of games in hand.

“Yes, good performance. If we want to achieve this season, we need to learn to learn to win 1-0,” said Groombridge, who was serving the last of his ‘touchline ban’.

“I thought we played some great football, maybe could’ve threatened the goal a little bit more but everything up towards the goal was exceptional from the first minute to the last minute, professional job, well done.

“They set up to spoil us, they did a good job. I thought the substitutes come on and made a difference, gave us a bit more energy, really pleased.

“Effort, energy, desire, all the cliches but we’ve had a long chat after Fisher – I spoke to you after Fisher – and we’ve used that result to get results like this today, so really pleased, they’ve given everything.  They’ll have a nice rest now before the next game,” added Groombridge, when asked what his players’ gave him in Eltham, stringing three wins in a row after their defeat to Ajay Ashanike’s side.

“We needed a reaction, we’ve re-grouped, we’ve got on the training ground and it’s paying off.”

Reflecting on their tenth defeat of their 11 game campaign in League and Cup, Stansfeld assistant manager Joe Minter, 36, said: “It was a game I thought we actually, as a group and as a unit, defended really well.  Like, it wasn’t a game of loads of chances. I don’t think either goalie has made many saves.

“I felt like it was a game, a possession game. I felt they had a lot of the ball. They were neat and tidy. I thought they struggled to break us down as a whole to be honest with you.

“But then going forward, I just thought we lacked a real little bit of quality. We’ve not played for two and a half weeks (since losing 4-1 at Bearsted on 13 September), so I think that was to show, I’ll be totally honest with you.”

Erith & Belvedere were kicking down the slope during the first half and centre-half Robert Strachan often hit long balls with his left-foot aiming for impressive left-winger Matthias Broomes.

Stansfeld handed a debut to former Erith Town striker George Goodwin but he received a bang to the head in an aerial challenge and suffered a cut lip and was withdrawn after only 11 minutes and 41 seconds, although time spent on the pitch lasted around eight minutes before he received treatment before heading towards the dressing room, before Sam Plant took his place from the subs bench and Harvey Mead played in the central striker role.

“Listen, when you bring a centre forward in, you’re excited, you want to see what he can do.  You want to see if he can improve us as a unit and we didn’t get to see that really.  He’s got a bad cut on his lip, so we wish him well,” admitted a bitterly disappointed Minter, who hopes he will have recovered to play in their next game in seven days’ time because his new man wasn’t suffering concussion.

“Well fortunately, we don’t have a game on Saturday, so the boys will get training. I believe it’s just a cut lip, so it’s nothing too strenuous, regardless of a bad head injury and when you’ve got the concussion issue and everything like that.

“We don’t play again for seven days so we’ll hope we have him back for then.”

A second ball was placed onto the pitch from the direction of the home dug-out (the match officials ignored that and didn’t issue the mandatory yellow card) just before Erith & Belvedere right-back Scott Jarvis launched his second of five long throws into the Stansfeld box.

The ball was cleared from inside a crowded penalty area and Ryan Fowler knocked the ball back towards goal and Stansfeld goalkeeper Cemal Osman punched the ball behind for a corner, only for the referee to award a goal-kick (21:42) instead.

Erith & Belvedere dominated the corner count by seven to zero with all of their deliveries coming in the first half and they went very close to smashing the deadlock with 25:57 on the clock, following their fourth delivery.

Left-back Ronnie McClean swung the ball in from the right with his left-foot into a crowd of players and holding midfielder Frederick Cray jumped up to glance  his header across the keeper and past the far post.

“We had seven corners in the first half. We’re fit, we’ve got energy as well and we know we’ll cause teams problems from set-pieces,” added Groombridge.

Stansfeld were a threat on the counter-attack but goalscoring is proving a major issue for Billy Shinners, as only one player in his starting 11 that has got on the scoresheet this season is winger Jimmy Shepherd, who has scored just the once.

Stats

Fowler played the ball out to a high McClean who played the ball back to Fowler, who had his pocket picked by a pressing Mead, who ran from about 35-yards from his own goal towards the Deres’ penalty area, before playing the ball on the inside to substitute attacking midfielder Plant, who cut onto his left foot and stroked his 18-yard drive across the keeper and past the far post.

