Interview with Antony Ebelle Ebanda. Antony played for BAA reserves in 2002-03 finishing as top goalscorer that season. He was with the 3rd team for the 2003-04 season and played in the county cup final of that season. His one game in the 2004-05 season ended in serious injury.
How many seasons did you play for BAA? Two or three seasons
How did you come about joining the club? My colleague Trevor Bishop asked me to come along.
Do you remember your debut? My first game we played and lost 6-4 versus RAFA Uxbridge. I scored a hat-trick 9 left foot, header and right foot )
What was your most memorable moment with the club? Winning a cup game against a very tough opposition
What was your lowest point with the club? Breaking my knee on the football pitch (in the friendly game between BAA 3rds and 4th teams)
What was your best performance for BAA? Playing with Eddie in the middle of the park. It was a league game and we bossed it from start to finish. (The game was a 3-2 defeat to The Spotted Dog in Harefield)
What was your favourite game for BAA see above.
Which players stood out for you during that time (good or bad) and for what reasons? Eddie Tucker – very skillfull centre midfield player. George Gordon, amazing striker, Danny Ritchie – just awesome, and Jason Ravenhill saved so many games for us; brilliant goalkeeper. Others were good too but these ones were a cut above.
Pick your all-time starting eleven and up to 3 subs Too contentious.
What awards/trophies did you win and do you have one that means more than any of the others? I won the trophy for best striker / top goalscorer I think
What was the best goal you scored for BAA? Beating two defenders for pace, keeper coming out and just lifting the ball over his advancing body. Sweeet. (Against Technocolor)
It was a great achievement to make it to the Middlesex County Cup final in 2004, what are your memories of the previous rounds before the final? (Rayners Lane, Northmet Riverside, Greenford Galaxy etc) I loved all the cup games because we were not supposed to make it that far. The team spirit was awesome.
The team lost the final 3-2, what are your memories of that day (good & bad)? We scored a perfectly valid goal – a great strike by Mark McCormick – that got disallowed. Changed the whole course of the game. Also, a few players froze on the day; maybe we were not strong enough mentally.
You were suffering from knee problems in the weeks leading up to the final, and you made a very last minute decision to go on subs bench after you were due to start, Any regrets about not starting the game and spearheading the attack as you caused the opposition problems with your physicality when you came on as a sub? Could this possibly have changed the way the game went if you had started? No regrets, as I said above, if our goal had stood, we would be holding the trophy rather than the other team. I think that my decision was the right one. I couldn’t lie to my teammates pretending that all was ok. I don’t think that I could have played the 90 minutes.
You were in the dressing room when Paul Bennett had a big argument with Player Manager Trevor Bishop after being named only as a sub? Could you elaborate on what was said? What was your take on Paul being dropped? Every player wants to be involved in big games. Paul’s frustration can be understood in that light. This being said, when the manager makes a decision, we just all have to pull together and make sure that when our chance comes to play, we perform. To be fair to Paul, when he came on the pitch that day, he was the best player, by a mile. Trevor’s decision was the correct one. He brought on a player who had a point to prove and nearly turn the game for us. Great coaching.
During the final we lost three players to injury, Mark McCormick, Steve Jones and Danny Ritchie. Bad luck? We create our own luck. On the eve of a big final, players should rest and not indulge in nightclubs and parties. The injuries shouldn’t be an excuse.
Someone once claimed the preparation leading up to the 2004 cup final was poor, what do you think of that comment? The preparation leading up to the final was good. We had an additional coach to help Trevor, we were told what to expect on the day. If anything was wrong prior to the final, it’s the individual attitude of each and every one of us. More was required in terms of introspection and desire to be ready on the day. We didn’t grasp just how much was asked of us. As mature adults, we failed our fans and supporters on the day but most of all, we failed ourselves.
From what I can recall I thought we were capable of winning the final but we never got going, maybe the occasion got to us, what do you think? True, some people got scared by the occasion.
The Cup final program said that you have represented France in Athletics? In what event was this? Triple jump
You did not return after the 2004 season and there have been various rumours why you did not return. Would you care to elaborate? The whole atmosphere at the club changed. It wasn’t friendly anymore. I missed the guys but I also have principles and those couldn’t sit with what I was witnessing.
After the 2003/04 season the manager stepped down, despite getting the team to the County cup final and a respectful league finish, do you think he should have stayed on? Yes, but in order for him to stay, he should have got the backing from senior people within the club so that he could help the team move forward. This didn’t happen. His position was henceforth made untenable and he had no other option but to go.
When you was with BAA there was 4 or 5 teams, how did you feel about the whole club set up, would you have liked to have seen anything different? Set-up was good but might have been good to get the various teams to mingle with one another once in a while.
As mentioned there was a falling out between the manager and a player before the game, there were also issues with some of the subs and the manager, is it possible to keep all the players happy or are some players just like this? Everybody wants to play. If people were happy sitting on the bench then there would be something fundamentally wrong. A manager can’t keep everyone happy but this being said, he needs to be strong enough and charismatic enough to ensure harmony within the team. A very difficult thing to do….
With all the arguments over team selection, players not returning after the cup final, players playing with injuries, do you think there were players putting themselves before the team? Definitely. I am sure that in the Cup final, some injured players were on the pitch when the decent thing would have been to step aside.
Any funny incidents you have seen on a pitch that you recall? No answer
What is the best team you have played against? Greenford galaxy
Who is the best player you have played with? Danny Richie, Eddie and George
What is the best goal you have seen in a game, for or against BAA? George overhead kick. (versus Bessingby Park Rangers 2002-03)
What are you doing nowadays and are you still playing football? Live in NYC and play 5 a side from time to time.
You were with the club for two seasons, the first season the team struggled for players, had some heavy defeats. The following season the team performed much better and had a cup final, what was it that made the two seasons so different? Consistency and luck with injuries. Also the coach plays a massive part.
The following season after you left the team went on to finish runners-up in the league and win a cup with mostly the same team from 2003-04. Do you think the 2003/04 team underachieved? No, I think the team built the platform for others to benefit.
A lot of players seem to leave BAA Heathrow on bad terms, would you say you left on good terms? I hope so, it was a great time and I did meet a bunch of interesting people.
Why do you think so many players leave on bad terms? It would be best to ask them.
You came back for the team in the 2004/05 season for a friendly, how did that come about? Trevor asked me to play and I wanted to see if I could still move about.
What differences were there with the team when you came back to when you left? EGOS the size of the room.
In the game you got injured and ended up needing an operation, what injury did you have? I broke my kneecap, tore my reticulum and my patella tendon.
How did it happen? Someone kicked me on the knee; all accidental. Nobody to blame.
Since that injury have you ever considered returning to BAA? I now live in NYC so it might be difficult to come and play on a Sunday morning. A cameo appearance is not out of the question though.
1 How many seasons have you played for BAA? I believe that this season is my 5th season at the club.
2 How did you come about joining the club? Danny Ritchie already played for the club and I had expressed an interest in Sunday football. A few of the Eastcote lads (Dom, AJ and Sparky) were all interested in joining, so down we went and the rest is history.
Mark as Captain of BAA in 2003
3 What was your most memorable moment with the club? Winning the cup final without a doubt was the most memorable moment for me. It was my first winning trophy as a player, and to score a goal, be the captain and play in a team with players I’d known most of my life made it very special.
4 What was your lowest point with the club? The whole of last season was incredibly disappointing, but this season has been disappointing for me personally as I have missed most of it injured. 5 What was your best performance for BAA? It’s hard to pick one single performance. A few of them (Cranford in the semi), the final itself stand out in my mind. The first game of this season I was very happy with my performance. These days I am more interested in the team’s performance than my own, and if that means I have to sacrifice certain elements of my own game for the good of the team then I will do it. I enjoyed my performance in the cup winning season against Fullers. It was early in the season and we won 2-1, but their midfield couldn’t touch me that day. I did everything but score, I even smashed the ball against the crossbar from 30 yards out.
5b What was your favourite game for BAA? The 2nd half of the division 4 cup final. After a very poor first half we came out and looked a different team in the second half. Everyone dug in, and after some harsh words in the changing room at half time, people were then aware of just how important this game was. St Brendan’s didn’t know what hit them. There wasn’t a single moment in that second half where I didn’t think we would win it. That belief was carried through the whole team. 6 Any players who stood out for you during that time (good or bad) and for what reasons? There have been plenty of bad players. One’s who thought they were great but were rubbish. Other’s who knew they were rubbish. But on the other hand I have been lucky to have played with some very good players for the club. Danny Ritchie, George Gordon, Jason Ravenhill, Steve Jones. All good players in their own right. All bring something different to the side.
7 Pick your all time starting eleven and up to five subs, state your reasons for there selection. GK- Jason Ravenhill (Couldn’t be anyone else. In Sunday League good goalkeepers can make a big difference. He is, and he does.
RB- Alun Watkins (Doesn’t like playing right back but can do a good job there. Solid defender, can over play at times but another of the 110% committed bunch)
LB- Troy Burrows (Can play either left back or centre back, but I’ve gone for the Troy of the first three seasons who played at full back. Solid, with a deadly throw and a good head on his shoulders. Troy gives 110% every game.)
CB- Steve Jones (Anyone of his age who can go onto the field week in and week out deserves respect. I know that with Steve I have a committed player who is a valuable asset to the side.
CB- Jason Lake (A solid central defender. No-nonsense kind of character who has a pure defenders mentality.).
RM- Mik Dhaliwal (When Mik first came to the club I didn’t think he was up to much as a player. Was a bit lightweight, didn’t really put himself about a lot. Still doesn’t but the other side of his game has shone. Clever player with an eye for goal. Always good for a thoughtful look at the game, tactics wise.
CM- Mark McCormick (Have to have myself in the side. Have been captain since my first season and like to think that I have given my all every time I have played. Sometimes even when I have been injured I have played because we were short of numbers.)
CM- Danny Ritchie (Scores a shed load of goals from midfield, and does the nasty stuff too. At times he has seemingly won games on his own. But is given a bit of freedom to roam by those around him. BAA are not the same side without him in it.
LM- Darren Phillips (Quality – An incredible footballing brain, even when he did turn up with a hangover. A joy to play with, made the game look easier and certainly was easier to play when he was around. One of the few players I miss playing with.
FOR- George Gordon (Can be frustrating at times, but has a mean eye for goal. Scored some belter’s in this time at BAA. After months of moaning at him finally got him dropping into the midfield to help out when we were under pressure and that really has added another dimension to his game.)
FOR- Ash Banyamandhub (On terms of footballing ability I would have gone for Anthony here, and that’s no disrespect to Ash who is a good player. Scores a lot of goals, and works incredibly hard for the team. If he misses a chance, he doesn’t hide or let it affect him, and that has to be admired).
SUB1- Robert Galway (Has been unlucky with injuries, but when he has been fit has shown what a good player him can be. He has good vision and a nice touch and always tries to play football rather than hoof the ball around.).
SUB2- Anthony (Fantastic player. The ball sticks to him like glue. It’s a shame we never had him at his peak because the prospect of that huge Frenchman running at defenders must have been terrifying.)
SUB3- Paul Bennett (Very good player, but unfortunately his attitude was never really there. Could have done so much more in his time at the club, if only he didn’t give such a hard time to the players around him).
SUB4- Danny Theobald (Only because he is the oddest person I have ever played football with.)
SUB5- Julian Olaru (For the player he could have been. Has the ability but is so frustrating because he doesn’t use it. If only he applied his superstar attitude to his performances on the pitch. Could have been a star of the side.)
8 During your time with the club what awards/trophies did you win and do you have one that means more then any of the others? I won a sportsman award in my first season and since then a county cup runners up, division four runners up and division four cup winners medal. The only one that means anything is the cup final medal, runners up doesn’t mean a thing to me, I’m not interested in anything other than winning.
9 Was there any team you liked or disliked playing against? There weren’t really any teams I didn’t like playing against. I didn’t like playing in the games that we were ill-prepared because someone had turned up late etc. The teams I liked playing against were people like Cranford Casuals, London Radar and St Brendans. Had good players to play against, and felt a real achievement to come out on top against all of those sides.
10 What was the best goal you scored? There have been a few good goals for me in a BAA shirt. In terms of taking a goal as a goal then the one in the 10 – 0 win over Fullers was a bit special. The goal in the cup final stands out. As the cross came in I didn’t think I would get to it, but I gambled and the defender didn’t react so I flicked it over him and tapped it into the net with the outside of my foot. It was more instinct than anything, I didn’t really have to think beyond taking a gamble, after that it just seemed to happen. I do remember being very calm as I was flicking it over him and putting it into the net. It was like I already knew I scored and I was watching the replay in my minds eye. It was a moment that meant so much to me, especially after the previous season’s final. The best goal I didn’t score was in the County Cup Final……..but the ref disallowed it.
