Preview Part 4:
With just over 24 hours to go until the Ryman League season finally kicks off, it’s time for the final part of my club-by-club preview. The final five then, beginning with Thanet’s number 1 club and the return of a conquering hero.
Margate
Manager: Chris Kinnear
Last Season: 16th
Hendon Results 10/11: Home L 2-3, Away D 1-1
Once again it has been a summer of change at Hartsdown Park as Chris Kinnear, the architect of ‘Gate’s rise to the top tier of Non League Football, has returned as the Kentish side look to move away from the lower echelons of the Ryman Premier Division and progress on a secure financial footing. The change in manager has brought about a large change in playing personnel again and on paper, Kinnear looks to have a good squad at his disposal. Matt Bodkin is a name that stands out, having had a number of years experience at Blue Square South level as does that of Liam Coleman (recently tipped to sign in this blog for Cray Wanderers). A lot will hinge on whether the side can gel and whether the old maxim about ‘never going back’ will ring true for Kinnear. I suspect he’ll do well and can see Margate being dark horses for a Play Off place. It might be a year or so early for them though, but a good season with a strong top half finish could well re-ignite some of the potential that the club undoubtedly has.
Verdict: Top Half, Play off dark horses
Met. Police
Manager: Jim Cooper
Last Season: Ryman Division 1 South Champions
Hendon Results 10/11: FA Cup 4Q – Home D 0-0, Away W 2-0. LSC QF: Away W 3-1
The Met are widely scorned amongst the Ryman fraternity for various reasons ranging from the way they’re funded and the size of the budget available to them all the way through to the sliding scale pricing system sometimes employed in their bar and just how appropriate their name is. There’s no denying that Imber Court is a very good ground and the facilities available amongst the best around in the division, certainly fit for any side at this level. After many years hovering around the top 6 of the Ryman Division 1 South, the coppers finally made their way up to the top flight of the Ryman League. Jim Cooper has made some impressive signings in the shape of Stafforde Palmer, Tony Finn, Matt Reed, Carl Wilson-Dennis and former Hendon loanee Craig Hughes, so signs are that they are intent on making their mark on the division. With players of this calibre, I can’t see them struggling but instead, to the chagrin I suspect of many opposition fans, consolidating their place at this level.
Verdict: Mid Table Safety
Tooting & Mitcham United
Manager: Mark Beard
Last Season: 14th
Hendon Results 10/11: Home W 4-1, Away L 3-4
Former Millwall and Kingstonian midfielder enters his 2nd season at Imperial Fields with all sorts of uncertainty surrounding the off field health of the club. Rumour and counter-rumour have flown around internet messageboards as to how the football club would be funded for the coming season and just what the intentions of the owners of Imperial Fields and The Hub for the future were. Thankfully, the club will start the new season and looking at the squad, it looks as though Beard has been able to make some shrewd looking additions. Impressive goalkeeper Jamie Butler has moved onto Lincoln City and will be replaced by Simon Lehkyj whilst the talented but erratic Billy Dunn has joined from Horsham. Lee Newman and Fola Onijube add quality, experience and competition up front and the midfield is well served by the likes of Jamie Byatt and Karl Beckford. The expected return of Jay Lovett from a coaching spell in South East Asia at the end of August will boost what may be a slightly fragile looking back four as Beard will be looking to stay away from the bottom third of the table this time around. Whether or not they are able to achieve that will depend hugely on the off field wranglings that have beset the club in the summer and whether funding is suddenly pulled from underneath him mid-season. A difficult one to call.
Verdict: Possible strugglers, possible mid table safety
Wealdstone
Manager: Gordon Bartlett
Last Season: 11th
Hendon Results 10/11: Home L 0-1, Away L 0-1
Last season’s home league derby match against Wealdstone was ever so strange. After years of being used to frantic 100mph battles that end up with plenty of bookings, the odd red card and the ball hitting the back of the Hendon onion bag as a matter of regularity, the Stones’ 1-0 winner from a free header was oddly devoid of incident and racing hearts. I won’t pretend that our record against our neighbours from Ruislip isn’t a cause of disappointment, you always want to beat your local rivals. Somehow, the Stones usually seem more up for it than we do. Gordon Bartlett enters his umpteenth season in the hotseat at Grovesnor Vale and does so with much the same squad that produced such a beautifully symmetrical league record of W 16 D 10 L 16 and F 58 A 54 Pts 58. The main news has been the return of Richard Jolly to his spiritual home where he will be looking to add to his superb goal return in the blue and white shirt. Backed up by a prolific Peter Dean (who never looked like a 10 goal a season man in Green and White, never mind the 25 he got last season), Scott Fitzgerald and fellow new face Kieran Knight, goals shouldn’t be a problem. Bartlett has always done well at picking up hungry young players with someone to prove from local pro-clubs and the likes of Alex Dyer, Kurtney Brooks and co will be looking to follow the host of names who have gone from the Stones to full time football. Whether Jolly’s goals will be able to make up the 15 points the Stones finished off the play offs last term is debatable, but a strong top half finish combined with 6 points from us (sad face) is definitely on the cards.
Verdict: Top half
Wingate & Finchley
Manager: Dave Norman
Last Season: Play off winners Ryman Division 1 North
Hendon Results 10/11: MSC Home W 3-2, LSC Final Neutral L 1-3
Wingate, another side who seem to have hovered around the top half of Division 1 North for a number of years enjoyed a terrific run-in last season that culminated in the League Cup and London Senior Cup double, and success in the Division 1 North play offs. We experienced the energy and confidence this run generated at the end of last season as we were well beaten 3-1 in the London Senior Cup final down at Tooting in May. After a good start where we took the lead, we were completely overwhelmed by an impressively eager and strong Wingate side who just a couple of days previously had been through extra time against Brentwood. Gary Burrell, Sam Sloma, Daniel Nielson and Jordan Fowler provide plenty of higher division experience, whilst in Lewis Smith and in particular, Murat Karagoul, they possessed one of the most dangerous and cohesive strike forces we came up against last season. If they can carry through the momentum from the end of last season then Wingate have more than enough quality to see them survive, however a poor start may well lead to a winter of discontent in North London.
Verdict : Safety
So, that’s that. It’ll be interesting to see what, if anything I get right and what, if as is likely I get very very wrong. Whatever happens, the time for talking is nearly over and the things will finally kick off. More on that a little bit later.
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