Transfer Round-up Summer 2013/14

The summer transfer window was a busy month for us, with some good players unfortunately leaving, but also, some good players coming in to fill the gaps left by the leaving players.

I think we'll do outgoing transfers first. After an unbeaten season, there was a lot of interest in my players, and I knew it would be a tough ask keeping a lot of them at Vale Farm, with interest from teams such as Portsmouth and Crewe Alexandra.

The first departing player was 16 yr old English RW Martin Comer on a free transfer to London Bari.

At the time, I wasn't too bothered at losing the winger, as I didn't really need wingers as I was using a narrow 4-3-3 with 3 CMs and 3 STs, but looking back on it, with the new 4-2-3-1 we're using, I wonder whether I should have tried keeping him at the club. He's still very young, and could improve a lot. As you can see from his stats, he hasn't played much since leaving, playing 5 games and scoring 1 goal altogether, including friendlies. Still, he is young, and I may need to keep my eye on him, to see if it's worth bringing him back to Vale Farm.

Our next departure was Irish CM Ciaran Toner on a free deal to Arlesey Town, who we also played in pre-season.

Ciaran Toner was never really any more than a back-up player for us, with no midfielders really being able to break into the centre of the field, with Fazlic, Johnson and Ahmed playing so well together. Toner however, did manage to make 25 appearences, mostly subs, and get a goal and assist in his year at the club, and looking at his start for Arseley, with 5 starts and 1 goal, looks as though he could prove to be quite a good player at this level.

The next player that left Vale Farm, was 21 year old, English CB Jordan Anderson to East Thurrock United on a free transfer, who worked quite well at the back, rotating with Galinski and Raphael Branco.

I was quite disappointed to lose Jordan, as I felt he was a good player, and really showed it in the second half of the 2012/13 season. Anderson made 26 appearances, scoring 1 goal for us, and doesn't seem to have been given a very good start at East Thurrock, only playing once in their first five games. I do think Anderson should have stayed with us, where he fitted in well with the players we had, and I think he would have fitted in with the players we were looking to bring in.

The next player to depart was 23 year old, English CM Matt Johnson, who went to Blue Square North's Boston United on a free.

I was very disappointed with losing Johnson, as I felt he still had a lot to offer the club, and felt he could have led us forward, and up the leagues. Matt made 35 appearances for us in his one year at the club, scoring 9 goals (a couple of them were absolute belters) and getting 13 assists! Johnson has had a decent start with Boston, playing in all of their league games so far, but hasn't managed to find the back of the net, or create a goal. Johnson was a great player for us, so there was no doubt that bigger clubs would try to pry him from us, but I was hoping he would stay loyal, and was very disappointed when he left us. 

The next player to leave was 21 year old, English ST Ryan Limb, on a free transfer to Dulwich Hamlet.

Ryan Limb was a good young player, and I didn't like letting him go. He had been a key player for us in the first half of the 12/13 season until John Nurse came in towards the end of the season. Limb made 30 appearances,scoring 15 goals, and making 6 assists. Limb has also started this season in hot form for Dulwich, scoring 4 goals in 5 games.

The next player to leave was 21 year old, English GK Simon Locke on a free transfer to Nuneaton Town.

Simon Locke was only really a back-up to Ranieri, however with interest in Ranieri high, I really wanted to keep him in case Ranieri did decide to leave. Locke only made 5 appearances for us in the 12/13 season, and only conceded 2 goals. Locke had started his Nuneaton career well, playing 6 and only conceding 3 goals, keeping 4 clean sheets. Fortunately, we managed to keep Mirko Ranieri, after he signed a new deal worth £450 p/w, after rejecting a contract from League 2 Portsmouth.

The next player to depart was 21 year old, English RM Dwayne Park on a free transfer to Felixstowe & Walton United.

Dwayne was a back-up player to the first team, and when I say back-up, I mean one of the last players I would call on. Dwayne made 2 appearances for us, which is only half what he has made for Felixstowe, having played in 4 out of their 5 games this season.

The next player to leave, was 21 year old, Bosnian CM Dino Fazlic on a free transfer to League 2 Portsmouth.

Dino was one of our key players in the 12/13 season, and I was devastated to lose him. Fazlic made 26 appearances, scoring 3 goals, and creating 4 goals. Dino is only really a back-up player at Fratton Park, making 1 appearance, and I feel he would have been much better off staying at Vale Farm.

The next player to leave the Farm, was 21 year old, English ST Liam Head on a free transfer to Billericay Town.

Liam was a good young player, and I was disappointed to lose him as I felt he still had plenty to offer the club. Head made 29 appearances for us, scoring 7 goals, and I'm sure that figure would've gone up this season, had he stayed with us. So far this season for Billericay, Head has played 5 games, scoring 1 goal.

The next player to leave was 16 year old, English CB George Fitzgerald to Hanwell Town on a free transfer.

Fitzgerald was a youth player, who failed to make the grade, so I didn't see the point in keeping him. He made no appearances fro us, and out of Hanwell's first 5 games, he has played 4, starting 3.

The next player to leave us was 21 year old, English RB Ricky Croft on a free transfer.

Croft was a poor player, not getting any first team games in the 1st season, and after requesting some game time in the first team, I felt it was better for both parties, as he wasn't going to get any games for us, with Nzuzi, Jenkins and Betteridge ahead of him in the pecking order, as well as Gayle and Beckham.

The last player to leave us was 33 year old, Cypriot LB Tom Williams on a free transfer to Blue Square Premier's Newport County.

This was a huge loss for us, as Tom had been a key player for us, playing 36 games for us last season, scoring 2 goals and getting 5 assists. He had also played 4 of our 5 games this season, and left to Newport, just after signing a new deal. I felt quite betrayed by Tom leaving because of the new contract we had just given him, and it also left us with a gap in LB, and I wasn't quite sure who should fill it.