11 How did you become club captain? And what do you feel you add to the team as captain?
I can’t really remember how I became captain, I think as it was my first season and I seemed to be one of the few players who actually had a clue I kind of got it by default. As captain I feel that I bring a bit of experience, know how and determination to the team. I’m not really a shouter, more of a quiet word to individuals kind of captain, but that doesn’t mean I won’t scream and shout when I have to. I think that I lead by example with effort, players can respect that.
12 Did your relationship with the players change when you became captain? I didn’t feel that it did. I was already taking on the captain’s responsibility before I was officially given the job, by organising things on the field etc. A lot of those players weren’t up to scratch and didn’t last long. So to the new players I was already captain when they came in.
13 It was a great achievement to make it to the Middlesex County Cup final in 2004, what are your memories of the previous rounds before the final? (Rayners Lane, Northmet Riverside, Greenford Galaxy etc) For that side it was an incredible feat. Going back to what I said earlier it all came down to belief. We had the belief that we were going all the way and teams couldn’t deal with that. I remember that we went behind early on to Greenford Galaxy, but ended up not giving them a sniff. Northmet was a long drive to Enfield, and I felt that they were the best team we had played for the first 15 mins or so. But something clicked and we stepped it up and they couldn’t live with us. Unfortunately, I missed the semi final through an injury that I didn’t really recover from that season.
14 The team lost the final 3-2, what are your memories of that day (good & bad)? The day started badly to be honest. A controversial team selection meant that instead of concentrating on the game people were talking about that. Another factor that didn’t help was that several key players were already carrying knocks during the game itself. I made the management aware of this well in advance and ultimately they wanted me to play so I did. All in all it was a vastly disappointing day for all involved.
15 From what I can recall I thought we were capable of winning the final but we never got going, maybe the occasion got to us, what do you think? There were a number of factors as to why we didn’t perform that day, one of them being that the occasion got to us. The other being that they had a striker who was different class.
16 The following season started with a new joint manager partnership of Danny Theobold and Ash. What were your initial thoughts on the joint management? I knew Ash from playing alongside but didn’t have a clue about Danny. I had left the team when they took charge. But Ash rang me out of the blue one day as asked if I wanted to come back, I decided that I did and that was that. They seemed to work well as a team, and although towards the end of the season that broke down, they still did a good job taking us where they did.
17 Looking back what differences can you see between the two teams that made the county cup final and the division 4 cup final? I think the side that won the division 4 cup were far superior to the county cup side. The season we won the cup we were beating teams every week, I think it was something like 19 wins on the bounce including that final. That’s an amazing achievement at any level of football. We had players turning up every week and the team was more or less selecting itself. Although the county cup side were a good team, it was always hit and miss as to who was turning up.
Mark in the Cup semi final
18 What are your memories on how the team got to the 2005 cup final?(Fullers, Hayes C Milan & Cranford Casuals) I remember that we had already played Fullers in the league and only just beat them 2-1 so I was expecting another tough game. But in reality Fullers didn’t have anything about them and we dominated them from start to finish, an easy 10-0 win, and even I managed to score. The quarter-finals against Hayes C Milan was a bit of an odd one, they had given us a bit of a game for the first half an hour or so, and I believe them were even in front at one stage. But the great thing about us that year is that we could always step in up a notch. We ended up winning 8-3 and I had managed to score again. The semi final against Cranford was a great game, they were top of the league and cruising it, and we were smack bang in the middle of a great run. They didn’t know what hit them, we were aggressive and physical and they really didn’t like that. We stopped their key men from playing, and in the end we were good for a 3-1 win.
19 What are your memories of the Division 4 cup final? I knew in advance what the team was so I was relieved that there would be no surprises unlike the previous season. It all went really quickly really, I remember coming off at half time and talking to Ash about what changes we needed to make, and having a bit of a shout in the changing room at half time. But then the 2nd half changed all that, we were brilliant in the 2nd half. I think St Brendans went all out in the first half and tired. But like we had all season we dug in and turned a defeat into a victory. It was a great moment to lift the cup knowing that we really deserved to win it.
20 After such a successful season why do you think it all went wrong the following season (2005/06)? We thought that we would have it easy again the following season, and ended up finishing bottom of the league. It was embarrassing at times that we were so bad having been so good the previous season. The lack of organisation was at an all time high, we lost a few key players and others just didn’t perform to their standards. Was a horrible season. We did manage to get to a cup semi final though but I don’t think anyone believed we would win it.
21 What do you think could be done to improve the club as a whole? Generally a more professional attitude needs to be had. Match Days need to be better organised with the manager knowing who is turning up and what his team is. People need to be a bit more committed and turn up on time. Things like that start from the top and if the manager or senior players aren’t doing that then the younger players aren’t going to either.
22 What are the best and worse grounds you have played at? I am lucky that so far in my career I have played at some decent grounds. Craven Cottage, Honeycroft, Yeading amongst them. I have always liked playing at Uxbridge but have lost 2 finals there so didn’t enjoy that so much. I think one of the worst was playing for Eastcote at Norwood Green where there was a wooden board covering a man hole on the pitch. Regents Park was a shitty ground to play at as well. Crap facilities and an even worse pitch.
23 Any funny incidents you have seen on a pitch that you recall? Rob getting hit in the balls during a warm up was one of the funniest on the pitch things I have season, along with some of our defending last season.
24 What is the best team you have played against? For BAA it would easily be Northolt Massive, who beat a very poor BAA side 15-0. Shameful performance against a side full of semi pros. 25 Who is the best player you have played with? For BAA it would have to be Danny Ritchie, can play anywhere, scores goals, makes tackles, wins headers. A great all rounder.
26 What is the best goal you have seen in a game, for or against BAA? Has to be one of Georges scissor kick efforts. Probably the one against Bessingby Park, was a great strike. 27 What is the best save you have seen in a game, for or against BAA? Over the years Jason has made some really good saves – I tend to forget about the saves against BAA though.
28 (not answered)
29 Which players have you seen improve the most at the club? I think on this season alone I have seen a massive improvement in Rob, he has gone from a bit part player to a key player in the side, and is even getting stuck into tackles.
30 You have played in a few leagues with BAA such as the Hayes & district, Thames Valley, North Hillingdon and maybe some others, which league did you like playing in the most? I think the Hayes and District League has been the best. Seems to be the most organised and we had ref’s more often than not. The North Hillingdon seems to be in decline and what I know about the Thames Valley makes me think that it’s a poor league aswell. 31 After a frustrating season with injury how hard is it seeing the team doing so well in your absence? It hasn’t been hard knowing that they are doing well, but it’s been difficult missing out on so many games and not really feeling part of it. But I’m proud of the lads they have done well. In my absence other players have stepped up to take responsibility and that can only be a good thing.
32 (Not answered)
33 What was your favourite and least favourite grounds you played at with BAA Heathrow? Think Trailfinders had one of the best grounds. Really nice facilities and a pitch like a bowling green. I don’t think they have a team anymore though, which is a shame because they weren’t a bad side. The worst ground is a tough one, there have been so many. The pitch we played our semi final against Cranford on was pretty bad. Goals weren’t lined up or anything.
34 what is the difference between the BAA Heathrow you joined and the team now? Much better players now – More certainty over who is in charge. When I first joined the manager quit more or less after the 2nd game, then it was up in the air.
1. How did you come about joining BAA? I was asked by one of my mates, Ian Lewis to come down as the team were short and looking for players.
2. How long have you been with the club? It’s about five years now.
3. How did you come about becoming joint manager with Danny Theobald at the beginning of the 2004/5 season? It started when we were coming to the end of our pre season, there were only a few weeks left to the start of the season and we had no manager and it looked like because of this the club was folding. I bumped into Martin at one of our pre-season game and he told me the score, I just immediately responded without thinking “I’ll do it” after it was agreed I thought to myself “Ash what the **** have you done”Lol
4. From the beginning of the 2006/7 season you took sole charge of the team, why was that? It was not working with myself and Danny as joint managers, he wanted one thing, I wanted another, plus I thought we had taken that team as far as it could go. We both spoke one Friday evening and decided to part company, he had some new players he was taking on to play on Saturdays, I took over what was left of the Sundays.
5. What trophies and awards have you won during your time with BAA? I’ve only got a winners medal from the divisional cup in 2005, I’ve also received top scorer for 2005-2006, 2007-2008. 2008-2009. I also got voted players player of the year in the 2008-2009 season. And it wasn’t fixed before anyone asks.
6. Out of those which means the most and why? It has to be the top goal scorer, I remember when I first came to BAA and saw George Gordon for the my first two seasons claim the award with some quality goals and thought to myself I would love that award, plus to do it for three seasons in a row for me is a big personal achievement.
7. During you time with the club which players have stood out? George Gordon, Danny Ritchie and Jason Ravenhill. Quality players who can influence and change any game.
8. Pick your all time BAA starting eleven and state your reasons for there selection. Feel free to put subs if you wish.
Jason Ravenhill
Dan Alburn Steve Jones Jean Claude
Mark Mcormick
Mik Dhaliwal Danny Ritchie Alun Watkins Darren Phillips
George Gordon French Anthony
Subs:
James Alburn, Julian Olaru, Rob Galway.
I think any manager would have a field day if this was their starting eleven every Sunday, being a forward my selection is very attacking but I think this team would do damage to any of the teams we’ve played in the past and it’s a nice mixture of pace, skill and good football brains. Plus the subs would be able to come on and change any game.
9. What are your memories of the 2004 County Cup final? I remember we got beaten by a team in pink. It was a disaster from the start. I felt we did not go into that final as a team, we looked unorganised and badly presented, we should have all worn suits, we should have all met up together as a team not in dribs and drabs i.e some players meeting us at the ground, some players meeting at the BAA club. I remember nearly coming back from three goals down but I guess it was never meant to be.
10. In 2004/5 and 2006/7 you finished as league runner up with BAA, what do you feel was missing for that extra step to have won the league those two seasons? It was a mixture of key players not being committed towards the end of the 2006-07 season, I would also say for that season we got too carried away and thought we had already won the league before the end, we started to get complacent. In the 2005 season we got off to a bad start plus we did not have a good enough team for the first few games, had we had our cup final team every Sunday we would have won that league quite comfortably.
11. Do you feel your relationship with the players changed at all when you became manager? Not really but you do get players kissing your arse for all the wrong reasons Lol i.e Michael. Only joking Michael.
12. What is the most difficult thing about being manager? You can’t please everyone. Turning up to a game and having to scrape a team together in the last minute. Players getting upset at you when all you want to do is what is best for the team
13. What do you think is the best goal you have scored for BAA? It has to be the goal I scored last week actually, remember Thierry Henry’s goal for Arsenal against Real Madrid in 2006, it was just like that.
14. What is the best goal you have seen in a game? It has to be George’s bicycle kick against Cranford Casuals in the 2005 divisional cup semi final, I remember crossing the ball to him and Alun Watkins shouting at me for not taking it into the box a little bit more, suddenly George jumps up and hits this amazing volley, I remember the ball going in such slow motion, the rest is history.
15. What is the best save you have seen in a game? Blimey I think the interviewer is fishing for compliments. It was a save from Jason Ravenhill against a team called CF Cranford. We were losing one nil at half time, in the second half we made it two one thanks to yours truly and it was the last minute of the game and CF Cranford had a great chance to equalise. I can’t remember if it was with a header but Jason dived across and tipped the ball over the bar, I personally thought it had gone in, what a great save.
16. What are your memories of the 2005 divisional Cup final? I remember it was such a great experience from start to finish. We got into the county cup final the year before and it was such a disappointment to lose that. I thought the preparation for that final was wrong. I wanted things to be right for the 2005 cup final I wanted to all meet a good few hours before the game all wearing black suits, (excluding George with the white shoes) and go out and win or lose as a team. I remember being down at half time and the team talk that Mark gave. I remember Danny Ritchie’s winner just going in so slowly, when that whistle blew I’ll never forget that feeling. I also got man of the match in that final receiving Danny Theobold’ s silly trophy Lol.
17. What do you think could be done to help benefit the club as a whole? I don’t think there is much to do really as it is just a Sunday league team with a great reputation. It just needs to keep doing what it’s doing and win trophies and produce results week in and week out. The only thing I would say is a ground like the old BAA ground on Printing house Lane is needed. When the ground was there it felt like there was more unity between the three teams as you always met up for a drink after and before the game.
18. Hindsight is a great thing, if you could go back would you do anything different as manager? Win a few more trophies I guess.
19. Looking back what has been your most satisfying season so far? Definitely the 2004-2005 season.
20. This season you are playing for the reserves in the Thames valley league, how does it feel not to have the pressures of being manager this season and being able to concentrate on just playing? It feels really good actually to just turn up and not having to worry about team selection and who’s turning up and who’s going to let you down at the last minute, however there is a part of me that still misses it.
21. During your time with BAA you have played in the North Hillingdon & district league, the Hayes & district league and the Thames Valley league, which do you prefer and why? I would say the Thames Valley League, it’s a nice league with a nice bunch of teams. I feel the standard is quite decent as well, as teams want to play football and not turn up to take your legs out and kick you off the park as they do in the Hayes and District league.
22. What is the best ground you have played at? It has to be Trail Finders fc’s ground in Ealing , that was like playing on a carpet.
23. And the worst? Cranford School when it rains, it’s just so muddy and the ball just gets stuck.
24. Is there any team you have always enjoyed playing against? It has to be Parkway FC in the Hayes and district league, I always score against them.
25. Any team you always didn’t look forward to playing? It has to be Currens Fc, they were horrible to play against always kicking lumps out of people. Plus their manger was such an arrogant *****.
26. It seems being a manager makes you quite unpopular, you have had some well known falling outs with Trev, Michael and Dan. What is your side of the story? How did I know this question was coming. To be honest with regards to Michael and Danny it was just tactical, I honestly thought they were not really performing regardless of what they say and so I dropped them. If they got pissed off and decided not to come back then that’s not my fault. Also once they were dropped we started winning all our games and played some really good football. With Trev I guess it’s just sour grapes on his part, I don’t really take him seriously, to me he spat his dummy out when he did not get his way. I admit I made a wrong decision with regards to my team selection that particular day, but I put my hands up and apologised. Some people just can’t let things go.
27. The 2008-09 season saw a lot of changes within the team. This upset some players but at the beginning of the season you were struggling for players so it was necessary to bring in new players? Yes of course it was, I felt certain players were going off past glory and thought they would just walk in, I wanted to win things. It’s a horrible feeling losing every week.
28. After a quite successful 2006-07 season when the team finished runners up in div 5 you started the 2007-08 season very well winning your first 5 league matches. But after that you only won one more league game and finished mid table. What happened? We lost key players such as Alun, Mik, and Jason. The players who came in were just not good enough to compete with some of the teams in that league.
29. In the 2006-07 season despite being in the bottom division (div 5) your team made it to the semi final of the Roy Lester Memorial trophy which had every team from the league in the competition. You were playing Premiership team Microblast who would go on to win the final against the first team after beating you 5-0. However from what I recall the score line didn’t reflect the game and it was only 1-0 after 70mins before Microblast added a second and had some luck with the 3rd. What can you recall about the game? It’s true the score line did not reflect the game. We did so well to hold it at one nil for about eighty minutes. In the end it was just down to fitness and experience that cost us. We had our chances in that game too.
30. The following season it looked as though you would make it to the final of the league shield but once again lost put in the semi final stage. After doing the hard work and beating King Street Rose in the q/f you lost to Maidenhead Nomad reserves in the s/f losing 5-1 a team you had already beaten in the league. What can you recall about the semi final loss? I remember that dodgy keeper we got from the newspaper ad, he was terrible and that is what cost us the game. How can a keeper get beaten from a goal kick? I’m not a keeper but even I could see his positioning was awful.
31. Do you have any pre match superstitions? Lol, I think you know what they are.
32. How do you think the club is run as a whole and how do you think it should maybe be changed? I think the club is run quite well, the first team is always successful. The other two teams are there or thereabouts. Everyone who has run the three different teams has had the clubs’ interests at heart so I guess you can’t argue with that
33. A few years ago the club had its own ground, club house but lost this at the end of 2004 and regularly plays at stockley or Little Harlington, not nearly as appealing? Not appealing at all, there was a really nice atmosphere when the club house was around.
34. You are 3 competitive games into the 2009-10 season, how is it going? And what are your hopes for the season ahead? Hopefully we can win a trophy; we’ve had three games so far. We lost our first two but won our last one hopefully we can go on a winning run from there.
35. BAA has 3 teams this season, how do you see it, as 3 separate teams or one club and the aim is to play for the first team in the highest division. Would you like to play in the first team? It has and always will be three different teams, but there’s no issues there. I would love to play for the first team but to be honest I don’t think I’m good enough for them.
How many seasons have you played for BAA? played for BAA in 2005/08 …. then again in 2010/11 to present day How did you come about joining the club? … in 2004/06 through mike hamilton then present through gary beckey
What has been your most memorable moment with the club? …. definitely winning the league last season … best moment by far
What has been your lowest point with the club? … probably getting injured against nomads but nothing else really
What has been your best performance for BAA in your opinion? …. against nomads before i got injured was having a blinder lol
What was your favourite game for BAA? (if different to above) … against old george for the title , the whole team was bang up for it and it showed in the result.
Was there any players who stood out for you during that time (good or bad) and for what reasons? … has to be chrissy G he played like a true captain and led the line from start to finish totally dominant.
Pick your all time starting eleven and up to five subs, state your reasons for there selection. …. hmmmm ok
GK – Jason … great shotstopper and by far the best keeper in the league RB – Jamie bakas … good all around player makes up for lack of ariel ability with strong tackles and good passing. CB – Mike hamilton …. Solid centre back with a wide range of passing , strong tackle and good in the air. CB – Chris geal … Natural leader strong in all areas and a passionate player … bit of a hot head but only cos he wants to win. LB – Danny Jones … gets in the team on commitment and never giving up … improving every game. RW – Lloyd vaughan … what a gifted player , pace skill and a precision finisher , one for the future without doubt. CM – Gary Beckey … tough tackling midfielder who pushes forward and helps out back , solid in the air and good range of passing CM – Josh neary … another gifted player , good skills and passing and a wicked long range shot , more to come form this one. LM – Tom cornwall … another good youth player with skill and pace , good shot but tends to drift in and out of games , but has a future no doubt. ST- Luke hurley …. whippett lol …. bags of pace and such a fierce shot for someone of his age , need to keep hold of this one deffo a future star. ST – Vishal varma … natural goalscorer so long as he learns the offside rule lol … still bags 30 plus a season and more besides
Subs – simon wetherall , james grant , kevin dodd , simon howard , lee hunt
During your time with the club what awards/trophies have you won and do you have one that means more then any of the others? … Has to be last season league winners trophy ( pride and place in me living room lol ) … and most recent a medal in the 7-a-side tourney lol
Is there any team you liked or disliked playing against? .. not really disliked any team but liked playin against nomads tough game against tough opposition.
What was the best goal you have scored? … only socred once in a friendly against nomads 3rds in 2005 ran from halfway and lobbed the keeper from 18yrd line
What are the best and worse grounds you have played at? … best is county cup game against windsor , worst was sloping stockley park lol Any funny incidents you have seen on a pitch that you can recall? … not really although jase gettin lobbed from halfway was quite funny What is the best team you have played against? … wasnt for BAA , played a reserve game againts Peterborough Utd for Barnet Fc (95-96)
Who is he best player you have played with? … Have to say mike hamilton , he was a blinding centreback and was reliable both beside me and behind when covering , excellent player
What is the best goal you have seen in a game, for or against BAA? … hmmm toughy,gotta say joshys 30 yarder or lloydys free kick at the start of last season
What is the best save you have seen in a game, for or against BAA? … big up time jase , gotta say yr penalty saves against nomads mate, 5 in a row mate
Which players have you seen improve the most at the club? … have to say luke , hes improving every game and just keeps gettin quicker lol You will have played in a few different leagues for BAA, is there one you prefer over the others and why? … gotta say this league we are in now is the best , div 5 was easy but now we gone up 3 divs gonna be harder no doubt.
What was your favourite and least favourite grounds you played at with BAA Heathrow? … feltham school me fave as its just down the road from me lol , stockly park the worst cos of the slopes
What is the difference between the BAA Heathrow you joined and the BAA team now? … The players , now the team has youth and experience and more improtantly a unity in the side that wasnt there in 2005 , the lads today play for each other ( sometimes lol ) but in all we have fitter stronger players this time round , altough a combo of mike and chrissy at the back would be wicked.
How do you think the club is run as a whole and how do you think it should maybe be changed? … Since gazza has taken over he has brought stability to the club , he runs it like it shud be run and dosent favour his friends over other players , people may disagree with that but he makes decisions which favour the situation not the player , nothing should be changed except the paying of fees and stuff shud be on time rather than later. Do you have any pre match superstitions? …. yea , am i starting or not lol This season was Gary’s first as manager, how do you think he has coped with being manager? … its got to be hard for him and to be honest i wouldnt wanna be player as well as manager , people will see him favouring others ahead of them as his brothers and cousins play for the club as well , but in dont see his decisions bein made on that basis , he may find it more difficult as the seasons ware on as players that dont get much game time and pay their way may get more frustrated by not playing as often as others , but hes got broad sholders so lets see how he handles it lol. You will have played under a couple of different managers at BAA, how were they different? .. no disrespect to alan but he wasnt no manager , he more like turned up like the rest of us to play on sundays , gazzas different as hes done so much for the club already and has taken it seriously he wants to win things which is what u want in yr manager
You spent the 2007-8 season in goal for BAA, how did that come about and what are your memories of it? …. well i was origionally a goalkeeper as i played for Barnet Fc in 1995/96 …. alan asked if would play in goal for the season so i agreed , as for memories not many really wasnt a great season to be honest lol You didn’t start the season with BAA, how did your return come about? .. i stopped playing in 2009 as i snapped my thumb playing for AFC Heathrow … took up golf for a year or two lol , then in 2010 speakin with gazza i just said i fancy playin again and he said come down , the rest is history as they say lol. As you didn’t start the season with the team you spent a while starting as a sub, how frustrating was this for you? … it was frustrating yea but as i said i did understand as the team was set from the season before so yea was anoyin to get just 20mins ere and there but i just took it in my stride and bided my time lol
You went on an impressive run in the game against Maidenhead Nomads 3rds when you beat player after player before finding yourself one on one with there keeper, what was going through your mind? …. honestly nothing lol …. when i picked up the ball chrissy said run with it , when i set off i ran past one , then another and another then kev blocked of their defender and i was through , i heard chandler on the sideline shoutin ” roast him si” lol … then of course i tried to lob him and failed miserably lol …. stay back in future i think lol In a cup game with Maidenhead Nomads first team you picked up a serious injury to your back and an air ambulance ended up being called. What can you recall of the incident and what injury did you sustain? … all i remember was seein their midfielder running past gazza and it was pure 50/50 dont quite recall how it happened you cud probably tell me betta than i remember , but i went down and then when i tried to stand it felt like id been stabbed 50 times and just collapsed , turned out i had hyper-extended my back muscles and coxsics ( excuse the spelling ) , i was shittin myself as i couldnt feel my legs at all for 24hrs but thankfully the feeling came back the next day , spent 2 days at charing cross hospital before being sent home.
You have not played since the injury but have been down with the team in a reserve keeper capacity. Now you have had time to rest how do you and your body feel about playing again? … yea i decided to come back as reserve keeper this season so as not to play on pitch as often , im feeling great and back to full fitness although i am a tad wary as to how me backs gonna hols but so far so good.
The 3rds won the league this season, what does this team have that it didn’t have to challenge for titles in the past? .. a good mixture of youth and expericence , and a good manager and an alltogether good team spirit , in the past i think we treated it more as a kickabout rather than a proper match where as this time we got a manager and a team that wants to win things.
What is your one outstanding memory of the title winning season? … has to be the old george game , the only time ive seen the whole team playing together and for each other and even on the sidelines there was no argueing and the whole team wanted to win , just havin those pics taken at the end made the season worth while and it showed what it actually meant to us as a team.
How do you expect the team to progress in future seasons? … the only way is up , so long as the gaffer can retain the bulk of the players he has now i can see many more titles and trophies heading the way of the mighty BAA , although monies seems to be the main issue if thats resolved then the future looks very bright for this team , i may not see future titles but ill still be comin down weather in a playing of maybe coaching capacity , but no doubt the future looks good for BAA.
Hi Bradley, welcome to the BAA website interview, so tell us….
1. Who is Bradley Holdaway in regards to BAA Heathrow (Sunday) FC? The manager of the Reserve team. 2. How many seasons have you been with the club? I joined the team at the beginning of the 2009-2010 season after returning from a 6 month tour of Cyprus.
3. How did you come about joining the club? When I returned from Cyprus I was playing for the UN out there and decided to get back into it when I returned so I had a look on the internet and came across the club in an advert I saw. I spoke to Martin Strange and he put me in touch with the 1st team who was run by Keith at the time and his team back then were the nuts so I had no chance of getting into that so Martin then told me to see Richard Gaffan who ran the Reserves side and from there I joined. To start with I felt like the teams mascot as all I ever did was pay my way and end up running the line but after a few months started to get into the team.
4. What has been your favourite game as a player and from a managers point of view? When we played Maidenhead Revo Reserves. We went into the game on a proper crappy day with a big squad that was looking to gain their spots on the pitch. I think on the day I had 6 subs and because of this I think the boys worked hard to impress. We won the game 8-3 with Mo getting a hatrick. 4b What has been your best performance. My best performance was also quite possibly my worst ever game. The were away to Pulse Sport and I was running the team as Gaff was away. We had the bare 11 and I played at left back. Some how and I don’t know why I cut every thing out and was launching counter attacks. We got a corner from one of these and I remember saying to Lewis Read who was playing for us at the time “hold here, I’m going up”. A ball came in from the corner and it was a crap ball but I knew if I could get the flick on to the back post some one might bury it in the net. I got the ball but then I got taken out as well and you could just see my wrist had been snapped. It was that bad Sunny Gill was crawling off the pitch being sick lol. I said to the boys as I was walking off “you best win this game or I’m coming back to beat you up with my gammy arm”. We lost that game 5-0 with 10 men.
