I haven’t posted in ages, but it's not as bleak as it seems. That reminds me of a song lyric, but I can’t think which one. If it comes to me, I’ll let you know. On with the show.
On the pitch, after the autumn slump things have stabilised somewhat with progress being made in the two county cups, and a place just outside the play-offs being maintained in the league. Frank Sinclair has departed the scene, joining Colwyn Bay in the Blue Square North, a club which is an awful lot closer to his Bolton home than Vale Farm. That he commuted so far shows the measure of the guy, and he leaves with my very best wishes. Replacing him is Lewis Hunt, who has more than 250 league appearances under his belt following his release from Bradford City. One suspects that Junior Lewis’ contact list on his cellphone had something to do with this addition and reports suggest that he looked the part on his debut at Met Police. The big loser in all of this seems to be Michael Peacock who in spite of a decent start to the season, has had to be content with grabbing the odd piece of action at Northwood and Chalfont St. Peter to maintain match fitness.
The injury situation is easing, both Elliott Charles and Greg Ngoyi have returned to the fray in fine form, the latter having taken his tally to 13 goals for the season in just 17 starts. It’s quite a few seasons since we have had a player showing that kind of an eye for goal. It was noticeable against Bury Town, when he went through on goal just before half time to equalise that I expected him to score. Not just hit the target, but to find the net. Although since the days of Whitmarsh and Lewis we have seen decent strikers in the shape of Eugene Ofori, Dominic Gentle, Brian Haule and Wayne O’Sullivan, I don’t think any of them match the clinical edge that Greg has shown this term when fit. Not only that, but his response to being left on the bench for tactical reasons at Imber Court recently was outstanding. Given a start in the London Senior Cup tie at Barking, he grabbed his chance by netting the winner in fine style. Further back, Jamie Busby is back in action, James Fisher is beginning to settle in quite well either in midfield or more recently at centre half, and Jerome Federico and Michael Lewis’ return to fitness has given us an extra dimension out wide with a bit more pace and trickery.
With 17 matches remaining, we sit 8th in the table just 3 points behind Cray in 5th place. As time has gone on it has become clear that there isn’t a side that is obviously a class above the rest of the division as Dover or Dartford and to some extent Sutton have shown in recent years. There is all to play for and if we can sort out our home form (1 win from our last 10 matches at Vale Farm) then everything is in place for a genuine tilt at the play-offs. If pushed to say now, I suspect we may finish just short of them, but if we are able to find the consistency that we had at the start of the season again, then there is no reason why our season couldn’t conceivably last for another week.
Claremont Road
Of as much interest to events on the pitch have been recent developments in the sale of the freehold of the site where the Claremont Road lies has been put on hold following an intervention from Liberal Democrat Councillor Jack Cohen who has called for alternative uses for the land. As I explained in the summer, Barnet Council approved plans to sell the freehold to Montclaire Developments Limited amidst much opposition from local residents, who have cited a historical covenant dating from the 1920s protecting the site from such a move in their objections. More information can be found in this Hendon Times article, and this piece here from BBC London News.
Setting aside my thoughts on Barnet Council in particular, and many Conservative led councils in London (they have no place here), I truly hope that the covenant is upheld and the land protected because the knock-on effect if the sale of the land to Montclaire could have a severe impact on similar open spaces throughout London. In a year when London is hosting the Olympics and the Government are falling over themselves to talk about the legacy of the games, cases such as this lead one to wonder whether or not these words are nothing but hot air.
The eagle-eyed amongst you may have seen a familiar face in the photo on the Hendon Times article in the shape of current club chairman Simon Lawrence. Which perhaps begs the question, why weren’t the Supporters Trust, or fans, more vocal in their opposition to the ground situation. Afterall, we knew long before we were eventually kicked out that the end of our time at the famous old ground was nigh. The answer is simple.
A couple of years before the ownership of the club transferred into Trust hands, the previous owners had made it abundantly clear that they would no longer fund the football club. That was entirely their prerogative and as such, the Trust agreed to finance the playing side of the operation to keep the club alive. The only alternative was extinction. In spite of this, the previous owners of the club held all the aces. They were sitting on the goldmine that the lease on the ground provided. Although presumably the lease was in the name of Hendon Football Club Limited, they were separate from the Trust. As such, the owners were happy not to call in the alleged £3million (ballpark figure) that the club owed knowing that the sale of the lease, as and when it went through, would more than cover what they were owed. Hence, the agreement was made with the Trust to hand the football club over debt free once the freehold on the ground was sold. At any point in that period, powers that be behind the scenes could have closed Hendon Football Club down. They had no interest in whether or not the club survived, their names were on the lease. Hendon Football Club was an irrelevance.
When the announcement of discussions being opened on the sale of the freehold of the land was made in the summer, Barnet Council was opening negotiations with Hendon Football Club Limited. Who then were Montclaire Developments and how did they arrive on the scene all of a sudden? Again, the answer is simple. A quick google search divulged that the registered director of Montclaire Developments is Andrew Landsberg and that Hendon Football Club Limited is listed as a subsidiary of Montclaire Developlments. They are one and the same. Quite what transpired to bring about the sudden eviction of the team from the ground in September 2008 is unknown and would be mere conjecture, but one does wonder.
I don’t think for one minute that any halt on the sale of the freehold suddenly means that there is light on the horizon for anyone harbouring hopes of a return to Claremont Road. One only has to see the state of the site in the BBC London report to understand the level of investment that would be required to return the ground to a level fit for senior football, never mind Ryman Premier Level. Even if the deal between the council and Montclaire fell through, any hopes the club had of returning to the ground would be based on us receiving planning permission, support and funding from the council, as well as various other foundations as well as what the club could raise itself. The club on its own cannot hope to fund a new ground. Whether in these austere times individuals can find significant amounts to donate to any fundraising effort for a new ground remains doubtful. That is before we even begin to think about garnering the necessary approvals and support from Barnet Council. It doesn’t take a genius to predict how difficult (or perhaps impossible) that will prove to be. Nonetheless, it will be very interesting to watch how things develop.
Oh, by the way. The lyric I was thinking of? It was from this.
Goodnight