Next up is incoming transfers. I had quite a few targets in mind, some were unrealistic, including the first signing.

The first player to come in to Vale Farm was 36 year old, Nigerian ST/AM Nwankwo Kanu.

Getting Kanu on a free, and on an amateur deal was a great signing for us, and his past playing experience would help us a lot! The journeyman had previously played for teams such as Ajax, Inter Milan, Arsenal, WBA and Portsmouth, so to have him with us, mentoring younger players was a great thing for us. So far this season, Nwankwo has made 4 appearances, not scoring any goals, but setting up a goal, and I'm sure it will only be a matter of time before he starts scoring.

The next player to come in, was 18 year old, LW Anthony Jeffrey on a free transfer.

We signed Jeffrey as a hot prospect, and I out him in the reserves and completely forgot about him. He looks as though he can be a great player for us in the future, and his pace and acceleration means he could be a danger at this level now. Jeffrey had made his way through the Arsenal youth academy, but the London giants had decided against giving him a professional contract.

The next player to come in was 23 year old, AM Wayne Brroksby, on a free transfer from Guiseley AFC. 

Wayne looked to be a good player when he came in, however a fractured arm that he picked up in pre-season halted his progress, and since coming back, he hasn't been able to knock Kanu from the 1st team place. His injury also seemed to lower his potential quite a bit, but I'm sure he can still be a very effective player at this level.

The next player to come in to Vale Farm, was 18 year old, English ST Sulley Kaikai.

We brought Sulley in as a hot prospect for the future, and I won't really be able to tell where he stands until the next couple of years. He looks good on paper though, however Crystal Palace didn't feel he would be good enough for their team.

The next signing was 18 year old CM Steven Logan on a free transfer.

Logan looks to be a great signing for the future, and I think he could be a great player right now. I think this is a great deal for us, and having spent 3 years in the Newcastle youth academy, feel he could have something to teach his fellow young team mates.

The next player to come in was 19 year old, English CM Corby Moore on a free transfer.

Corby Moore signed on a deal worth £475 p/w and signed as a key player. Moore has started the season wuite well for us, playing in 4 of our 5 games, scoring a goal, and getting an assist. Moore has linked up well with Easton and Panther, and could form a key partnership with Steve Logan in the near future. Moore was released by Southampton.

Our next signing was 33 year old, English GK Michael Watkins on a free transfer.

After the departure of Simon Locke, we needed to bring in a new keeper, although I had already promoted Raphael Richardson out of the U18s to be Ranieri's back-up. Watkins has been to a variety of teams, including Marlow, Didcot and Uxbridge, so was very experienced, and would hopefully prove a good mentor to 16 year old Richardson.

Our last signing was 19 year old ST/LW Dalton Harris on a free transfer from Spalding United. 

We signed Harris as a back-up to Jon Nurse on the left flank, but he could find himself unused as Anthony Jeffrey looks much better, and looks ready for the first team. Harris got an assist on his debut, and last season played 22 games for Spalding, scoring 2 goals and getting 2 assists. Harris started his career at Nottingham Forest, before moving to Scunthorpe, and then Peterborough, but didn't play a senior game for any of the three. 

So they are all our transfers for the 2013/14 Summer transfer window.

Here is an overview:

August 2013/14: A New Season

After a good pre-season, we were hoping to get the season off to a good start, and we had the home advantage in the opening game.

Our first game of the season was against Walton Casuals at Vale Farm.

We started with the 4-2-3-1 that we had tried out in the last pre-season game against Maidenhead, and with what I felt was the strongest squad to fit that tactic.

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, S. Galinski, Raphael Branco, T. Williams, A. Ahmed, D. Bembo-Leta

N. Kanu, J. Nurse, V. Pericard

Subs: R. Richardson, N. Koo-Boothe, A. Legg, C. Moore, S. Dobie

We started well, and only took 8 minutes to open the scoring, when Patrick Nzuzi put an early cross in towards Pericard, who was able to bring the ball down with a good first touch, and place the ball past the keeper. Pericard missed a great chance to double our lead in the 62nd minute, when Bembo-Leta played a ball into the box, which found Pericard who could have just passed the ball into the back of the net, but he tried to be clever and allowed the keeper to get back into his goal before taking the shot, and the keeper was able to get a firm hand on the ball and push it wide.

This was a good win to start the 2013/14 season, despite Pericard's easy miss, and the fact we could have won by a lot more.

Final score: Wembley 1-0 Walton Casuals

Our next game was against Brentwood Town, away at the Brentwood Center.

We made 9 changes to the starting XI, with S. Jenkins, N. Koo-Boothe, A. Legg, D. Freeman, C. Moore,

T. Betteridge, R. McCluskey, C. Wrigley and S. Dobie replacing P. Nzuzi (Fit), Raphael Branco (Fit),

T. Williams (Fit), A. Ahmed (Fit), C. Easton (Fit), D. Bembo-Leta (Fit), N. Kanu (Fit), J. Nurse (Fit) and 

V. Pericard (Fit)

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, S. Jenkins, S. Galinski, N. Koo-Boothe, A. Legg, D. Freeman, C. Moore,

T. Betteridge, R. McCluskey, C. Wrigley, S. Dobie

Subs: R. Richardson, B. Gayle, T. Williamson, M. Panther, R. Dennis

Brentwood opened the scoring in the 54th minute, when Gayle failed to clear the ball, and Cohen was able to cross the ball, which was turned into the bottom corner by Rickford. Corby Moore then equalized for us in the 64th minute, with a curling effort from McCluskey's pull-back. Brentwood's Alex Read had a goal ruled out for off-side in the 87th minute, and it looked as though we would hang on for a point. Then, amazingly, we took the lead! We took it through Nathan Koo-Boothe in the 91st minute, who was able to beat a Brentwood defender at the near post, and flick Andy Legg's corner past the keeper.

This was a good comeback against a strong Brentwood side, and although we left it late, we got the 3 points we wanted.