5. During your time at the club, what player(s) have stood out for you and why? (good & bad) Ricky Bull. He had a hunger and attitude to win every game which was great. He was strong on the ball and you could play him in a number of positions, even in goal but his temper when things were not going right made him a bit of a problem for the club. But he was a bloody good player. My new players I have inherited from Harmondsworth FC stand out in every game we play and every game they play I learn more about the game compared to last season.
6. How did you come about taking over as manager of the team? I was running the Admin side virtually every week then Gaff happened to be away quite a lot so we had a chat and he agreed that it was the best thing for the club and team. 7. Do you feel your relationship with the players changed at all when you become a manager? At 1st it didn’t really change, I picked the same team every game and I found it hard to put others into the mix. Now as I’ve got more experienced I got rid of those who didn’t pay their way, funny enough they keep asking to come back. Now when it comes to football I’m running the team with the input from Kyle and what I say goes. Some of the boys are not to happy with the way that I run it feeling that they should play more but every player needs to fight for their place. On the pitch I’m running the show and off the pitch I’m just Brad again.
8. Since becoming manager what things have opened your eyes and not been what you expected? Not to much to be honest. I knew it would be hard to run the team but I have a lot of help from my wife. She makes a huge difference at home when I’m busy at work sorting out the kits. If I wanted to I could just run it with nothing but the amount of paperwork I have created keeps me busy but with that I can show absolutely every thing that I or the team has done.
9. During your time at the club have you won any trophies/medals? No, not really. I remember my 1st preseason I set the team up in a 5 a side tournament at Goals and we come runners up. That’s about it.
10. If you could pick any player from the 1st team and 3rds who would you choose and why? From the 3rds I would have Gary Chandler. At the early stages last season he was awesome for the boys, always helping me with reading the game and pointing things out to the boys on the pitch. He also had a way of telling the boys of things that would develop them but not drop their heads. I learnt a lot from him. Even on the pitch he didn’t have pace but he put his all into the game. Over all a top boy!
11. Pick your all time BAA starting eleven and state your reasons for selections. You can also choose up to 5 subs Ok, the boys know I like to play a 4-2-3-1 formation so I am going with that. Most of the players in it are paying for me now.
GK: Joe Hook. He wasn’t the best to start with but he has become brilliant over the last season and he never stops learning.
LB: Luke Phillips. Even though he is young and wants to play the wing he knows how to defend and attack. When he plays at the back he play football on the ground helping launch counter attacks and when in attack can get a goal or 2. he scored a screamer this weekend against the 1st team on the volley.
CB: Stuart Tucker: Wins every thing in the air, not many people beat him and he can read the game well too. His attitude over the previous season has advanced so much it got him an award last season.
CB: Luke Carter: Strong, Reads the game well, and can play football from the defence and has a good long ball too.
RB: Shane Bull: Not afraid to go in for a challenge and has pace as well. Now he knows how to play of his new squad he has excelled lately restarting attacks because he knows exactly where the boys are around him with out looking. He also knows how to take a pen, never seen him miss.
CDM: Chris Dillion: A guy from work who is physically fit, strong and has the best engine from a player I have seen. The boy don’t stop running.
CDM: Ben Robins: This guy has been the plug in the midfield that the hole team has missed. The amount he cuts out for the defence is often missed by all but after a game you can see he is hanging out after the amount he has worked.
LAM: Kyle Jolley: since arriving he created loads of chances and scored goals too. His attitude on the pitch inspires others around him and that got him “Players player” award 2 years in a row. He is the creative player you would want in your side but also puts a shift in defence as well when needed.
CAM: Dean Tuckwell: Quick, Strong, skilful and has a finish to put others to shame. When he gets the ball and has a shot at goal, 9 times out of 10 he will score and his movement is unreal. If he keeps playing the way he is he will end up as the divisions top goal scorer.
RAM: Nathan Dyos: even though his left footed and a Keeper by trade he knows how to play football. He don’t really put much of a shift in defensively by going forward he creates so much its unreal. He could also put in a cross of just pure quality like he did with this weekend’s goal he created for Luke’s Screamer.
CF: James “Chubbs” May: He’s got the name that goes with the way he plays football with captain slow. He is not the quickest guy and you can’t really play the ball in front of him but play it to his feet and give him the chance to turn and he will bulldoze defences and create the play too. He also has a mean left foot on him which in preseason has gained him a number goals. He can also play the defensive mid role which he did this weekend and held of a number of players.
Subs: 1. Judha Mcpearson: Strong and good with his feet would fill any position centrally.
2. Charlie Brown: He is developing very well and has shown he can play a number of positions. He is also a work horse, another one who keeps going.
3. Jonny Satairpan: His touch is brilliant and in attack knows exactly where to go to dominate the space. He is also strong at winning the ball back too.
4. Mark Dickson: One of the best players I have ever come across, technically gifted and strong. Could score from distance and play a through ball inch perfect. I don’t think too many people will remember him.
5. Kensal Gayle should be here because he is a good cover in the sticks and is brilliant in defence but Ryan Smith is my no5 sub: Defensively minded and strong, he knew how to defend but he could also score a goal or 2 with his right foot from free kicks.
12. Has there been a team you always looked forward too and enjoyed playing against? Maidenhead Revo Res, always gave us a challenge and both teams had really good attitudes when we played.
13. Has there been a team who you always didn’t want to play for any reason? Merry Makers Old Boys Reserve. The 1st time we played them we thought it would be a walk over as we beat their 1st team the season before and it was a good win 3-1 with plenty of more chances. Beginning of last season we lost 4-0 and they had 10 men, I was gutted but then we had to play them in the Semi finals of the league shield and at the time they were destroying the division. We lost in the Semi 8-0 and then the week after in the league 8-2. was gutted when I saw us drawn up against them.
14. Since you became manager your playing time has been reduced, but tell us about your best goal you have scored for BAA? I’ve only ever come close until very recently when we played against Hillingdon Abbots Reserves. The boys did all the hard work getting the ball forward and eventually it was Kyle who initially had the shot which the keeper stopped then cleared. As he booted the ball it flew into Kyle’s groin, Kyle managed to get another shot off but it deflected off the keeper in the air and in front of me. As the ball came down I hit the ball with the inside of my right foot on the volley and it went to the far post past the keeper. I have to admit it is something of a rare site as you know I don’t score. And to be honest I think I’ve done a few heads in bragging about it.
15. Last season (2013/14) was your first full season in charge as manager, how do you think the team performed, above expectations or poorly? I had high expectations because I was under the impression I was having Lee Hunt, Gary Becky, and Tom Cornwall playing for my side but it was not to be so I had to find others and quickly. I would say we performed above expectations in the League Shield but just below in the Division its self.
16. You made it to the semi final of the TVSFL League Shield last season before losing to the eventual winners Merrymakers Old Boys Reserves, what are your memories of that cup run and the semi final? I loved the cup run and so did the boys. I remember saying to Jason Ravenhill in the changing rooms when we played the quarter final I was nervous, Ravenhill said that’s good because it showed you cared. This was my aim, to make the final and show the boys what its like to make a final and show we could win things! The 1/4 ‘s was probably the hardest the team had worked and every one was hanging towards the end and we won it in the end 3-2 after ET. I was gutted when I saw the fixtures list saying we were up against the Old Boys again.
17. For the 2014-15 season you made the decision to leave the TVSFL and join the Middlesex Sunday Football League (formally Hayes & District League) what was the reasoning behind this? I’m starting to wish we didn’t because of how much more it is compared to the TVSFL but the main reason was because of the League reps them self’s. They didn’t really help any one out or listen to issues that teams had but were more then happy to screw our club over. The 1st team is a good example. 2 weeks they were looking to play the other team and they said you pick a date. They mugged everyone off.
18. You have had an excellent pre season so far and have claimed the BAA bragging rights after beating both of the other teams (3rds 3-0 & 1st 5-2) tell us about those two sweet victories? I have been happy with every performance my boys have played as it has got them all used to playing with each other. I will admit beating some of the cocky players from 1st team was nice as is brought them down a peg or 2 and shown that they are not all that but its just pre season. Bragging Rights depends on where you are in the leagues and in time we will defiantly be right up the tables.
19. Surely you should be the first team if you beat them by three goals and they are playing three divisions above you? A few people have been saying this but lets see about next seasons preseason matches and I will answer that question then. 😉
20. Now I mentioned those ‘sweet victories’ previously, there was some issues over the summer with yourself and the other teams with them raided your squad for players. Tell us about it as you lost a number of players to the 3rds and the 1st team were trying to take away a couple of players also. Some of the players I knew about and what is the point in having players that don’t want to be there but when it came to Shane I dug my heals in and even got in a few fierce arguments reference him. I was not willing to loose my better players now. No chance.
21. Now I understand that two players who joined the 3rds have looked to rejoin you after seeing how good you have looked pre season? This must show how well your doing and give you some satisfaction that players want to play for you? Yer defiantly but I wouldn’t have these players and wins if it was not for the boys in the team. Mainly Kyle as its his boys who have come down and strengthened the team.
22. You have improved your squad this season, with these new players what are your hopes and aim for the team this season? This season my and my teams aim is to win the title and make the final of a cup fixture.
23. What are the best and worst grounds you have played at? Henley is by far the worst, one half your just running up a bloody hill and hanging out by half time but then going the opposite way if you stopped the ball it would just role away because of how steep the hill was lol. Best ground was at CB Hounslow. Really good ground.
24. What is the best team you have played against? CB Hounslow. A really good and competitive game. My boys were just chasing shadows the hole game but when we did get the ball we took our chances. We lost that 6-2.
25. What is the worst team you have played against? Yours (BAA Vets),…… lol. Na UBSL we beat them 9-0 this preseason and to be honest they kept working even though they were loosing. We got them in our division this season.
26. What is the best goal you have seen in a game, either scored for or against BAA? I have 3 top goals as I cant pick just one. 1. was scored by Kyle and he played a 1-2 with Deano on the edge of the box and scored. The goal was quality as it was the hole build up to it with the passing and movement from the hole team that made it a top quality goal.
2. Deano had a ball sent forward to him from the defence and as it came to him it came off his knee as a cushion, then rolled onto his foot in which he chipped the goal keeper from 30 yards out. A brilliant finish!
3. Then this weekend Nathan was running up the left wing (for a change lol) and put in a driven cross which Luke Phillips connected with in mid air on the volley, the ball flew past the keeper. This was just quality!
27. What is the best save you have seen in a goal, either for or against BAA? Got 2 for this one: 1. Joe Hook pulled of a brilliant save from a pen to keep us in the game as spot taker leathered the ball at goal but Joe went the right way and stopped it. The ball was hit with some right old pace on it.
2. again Joe. A powerful shot looked to be going to his top right but he managed to reach it. In the process he smashed his whole body into the post injuring him self. The guy only thinks about the saves, not him self or the fact that it might hurt.
28. What players have you seen improve the most at the club? Stuart Tucker is a key one, his discipline record has massively improved making him a much better player and Captain as well. Jordan Phillips is always improving too, still needs to understand that when people are talking to him about things he has got wrong they are doing it to develop him but I think if he shows some more physical robustness he will be a much better player. Another is me, I’ve improved in leaps and bounds and still continue to improve. I don’t think I’m going to be getting much more game time any more though with the players we have in the team now.
29. Who has given you the most influence? Gary Chandler. His Attitude and personality just picks people up and he is always looking to develop people. A real top man!
30. How does the team you manage now compare to the team you joined and the team you managed a year ago? When I 1st joined I honestly can not actually remember winning. Back then when the boys got the ball their goal blinkers would go and they would press forward trying to take everyone on and try to go for goal. When I started to manage the team the boys started to understand what I wanted from them and we got better. Kyle made a huge difference, he was my 1st addition when I took over and the boys listened to him. Now all my boys know how to play football. Their not afraid to go back to the defence or keeper if needed and when we are winning and winning well they know how to turn the game into a training session to develop them selves.
This Interview is from Oct 2010 (just as he become a manager)
1 How many seasons have you played for BAA? 12 seasons in total. I joined in 97 but stopped playing for baa when I lived in Kent for two years.
2 How did you come about joining the club? Through Gary Chandler. He was already playing for them and I was looking for a Sunday league team to play for after leaving school.
3 What has been your most memorable moment with the club? (not answered)
4 What has been your lowest point with the club? Losing in the cup final against mercury in I think 2001. We started of terrible, got back into in and in front then lost 3-2 with a goal in the last 5 minutes. That sticks out most because the opposition was full of my old school mates and they didn’t let me forget it for a while.
