News

ESSEX SENIOR LEAGUE OPENING FIXTURES ANNOUNCED

The fixtures up to the end of October have been published and ours are now shown under "Fixtures & Results".

We start with a home game against Eton Manor on 10th August and then visit Takeley on the evening of Tuesday 13th before starting our FA Cup campaigne at home to Rushden & Higham United on Saturday 17th.

In the early months of the season the fixtures are subject to inevitable disruption due to FA and County Cup competitions, so keep an eye on the list

ANOTHER DECISIVE HEADER

Borough won their second pre-season friendly against visitors Tilbury thanks to a close range header powered home by striker Bradley O'Donovan.    All four goals so far netted at Coles Park this season have been headers.    The Borough defence was in fine form and denied the visitors any gilt edged opportunities - and had Borough's finishing been more incisive late on the winning margin would have been greater.

AN ENTERTAINING OPENER

Borough and Enfield Town provided a bright opening match at Coles Park.   Both sides made multi-changes and Borough won by the odd goal in three - all the scoring being via headers.    Mark Kendall put Enfield Town ahead after 30 minutes but two goals in the opening ten minutes of the second half turned the tables with Patou Katshenge equalising and Anthony McDonald bagging the winner.   But the closing fifteen minutes were not so bright as theywere played out in gathering darkness following a power cut in the area !

FA COMPETITION DRAWS ANNOUNCED

The draws for the early rounds of the FA Cup and Vase have been made and Borough’s games are :-

FA CUP

Extra Preliminary Round on 17^th August - HOME TO RUSHDEN & HIGHAM UNITED.   Visitors play in Division One of the United Counties League and finished 8^th from 19 last season with a record of 17 wins 4 Draws 15 Defeats and 62 goals scored with 56 conceded.

If successful the Preliminary Round will be on 31^st August when we will be – HOME TO AFC HAYES. Very familiar visitors in their earlier guise of Brook House who spent many years in the Spartan and Spartan South Midlands Leagues.   They now play in the Southern League Division One Central and last season finished 15^th from 22 with 13 wins 8 draws and 21 defeats and a goals tally of 74 scored 81 conceded

If we reach the 1^st Qualifying Round on 14^th September we will be AWAY to either WARE of the Ryman League Division One North, WEMBLEY of the Combined Counties League Premier Division or AFC KEMPSTON ROVERS of the United Counties League Premier Division – familiar opponents as this would be the third FA Cup meeting with them in as many seasons

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FA VASE

1^st Qualifying Round on 7^th September – AWAY TO SOUTHALLof the SpartanSouth Midlands League Division One who finished 9^th from 21 last season with a record of 19 wins 7 draws and 14 defeats and goals scored of 101 conceded 55. They ground share at Hanwell Town’s Reynolds Fields Stadium.

If successful then in the 2^nd Qualifying Round on 21st September we would be HOME to either HAREFIELD UNITED or WELLINGBOROUGH TOWN.     The former are well known to us through our long mutual membership of the Athenian, Spartan and Spartan South Midlands Leagues (last season they finished 10^th when we were 9^th with the same number of points but a better goal difference; their record was 17 wins 12 draws 13 losses goals 77 – 67).

Wellingborough Town are from the Premier Division of the United Counties League and finished 15^th from 21 last season with 12 wins 8 draws and 20 defeats scoring 55 and conceding 89

STARTING DATES ANNOUNCED

The AGMs of the Essex Senior League and the Eastern Region Womens League have taken place.    The MENS first (of 38) League matches will be on Saturday 10th AUGUST.   The WOMENS first (of 22) League matches will be on Sunday 18th AUGUST.  It will be some time yet before the actual fixtures are announced.        Both Leagues aim to conclude their campaigns on the final weekend of April, weather permitting.

The Extra Preliminary Round of the FA Cup will be on Saturday 17th August with the draw announced in early July.

BOROUGH GOING EAST !

Surprise news today !    The FA have allocated Borough a sideways move into the ESSEX SENIOR LEAGUE for 2013/14.

The FA did warn Step 5 Clubs that when their proposal to reduce the number of Leagues from 14 to 12 was abandoned as unworkable they would be more inclined towards sideways moves for Step 5 Clubs where the numbers in such Leagues have long been unequal.  Such have been the norm at Steps 2 to 4 for many seasons.

One immediate unfortunate side effect will be the cancellation of our first Friendly Match on 13th July against Enfield 1893 as we will now be in the same League and would prefer not to play friendlies against teams we will be meeting competitively later on.

More updates to follow

ALL OVER – FOR 2 MONTHS

On Tuesday 14^th May, it fell to the Womens Team to bring down the curtain on what has been something of a damp squib of a season as they entertained Bedford in their final League match of the campaign and went down 4-0 to the team doubtless still smarting from their League Cup Final defeat on penalties two days earlier.   And damp it certainly was as the game proceeded under an ever increasing deluge !

Both teams finished 9^th in their respective Leagues - the Mens position being respectable enough in a 22 team Division, although disappointing after better had looked likely in the early part of the season before the weather took a hand and disruption followed.      The Womens less so as their Division containes only 11 teams.

The playing records (competitive matches only) for 2012/13 were

MEN                 P 53   W 24   D 9   L 20   For 104 against 77

WOMEN           P 22    W 5    D 3   L 14   For   29 against 73

A DATE FOR YOUR DIARY

TUESDAY JULY 16th  is when it all starts again.    ENFIELD TOWN of the Ryman League Premier Division will be the first visitors to Coles Park in the pre-season campaign.

Another Ryman Premier Club - WINGATE & FINCHLEY will visit Coles Park on Saturday 27th July

Other games will be announced when confirmed