Final score: Brentwood Town 1-2 Wembley

Our next game was against Merstham FC, and was held at Vale Farm.

We made 10 changes to the starting XI, with P. Nzuzi, Raphael Branco, B. Gayle, S. Opinel, A. Ahmed,

C. Easton, D. Bembo-Leta, N. Kanu, J. Nurse and V. Pericard replacing S. Jenkins (Per), S. Galinski (Fit), N. Koo-Boothe (Per), A. Legg (Fit), D. Freeman (Per), C. Moore (Per), T. Betteridge (Per),

R. McCluskey (Per), C. Wrigley (Per) and S. Dobie (Per).

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, Raphael Branco, B. Gayle, S. Opinel, A. Ahmed,

C. Easton, D. Bembo-Leta, N. Kanu, J. Nurse, V. Pericard

Subs: R. Richardson, N. Koo-Boothe, T. Williams, M. Panther, M. McCammon

Djeny Bembo-Leta opened the scoring in the 11th minute, when he cut inside catching the Merstham defence out and receiving the ball from Pericard, before slotting the ball in from a very tight angle. Bembo-Leta almost doubled our lead 30 seconds later, when we won the ball from the kick-off, and Easton played a long ball forward for Bembo-Leta, who missed the target in the one-on-one situation. Bembo-Leta got his, and the teams second, in the 37th minute, when he broke the offside trap with a well timed run, and getting on the end of the ball played by Kanu, slotted the ball past the keeper, and into the bottom corner. Husnu immediately pulled one back, getting on the end of Griffith's through ball, and gently stroking the ball past Ranieri. Vincent Pericard then scored our third goal in the 47th minute, when Manny Panther launched an unusually long/high throw into the box, and Pericard was able to volley the ball past the keeper. Merstham immediately pulled one back through Charlie Ide, when Brandon Gayle failed to play the ball back to Ranieri, and Ide took the ball from the young defender, and placed the ball calmly past Ranieri. Pericard then scored again, in the 51st minute, when Nzuzi played a through ball into him, who then placed the ball into the bottom corner. Vincent Pericard completed his hat-trick in the 89th minute, when Jon Nurse got one-on-one with the keeper, but instead of shooting, he pulled the ball back for Pericard, who passed the ball into the back of the net.

This was a great win for us, and the result showed that we really had some fire power up-front!

Final score: Wembley 5-2 Merstham

Our next game was against Whyteleafe F.C. and was at Church Road.

We made 4 changes to the starting XI with N. Koo-Boothe, T. Williams, T. Williamson and new signing Dalton Harris getting straight into the line-up, replacing B. Gayle (Per), S. Opinel (Per), C. Easton (Inj) and J. Nurse (Fit).

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, Raphael Branco, N. Koo-Boothe, T. Williams, T. Williamson, A. Ahmed, D. Bembo-Leta, N. Kanu, D. Harris, V. Pericard

Subs: R. Richardson, S. Galinski, C. Moore, S. Dobie, M. McCammon

We opened the scoring in the 33rd minute through Vincent Pericard, who was played in by Adnan Ahmed, and was able to set himself up with a good first touch, before slotting the ball past the Whyteleafe keeper. Will Turl equalised for Whyteleafe in the 43rd minute, when he was given the ball by Ball, and was able to curl the ball around the defender, past Ranieri, and into the bottom corner. Bembo-Leta went close to sending us back in-front from the kick-off, when Tom Williams played a long ball to the winger, who's shot hit the post before being cleared by a defender. Mark McCammon regained our lead in the 77th minute, when Williams played the ball to Harris down the line, who crossed the ball into the box from the byline, and McCammon was there to head the ball in.

This was a good win against similar opposition, and I was happy to see our new signing have a good debut.

Final score: Whyteleafe 1-2 Wembley

Our next game was against 3rd placed Crawley Down Gatwick at our home, Vale Farm.

We made 5 changes to the starting XI, with S. Galinski, C. Moore, M. Panther, R. McCluskey and J. Nurse replacing  N. Koo-Boothe (Per), A. Ahmed (Fit), T. Williamson (Fit), N. Kanu (Fit) and D. Harris (Fit)

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, Raphael Branco, S. Galinski, T. Williams, C. Moore, M. Panther,
D. Bembo-Leta, R. McCluskey, J. Nurse, V. Pericard

Subs: R. Richardson, N. Koo-Boothe, D. Lee, W. Brooksby, M. McCammon

Djeny Bembo-Leta opened the scoring for us in the 10th minute, when Patrick Nzuzi cut inside before slipping the ball through to the Congolese striker who blasted the ball past the keeper. Vincent Pericard then doubled our lead in the 31st minute, when Bembo-Leta crossed the ball into the striker,who volleyed the ball past the Crawley keeper. Dwane Lee gave us a third in the 77th minute, when He was given the ball by Williams, and curled the ball into the bottom corner from the edge of the box. Mohammed Dikuizka puled it back for Crawley in the 82nd minute, when he was played in by Dunne, and took the ball around Ranieri before passing the ball into the goal.

A good win against 3rd place, however I was disappointed that we, once again, failed to keep a clean sheet

Final score: Wembley 3-1 Crawley Down Gatwick

August gave us a great start to the 2013/14 season, although I was quite concerned with only getting the one clean sheet.

Here are the results from August:

Our good start to the season meant we finished August top of the table, with 15 points!

Here is the league table:

Pre-Season 2013/14: Preparing For The New Season

After a great 1st season, we were ready to start our preparation for the 2nd season.

Our first game of the pre-season was against Sidley United.

I started with what I felt was our strongest team, as I wanted to get as good a start as possible to the season.