5 What has been your best performance for BAA in your opinion? My first game was pretty good. Andy Macphail was manager and seemed unsure to play me as I was a small young lad. I had to wait 6 games to play and only came on as a sub at half time as a big lad called Mike had to go off to a wedding. I pretty much came on and ran the show, scored two from about 25 yards each and we won 4-1. Andy played me every game after that.
5b What was your favourite game for BAA? I would have to say the first game this season as manager. We’d had a pretty bad pre season with the results, performances were not forthcoming and everything had just been a bit messy what with the money our team owed and lack of kit etc. But everything just came together on the day and we won 12-0. Everyone just seemed to work for each other and long may it continue
A young Gary front row, one from the rightat the clubs old Printing House Lane ground
6 Was there any players who stood out for you during that time (good or bad) and for what reasons? Dave Macphail. He was not the world’s best defender but you could guarantee that every week he would throw his body in front of a truck if he thought it would prevent a goal. Mike Hamilton was a very good defender, capable of reading a game and playing from the back. One (very) bad player was when I first joined. A goalkeeper called Malcolm, 25 and scrawny with the biggest specs you had ever seen. We would be conceding 15-20 a game with him in goal. And he always turned up with his girlfriend who I swear must have been about 53 and looked more like his Nan!
7 Pick your all time starting eleven and up to five subs, state your reasons for there selection. GK: JASON RAVENHILL, Carlsberg don’t do Sunday league goalkeepers, but he is as near as it gets. Good shot stopper, always talking and inspires confidence in the team seeing him in goal. LB: GARY CHANDLER would be the first to say not near his prime for fitness now but in his heyday was as solid as they came. Never had speed in his legs but more than made up with it with his football brain. RB: LEE HUNT, another who when in his prime was strong as an ox. Would take a lot of work to get past him and could get up and down in supporting the attack. CB: MIKE HAMILTON was brilliant at reading the game and anticipating the opponent’s next move. Class act but boy could he moan! CB: CHRIS GEAL, He would probably not think of himself as a centre back but that role at the heart of the defence suits him. Good in the air, quick and strong. Another prone to a whinge but usually it’s so high pitched I can’t make it out!! LM: LLOYD VAUGHAN is in his third season with the club and has really stepped up a level this year. Last year we saw glimpses of what he can do but this season has done it in every match so far, both attacking and defending. RM: GRANT BALL, tricky little bugger who had a great first touch as well as pace to burn. CM: ALEX? I think he was Ukrainian? Any way joined us for one season in 2006/07. We gelled straight away and enjoyed a good season in midfield together. Had a great engine, could pass and fired shots like a cannon. CM: JOSH NEARY, maybe being a bit premature putting him in here but like Lloyd he has improved a lot this year. Has a natural instinct to attack constantly but when he plays from the right position and has the right cover he is a real threat. Can try to be too elaborate at times but credit for trying some of the things he does. ST: VISH VARMA, hate to love him but his goal record over the last three seasons speaks for itself. Imagine how many more he could score if understood the offside rule! ST: JULIAN OLARU only played a few games with him but he was deadly in front of goal. SUBS: CHRIS MAGRO, LUKE HURLEY, DAVE MACPHAIL, JON WILSON, TOM CORNWALL.
8 During your time with the club what awards/trophies have you won and do you have one that means more then any of the others? I have won nothing at a team level with baa bar some promotions or runners up in cup finals. I have several players of the year and about 4 top scorers. My favourite is the player of the year from 2006/07; I felt that on a personal level I had performed well throughout the season.
9 Is there any team you liked or disliked playing against? South Ealing Saints from the late nineties to early 00’s were a bunch of dirty f*cks. Always guaranteed to have a punch up. I always enjoyed playing firm foundations that always tended to be a good win.
10 What was the best goal you have scored? I don’t know, there have been a few! There was the goal against homenetmen, a 25 yarder that gave the keeper no chance I also enjoyed the goal against the reserves in a friendly in 2008, another long range volley that flew inside the top corner. 11 What do you think could be done to improve the club as a whole? I think Martin does a good job for the club and on the whole most players don’t understand the amount of effort and time that goes in to keeping a football team going. If we could get to a stage where everyone pays their money on time, return kits and generally being proud to play for the mighty BAA it would be a big plus. Maybe finding a permanent base again like we had at printinghouse lane, if we were able to pull that off that would be good.
12 What are the best and worse grounds you have played at? Hayes stadium and Hillingdon were always well looked after, the dog **** minefield stockley park will always be my idea of a nightmare. Uneven and grannies taking Fiddles out for a morning crap? No thanks.
13 Any funny incidents you have seen on a pitch that you can recall? Years ago Ali Esmail was on the sidelines for a game. He had hold of his son’s toy plastic gun, and when the ref gave away a rubbish fk, it started getting heated. Ali came running on arguing with the ref, gun in hand. We got a ref report a while later saying a player had come on the pitch carrying a gun! The toy gun was bright orange!!
14 What is the best team you have played against? Citroën in 2006/07 were a good team. Very capable of pulling you apart with passing and movement.
15 Who is he best player you have played with? I played a couple of friendlies when I first joined with Darren Phillips; he was first class at the time.
16 What is the best goal you have seen in a game, for or against BAA? To be fair, the goal Vish scored against Chestnuts three or four years ago was pretty good. He got hold of the ball near the halfway line and before you knew what had happened he had flown past four players, the keeper, scored and could have kept running all the way to the car park the way he celebrated.
17 What is the best save you have seen in a game, for or against BAA? I am only saying this because there are too many saves of Jason’s to be able to recall a single one, so mine when I went in goal at the 5- a-side tournament in Egham 2010. Did not know what the hell I was doing, but on pure reflex l executed a flying diving save to my left to keep out a low drive destined for the bottom corner.
18 Any players who haven’t lived up to expectations during your time with the club? I can’t think of anyone deserving enough to be spoke of like that without upsetting someone!!
19 Which players have you seen improve the most at the club? Over the last few years a few of the lads have improved and I think it helps that we have a core group of players that have stuck together for 5 years. I think Lloyd has really developed into a good player all round, can score, pass, run and do his fair share of dirty work. Vish also for the last three years has not stopped scoring.
20 You have played in a few leagues with BAA such as the Hayes & district, Thames Valley, North Hillingdon and maybe some others, which league did you like playing in the most? Hayes and District. Over the years I got to know certain teams and players and just enjoyed the set up.
21 What was your favourite and least favourite grounds you played at with BAA Heathrow? I loved Hayes stadium, always tidy to play on. As already stated, I hate Stockley Park. Clearing up dog sh*t of the pitch is not the best way to start a Sunday. 22 What is the difference between the BAA Heathrow you joined and the BAA team now? Not much. Apart from when I started we had a clubhouse. That had a massive effect on all the teams in my opinion. Meeting altogether at your own clubhouse, with games, friendlies against each other, fund-raisers and watching the match together after running your nuts of in the rain, that helped everyone feel part of something as there was a base for the whole club.
Team at the beginning of the 2010/11 season as Gary took over as manager.
23 You have taken over as manager of the 3rd team, how did that come about? At the end at last season all the players received a text from Alan saying he was going to be stepping down and anyone interested should contact Martin. I spoke to a few players and sounded them out about the prospect of me taking care of paperwork and such and have Gary Chandler pick the team. After 3 pre season games Gary said he would rather just be a player so I took over team duties too.
24 What problems has becoming manger given you? First one was after the first training session after taking over. We went to pay for the £50 session and found out we owed £604! God knows how it got that high but that’s what it was. So getting that paid off was a priority. Getting everyone to pay their fair share as well can be a challenge. Picking the team at times is a balancing act because no one likes starting on the bench but at the end of the day only 11 can start. I want to play the strongest team when required but I want to try and give everyone their share of games too. If we can have a trophy at the end of the season though I’m sure no one will be complaining about anything. Oh yeah, the missus going mental all the time because football gear is everywhere!
25 What do you hope to achieve as manager? I would like to win a few trophies! The league this year should be a realistic aim considering the start we have made. I am enjoying myself as a manager (at times!) and I think the boys are happy with me being the manager. If I can keep the bulk of these players together for the next 4-5 years with a few additions in due course, I can see us advancing up the leagues and gaining some silverware.
26 A few years ago the club had its own ground, club house but lost this at the end of 2004 and regularly plays at stockley or Little Harlington, not nearly as appealing? No, as stated, I HATE Stockley. Therefore one of the first things I done as manager was to get Feltham College as our home ground. Clean and around the corner from most of us, and ten pound cheaper than Stockley a week. It’s also around the corner from our new sponsor who lay out food for us after game, so happy days all round! That said you cannot beat having your own clubhouse, it creates a vibe and a feel for the club.
27 How do you think the club is run as a whole and how do you think it should maybe be changed? I think Martin does a good job considering no one else offers to do it. Although he must be a protected species by now, I have not seen him at one of our games in how long?
28 Do you have any pre match superstitions? Not really a superstition, but I always make sure I have sock tape and Vicks. Sad I know!
29 Do you feel your relationship with the players changed at all when you became manager? I don’t think any relationship has changed. I just make sure that I don’t get involved in any training banter etc about formations, player picks and positions. I take a step back from that because Gary tried to listen to everyone in pre-season and we were soundly beaten in all three, with people arguing and everyone trying to have their say. I think it’s better to have one in charge and result at the moment back that up.
30 They say family comes first, do you feel if you was not manager Jamie and Chris would struggle to get in the team? 😉 What you trying to do here? No nepotism here, I think if you were to ask the squad if Chris and Jamie earn their places I think most would agree. Chris has been brilliant at cb for the last1 ½ years, while Jamie over his three seasons has definitely improved
31 This season Chris has been made captain, what was the reason behind that decision? Probably because I would have looked like a prat making myself captain!! No seriously, in my opinion a captain should be someone who talks, shows passion and can get others motivated by their actions. Chris does those things pretty well for us. I was hoping it would calm him down a bit actually as well, but it’s made him worse!
32 The team won there first 9 games last season but then stumbled to the end to finish 3rd. Do you think you should of won the league and why do you think the team came up short? I think we lost the title really; we had moments in the season where we could have gotten extra points that would have made a difference. Drawing 0-0 with manor when Josh had a penalty saved near the end, drawing with the pitiful parkway and losing Jason during the last Game against Hayes Alexander. Hopefully we can make up for it this year.
33 What are your expectations for this season? This year, I want the league and to finish the season with a bang, if we keep on at this rate maybe top 100 goals for the season. We are still in two cups as well, but that may be a bit greedy…
…….perhaps it was greedy, but the team went on to win the league and score over 100 goals.
How many seasons have you played for BAA? 5th season as player
How did you come about joining the club? Through Phil Neville. Sorry I meant Danny Theobald
What was your most memorable moment with the club? Playing at west ham’s upton park for 2 games. We had to qualify to play there and the experience of playing in a premiership stadium was awesome. During the warm up we were kicking the ball about in front of the bobby moore stand. Alan broke a few seats in row z with a few shots. Me and Dory done a Mexican wave.
What was your lowest point with the club? Losing a cup semi final with 2mins to go.
What was your best performance for BAA? Last season when I scored 5 goals in one match.
What was your favourite game for BAA? beating Montem in the cup, we were 2-0 down and pulled it back for extra time, then Alan mis-cued another volley into to the top corner with a minute left before penalties, everyone jumped on him in the celebration, thankfully Denis pollard was not one of them
During your time with the club are there any players who stood out for you during that time(good or bad) and for what reasons? Golden oldie Steve Jones was a great defender as was welsh Alan. George scoring 30 goals in one season, we got new player lloydy, only 17 but looks like being a quality player.
Pick your all time starting eleven and upto five subs, state your reasons for there selection. Gk – JASON, great shot stopper, bosses his area well couldn‘t catch a cold though. DEF – ALAN (welsh) – tough and could play football, STEVE JONES – knew how to defend and scored goals as well, too old now, only player I’ve played with that has a free bus pass. LEE HUNT – led the line well and was very strong, CHRIS MAGRO – heads well, and can play from the back, MID – STEVE SILVA – best football brain at club, two-footed, great vision and was a leader. A bit like Paul scholes but on the chubby side, SIMON COOKE – big, strong and full of energy, always scored spectacular goals, looked like martin fowler from eastenders, the ugly one, GARY BECKEY – otherwise known as Gary Gareth Barry. Great ball winner, gets loads of goals from midfield and has bag loads of energy. Has no right foot, left footed one foot wonder. – RICHARD BURT – looks like jimmy bullard and plays like jimmy bullard, never stops running, tough tackler and good at playing football, goals are a bit like his haircuts, very, very rare, STRIKERS – GEORGE, scored for fun, he seemed to always score scissor kick goals, plenty of hat-tricks in my first season as well, DANNY RITHCIE – I think he scored something like 25 goals in 10 matches. Could score any type of goal you wanted, awesome strength in the air. SUBS – GK, James Grant, Alan Pollard, Chris Geal, Matthew Cooke and Vishal Varma
During your time with the club what awards/trophies have you won and is there one that means more then any of the others? I’ve not won many but the runners-up medal at west ham is my fave, it was a great weekend of football and the team we’re brilliant considering half of us didn’t even know each other
I recently heard that you were put up for sale on ebay, is this true? And how much did you sell for? I was sold for 69p on ebay, when I arrived at the buyers house they were unhappy claiming I was damaged goods and wanted a refund.