“We tried Harvey (Mead) in a more central position tonight. Listen, the kid’s got electric pace. He’s a massive threat and that’s the way we wanted to set up tonight,” explained Minter.

“Where we haven’t played for two and a half weeks, it was a little bit more, let’s stay compact and stay in the game and let’s try and catch them on the break and when you’ve got pace with Harvey’s pace, it’s a brilliant outlet for us.”

McClean drove down the left before drilling a left-footed drive from 35-yards screaming past the left-upright for Erith & Belvedere just 46 seconds later before producing a slick three-man move which resulted in Brooms drilling a deflected low 30-yard drive past the far post.

This game was frenetic and poor quality and McClean recycled the ball back into the Stansfeld penalty area towards a couple of team-mates at the back post but Strachan steered his header over the top of the near-post as the game tiptoed quietly beyond the half-hour mark.

Stansfeld were showing plenty of trademark fight and desire but they are lacking in the key part of the pitch – the number nine position but Mead – who started behind Goodwin before playing in his role – was a threat on the counter-attack with his pace, whereas his other attacking team-mates were poor.

Groombridge added: “I thought we contained him well, as with the rest of their counter-attacks.”

Shinners must find the man who can put the ball in the back of the net, otherwise the amateur outfit’s four-year stay at this level will end in relegation.

Erith & Belvedere struck the crossbar (33:26) following Jarvis’ third long throw.

The ball came out to Fowler, who hooked his right-footed volley over Cemal Osman’s left shoulder, the ball cannoning off the crossbar, as the former Stansfeld man aimed for the top far corner.

“Fowler’s goal last week – he’s got that in his locker.  We’re trying to get him a bit more advanced in a rotating three. We know he can score goals like that.  It’s just unfortunate today that it didn’t end up in the goal,” said Groombridge.

Minter added: “We all know Ryan really well, he played for Stansfeld for a couple of years. He actually played with me and Shinners in the team that won the league below (in 2022).

“Listen, Ryan’s got great quality, he’s hit a great strike.  I’ve seen him score a goal in their previous game (Saturday’s 2-1 home win over Kennington), which was actually quite similar. Fortunately, the one tonight, didn’t go in.”

Erith & Belvedere centre-half Tom Fitzgerald gave the ball away to Plant, who fed the impressive Mead, who drove forward before producing a weak right-footed shot from 25-yards, which was comfortably held low to his right by the highly-rated Charlie Cottrell, playing against his old club.

Erith & Belvedere missed a glorious chance to smash the stalemate with 43:26 on the clock, however.

Broomes had a second bite of the cherry to put in a cross from the left and striker Tom Borders found oceans of space in the middle of the goal just six yards out but he headed the ball straight at Osman, who comfortably caught the ball at head height.

“Pleasing Tom’s there, we’re getting chances so the conversions will come, for sure,” came Groombride’s short reply, to his side’s best chance of the half.

Minter added: “Free header but it was a routine save for him. A chance but not really a golden sort of chance, so you’ve mentioned two chances there, one’s hit the bar and then a header at Cemal.  To restrict them to two chances just in the first half, we played well.”

Stansfeld also should have scored with their last goalscoring chance of the game, 58 seconds into stoppage time.

Mead drove through the heart of the pitch again and played the ball in behind Strachan to put Shepherd through on goal but he lacked composure when it mattered and instead of taking a touch, he swept a poor first-time left-footed shot which failed to trouble Cottrell.

“I’m going to put it down to not sort of having a game for two-and-a-half-weeks,” admitted Minter.

“Listen, as a unit I thought we were a little bit rusty in the final third, let’s say,  Listen, when you’re firing on all cylinders that’s when the quality sort of comes in. When you’re struggling a little bit and you’re a little bit downbeat, those sorts of chances are the ones that sort of pass you by.

“That’s down to me and Bill to work on in training. Hopefully, the next time you take it.”

Groombridge added: “Like I say, they had a few counters but naturally they’re going to when we’ve got a lot of the ball in advanced areas but all faith in Charlie. I don’t think they really tested him at all today but one nil’s, one nil, he’s kept a clean sheet.”