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, S. Galinski, Raphael Branco, T. Williams, A. Ahmed, C. Moore,

D. Freeman, N. Kanu, V. Pericard, D. Bembo-Leta

Subs: R. Richardson, S. Jenkins, B. Gayle, N. Koo-Boothe, A. Legg, T. Williamson, W. Brooksby,

D. Lee, M. Panther, J. Nurse, S. Dobie, R. Dennis

Nwankwo Kanu gave us the lead in the 47th minute, after a dull first half, with a volley, right into the top corner, from Bembo-Leta's cross. 18 year old keeper Raphael Richardson made a good save in the 61st minute, when the ball was played through to Salmon who broke through the defence, one-on-one with Richardson, who spread himself, and made the block.

A decent win to start the pre-season, and there was some good performances, such as Raphael Richardson, and Nwankwo Kanu.

Final score: Sidley United 0-1 Wembley

Our next pre-season friendly was against Northwood FC.

We made 5 changes to the starting XI, with R. Richardson, W. Brooksby, M. Panther, T. Williamson and
R. Dennis replacing M. Ranieri, A. Ahmed, L. Moore, D. Freeman and N. Kanu.

Starting XI: R. Richardson, P. Nzuzi, S. Galinski, Raphael Branco, T. Williams, W. Brooksby, M. Panther,
T. Williamson, R. Dennis, V. Pericard, D. Bembo-Leta

Subs: M. Ranieri, S. Jenkins, B. Gayle, N. Koo-Boothe, A. Legg, A. Ahmed, D. Freeman, D. Lee,
C. Moore, M. McCammon, S. Dobie, N. Kanu

Djeny Bembo-Leta got us off to a great start in the 2nd minute, when he was played through by Ronnel Dennis, and curled the ball into the bottom corner from the edge of the penalty area. Ronnel Dennis then doubled our lead in the 16th minute, with a well timed finish into the back of the net after receiving the ball from Wayne Brooksby and taking the ball around two defenders. Stefan Powell then pulled one back in the second half, when he was played through by Bullock, and took the ball past Ranieri before passing the ball into the back of the net. Powell then equalised after a quick one-two with Barker put him one-on-one with Ranieri, and was able to slot the ball past the Italian keeper.

The game was a game of two halve, which either team was able to take an advantage.

Final score: Wembley 2-2 Northwood

Our next game was against North Greenford United.

We made 7 changes to the starting XI with M. Watkins, S. Jenkins, N. Koo-Boothe, A. Legg, D. Lee,
A. Ahmed and S. Dobie replacing R. Richardson, P. Nzuzi, S. Galinski, T. Williams, W. Brooksby,
T. Williamson and D. Bembo-Leta

Starting XI: M. Watkins, S. Jenkins, N. Koo-Boothe, Raphael Branco, A. Legg, D. Lee, A. Ahmed,
M. Panther, S. Dobie, V. Pericard, R. Dennis.

Subs: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, S. Galinski, B. Gayle, T. Williams, C. Moore, D. Freeman, T. Williamson,
R. Beckham, M. McCammon, N. Kanu, D. Bembo-Leta

We dominated the first 25 minutes possession-wise, with Ronnel Dennis and Scott Dobie going close multiple times, but failing to beat the North Greenwood keeper. This was the case for the rest of the game, which eventually came to an end after a slow 90 minutes.

The game was poor, and we failed to take our chances.

Final score: North Greenwood United 0-0 Wembley

Our next game was against Arlesey Town.

We made no changes to the starting XI, mostly because I forgot to make the changes.

Starting XI: M. Watkins, S. Jenkins, N. Koo-Boothe, Raphael Branco, A. Legg, D. Lee, A. Ahmed,
M. Panther, S. Dobie, V. Pericard, R. Dennis.

Subs: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, S. Galinski, B. Gayle, T. Williams, C. Moore, D. Freeman, T. Williamson,
R. Beckham, M. McCammon, N. Kanu, D. Bembo-Leta

Pericard almost sent us in-front in the 4th minute, with a half-volley from just inside the penalty that went just over the crossbar. Arlesey took the lead in the 44th minute through Tom Ward, who headed Johnson's corner past Michael Watkins, and into the back of the net. Mark McCammon equalized for us in the 57th minute, when the Arlesey keeper spilled the ball on the edge of the box, and McCammon was able to poke the ball into the back of the net. McCammon then gave us the lead in the 84th minute, when he was able to get above an Arlesey defender, and head Tom Williamson's corner kick into the the bottom corner of the goal.

This was a good win overall, against a better team than us, and we were especially happy after coming back from behind.

Final score: Wembley 2-1 Arlesey Town

Our next game was against Maidenhead United, who were like giants compared to us.
I felt like trying out a new tactic, which would be an attacking 4-2-3-1.

We made 8 changes to the starting XI, with M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, S. Galinski, T. Williams, D. Freeman,
C. Easton, D. Bembo-Leta and J. Nurse replacing M. Watkins, S. Jenkins, N. Koo-Boothe, A. Legg,
A. Ahmed, T. Williamson, R. Dennis and M. Panther

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, S. Galinski, Raphael Branco, T. Williams, C. Easton, D. Freeman,
D. Bembo-Leta, S. Dobie, J. Nurse, V. Pericard

Subs: R. Richardson, S. Jenkins, N. Koo-Boothe, B. Gayle, A. Legg, C. Moore, N. Durrant,
T. Williamson, J. Baldwin, T. Betteridge, C. Wrigley, N. Kanu

Djeny Bembo-Leta gave us the lead in the 5th minute, when he ran inside from the right wing, getting on the end of Dobie's through-ball, and slotting the ball past the keeper. Scott Dobie then doubled our lead in the 9th minute when Pericard had an effort saved by the Maidenhead keeper, who pushed the ball into Dobie's path who was able to fire the ball into the empty goal. Maidenhead then pulled it back in the 19th minute through Alex Wall, who was able to get on the end of a long ball forward from his keeper, before knocking the ball past Ranieri, and passing the ball into the net. Raphael Branco then re-established our two goal lead in the 31st minute, when he was able to beat Alex Wall in the air and head home Craig Easton's corner at the near post. We gained an easy 4th in the 37th minute, when Bembo-Leta put the ball into the danger area, and the ball hit Maidenhead's defender, Charlie Clough, who put the ball past his own keeper. Simon Rhodes got one for Maidenhead in the 75th minute, after a quick free-kick led to Brown getting a ball into the box, which Rhodes was able to hit home from point-blank range. 