Is there any team you liked or disliked playing against? I liked playing against Acton town cuz they were so easy that even Alan pollard could score. I hated playing harlington cuz they should have been in the top division as they were spanking teams 8-0, 9-0 every week
What is the best goal you have scored? This was against chestnuts 2 years back, I picked the ball up from my own penalty box, went past 4 players, then rounded the keeper to put the ball in the empty net, I looked back and a couple of the opposition players were clapping.
What are your memories of the Division 4 cup final n 2005? None, apart from keeping the bench so warm you could have had a BBQ on it
What do you think could be done to improve the club as a whole? It’s run brilliantly by martin strange, but I think the players must turn up every week instead of calling up on Sunday morning and saying they cant turn up cuz they forgot they we’re getting married
What is the best and worst grounds you have played at? Hayes stadium was the best,, nice pitch and we didn’t have to put the soddin nets up and take them down. The worst is little harlington, pitch 1 I think, its smaller than a subbuteo set.
Any funny incidents you have seen on a pitch that you recall? Alan pollard missed an open goal from 2 yards (again) and the ref said to him “what’s the matter, goal not big enough for you”
What is the best team you have played against? Little harlington
Who is he best player you have played with? For BAA its Steve Silva and Danny Ritchie but the best is at college, a striker called Darryl, I have no idea how he didn’t make as a pro.
What is the best goal you have seen in a game, for or against BAA? My wonder goal in Q 11
What is the best save you have seen in a game, for or against BAA? James grant, a few years back, we were getting hammered but he made a great save, think Gordon banks against brazil
Any players who haven’t lived up to expectations during your time with the club? Yes, no names though, actually **** it. When I first joined the club a certain player named Simon ‘cripple’ Thornton-lane was dubbed the new ‘ronaldo’ by erm…. Simon himself. After a few weeks I thought the comparisons were quite strikingly similar. Both wore the same football boots, both wore earrings and both had Moobs (man-titties) that required them to wear sports bra’s during a game. Obviously not the man united Ron but the former real Madrid and barca forward. As for footballing terms. Imagine a beauty contest between Keeley hazell and Anne widdecombe…. There’s your difference.
Which players have you seen improve the most at the club? Kevin ‘festa’ dodds, used to have 2 left feet, well he still has, 10 times stronger and better at defending in last few years, most improved by a mile
You were lucky enough to play at Premiership ground Upton Park a few years ago, home of West Ham. What was that like? Awesome
After starting with the 3rds in 2004/05 you moved to the then 4th team, how and why did the happen? Weren’t getting games with 3rds so the 4ths took me on board and I have loved it since.
What expectations do you have for this season(08-09) for yourself and the team? We just got knocked out of the div 6 cup which was so gutting but we have to target a top 3 spot
If offered the chance would you move to either the reserves or the first team? Neither, the team spirit with our team is better then ever
You have played in the Hayes & District league and the Thames Valley League, which one do you prefer and why? Hayes and district is run better but I preferred travelling to those long away days in Thames valley,
You have made it onto the forum ‘look-a-like’ section, have you seen it? If so what do you think of your lookalike? Its quite funny, people often say I look like him, the other week I was in a club and this bird said I looked like him, so I knocked her out in the 3rd.
After playing as the reserves the last two seasons how does it feel to be demoted to the 3rds?? Its not really a demotion, just a name, we’ve got the bragging rights after 2 games this season….
Who is going to finish top goalscorer this season, you or Alan? Obviously me, with my injury I have given alan a 5 game head start, and with alan’s finishing ability on par with ade akinbiyi, I see no trouble in me beating alan to the top of the scoring charts.
Steve Jones has played for the reserves and the 3rds this season, how come hes in such demand? We needed a linesman to officiate in our games
You lost a few players at the end of last season, how hard has it been replacing them? Its not been that hard, we’ve replaced a ’calamity james’ keeper for a blind man with no hands. And man city thought they had the signing of the season.
This Interview is from April 2012 How many seasons have you played for BAA? The way my body feels about 50 years!!! Lol from late 90’s (stopped playing for about 5 seasons in mid 2000’s because of Family Issues) to finishing and retiring this year (2012).
How did you come about joining the club? Richard Hunt (Lee’s brother) invited me down.
What has been your most memorable moment with the club? Winning back to back titles and the Datchet tournament. This current B.A.A team is the best I have played with and undoubtedly gave me the chance to win something in my last (comeback) 3 seasons. Thanks to all the lads for that!!!!!
What has been your lowest point with the club? Losing in the final against Mercury over at Hillingdon.3-2
What has been your best performance for BAA in your opinion? The 1st game against Load of Hay. We were all well up for that and the final game of the season against the Old George. Massive game with a lot riding on it.Chrissy G and myself kept their number 9 quiet all match and apparently their no 9 said to Chrissy G…Thank F*** He’s Gone Off. I Haven’t Had A Kick!!! When I went off with about 15 mins to go as I am an old boy and knackered!!! lol
Were there any players who stood out for you during that time (good or bad) and for what reasons? Like I said before, the current team is so good and will improve as lots of the players are young lads who are getting better with every season. I don’t like singling out players good or bad as it is a TEAM GAME!!!!!!! lol
Pick your all time starting eleven and up to five subs, state your reasons for their selection. 1) Jason Ravenhill. Superb reflexes. Must have been awesome when he was slimmer and younger!!! Lol 2) Lee Hunt. Been there with me throughout the years and has been Mr.Consistent. DEPENDABLE (unless Hung Over)!!! 3) Jamie Bakas. Small, quick and strong for size. Can get caught wrong side of the player sometimes which he knows and will no doubt rectify in the coming season!! 4) Dave McPhail. Really Gutsy, quick and had his fare share of broken bones!!! 5) Chris Geal. Mr Angry. Really good athlete, times his tackle to perfection and works hard (sometimes too hard when I am playing) very hard to beat him and good Captain. 6) Grant Ball. The best player I think I have played with. This guy was about 5ft 5ins but had everything. Lightning quick, great in the air and tricky as hell. Scored lots of goals too. I see a lot of this guy in our young Luke. 7) Josh Neary. Superb skills and technique. Awesome when fired up and keeps his game simple! Will only get better! 8) Gary Beckey. Very strong and committed and has a great engine. Not as quick as he used to be hence moving from winger to midfield general!!!! But a lot quicker than I ever was!! Lol. 9) Ali Esmail. Or Ali Barnes as he was affectionately known because of his dribbling skills. Sometime’s took on one too many players and would get chopped down. He had to have 2 key hole operations on both knees. He does Salsa now so must still be ok but got lots of goals for B.A.A over the years. He didn’t like to help his defenders much especially a certain left back!!! 10) Lloyd Vaughan. Excellent all round player who has won the last couple of player of the year awards. You don’t get them if you are rubbish! Very quick, strong and scores bucket loads of goals. Will only get better with age. 11) Luke Hurley. Amazing attitude. Got rockets for feet and is superb in the air. Scores loads of goals too. He has become such a good player in his short time with the club and he is still so young!!! Frightening how good he can become. Subs:12) Goalkeeper. Mark (Schmeichel) Fellows. The original Mr Angry and about 7ft tall!!! The rest of the team had to wear sound reducing ear protectors with this guy. Struck fear into the oppositions eyes…and ours!!!lol. 13) Richard Hunt. Had a bit more pace than his brother and a good goal scoring ratio. Had a tendency to score wonder goals!!! 14) Tom Cornwall. Superb technique and has a keen eye for goal. Sometimes needs to be more aggressive in his play. I thought last season in particular was his best season. He was more involved in the matches we played. Will improve even more and will be an important player for years to come. 15) Matt Allen. Central Defender going on Striker. Another Mr Angry but was a winner. Similar to Chrissy G in lots of ways only Matty had more HAIR!!!! Not hard. So did Kojak. Sorry G 16) Vish Varma. Scored loads of goals even though he would be caught offside 50 times a game!!! Good work rate and passion. Needs that because he is a Villa Fan!!!
During your time with the club what awards/trophies have you won and do you have one that means more than any of the others? Runners up medal for the 3-2 Div 5 Cup loss against Mercury. A couple of Clubman of the year awards,2 Title Winner’s medals Div 5 & 2, Datchet Tournament Trophy, a couple of B.A.A 5 a-side runners up medals and a lovely retirement trophy thanking me for my years of service with the club I LOVE!!!!! Is there any team you liked or disliked playing against? I liked playing Cowley F.C over at the R.A.F place because we beat them 8-0 or 8-1. Pitch was awesome. Like the Emirates!!!! There is one Team that I would like to mention from a friendly we had a few years back, but I won’t because this is a B.A.A Website. I had a bit of a melt down and had a row with some of the opposition and the manager through their lack of respect for us. Gary Beckey Remembers!!! One piece of advice for this current team…keep your Humility. It’s so important. With skill comes RESPECT!!!!
You scored a few goals for the club, including own goals. What has been your favourite goal scored and best own goal finish? Can’t remember any brilliant goals had some good near misses, most of the very few goals I have had have been from corners or crosses with my head. I think I have scored better own goals and against the best goalie I’ve ever had the pleasure of playing with!!! (That’s a couple of beer’s Jase)!!!! lol
Any funny incidents you have seen on a pitch that you can recall? Ali Esmail running onto the pitch with his son’s plastic water pistol when a scuffle between the 2 teams broke out. The Ref put down in his book that one of the B.A.A players had come onto the pitch with a fire arm with intent to use it. Well he would have got a good soaking that’s all. B.A.A had to change its name to B.A.A HAL so we could play the following season. Lee, Gary and Myself. Shame on us guy’s!!!
What is the best team you have played against? And can you recall how you got on against them? I don’t really remember any outstanding teams from years ago but I would say the Old George was a very good team and the games are always tight. Iver Heath also are very hard to break down and work well together!!!
Who is the best player you have played with? Grant Ball. Just Superb
What is the best goal you have seen in a game, for or against BAA? this was not answered. What is the best save you have seen in a game, for or against BAA? Seen a few from our current keeper Mr Ravenhill in matches plus one from a possible own goal from a sliced deflection off my foot which was going top right corner only for Jase the Ace to pull off a world class save!!! You must remember that one!!! .Jason’s 4 (I think) penalty saves recently only for us to Lose the game. Still scratch my head with that one. Mark fellows did lots of great saves and I remember a penalty save he did at Printing House Lane where he got down to his right nearly breaking his fingers on the foot of the post tipping the ball around for such a big bloke I don’t know how he got down so quickly!!! (it was 5 penalty saves)
Which player(s) have you seen improve the most at the club? Luke Hurley and Tom Cornwall
You will have played in a few different leagues for BAA, is there one you prefer over the others and why? Thames Valley. The Hayes and district had some nasty teams over the years. The Shirehorse from the early 90’s were a right nasty bunch. Always kicking off. Supporters as well!!!
What were your favourite and least favourite grounds you played at with BAA Heathrow? The best was Cowley F.C’s R.A.F Uxbridge ground. Worst was Stockley Park and The Esso Club in Stanwell. Had long grass that grew up but went back into the ground allowing you to trip up. God knows how or why the grass grew that way. Must have been the petrol Fumes or something!
What is the difference between the BAA Heathrow you joined and the BAA team now? The quantity of really good players (skilful players) all together at the club at the same time with all ages, but predominantly a young team. Youth experience and quality and getting better with every coming season. Hope the boys stay together and go on to winning a lot more trophies!!!
How do you think the club is run as a whole and how do you think it should maybe be changed? I think Gary Beckey has done a fantastic job since being in charge. (2 league titles and a Datchet Tournament trophy in his first 2 seasons isn’t bad is it?) Just a shame some other people don’t appreciate all of what he does because it is a thankless task sometimes and would be a whole lot easier for him if everyone was to pull in the same direction! Keep up the great work Gazza!
Do you have any pre match superstitions? Have a download before hand to make me feel a little lighter!!! lol You will have played under a couple of different managers at BAA, how were they different? I think that every great manager needs a great team around him. Past managers did not have the quality which maybe Gary has now. Alan did have a lot of the current squad but Gary has moved it onto another level with his formations, desire and ambition!!! Results show that!
A few years ago now the club had its own ground and club house at print house lane, it’s a shame the club still doesn’t have this, what are your memories of the old ground and club house? Tripping over and banging my head a lot. Hic! Hic! That was before a game! Lol lovely ground with excellent facilities. Hopefully the new Orchard ground will be like Printing House Lane was! Only better!
