Can Croydon get only their second win of the season tomorrow against Rusthall?

NON-LEAGUE NEWS: Crisis club Croydon FC suffered its second 5-0 drubbing in succession on Tuesday.

The prospect of a trip to Tolworth to take on Corinthian Casuals, a side from the Isthmian League who had already given their strikers shooting practice in a 5-0 cup victory over the Trams earlier this season, was a daunting one for caretaker boss Chris Brown and his young squad, and so it proved, as Croydon once again leaked five goals.

That Casuals were only 1-0 up at half-time was some kind of consolation. That the result came in the London Senior Cup, and so did nothing to worsen the Trams’ parlous league position at the bottom of the Southern Counties East Premier Division would be another.

Brown, an age-group coach with Millwall’s academy, has yet to be confirmed as Trams manager, despite having been in charge since the end of September.

Today, a spokesman for the club said, “There is a huge corner to turn, we recognise that, but regular watchers of Croydon FC will recognise that despite yet another poor result, in Tuesday night’s game against Corinthian Casuals the team did show signs that it is starting to get back to basics and the style of play that is coming closer to what is expected of the club.

1-0 down at half-time, Croydon (playing in yellow) conceded four more goals in the second half against Corinthian Casuals

“Chris has only been in the hotseat for a matter of days and change takes time and confidence needs to be re-instilled in the players. But we do sincerely feel that the tide is turning. If we continue in this vein, we are confident that we will put the breaks to the sequence of results that leaves us where we are.”

Tomorrow, the Trams have another cup tie, in the Kent Senior Trophy, at home at Croydon Arena (3pm kick-off) against Rusthall, a side just one place, and four points, ahead of them in the league. A win here, and it could go a long way to proving to the players themselves that they might yet turn the season around.

“We urge fans to come down to the game and get behind the team and help us get the Trams back on track,” the club official said.

And here is our round-up of managers’ notes from the area’s other clubs…

Kevin Rayner – Croydon Athletic

The Rams, with games in hand over most of the clubs above them in the SCEFL Premier Division, are 12th in the table, but having beaten the league leaders Beckenham Town, are in confident mood, enjoying a 3-0 win in the first round of the FA Vase over  Fareham with goals from Rob Carter, Emanuel Oloyede and Jon Paolluccio.

“It was great to get two wins and two clean sheets.

“After beating Beckenham we were fairly confident of beating Fareham in the Vase. We were forced into three changes with Taylor Maddocks, Liam Harwood and Luis Medina all absent but still managed to put out a very strong squad.

“We started the game well enough and we got it front early but we lacked any real tempo. Fareham got into the game and had the better of the start of the second half and forced Nic Taylor to produce a couple of great saves. We deserved to win the game and late on two good goals ensured we progressed, with youngster Billy Brown impressing on his debut.

“The draw has seen us get a home tie against AFC Uckfield who knocked us out of the FA Cup so it will be a tough fixture but one we will all be looking forward to.

“Our next two games are also cup games, away to Tunbridge Wells in the Kent Senior Trophy and away to Abbey Rangers in the Surrey Senior Cup. We will be utilising the squad in those games and ensure players get time to keep the squad ticking over as best we can. That said, the squad is strong and I would expect us to do well in the games before our next league game which is also away at the end of the month.

Croydon’s clubs’ position in the Southern Counties East League Premier Division as at Oct 19

Harry Hudson – Whyteleafe

Another good week for The Leafe, progressing in the FA Trophy. They had a tough tie away to Hastings and delivered a 4-2 win. Off the field there was also excitement, as they signed Scott Day from Isthmian Premier Division side Kingstonian FC

“It was a very enjoyable week which culminated in us getting a positive result against Hastings on Saturday.

“We have to enjoy these results!

“We got the first goal following a massive mistake by their player but Bryan Akongo still had a lot to do to score, but that totally changed the dynamic of the game and meant Hastings had to chase us. Additionally, we got the penalty at a really good time and then kicked on. I felt we nullified Hastings well, but football matches are about scoring goals at the right times and we did that on Saturday. Once we got the second, though, I thought we were brilliant and maybe could have scored more than we did.

“I don’t think there will be many teams that will take points off Hastings at their ground, to be honest. I can see Hastings being involved in high-scoring games due to their style of play. They have a lovely ground, fantastic pitch and excellent support.

“We showed outstanding discipline and tactical adaptation. Without giving too much away we implemented a different tactical approach against Hastings and thankfully it paid off. Any plan is great on a tactics board but only the players can implement it and make it effective – credit to them!

“We certainly had fun on our coach ride there and back. It was a great chance for supporters to get to know the players more. It was a real treat for us to have a coach and we made the most of it.

Back at Church Road: Scott Day

“It is another tough draw in the FA Trophy. The game against Bostik Premier side Tonbridge Angels will be a great chance to try and cause another upset. I know Barry and Steve at Tonbridge and they have both helped me out personally as a young manager. I have a lot of respect for what they have done in the game. I am really pleased that they are at the top of that league and doing really well. Our best performances have always come when we are underdogs, and I know our players cannot wait, so fingers crossed.

“We have managed to secure the return to Whyteleafe of Scott Day. We look forward to getting him back on the pitch.

“It is incredibly sad news to hear that Thamesmead, who were to have been our opponent for tomorrow’s Bostik South East Division One game, have folded. The club has filed for liquidation. We are trying to arrange another team to play us in a friendly match to try to keep momentum. 

“We would like to invite the fans along to a Q&A session this Saturday at 12.30pm in the clubhouse. First, we want to thank the fans for their support this season so far. We’ll open up the floor to the fans to ask questions and then introduce other ways for the supporters to get more involved with the club and supporting the players. We’re looking forward to the meeting.”

Fixtures

Croydon
Sat Oct 20: v Rusthall (H) – Kent Senior Trophy
Wed Oct 24: v Fisher (H) – SCEFL Challenge Cup 1st Rd

Croydon Athletic
Sat Oct 20: v Tunbridge Wells (A) – Kent Senior Trophy
Tue Oct 23: v Abbey Rangers (A) – Surrey Senior Cup

Whyteleafe
Tue Oct 23: v Westfields (H) – Surrey Senior Cup