This was a great win against a team we were expected to be beaten by, and the new tactic looked pretty strong.

Final score: Wembley 4-2 Maidenhead United

We did well in pre-season overall, not losing, and beating teams such as Maidenhead, I was confident we could get our second season off to a good start!

April & May 2012/13: Ending On A High

So now that we had won the double after being crowned Combined Counties Premier League, and Isthmian Ryman League Cup Champions, we were looking to complete the treble by winning the FA Vase. Seeing as though we only had one game scheduled for May, I decided to do both April and May in the same post.

The first game of the month was against Epsom & Ewell in the league.

We made 5 changes to the Starting XI, with S. Locke, A. Ahmed, C. Easton, L. Head and M. McCammon replacing M. Ranieri (Rot), A. Love (Fit), M. Johnson (Fit), D. Bembo-Leta (Fit) and J. Nurse (Fit).

Starting XI: S. Locke, P. Nzuzi, N. Koo-Boothe, Raphael Branco, T. Williams, D. Fazlic, A. Ahmed,

C. Easton, L. Head, M. McCammon, V. Pericard

Subs: M. Ranieri, J. Anderson, T. Williamson, A. Love, D. Bembo-Leta

McCammon almost opened the scoring for us in the 23rd minute, when, after a good bit of passing between the front 3, he received the ball from Pericard, but his strike could only hit the post before getting cleared for a corner. McCammon then scored from the resulting corner, when he attacked the ball at the near post, and hit a bullet header past the keeper. Pericard then doubled our lead in the 31st minute, when McCammon flicked on Nzuzi's cross, and Pericard placed the ball into the bottom corner.

This was a good win, and we looked ready for the FA Vase Semi-Final 2nd Leg that was a few days later.

Final score: Wembley 2-0 Epsom & Ewell

Our next game was in the FA Vase Semi-Final 2nd Leg against Sunderland Ryhope, and we held a one goal advantage that we picked up in the 1st leg.

We made 5 changes to the starting XI, with M. Ranieri, A. Love, M. Johnson, D. Bembo-Leta and J. Nurse replacing S. Locke (Rot), C. Easton (Per), D. Fazlic (Fit), L. Head (Per) and M. McCammon (Per).

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, N. Koo-Boothe, Raphael Branco, T. Williams, A. Ahmed, A. Love,

M. Johnson, D. Bembo-Leta, J. Nurse, V. Pericard

Subs: S. Locke, J. Anderson, D. Fazlic, M. Panther, S. Dobie

We started well, and Ahmed forced the Sunderland keeper into a good save with a shot from just outside the penalty box, and the keeper was able to push the ball wide. Thompson pulled it level on aggregate in the 23rd minute, when Lambert got to the byline, and put a low cross into an unmarked Thompson, who was able to just pass the ball into the goal at the far post. Vincent Pericard then leveled the match from the kick-off with a fierce strike from the edge of the penalty box into the top corner. Jon Nurse then doubled our aggregate lead in the 52nd minute, when Bembo-Leta found him on the edge of the box with a back heel, and Nurse was able to hit the ball into the bottom corner. Perciard gave us another in the 59th minute, when he was able to beat Lambert to the ball at the front post, and head in Ahmed's corner. Manny Panther then had a goal disallowed for off-side in the 95th minute, even though he was behind the ball when it was played.

This was a great result, sending us into the final, and one step closer to the treble!

Final score: Sunderland Ryhope (1) 1-3 (4) Wembley

Our next game was against 19th placed Hartley Wintney.

We made 1 change to the starting XI, with M. Panther replacing A. Ahmed (Fit)

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, N. Koo-Boothe, Raphael Branco, T. Williams, M. Panther, A. Love,

M. Johnson, D. Bembo-Leta, V. Pericard, J. Nurse

Subs: S. Locke, B. Gayle, D. Freeman, L. Head, S. Dobie

Manny Panther put us in-front, and scored his first ever Wembley goal in the 15th minute, with a scorching effort from 30 yards after receiving the ball from Bembo-Leta. Djeny Bembo-Leta then dobled our lead in the 30th minute, when Manny Panther played a lofted through-ball over the top putting Bembo-Leta one-on-one with the keeper, and the striker showed his composure, by slotting the ball into the bottom corner. Bembo-Leta then got another in the 55th minute, with a great half-volley from the edge of the box with the assist from Panther. Bembo-Leta then got his hat-trick in the 63rd minute, when he was played through by Nzuzi, and Bembo-Leta placed the ball into the corner of the goal.

This was a great dominant win for us, with a great performance from Bembo-Leta, and a very good goal from Manny Panther.

Final score: Wembley 4-0 Hartley Wintney

Our next game was against Egham Town, who were in 5th place in the league.

We made 8 changes to the starting XI, with S. Locke, S. Jenkins, S. Galinski, A. Legg, A. Ahmed,
D. Fazlic, R. Dennis and R. Limb replacing M. Ranieri (Rot), P. Nzuzi (Fit), Raphael Branco (Fit),
T. Williams (Fit), M. Panther (Fit), M. Johnson (Fit), D. Bembo-Leta (Fit) and V. Pericard (Fit).