Groombridge added: “We’ve just got to be patient, keep doing what we’re doing. We was trying to play. We needed a bit more running off the ball but smarter running and just needed to stick at what we’re doing.

“I said (to them at half-time) to just to keep doing what we’re doing, be patient, be a bit cleverer and in our units we’ve got to work together and I thought they went out and did that.

“We’ve had discussions long and hard as a group that clean-sheets are important, so are nicking games with one goal, so pleasing.”

Minter added: “We both said to the boys, defensively and as a group we were really, really proud. Listen, I was standing on the sideline and I just thought we were really compact defensively as a unit.

“I didn’t think they were going to break us down and we said to them ‘keep doing that, really concentrate on that and we can catch them on the break’  but we didn’t. The game passed us by.”

The second half was simply awful with not a lot happening, as Erith & Belvedere had trouble breaking down a well-organised Stansfeld side, although the home side’s wingers Shepherd and Khemani Aiyanyo lacked creativity and failed to create a second half chance for the struggling hosts.

Aiyanyo even turned to the away dug-out and asked Gary Alexander ‘who are you?’ during a verbal exchange with the away dug-out during the second half. 

Type ‘Gary Alexander Wembley goal,” into Google and see what he did for his beloved Millwall in a League One Play-Off Final against Scunthorpe United back in May 2009 – and that will answer your question!

The first goalscoring chance of a drab second half came in the 61^st minute when Fowler and ineffective right-winger Frederick Baker linked up down the right before Fowler cracked a right-footed angled drive from outside the box, which was comfortably held by Osman, low to his right at his near-post.

“Another opportunity but I feel we had a fair few of them today and they’re not all going to go in, so no problem,” said Groombridge, who was asked about his side’s second half performance.

“We were patient, we moved the ball well. We worked the ball well. We were in danger sometimes of frustrating ourselves because we know what we’re capable off – but a win is a win.”

When asked about Erith & Belvedere’s threats, Minter replied: “I thought the winger, Matthias (Broomes) was lively for them. I thought the two centre-halves were really good and they defended well and the interactions in and around the middle of the park with Ryan (Fowler) and Freddie (Cray).

“They’re neat and tidy on the ball but we were quite happy for them to let them have the ball on the halfway line.  They were looking to get into the front man to get runners in behind but we clocked that and the boys managed to deal with that really well.” 

Erith & Belvedere deservedly claimed the winner with 28 minutes and 25 seconds on the clock, as this poor game looked to be heading towards a goal-less stalemate.

Fowler fed the ball into substitute striker Danny Lear, Stansfeld appeared to have initially shut the door with numbers back, but Broomes fizzed in a low cross from the left-hand side of the penalty area towards the back post and Davis-Whitlock tapped a first-time right-footed shot into the bottom right-hand corner.

“It’s good for him to be inside the posts, pleased for him because he’s done a hell off a job for us. He can play right-back as well but he looked good when he went on today,” said Groombridge of his match winner.

Groombridge explained why five-goal Lear was on the bench for the first 70 minutes.

“Danny Lear had a dead leg. He came in, he didn’t train Monday but we know what Danny Lear’s about and we know that he’s worth having on the bench.

“We’ve got a squad this season (of 20 players) and we can use that squad. I think Tom Borders done well, (Tommy) Whitnell went up there for a little while, he can play that position with his eyes shut, so we’ve got strength-in-depth and we don’t need to risk players unnecessarily.”

Playing for draws does not keep teams in this division.

Minter said: “After the run we’ve been on, we would’ve taken the draw. We would’ve taken a draw especially with 15 minutes to go, didn’t really sort of open them up and have any clear-cut chances ourselves, which is disappointing for us.

“It’s just one of them. I think it comes in, we didn’t clear our lines properly. It falls to them and the lad thrashes the ball across the goal. Look, when you’re down there, it doesn’t fall to us, it falls to them and that’s what it did tonight. Other than that, I would really say that was their only clear-cut chance.”

Stansfield offered no threat in attack during the second half as Strachan and Fitzgerald were resilient and were giving nothing away.

