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: