Season Report: Stratford Athletic

On Sunday 19th May, Stratford Athletic played the final game of their first season in the Hackney & Leyton League. An emotional morning ended in a 4-1 defeat to Walthamstow Village, with Alex Bocking netting the team's last goal of the 2012/13 season. The opening day seems a lifetime ago, but it was only last September that the lads pulled on their red jerseys for the first time.

It all began with a defeat to the typically physical Walthamstow Village. Manager Mike Earll's first eleven were beaten by two quick-fire second half goals, despite playing well for the majority of the match. It was a game of positives and negatives, with Elliot Greening scoring a debut goal but Will Winthrop suffering a serious injury that would see him miss the next seven months of action.

The veteran stopper stepped into the role of Assistant Manager as the Reds picked up their first point a week later, away at Regents Park Rovers. Two stunning goals at Mabley Green were cancelled out by Ryan Bishop and Greening as Athletic celebrated their first draw of the year.

Stratford followed that up with two hard-fought victories. A 4-3 win against close rivals Shoreditch spurred the team on to a 6-5 win the very next week against Highams Park. A debut hat-trick for Tymal Mills was the highlight of the six-point fortnight.

Both the Dickie Davies and Jack Walpole Cup competitions proved too much for Earll's team as October rolled into November. A late goal saw NLM FC sneak a 1-0 win on the Marshes, while Mile End were worthy 6-3 winners at Mabley Green.

Bad weather conditions wreaked havoc on the winter fixtures, with water-logged pitches limiting Stratford to a single league fixture in November. Pete Stanley deputised in goal with Deacon out injured while Elliot Greening scored a candidate for goal of the season when his peach from the halfway line spurred Stratford on to rescue a 2-2 draw against Florist Arms. Will Pruce nodded home the dramatic late equaliser.

The Christmas period was a series of ups and downs. Athletic lost to Newham on a frozen pitch at the start of December, then beat Shoreditch 2-1 in an intense local derby at Victoria Park. Six members of the senior team then demonstrated their footballing prowess in an indoor training match in East London.  Deacon, Greening, Reece Smith, Matt Wall, Fred Stanley and Connor Venus showed the youth team how to play the Stratford way under the watchful eye of Charles Lambert. The joined the rest of the team to crash out of the Jack Morgan Cup a week later in the last game of 2012, losing 5-1 to Jay Cubed.

When they returned in the New Year, Stratford earned a resounding 5-1 win over Delta Athletic. Olly Kelly poached his first goal of the season as a skeletal team dominated their opposition. Only a week later, they lost to Angel & Crown as the gaffer was forced to shuffle the squad.

February was a busy month for the Reds, which opened with Tim Reynolds scoring a wonder goal in a 3-3 draw to Wenlock Arms. A double-header with City Flyers ended in a 5-1 loss and 3-1 win for Athletic, then they were eliminated from their final cup tournament after losing to Division Four side Maynell. Deacon then saved a penalty in Stratford's 3-1 win over Florist Arms, a game that also saw another smash-and-grab goal from Mr Kelly.

Alex Bocking snatched a late goal as Stratford beat Regents Park 1-0 in March, collecting their first clean sheet of the season in the process. Then in Easter week, they staged a famous comeback against FC Walthamstow, with Greening and Fred Stanley scoring goals to bridge a two-goal deficit.

They couldn't repeat their heroics after the Easter break however, as they lost to the same team by a single goal. In late April, Winthrop made a triumphant return to the team, keeping a clean sheet in a 2-0 win over Wenlock Arms.

Stratford finished the season with a downward spiral in May. They lost all three of their final games to Angel & Crown, Delta Athletic and Walthamstow Village. But the season has brought the team together, they have finished in the top half of the Division Three table and might be looking at a second spell in the H&L League. See you next season, maybe.

Stratford Survive Relegation

Stratford Athletic have avoided relegation. Highams Park Rangers and Newham Pirates have folded, which means that their remaining fixtures have been converted to automatic wins.

Manager Mike Earll has spoken of his delight at keeping Stratford away from the relegation zone in his first season in charge. The Reds, who never looked likely candidates for the drop, are nine points away from the automatic promotion slots in fourth place.

"I'm so proud," said Earll. "It's just another step on the road to cementing my legacy at the club."

The squad from the weekend was as follows: Deacon; P. Stanley, Wall, Hope, Gallie; Kelly, Wachowski (Shannon), Greening (C), Kirby; Bishop; Bocking

Assistant manager Will Winthrop made a surprise appearance on the bench after missing seven months of football. Rumours are circulating that he may be in line for a short cameo in the coming weeks.

In the short interview conducted with the gaffer during the week, he also admitted that he doesn't read the newspapers after a loss. He said: "I never read the reports after we lose, it's too hard to take." Athletic have won nine and lost only five of their 18 league matches this year.

This weekend the lads travel away to Delta Athletic, who lost 5-1 to Stratford in January. Earll was overjoyed by his side's display on that day but admits they will need to improve on their last performance if they want to repeat the strong victory. 

"We need to bounce back after Sunday," he said. "We had a lot of squad members missing from the last game so I expect a better performance this weekend."

"There were players who under-performed but also some who impressed me. We missed a lot of easy chances and can't let that happen again."

The last four matches of the season will decide the Reds' fate, and good results could see them secure fifth place with ease.

Match Report: FC Walthamstow HOME

Stratford Athletic 2 - 2 FC Walthamstow

Sunday, 17 March 2013 - KO 11:00 - Mabley Green, Hackney

Squad (4-2-3-1): Deacon; Wachowski (Gallie), Wall, Hope, P. Stanley; Reynolds, Jones (Kelly); F. Stanley, Bishop, Greening; Bocking

Stratford Athletic pulled off a daring comeback from the brink of defeat to snatch a point at home to FC Walthamstow. A capacity crowd at Mabley Green looked on as the Reds overturned a two-goal deficit to walk away with an unlikely draw.

On a rainy day in the heart of East London, the away side started brightly. A sublime goal-line clearance from Elliot Greening was the biggest talking point of the opening exchanges. The referee had to turn to his imaginary linesmen to confirm that the ball had not crossed the line. Captain Josh Jones finally nothed his first shot on goal. He's still trailing Deacon in shots on target though.

Tom Wachowski was lost to injury after only 20 minutes, setting the stage for Mark Gallie to enter the fray. He got to work immediately, being as ginger as possible at right-back.

Chance after chance was dealt with by the Stratford back four until a lucky deflection set up their No.3 for an audacious overhead kick into the bottom corner. Deacon was wrong-footed, the defence were stunned and FCW had the lead.

At half time, the Reds didn't know how to respond. Manager Mike Earll knew he had to lift his players but they looked dejected in their sodden kits, unable to find the extra energy that could give them an advantage in the match.

Walthamstow were two goals ahead soon after the restart. A long ball into the box was nodded past the onrushing Deacon, who never saw the late runner coming.

From here it would have been easy for Athletic to give up. Any other team might throw in the towel, but not these lads. Something changed the momentum, a tackle or a shot - that is unclear - but something gave the Reds a boost. They charged onwards, finding a passion that had deserted them in the first half.

Deacon got up well to spectacularly tip a brilliant effort over the bar. The Stanley brothers patrolled each flank, centre-backs Wall and Hope were unbeatable, substitute Oliver Kelly provided a new dimension, and the others followed suit. Stratford were back.

A neat ball through from 'top boyfriend' Ryan Bishop released Fred Stanley and the rest was simple for the young striker. He tucked the ball into the corner and rallied his team back to the centre-spot.

Athletic's pressure was unrelenting. Chances were falling for every one. Greening might have slotted one in from the edge of the box. Kelly nodded one just north of the crossbar. Bocking tried to sneak one home from close range. And Fred Stanley brought a fine save from the keeper when he curled a close range free-kick over the opposition wall.

In the blink of an eye it all became too much for the away side. A free-kick from Bishop was whipped in from the left wing. A scramble of bodies broke out and somehow the ball ended up in the net. Replays revealed that Nathan Hope, converted to a striker in the last 15 minutes, had done enough to nudge an opponent out of sight for Greening to knock home the loose ball. It was 2-2. Job done. But the home side didn't relent.

A few moments of brave defending at the back stopped any hope of Walthamstow snatching a win, while things were heating up at the other end. Several big chances went begging before the ref called an end to proceedings.