“We’ve had a two-and-a-half-week break now, so we’ve been non-stop trying to sort of recruit, try and sort and figure out and try to look at facts and figures as to why we are down there,” said Minter.

“We felt that performance wise we’ve been ok, bar one or two games. .We’ve been in every single game but when you don’t score enough and when you concede a little bit too much (10 scored, 23 conceded in the League), you’re more than likely going to be on the other side of a defeat.

“We as a group, we need to learn and we need to dig in and we need to literally start again and that two-and-a-half- week break has given us a chance to do that and I felt tonight we was good but perhaps not good enough at the minute.”

Lear cut in from the left towards the corner of the penalty area and was fouled by Stansfeld right-back Frank McCormack, who became one of four home players to be cautioned.

Osman lined up a four-man wall and made a comfortable catch at the second attempt to deny Fitzgerald scoring with his resulting right-footed free-kick from 25-yards.

There was controversy towards the end of the game when Fitzgerald’s ankle injury was treated in the 82^nd minute and substitutes Tommy Whitnell (54^th minute), Davis-Whitlock and Frederick Warwick (both 64) and Lear (70) were already on the pitch, leaving 18-year-old goalkeeper Danny Alexander, Gary’s son as the last option.

Goalkeeper coach, Peter Springett, was summoned to the away dressing room to collect a white number 19 shirt, Alexander had to change his shorts and socks to match the white of his team-mates and was ready to come on for the last three minutes of normal time.

Standing on the touchline beside assistant referee Andrew Marr, Alexander was all set to make his debut (42:12) – as an emergency striker but Mr Marr checked his black notepad and referee Kennedy Kikulwe (standing inches away the pair) blocked the substitution, claiming that you can only make five substitutions in three windows.

However, the referee clearly didn’t know the Rules of the Southern Counties East Football League because managers can make five subs at any time and not within three windows.

For example, during Stansfeld’s only win of the season, a 5-2 home win over Punjab United on 13 August, Shinners made four changes in the 53^rd, 76^th, 81^st and 84^th minute of that game.

Fitzgerald was forced to carry on and was deployed as a lone striker, as Erith & Belvedere saw the game out. 

“Danny’s a keeper, Danny’s been in and around the first team, he’s done really well. I’ve never seen him out on the pitch but Fitz has had an ankle knock for a little while, he’s been playing on it and we’re very lucky we’re pleased he’s here.

“But these rules that have been brought in, for some reason we weren’t allowed to make it so Danny didn’t get his debut up front.

“Listen, we know what we’ve got in our dressing room and we’ve got some very strong defensive players but the whole team now is putting in a shift and that clean-sheet was for the whole team, so credit to all of the boys, everyone of them.”

The away side created one final chance during the eight minutes and 23 seconds of stoppage time as Stansfeld centre-back Kai Jeffrey opened the gate but Lear failed to take advantage, dragging his right-footed shot across the keeper and past the far post.

There was even one away fan signing ‘we’re top of the league’ after the final whistle but Erith & Belvedere will need to put in much better performances if they are to be considered serious title contenders and their next game will see if they are.

“Listen, I think the boys deserve it (being top of the table).  It’s a long season. We won’t get carried away but we want to be up there. We want to be up there pushing and like I said we wanted to get up there. We’re now up there and the job us to now stay up there,” said Groombridge.

“The aspirations of the club, Geordie (chairman Paul Springett) wants success both on and off the pitch.  We’re building towards that. He’s a fantastic chairman, I’m very fortunate that he’s shown faith in me to come in and we’re enjoying the ride so far.

“We’re working rally hard, both on and off the pitch and the training ground and long may it continue.

“We want to compete, we like to go up, we’ve made no secret about it. We’re putting ourselves in a position and we know what momentum can do in this League.

“It’s a tough League to get out. I spent a long time at Corinthian and we got out of out, as a player we (Erith & Belvedere) managed to get out of it under Micky Collins (in 2013) as well but I believe in this squad, the club believe in the squad, the chairman believes in this squad. 

“I’ve been here since pre-season so I was no stranger in terms of stepping up. I’ve got a great relationship with all of the players and I’ll always be honest and transparent with them.”