Starting XI: S. Locke, S. Jenkins, N. Koo-Boothe, S. Galinski, A. Legg, A. Ahmed, A. Love, D. Fazlic,
R. Dennis, R. Limb, J. Nurse

Subs: M. Ranieri, Raphael Branco, T. Williamson, C. Toner, S. Dobie

Ryan Limb sent us into the lead in the 40th minute, when he was played in by Dennis, and placed the ball calmly past the keeper, and into the back of the net. Locke made a good save to keep us in-front in the 79th minute, when Lynch played O'Toole in on goal, and Locke made himself big, spreading himself out, and O'Toole couldn't get the ball around the big keeper.

Overall, the game was poor, but it was another win for us, extending our unbeaten run.

Final score: Egham Town 0-1 Wembley

Our next game was against 14th placed Badshot Lea.

We made 7 changes to the starting XI, with S. Galinski, T. Williams, D. Freeman, M. Johnson, S. Dobie,
S. Opinel, L. Head replacing N. Koo-Boothe (Rot), A. Legg (Per), A. Ahmed (Fit), D. Fazlic (Rot),
R. Dennis (Rot), R. Limb (Fit) and J. Nurse (Rot).

Starting XI: S. Locke, S. Jenkins, Raphael Branco, S. Galinski, T. Williams, D. Freeman, A. Love,
M. Johnson, S. Dobie, S. Opinel, L. Head

Subs: M. Ranieri, N. Koo-Boothe, T. Williamson, C. Toner, J. Nurse

We broke the deadlock in the 30th minute when Matt Johnson launched a long throw into the box, and Liam Head flicked the ball into the far corner with his head. Head almost headed another into the net, when he got on the end of Ahmed's corner, but the Badshot keeper was able to save, and hold onto the ball.

Another poor performance, but we still managed to get the win, and remain unbeaten.

Final score: Wembley 1-0 Badshot Lea

Next up was 10th placed South Park.

We made 7 changes to the starting XI, with M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, N. Koo-Boothe, A. Ahmed,
D. Bembo-Leta, J. Nurse and V. Pericard replacing S. Locke (Rot), S. Jenkins (Per), S. Galinski (Rot),
D. Freeman (Per), S. Dobie (Per), S. Opinel (Per) and L. Head (Fit).

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, N. Koo-Boothe, Raphael Branco, T. Williams, A. Ahmed, A. Love,
M. Johnson, D. Bembo-Leta, J. Nurse, V. Pericard

Subs: S. Locke, J. Anderson, M. Panther, D. Fazlic, R. Limb

Matt Johnson almost opened the scoring in the 9th minute, with a great strike from 30 yards, and hit the crossbar, and the ball then fell to top-scorer Bembo-Leta, who placed the ball into the bottom corner. Nathan Koo-Boothe almost doubled our lead, when he got on the end of Ahmed's corner, but could only find the cross-bar with the header. Ahmed doubled our lead in the 72nd minute, when Nurse gave him the ball from a wide position, and Ahmed was able to slot the ball past the keeper. We then won a penalty in the  79th minute, when Archie Love went in the air to head the ball, and he was taken out by South Park's Macari. Jon Nurse stepped up to take the penalty, and blasted the ball into the top corner.

A good win against South Park, keeping our momentum going, heading towards the FA Vase final.

Final score: Wembley 3-0 South Park

Our next game, was our penultimate game of the season, and was at Villa Park against Haringey Borough in the FA Vase final, and we were looking to secure the treble!

We made 1 change to the starting XI, with R. Limb replacing J. Nurse, as I felt that we may as well play our three top scorers upfront.

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, N. Koo-Boothe, Raphael Branco, T. Williams, A. Ahmed, A. Love,
M. Johnson, D. Bembo-Leta, V. Pericard, R. Limb

Subs: S. Locke, S. Galinski, M. Panther, D. Fazlic, J. Nurse

Ryan Limb gave us the lead in the 6th minute, when Ahmed played the ball to him in the box, and Limb was given time by the Haringey defence to turn, and place the ball past the keeper. Haringey levelled it in the 10th minute, when Crabb was able to get on the end of Cox's cross, and volley the ball past Ranieri. Matt Johnson put us back in-front in the 22nd minute, with a well-placed effort from outside the box, into the bottom corner. Bembo-Leta almost doubled our lead in the 68th minute, when he mishit a cross, which curled towards a goal, and hit the crossbar. Cox then equalized again for Haringey, when he was found in the box by Randell, and volleyed the ball into the goal.

That was all for regular time, and the game had to go into extra time.

Full Time: Wembley 2-2 Haringey Borough

Vincent Pericard gave us the lead in the 114th minute, after Nurse was tackled in the box, and the ball fell to Pericard who volleyed the ball into the back of the net. Pericard missed a great chance to double our lead in the 119th minute, when he skied a shot from 18 yards.

That was it. We'd won the FA Vase for the 1st time in the clubs history, and we'd completed the treble!

AET: Wembley 3-2 Haringey Borough.

Our final game of the month, and of the season was against Croydon, who were in 13th place.

We made 10 changes to the starting XI, with S. Locke, T. Betteridge, J. Anderson, S. Galinski, A. Legg,
M. Panther, D. Fazlic, S. Dobie, R. Limb and L. Head replacing M. Ranieri (Rot), P. Nzuzi (Fit),
N. Koo-Boothe (Rot), Raphael Branco (Rot), T. Williams (Fit), A. Ahmed (Fit), M. Johnson (Fit),
D. Bembo-Leta (Rot), V. Pericard (Rot) and J. Nurse (Inj)

Starting XI: S. Locke, T. Betteridge, J. Anderson, S. Galinski, A. Legg, M. Panther, A. Love, D. Fazlic,
L. Head, R. Limb, S. Dobie

Subs: M. Ranieri, N. Koo-Boothe, C. Easton, D. Lee, D. Bembo-Leta

Croydon took the lead in the 5th minute, when Scott Wallis was found in the box by Fanibuyan, and Wallis was able to volley the ball into the back of the net. Manny Panther missed a sitter to pull us level in the 42nd minute, when he broke through on goal, but couldn't find the target, hitting the ball well wide. Stefan Galinski equalized in the 56th minute, when he was able to poke the ball over the line from a goalmouth scramble from Legg's corner. Liam Head then sent us into the lead in the 79th minute, when Craig Easton hit a shot from 30 yards, which bounced back to Head off of the crossbar, who placed the ball right into the bottom corner.