At the beginning of the 2010-11 season you were set to be part of the management team with Gary Beckey to run the team. But after some player issues in a pre season friendly against the clubs reserves team you stepped down. Tell us about that and why you chose to move aside? Nobody listened to me unlike young Bex and I don’t like upsetting any of my mates coz these boy’s at football are my only mates now. I am married you know! Lol too much bickering and players moaning because they might be a sub. If you could play all 18 or so players I would have done but you can’t and somebody is going to be disappointed with your decisions! Besides it ages you…look at poor old Gazza Beckey!!! lol
The team you played for recently (3rds 2009-11 Reserves 2011-12) has been a really close team. You could perhaps say it was like a ‘family’, would you agree? The Team spirit is definitely there. I would say more encouragement is needed within the team to make the team stronger which they will need this coming season as they are in the top division now. The team did have a few moments last season when players started to lose their heads and started to argue with each other. I think because we were successful in the previous season winning Div 5 and not losing or drawing a game, we thought we were world beaters and got a bit of an attitude which sometimes was not the right kind of attitude if you know what I mean! Humility and Respect like I said earlier is important for us!
During the season there had been some issues with players paying and a fall out with the manager and some players and a difference of opinion followed. The player was not happy about being put a sub and threatened to leave; the manager said he could not allow a player to ‘play for free’ when others pay. At the time you was quite opinionated on the matter. Tell us more about the whole situation and your views on it. I know what you are referring to and felt a little aggrieved by the whole episode. Gary showed me some texts he received from one of our players (no names and faces as it’s water under the bridge now, HOPEFULLY) to me which showed a massive lack of respect towards him as a manager and person. Some of the other players had seen these messages and were not too impressed and thought that the individual was out of order. But come Sunday they soon forgot and were high fiving and knuckle banging which I thought was a bit 2 faced and I said my piece. I am old school (Very old school, I know). I did get a bit of a moan from Chrissy G for the timing of my angry outburst but was sorted out during the start of the match because I do like the player in question even though he needs to look at the way he sees things sometimes!
In the last 3 seasons you have been part of a defence which proved to be tighter then blazing squad in the pub. The team conceded an average of less than a goal a game over three seasons. With just you, Jason, Simon, Jamie, Chris, Lee and Dan Jones being a big part of that and also Lamps and Chris Magro played. What made that defence so good and mean? A solid keeper is a great start giving the guy’s in front the confidence they need to perform well during the game. You were that rock Jase and the team will vouch for that! Chris is like a rock in front of you and whoever partners him has a lot easier job because of a his pace, strength and timing of tackles etc etc.This all adds up to confidence. No Jason or Chris takes a lot of confidence away not only the defence but the team as a whole..Put into the mix Lee Hunts never say die attitude and stamina, Jamie’s speed and effort, Dan Jones’s steely determination and heart which would be even more if he felt more confident sometimes and that is only because if he does anything wrong there will be groans from other players which he will take to heart and beat himself up over and I know how he feels because I am a bit like Dan with confidence issues I’m not too scared admit!!! And last but not least…Super Si. Fills in more holes than Ron Jeremy!!!! One minute in goal then the next out on pitch, then the next as a helicopt……….sorry not that last bit!!! Lol It must be very hard going in goal some weeks then coming out on field to do a job which maybe Simon does not get the respect he deserves. It is after all a team game and Simon is your classic team player. In all senses of the word!
Now that you have retired will you be washing or throwing away the world’s smelliest shin pads? No They are going on E-Bay. Or a tenner to you me old butt nugget!!! P.s you should smell my pants!
League champion 2011, league champion 2012. Come on then, which one means more? The first one because the League trophy was there and the match. It all came down to that game. The league messed up this year’s celebrations by not having the trophy at the last game. SHAME ON YOU TVSFL!!!! Last season’s Div 2 should have been a better celebration but wasn’t. Shame really but there you go! The champagne did taste like BRUT Gazza!!! lol
How did it feel that your last game you were the captain that led the team to title success?? Awesome. Thanks Chrissy G! I was Captain for a couple of seasons a long time ago but never had the success that I have had with this current bunch of players so I just want to say a big thank you to all you guy’s who have enabled me to hang up my boots a much happier man!!!
What will you do on your Sundays now? Will you look to have an active role within the club and would you ever consider playing in an emergency if asked? Always willing to try for the MIGHTY B.A.A!!!! Love you guys!
Would you consider moving into management or has the previous experience put you off? Well Off!!!! Thank you very much and I want to have more hair than Gazza Bex!!!
Let’s go back to the 2009-10 season, BAA won their first 9 games in the league but ended the season with nothing even though they beat the league champions twice. What happened? Bit of Implosion I think. The League is like a marathon. You have to gain momentum and when you get it going you have to do everything to keep it going and that is to find a togetherness which I think was sadly missing towards the end when the games were getting more intense and you getting injured in was it the last game against Manor didn’t help much either. I would have played on with broken fingers you know!!!! lol
I’ve been asked if you recall playing with a goalkeeper called Alan in the late 90’s after he was dropped from the 3rds? I Remember Alan. Smashing Bloke!!! 😉
1. Who is Richard Gafan in regards to BAA Heathrow (Sunday) Football Club? I’m a player with many years of experience, I currently play as a midfield player. 2. How many seasons have you been with the club? At a guess I’ve played for BAA for around 6/7 seasons could be longer 3. How did you come about joining BAA? I was approached by an old friend who use to play for the club and asked me to come along during preseason training. 4. How did you end up becoming manager? I ended up as a manager to stop our team from folding, at the time our current manager walked out on us due to a few personal issues.
5. Do you have any game that sticks out in your mind as manager? No games that really stick out for me but I do remember being top of our league for most of the season in charge and that season finishing 3rd which was an achievement due to the previous couple of seasons under the other manager.
6. What did you dislike the most about being manager? I didn’t enjoy have to go around trying to collect money from everyone also had a few players that didn’t drive and found myself making the rounds to collect them for a game.
7. What did you like the most about being the manager? Being a manager was good at times, winning was a buzz but the overall achievement was the loyalty of my players that turned up to play for me.
8. How did it come about of you stepping down as manager and to continue as a player with Bradley taking over? I made the discussion to step down as manager due to a time in my life when I was going for a promotion at work and couldn’t commit fully to the team. I had help at the time in the form of Bradley Holdaway which in my absence run the team for me and was doing well with it.
9. As manager, who was your best signing? As a manager I had many signings for my team and had many good players that joined the team I couldn’t pick out one person as the where all doing a good job when on the pitch.
10. Now after experiencing it from both sides, would you ever be a manager again? As for being a manager again watch this space it could happen soon.
11. As a player what has been your best performance in a game? My best performance that I can think of is maybe a quarter finals cup game over in slough when I setup two of the goals and worked my ass off for the win as we were down on goals at the time, we went on to win the game.
12. During your time at the club, what have been your personal highlights? Can’t really answer this one sorry
13. At the moment BAA has 3 teams, so tell us. If you could take one player from either of the other teams who would it be? As I have only really met a few of the players on the other BAA teams I can only give you two players I would have in my team and that would be Shane and Kyle.
14. Pick your all time starting eleven and up to 5 subs, state your reasons for selection.
My ideal team with players that I’ve had the pleasure to play with past and present
In goal it’s got to be Jason Ravenhill aka the shot stopper he still got it at 36.
Sub keeper would have to be James Grant aka Freddie but it would have to be the young Freddie when he used to be able to dive for the ball.
Right defence would have to be Simon Howard aka dory, he’s been solid in his position this season.
Centre defence would have to be staurt tucker and Ryan smith, these two where partners in defence once upon a time and worked as a solid team duo.
Left defence would be a old baa player John Claude aka the French machine gun, if you was ever to be tackled by John it was like you had been shot and that bullet had past right through you whilst laying on the floor feeling the pain. He was a defender that you wanted in your team.
Left mid field would have to be another old BAA member Vishal Varma was a very strong player with pace and also filled a position up front when he was needed.
The two in the centre without doubt would have to be Mark Dickson and Johnny, these two helped my team with many wins over a couple of seasons.
Right midfield would have to be myself of course with many goals from corners and always the assist man in games.
Up top would have to be my mates sunny and Mo these two have been the guys to get you goals in a game Mo with his fast pass and sunny with his match stick legs that can kick a ball with force.
15. When you left Bradley Holdaway’s team to join your current team Mo and Sunny also joined. There was some controversy regarding this, what are your comments on it? When leaving Bradley’s team Mo and Sunny joined with myself for Jason’s this did course a bit of controversy but when I had my team I built a friendship and loyal friends that wanted to play football on a Sunday with myself and others that left for Jason’s team.
16. Looking back you left Bradley’s team, they went on to win the league that season, any regrets? No regrets leaving Bradley’s team he needed to stand on his own two feet and build his own team which done well that season and went on by winning the league.
17. During your time at the club have you won any trophies/medals? No silverware for me lol 18. What players have stuck out for you during your time at the club, good and bad? The player that has stuck out for me is Stuart Tucker when I first brought him into my team he was a loud mouth plonker who was nearly booked every game but was a great player. As time has gone on he has become a solid defender for BAA and is rarely gets book and feel that I’ve had some involvement in getting him on track.
19. Has there been a team you always enjoyed playing against? Not answered
20. How about any team you never looked forward to playing? Not answered
21. What is the best or favourite ground you have played at? Not answered
22. …and the worst? Not answered 23. What is the best goal you have scored? As I’ve score a few fancy goals from corners I think my favourite goal would have to be from a free kick from just over the half way line, which I think the wind court on its way into the goal. 24. What is the best goal you have seen in a game, for or against BAA. Not answered
25. What is the best save you have seen in a game, for or against BAA There’s been a few good saves that I’ve seen from Jason Ravenhill and also a penalty save to.
26. You have played under Bradley Holdaway and Jason Ravenhill, what are the main differences between the two manager’s styles? Not answered
27. What are your hopes and goals for this season? My hopes for this season is to at least win one of the cups that we are still in and to finish in or around the middle of the table, which isn’t too bad for a team that’s only been playing together for a season and a half.
28. What about next season? Where would you like to be with the team or club? My hopes for next season are to help expand the BAA team with another team to challenge in one of the leagues, I’m also hoping that I’m going to get a chance to continue playing football with the friends I’ve made whist at BAA.
29. What is the best team you have played against, can you recall the game? Not answered
30. If you could change any things about how the club is run what would you suggest? Not answered
How did you come about joining the club? Advertisement in the Heathrow Villager
What was your most memorable moment with the club? Winning Divisional Championship in 1997 as I scored a couple of crucial goals in that season and Making the County Cup Final in 2004
What was your lowest point with the club? Losing County Cup final in 2004. Game that still haunts me. Being County Champions is the ultimate honour any amateur player can achieve.
What was your best performance for BAA? Think it would have been against Egham Victoria in 1996. Scored 2 made 3. Still have paper clipping of that game at home in one of my football trophies at home.
What was your favourite game for BAA? 2 games stand out…….Funny this. It was a quarter final game we lost 2-1 to Maidenhead Nomads, got clattered (Cleanly) in the very first minute by one of the Nomad players. We proceeded to go hammer and tongs (cleanly) at it for the next 90 minutes. Me and the guy embraced at the end of it, then my ex girlfriend at the time asked me when I came off “How the F*!k did you survive that tackle in the 1st minute” 2nd one was my first win as a manager against Bessingby Park Rangers, we won 5-1, and George Gordon scored 2 crackers and my mate Craig Gallyer, scored a free kick from 40 yards out. Did not go home afterwards, drove around Hayes in a Daze:o))))
You were with the club a long time, any players who stood out for you during that time (good or bad) and for what reasons? I’ve seen a few players. The good: Anthony Wood is the best player I’ve played with by a country mile. On his day Anthony is unstoppable. Should have played a higher level of football. Jason Ravenhill. A keeper who should be playing higher grade football. Seen him pull off some unbelievable saves that should not be allowed. Craig Gallyer, when he was a teenager, was a fantastic keeper who is now an even better out field player. George Gordon, prolific scorer who has a scant disregard for goalkeepers. Danny Ritchie, strong powerful, he’s got it all. As much as I hate to admit it, Antony Ebelle-Ebanda, for a big man he has quick feet, very skilful, good in the air and a nightmare for defenders. Shame about chronic injury problems. Unfortunately, I still play with him, so I have to listen to what a great player he is and how **** I am. The bad, Too many to mention, but will not embarrass them
Pick your all time starting eleven and uptown five subs, state 1. Jason Ravenhill – Either Jason likes playing the board game twister or he liked Physics at school, as some of the saves I’ve seen him make certainly defied it. Very good keeper to have behind the defence, but could moan for England if all is not going well in front of him. Should be keeping at a higher level.
2. Alun Watkins – Young Versatile Welsh defender who likes getting forward and taking on players. Enjoys playing right back as it allows him to get forward more. Would ring me on a Sunday, usually from the M4 on the Welsh border asking if the game is on, hoping it was off, so that he could go back home and enjoy his mums Sunday roast.
3.Troy Burrows – A deceptively fast solid defender who could play anywhere across the back and armed with a long throw that could launch many a scud missile.