Overall, a fine day in Stratford Athletic's short history was completed by a team who never stopped fighting. Staring defeat in the face, they showed true courage and spirit to bring themselves back into the match. It could have gone either way towards the end but the boys did well to earn a point that sees them go six points behind top spot in Division Three.

Injury Update: Winthrop & Greening

Playing for Stratford Athletic can be dangerous, just ask those on the injury list. We did exactly that when we caught up with Will Winthrop and Elliot Greening.

Will Winthrop:

"I've got a physiotherapy session booked for my birthday. I've had surgery, the bandages are off and now it's all about the rehab. I'm working hard to get back into the squad; Walthamstow Village is my target. All I will say is; revenge is a dish best served cold.

"I was pleased to make it to the Stratford night out, celebrating Matt's birthday. However, I feel that my injury hindered me and therefore caused me to fail in my role as Assistant Manager. Without my assistance, Gaffer was seen shouting controversial chants at tube passengers, guilty of indecent exposure in Piccadilly Circus and has been accused of sexual harassment and cyber bullying after making several drunken phone calls to an unnamed female.

"Although I failed in assisting the gaffer, I'd like to think that I fulfilled my obligation to the players by assisting Matthew Wall and Darryl Kirby into a taxi. I shared a joyful bus-ride home and a delightful apple and blackberry pie with Top Boyfriend Ryan Bishop. Job done. Management."

Elliot Greening:

"I am putting my faith in club physio Tim Reynolds, who has diagnosed the injury as strained ligaments boys. Usually it takes three weeks to recover but without this weekend I should be available for selection for the FC Walthamstow game."

Match Report: Regents Park HOME

Stratford Athletic 1 - 0 Regents Park Rovers

Sunday, 3 March 2013 - KO 10:30 - North Marsh, Hackney

Squad: Deacon; Wachowski, Wall, Hope, P. Stanley (Hauser); Kelly (Kirby), Reynolds, Jones (C), Venus; Bishop; Bocking

Stratford Athletic managed to steal all three points at home to Regents Park Rovers on Sunday, notching their second win in as many weeks.

Alex Bocking scored the only goal of a scrappy game on the marshes as he latched onto the end of a through ball from Ryan Bishop in the second half.

Chris Deacon kept Rovers at bay with two big saves in the first half while Tom Wachowski and club legend Pete Stanley (returning from injury) made crucial challenges on the wing to deny the away team any space.

Athletic showed off some of their best passing play throughout the opening period, creating space with short sharp passes in front of the Regents Park back four. Despite a few half-chances in the opening 45 minutes, nothing could break the deadlock and the teams went in level at half time.

The second half went the same way as the first, with both sides getting into a midfield battle that often ended in a long ball forward.

While Stratford continued to slowly build up their attacks, Rovers put the pressure on. They were halted by Matt Wall and Nathan Hope defending brilliantly down the middle.

The only goal of the game (that's right Stratford fans) was as 'route one' as they come. A goal-kick from Deacon was brought down by Bishop, who knocked the ball into Bocking's path and the striker finished clinically. He just got in ahead of the onrushing keeper and the ball rolled slowly over the line.

For the last 20 minutes Stratford went all-out defensive. The urgency completely went from those in red shirts and maintaining the lead was the only priority.

Twice the away team came close. First from a long ball forward which missed their striker's head by inches before Deacon collected the ball in mid-air. The second was their best chance. A cheeky chip over the back four sent the tall forward away and, despite the protests from the static Stratford defence, he found himself one-on-one with Deacon. This time the Stratford No.1 stood firm and blocked the ball with his left leg before the Reds cleared their lines.

Manager Mike Earll introduced Darryl Kirby as a set of fresh legs before handing a debut appearance to Asa Hauser. Hauser, who wore 'SMITH' on the back of his shirt for some unknown reason (perhaps it's a nickname) was proud of his display. Earll stuck with his youth policy by bringing the attacker to the club but clearly doesn't want to rush the lad into the squad. Management.

The final whistle brought relief to the thousands of fans who stayed long after the game to chant the gaffer's name. Assistant Manager Doddsy came to face the media and thanked the fans for their loyal support.

He chuckled: "It's great to hear the fans getting behind the club. We earned our first clean sheet and I'm sure they're just as proud as we are. I hope Deacon doesn't spend that clean sheet bonus all at once."

He also spoke at length about the referee's performance.

"He was alright," admitted Winthrop.