Both sides are without a game on Saturday but return to League action next midweek under the lights, with relegation threatened Stansfeld hosting Holmesdale here on Wednesday, while Erith & Belvedere welcome the best side in this division in Rusthall at Park View Road 24 hours earlier.

Erith & Belvedere have picked up 24 points (seven wins, three draws and three defeats) from their 13 league outings.

The four play-off places are occupied by Bearsted (22 points from 11 games), Kennington (20 points from 12 games), Snodland Town (20 points from 12 games) and Sutton Athletic (19 points from 11 games).

Holmesdale are in sixth-place with 19 points from 11 games, followed by unbeaten Rusthall (18 points from eight games) and Larkfield & New Hythe sit in eighth-place with 17 points from 10 games.

Managerless Chislehurst Glebe, meanwhile, are winless on two points from 10 games at the foot of the table, with Stansfeld in 18^th place with three points (one win and eight defeats) from nine games.

Corinthian are above the dotted line with five points from 10 games, followed by Gillingham-based outfit Hollands & Blair, with an average of a point a game from nine.

“I’m looking forward to Rusthall, looking forward to a tough test.  We know they’re in form and scoring goals (28) but we’re coming in on the back of a clean sheet, which is great,” added Groombridge.

Minter was asked how they were going to turn it around and start climbing up the table into calmer waters.

“By sticking together, by sticking together. When you’re down there, you need your characters. There’s no point hiding in your shell.

“You need to try to be a little bit braver when things are a little bit more difficult. You need to try to be braver on the ball, which we didn’t do well enough tonight, by the way, we didn’t do well enough.

“I’m a massive advocate of when the group’s firing on all cylinders, in this league you can go and win five or six in a row but unfortunately losing becomes a habit, just like winning does, so we need to get on the training ground, we need to work on a few things but we can’t keep chopping and changing it.  We’ve got our group now (19 players), we just need to stick together.”

Minter added: “We owe Holmesdale one. We went down there (lost 6-2 at Oakley Road on 30 August) and we were 3-0 down after 35 minutes, didn’t play well at all. That was one of the games I was referring to earlier, that one and perhaps Bearsted, where we actually did lose quite convincingly.  Every other game we’ve felt we’ve been in it.

“We know Holmesdale are a big side, they get the ball from back-to-front as quickly as possible and we’ve got to learn from our mistakes that we made in the last game.

“Look, we’ve played nine games now, so we’ve got 27 to go, so we’re not panicking. There is a little bit of a gap appearing but in this league you can go Saturday-Tuesday-Saturday and get nine points and then all off a sudden you’re back amongst it and that comes from us sticking together and regrouping and going again really.

“Momentum, I think, is massive in this League. You look at a couple of teams that have started well (Hythe Town and Faversham Strike Force) that perhaps you didn’t expect to start well and they’ve got those points already but it looks like they might be dragged back into it.

“We need to stay within touching distance. Look, we’re the first of October today. If we’re going to panic on the first of October then you’ve got a lot of things to worry about but it’s the first of October, we’ll be alright.”

Stansfeld: Cemal Osman, Frank McCormack, Teddy Green, Oliver Andrews (Greg Summersby 82), Kai Jeffrey, Stefan Kempton, Khemani Aiyanyo, Harrison English, George Goodwin (Sam Plant 12), Harvey Mead, Jimmy Shepherd (Merrick Simms 77).
Sub: Jack Calvert

Booked: Stefan Kempton 16, Oliver Andrews 73, Frank McCormack 77, Greg Summersby 90

Erith & Belvedere: Charlie Cottrell, Scott Jarvis, Ronnie McClean, Frederick Cray (Frederick Warwick 64), Robert Strachan, Tom Fitzgerald, Matthias Broomes, Ryan Fowler, Tom Borders (Tommy Whitnell 54), Ladic Melconian (Danny Lear 70), Frederick Baker (Tyller Davis-Whitlock 64).
Sub: Danny Alexander

Goal: Tyller Davis-Whitlock 74

Attendance: 104
Referee: Mr Kennedy Kikulwe
Assistants: Mr Andrew Marr & Mr Richard Myers