Not a great performance, but a good result to end the season.

Final score: Croydon 1-2 Wembley

April and May went extremely well, completing the treble by winning the FA Vase, and remaining unbeaten for the whole season.

Here are the results from April and May:

Although we had been crowned league champions back in February, we continued to perform well, and ended the season 40 points clear at the top. Here is the league table:

March 2012/13: Achieving the Double

 After being crowned Combined Counties Premier League Champions in February, we were looking to get into the final of the Isthmian Ryman League Cup, and at least the Semi-Finals of the FA Vase.

Our first game of the month was against Hampton & Richmond Borough, in the 2nd Leg of the Isthmian Ryman League Cup Semi-Final, and we had a 1-0 lead on aggregate from the 1st leg.

We made 10 changes, with some new names in both the Starting XI, and on the bench, with

P. Nzuzi, new signing Nathan Koo-Boothe, Raphael Branco, A. Legg, D. Fazlic, A. Ahmed, M. Johnson, 

D. Bembo-Leta, V. Pericard, and new signing Jon Nurse, replacing S. Jenkins (Per), B. Gayle (Per), 

J. Anderson (Per), T. Williams (Fit), N. Durrant (Per), J. Baldwin (Per), D. Lee (Per), L. Head (Fit), 

M. McCammon (Per) and R. Limb (Fit). New signings Manny Panther, David Freeman and Scott Dobie also made the bench.

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, N. Koo-Boothe, Raphael Branco, A. Legg, D. Fazlic, A. Ahmed, M. Johnson, D. Bembo-Leta, V. Pericard, J. Nurse

Subs: S. Locke, N. S. Galinski, M. Panther, D. Freeman, S. Dobie

Hampton gave us a scare early on, when he put the ball in the back of the net from Simmonds' free-kick, but  the linesman flagged for off-side, and the goal was ruled out. Noble pulled it level on aggregate for Hampton, with a curling shot from the edge of the box, and he was helped thanks to poor keeping from Ranieri. Pericard put us back in-front on aggregate in the 63rd minute, when he was able to intercept a poor backpass, and slot the ball past the Hampton keeper. Moone then put the ball into the back of the net with his head in the 70th minute, however, his goal was disallowed for offside. We then had to play the last 20 minutes with 10 men, as Tom Williams picked up an injury, just after we used our last substitution. We got a penalty a couple of minutes later, when Pericard was pulled down by a Hampton defender, and the referee pointed to the spot. Adnan Ahmed stepped up to take it, and put the ball right into the bottom corner, giving the keeper no chance, and doubling our aggregate lead.

This was a great result for us, with the only downside being the injury to Tom Williams, but we were in the final!

Final score: Wembley (3) 2-1 (1) Hampton & Richmond Borough

We would be playing the Isthmian Premier League's Kingstonian in the Isthmian Ryman League Cup Final

Our next game was against Dorking in the Combined Counties Premier League Division

We made 4 changes to the starting XI, with S. Galinski, S. Opinel, new signing Craig Easton and S. Dobie replacing N. Koo-Boothe (Per), T. Williams (Fit), D. Fazlic (Fit) and V. Pericard (Fit) with new loan signing from Burnley, Archie Love, making the bench.

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, S. Galinski, Raphael Branco, S. Opinel, C. Easton, A. Ahmed,
M. Johnson, D. Bembo-Leta, J. Nurse, S. Dobie

Subs: S. Locke, N. Koo-Boothe, M. Panther, A. Love, V. Pericard

We got off to an awful start, with Mirko Ranieri unfortunately putting the ball into his own goal in the 1st minute, after a Dorking free-kick rattled the crossbar, before hitting Ranieri on the back, and rolling over the line. Jon Nurse got his first Wembley goal, pulling us level, in the 6th minute, when he was played in by Scott Dobie, before curling the ball into the top corner from 12 yards. Bembo-Leta then scored his 20th league goal of the season, putting us in-front in the 38th minute, when he received the ball from Johnson, before taking the ball around two defenders and placing the ball past the keeper, and into the bottom corner. Scott Dobie then scored his first Wembley goal in his first start, after receiving the ball from Nurse, and slotting the ball into the bottom corner from the edge of the box. Sam pulled a goal back for Dorking, when he was able to dribble the ball past 3 defenders, before placing the ball past Ranieri. Dorking's Darren Armstrong got sent off after picking up a second yellow card for a foul on Love in the 79th minute.

This was a good win, seeing as though we gave them a head start early on.

Final score: Dorking 2-3 Wembley

Our next game was against St. Helens Town in the FA Vase Quarter Finals, and we were looking to get into the Semis.

We made 6 changes to the starting XI, with N. Koo-Boothe, T. Williams, A. Love, D. Fazlic, L Head and V. Pericard replacing S. Galinski (Fit), S. Opinel (Per), M. Johnson (Fit), C. Easton (Fit),
D. Bembo-Leta (Fit), S. Dobie (Per).

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, N. Koo-Boothe, Raphael Branco, T. Williams, A. Ahmed, A. Love,
D. Fazlic, L. Head, V. Pericard, J. Nurse

Subs: S. Locke, J. Anderson, M. Panther, T. Williamson, R. Limb

Grimes almost put St. Helens in-front, when his curling free-kick hit the inside of the post, before bouncing across the face of goal, and then was cleared by Koo-Boothe. Vincent Pericard gave us the lead in the 38th minute, when Head's cross found him at the far post, and he was able to head the ball into the back of the net. Ahmed was then brought down in the box, and the referee awarded the penalty. Ahmed got straight up to take the penalty, and slotted the ball into the top corner, just out of the reach of the St. Helens keeper. Cooke then put the ball in the back of the net for St. Helens, however the goal was ruled out for offside.