4. Colin Carter -6 ft 3 defender who was dominant in the air and great dribbler. Would take the risks of trying to dribble past the opposing striker. He was good at it and got away with it most of the time, but not before giving the rest of us heart attacks while doing it as he was the last man in defence. Was one of the reasons we won the title in 97.Saw him a few years later and he said he never got his winners medal from that season.
5. Paul Ridger One half of the notorious Ridger Brothers. Hard tackling no nonsense defender. I used to call him Lionheart.When he tackled or went for a header, he went for the ball, but would take anybody or everything with it. Regular visitor to hospital for breaking some part of his anatomy, along with the opponents he usually put in there.
6. Craig Gallyer – at BAA as a teenager as a keeper, then later on as a mate he’d come and play for us during my time as manager, when his Dad’s Sunday did not play. Shooting ability is phenomenal from distance. Great skill for a tall man and dominant in the air.
7. Paul Dunking –Along with Paul Holland, and myself Mr Dunkling caused many an opposing defender a problem with pace.
8. Danny Ritchie –Don’t think I know a player who drives a team like Danny Ritchie does. Makes an ordinary team into a very good team. Danny has so much presence plus the attributes a modern footballer should have, height power and pace. Tackles hard, but fair
9. George Gordon – the Yardie hitman is the most complete striker I have ever played with. Gets you the bread and butter goals and the simply spectacular ones.84 goals in 4 and a bit seasons for BAA makes him arguably my best signing for BAA.
10. Antony Ebelle-Ebanda – Frenchman made himself BAA cult hero with a hat trick on his debut. At 6ft 3 and 220 pounds, the crazy Frenchman is every central defenders nightmare as he could hold defenders off with his body strength. Like Danny Ritchie another player who could make a difference. Quick feet for a big man, brilliant in the air, don’t think I’ve seen anyone that could head a ball as hard as the Crazy Frenchman. The shame is injury problems limited the amount of appearances he made for the club, as he would have scored a lot more than he did.
11. Anthony Wood – Woody should be playing football at a higher level. Leaves a lot of players disorientated after he bamboozles them with his skill. Got more tricks than a cartload of monkeys. More skill in his left foot than I’ve ever had in my life and lethal in front of goal even in 5 a sides.
Subs
Julian Olaru – in the late 90’s Julian was lethal in front of goal. Get you goals out of nothing. Great crosser of the ball with either foot. Great knack of scoring from corners.
Rob Hewitt – Rob scored 17 goals from the wing when BAA won the league title in 97.He was only 17 years old, and his dad Bob played in defence for us also. Uxbridge FC then came a calling and then refused him to play on Sunday’s .Top player who would be in my starting 11, if not for Woody.
Paul McCarthy- Skinny tallish central defender, never afraid to where it hurts. Very vocal. Unfortunately an accidental collision (ankle injury) with our then keeper Gary Hazel 5 minutes into a league game ended his career back in 1999.
Joe Beattie – If you did not see him, you’d hear him. No nonsense player and good captain. Great in the air and tough tackling. Been at BAA longer than me
Darren Phillips Tricky skilful little player who is an asset to any team. Would always be in any team I would pick. The man who scored the winner to get us in the County cup final. Played with him off and on for 7 years. Also managed the team for 1 season in the 1999/2000 seasons.
What awards/trophies did you win and do you have one that means more then any of the others? Thames Valley Div 8 winners (96-97), North Hillingdon Div3 runners up (99-00), Middlesex Junior Trophy runners up (03-04), Hayes and district div 4 runners up (04-05), and div 4 cup winners (04-05). I think the County Cup medal winners still means the most as you finished 2nd out of 60-70 teams in the whole county. Even if the final was a nightmare.
BAA 3rd team 2003
How did you end up becoming manager? Original manager John Galloway broke his leg in a game against Spotted Dog; Andrew Joslin took temporary charge, but was also running Eastcote, so it was a bit much for him, so I said I’d give it a go, as the team did have potential.
Was there any team you liked or disliked playing against? RAFA Uxbridge (Always lost to them, plus I despised one of their players named Jason Lindo) Ashford Rangers (cocky c!”ts), Feltham Harriers, Hayes End Ambishus. Liked LNER sports as I always seem to score against them
What was the best goal you scored? Took on 5 players before slotting it past keeper against BWS Shottesbrooke
What was the hardest thing about being manager? Not enough support from higher up in the club. Getting 11 players to turn up on a Sunday. Hoping the referee actually turns up as I can’t ref to save my life.
How did your relationship with the players change when you became manager? Did not change. More had problems when I reverted from manager back to player
If you were to be a manager again what things would you do differently? Get someone to work with me. You really can’t do it by yourself, as it is too much hassle, especially if you are not getting help from elsewhere. Be a bit more selfish as some of the games I deserved to start over some of the other players, but I was trying to keep everyone happy. But glad I did become manager as I built team from whipping boys to a half decent outfit.
It was a great achievement to make it to the Middlesex County Cup final in 2004, what are your memories of the previous rounds before the final? (Rayners Lane, Northmet Riverside, Greenford Galaxy etc) Getting slammed in the Gonads against Greenford Galaxy. Think the substitution I made against North London Tara was the best decision I made as I subbed myself for my mate Ian Lewis and pushed Julian up front for the last 20 minutes and he scores a hat trick, we run out 4-1 winners after being a goal down. The best first half display ever in my time as manager against Hanworth Villa, and Darren Phillips scoring the winner in extra time against Rayners Lane .Was stressful enough just watching that game, hence why I dropped myself and concentrated on coaching duties. Pure drama.
The team lost the final 3-2, what are your memories of that day (good & bad)? All bad I’m afraid. From a player turning up an hour late to a player sulking over being a sub At least I scored:o)))
You made the decision to drop Paul Bennett for the final; this was a surprise to some. What were your reasons for that decision? Paul’s attitude on and off the pitch in my opinion was poor and was not good for team morale, and his reaction after he realised he was a sub proved that. Dropping Paul to the bench was not the reason we lost. But to be fair to Paul, he was one of our best players on the day when he came on and I told him that. In theory as he was deployed as a central midfielder, and then I would have to drop either Danny or Mark. Plus I did not want to play him on the wing as we already had Darren on the left wing who’s not pacey, so we needed pace on the right and as Julian was no longer there, then it was either myself or Steve Litchfield, who had played there mostly from the semi final on and also got the winner against Romtronics
During the final you lost three players to injury, Mark McCormick, Steve Jones and Danny Ritchie. Bad luck? It all went against us. Mark and Danny play football on a Saturday, so losing them was major. Steve Jones always had hamstring problems now and again, unfortunately, it happened that week, and was not able to put. Plus the Frenchman on the bench with a knee injury. The most 2 influential players (Antony and Danny) that make a difference to our team only played part of the game and were not on the field at the same time.
From what I can recall I thought we were capable of winning the final but we never got going, maybe the occasion got to us, what do you think? Too many players did not perform on the day and played like they lacked belief, which does not help if you’ve got 4 key players among the walking wounded, so we were up against it from the start. We gifted Enfield 3 goals, even though their 3rd goal, their striker still had to a bit of work after rounding the keeper before actually scoring what looked like an impossible angle. We actually started trying to play. And our 1st goal showed what we should have done from the start.
Alan Tring came in for the cup final, what was the reasoning behind that? Bring his experience, plus be my eyes and ears on the bench if I had started the game. And a very good first physio and first aid person
The following season started with a new joint manager partner ship of Danny Theobold and Ash. Had you quit as manager? Did you decide to leave and how did it come about you rejoining as a player? Was going to quit at the end of the season as it was too much hassle, plus not enough help from the club and was digging into my own pocket to pay for pitch fees etc. Stay away and you miss the football, hence why I rejoined
Did you enjoy the 2004/05 seasons more then the previous two seasons as you didn’t have the pressures of being a manager? I was helping with the substitution and wanted everyone to get a game., so I still felt a bit of pressure, so did not really enjoy it as much as I should
Looking back what differences can you see That jobs were delegated elsewhere.
I also realised there were a few players in the team I disliked and if not for the football, would not socialise with them
Looking back what differences can you see between the two teams that made the county cup final and the division 4 cup final?
It was Commitment. That Mark McCormick and Danny Ritchie played nearly every week as they only played Sunday football. During my reign Mark had 2 serious injuries and was out most of the time I was in charge. Danny was injured or drunk every other week, through playing Saturday, plus Mik Dhaliwal also played a lot more in the later team as he had knee problems when he first joined us and only took part in 2 games for me. I also lost Ian Lewis to illness. Neil Flaherty to injury and moving away, which also meant I lost the 2 Martins (Johnson and Crisstofellz), who were very good players also. Lot more commitment in Div 4 cup final team, as the personnel had not changed too much. In fact there were only 3 changes (Would have only been 2 if Darren Phillips had not walked out) made to the startup for both finals and 2 of those 3 players were in the 04 squad anyway. Which shows the 04 team underachieved as they were as good as Technicolor and Ashford Rangers at the time if everyone turned up week in, week out. I think talent wise the 04 team was better as we had also Antony Ebelle-Ebanda, who like Danny Ritchie could take the game by the scruff of the neck
What are your memories on how the team got to the 2005 cup final? (Fullers, Hayes C Milan & Cranford Casuals) Remember the semi finals. A good win against a very good Casuals side that were challenging for everything that season. Missed George’s goal as I was looking at Mark “Sparky” Mckeown in agony on the ground. Think Casuals came into this game complacent as they were running away with the League, and may have taken us a bit lightly.
What are your memories of the Division 4 cup final? Remember that feeling of being knackered after 5 minutes and wondering how will I would be able to last the 90 minutes. Also thought the match balls were rock hard and George even complained to the ref about this. Glad the team won as it would be soul destroying losing a 2nd consecutive cup final in a row. Personally for me it was a disappointment as regards my performance with too many people moaning at me to this and do that and not let me play my natural game .No one spoke to me at half time and I remember Ash, Mark and Pilky outside the dressing room discussing subs and I knew they were talking about me and I felt like **** before being subbed less than 10 minutes of the 2nd half. Did not really feel involved as regards celebrations to be honest, I was very disappointed.
The team also set a club record of most consecutive wins that season, which helped the team to finish as runners up in the league. What factors do you think contributed to this successful league campaign? Return of the rest of the players from the 04 season.
After such a successful season why do you think it all went wrong the following season (2005/06)? I think we were not as good as we thought we were and we got found out when we got promoted as division 4 only had a couple of decent teams, so we got away with it. All this talk about 19 straight wins or whatever it is. Look at the quality of the other teams we played against
I know you left the club in the 2005/06 season as you were not happy with the team selection, looking back can you now relate with other players who left on bad terms such as Darren Phillips, Julian and Andrew Joslin?
No…Never had a problem being dropped if I did not produce the goods Darren Phillips may have a justifiable reason, but the others were dropped because they deserved to be dropped. Julian was not playing well, plus he still continued to wear his moldy studs despite the fact that I warned him after he was having trouble with keeping his grip on some of those bog pitches. AJ…he’s a hypocrite. He should not have been allowed back in our team as he left because the grass was greener elsewhere (so he thought), and slagged our team off saying we was ****, plus preventing other Eastcote players earmarked to join us, plus trying to persuade some of the other Eastcote players already playing to join him in Adrian’s team. Hence the animosity for a while between our team and Adrian’s team. What goes around comes around No one has a god given right to start. When I was left out, it was a disgrace. Bringing your mates in from nowhere to start is not on. Yet saying that players who turn up for practice get preference. More Hyprocisy.Saying that both Darren and Julian should still have got medals from their respective finals. Pilky has got Paul Bennett’s losers medal and he did not even play a game in the run up and that really should go to Julian for the contribution he made.
What is the best and worse ground you have played at?
Best ground may be the trail finders club and RAFA Uxbridge.Worst, any ground with a Hill.
Any funny incidents you have seen on a pitch that you recall? Not funny at the time, but its BAA keeper Gary Hazel f!”King off at half time when we were 5 nil down in a top of the table clash against Northolt 96.Put his kit in the bag and said “I’m off” Northolt players just laughed and took the piss out of us. We lost the game 7-4.
What is the best team you have played against? At the time, Thatched Cottage
Who is he best player you have played with? Anthony Wood
What is the best goal you have seen in a game, for or against BAA? George Gordon’s overhead kick against Bessingby Park Rangers. I was right behind him, when he did it. Pure poetry. Me and George still talk about that goal even now.
What is the best save you have seen in a game, for or against BAA? Jason Ravenhill’s last minute tip over the bar against CF Cranford. Was convinced that header was in, as Jason had no right to get to that.
Which players have you seen improve the most at the club? Craig Gallyer turning out be a much better outfield player than first thought.
You have played in a few leagues with BAA such as the Hayes & district, Thames Valley, North Hillingdon and maybe some others, which league did you like playing in the most? Think I enjoyed the North Hillingdon League the most.
I heard rumours of perhaps a return to BAA by you, any chance of you playing for any of the BAA teams? No chance
BAA Heathrow FC 