A good win to send us into the FA Vase Semi-Finals!

Final score: Wembley 2-0 St. Helens Town

Our next game was against Horley Town, who were sat in 19th place in the league.

We made 3 changes to the starting XI, with C. Easton, M. Panther and D. Bembo-Leta replacing
A. Ahmed (Fit), D. Fazlic (Fit) and L. Head (Per).

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, N. Koo-Boothe, Raphael Branco, T. Williams, C. Easton, A. Love,
M. Panther, D. Bembo-Leta, V. Pericard, J. Nurse

Subs: S. Locke, J. Anderson, D. Fazlic, M. Johnson, R. Limb

Craig Easton scored his first Wembley goal in the 19th minute, when he received the ball from Bembo-Leta and hit the ball from the edge of the box, and into the back of the net. Bembo-Leta then doubled our lead, when he received the ball from Nzuzi, and thanks to poor anticipation from the Horley keeper, Bembo-Leta was able to pass the ball into the open net. Pericard extended our lead even further, when he was able to bring down Ahmed's corner, and buried the ball into the bottom corner.

This was a good win, and once again, we showed how good we could be in both attack, and defence.

Final score: Wembley 3-0 Horley Town

Our next game was another league game, this time against 7th placed Camberley.

We made 5 changes to the starting XI, with S. Locke S. Galinski, A. Legg, D. Fazlic, M. Johnson and R. Limb replacing M. Ranieri (Rot), Raphael Branco (Fit), T. Williams (Fit), C. Easton (Fit) and
V. Pericard (Fit)

Starting XI: S. Locke, P. Nzuzi, N. Boo-Koothe, S. Galinski, A. Legg, D. Fazlic, A. Love, M. Johnson,
D. Bembo-Leta, J. Nurse, R. Limb

Subs: M. Ranieri, J. Anderson, D. Freeman, A. Ahmed, S. Dobie

We got off to a flyer, when Matt Johnson gave us the lead in the 2nd minute, with a good effort from outside the box, right into the bottom corner. Jon Nurse doubled our lead, when he was able to take the ball past two Camberley defenders, before slotting the ball past the keeper in the 32nd minute. Green pulled it back for Camberley in the 42nd minutein the 42nd minute, when his mishit cross hit the inside of the post before hitting the back of the net. Camberley's Shaun Wimble then headed a cross into the back of the net, but the goal was disallowed for a foul on Locke.

This was a good win overall, with Locke performing well in goal, and extending our unbeaten run.

Final score: Camberley Town 1-2 Wembley

Our next game was against Sunderland Ryhope in the FA Vase Semi-Final 1st Leg, and with the Isthmian Ryman League Cup only three days away, we needed to balance the squad well.

We made 7 changes to the starting XI, with M. Ranieri, S. Jenkins, J. Anderson, C. Easton, A. Ahmed,
S. Dobie and L. Head replacing S. Locke (Per), P. Nzuzi (Fit), S. Galinski (Inj), M. Johnson (Fit),
D. Fazlic (Fit), D. Bembo-Leta (Fit) and R. Limb (Fit)

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, S. Jenkins, N. Koo-Boothe, J. Anderson, A. Legg, A. Ahmed, A. Love, C. Easton, S. Dobie, J. Nurse, L. Head

Subs: S. Locke, Raphael Branco, D. Freeman, M. Panther, D. Bembo-Leta

Andy Legg almost gave us the lead in the 24th minute, when his 25 yard free-kick was saved well by the Sunderland keeper. Liam Head gave us the lead in the 50th minute, with a strong half-volley following Nurse's knock-down from Ahmed's long ball forward. Nothing much else happened, with both teams missing half chances, and the game finished.

This was a good win for us, against a team in a higher league, and it gave us a good platform for the second leg.

Final score: Wembley 1-0 Sunderland Ryhope

Our next game was against Kingstonian FC, and was in the Isthmian Ryman League Cup Final, and was a return for Jon Nurse, to Barnet's Underhill Stadium!

We made 7 changes to the Starting XI, with P. Nzuzi, Raphael Branco, T. Williams, D. Fazlic, M. Johnson,
D. Bembo-Leta and V. Pericard replacing S. Jenkins (Per), J. Anderson (Per), A. Legg (Per),
A. Ahmed (Per), C. Easton (Per), S. Dobie (Per), L. Head (Fit)

Starting XI: M. Ranieri, P. Nzuzi, N. Koo-Boothe, Raphael Branco, T. Williams, D. Fazlic, A. Love,
M. Johnson, D. Bembo-Leta, V. Pericard, J. Nurse

Subs: S. Locke, J. Anderson, C. Easton, A. Ahmed, R. Limb

Matt Johnson gave us the lead in the 29th minute, with a scorching 20 yard, half-volley from Bembo-Leta's through-ball, right into the top corner. Sheppard pulled the game level for Kingstonian in the 37th minute, when he was able to beat Raphael Branco in the air, and head the ball past Ranieri from Scannell's corner. Vincent Pericard put us back in the lead in the 79th minute, when he was able to pick up the pieces from Bembo-Leta's saved shot, and poke the ball into the open net. It looked as though Matt Johnson had doubled our lead, after he headed in Ahmed's free-kick, however the linesman raised his flag, and the goal was ruled out for offside.

And that was it! A great win against Kingstonian who were in 2nd, two leagues above us, and we were two thirds of the way to the treble!

Final score: Kinstonian 1-2 Wembley

March was another great month for us. It was a month where we got a 100% record, and we were able to add another piece of silverware to the trophy cabinet, acheiving the double after winning the Isthmian Ryman League Cup.

We were involved in the cups more than he league this month, but we were still able to pick up 9 points from a possible 9, and get our point tally over 100!