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“TWO MEN IN SEARCH OF THE BEAUTIFUL GAME” http://beautifulgame2015.blogspot.co.uk MATCHDAY PROGRAMME - Donation 25p
138th Season 2015-16 Ground : Old Spotted ‘Dog’, Upton Lane, Forest Gate President : Mr M.J. McShea Chairman - Mr P. Maybin Life Members : Mr M.J. McShea, Mr M.E. Fogg, Mr I. Hollowell Hon Secretary – Mr A. B. Barr, Les Chauvières, 53250 Javron les Chapelles, France Tel 0751 4518440 - email : secretary@claptonfc.info Club Office – Markham House, 35 Station Road, Chingford, London E4 7BJ WINNERS OF FA AMATEUR CUP -1906-07, 1908-09, 1914-15, 1923-24, 1924-25 LONDON AMATEUR SENIOR CUP – 1889-90, 1908-09, 1910-11 ISTHMIAN LEAGUE – 1910-11, 1922-23 LONDON CHARITY CUP -1898-9, 1899-1900, 1901-2, 1902-3, - Joint Holders 1923-34 ESSEX SENIOR CUP – 1890-1, 1924-25, 1925-26, 1954-55, 1982-83 MIDDLESEX SENIOR CUP 1888-89 ESSEX SENIOR TROPHY 1988-9 AFA INVITATION CUP 1965-66 The First English Club to play on the Continent (1890)
CLAPTON v STANWAY ROVERS FA CUP EXTRA PRELIMINARY ROUND – Saturday 15th August 2015, K.O. 3pm Next Home Matches Sat 22 Aug Essex Sen Lge CLAPTON v ENFIELD 1893 3.00pm Sat 12th Sep Essex Sen Lge CLAPTON v GREENHOUSE LONDON 3.00pm nd
WELCOME TO THE OLD SPOTTED DOG GROUND No place for
Welcome to the Old Spotted Dog Good afternoon and thank you for buying this match day programme for today’s FA Cup clash with our friends from Stanway Rovers of the Thurlow Nunn League. You could be forgiven for thinking that the balls drawn from the hat at the FA were stuck together as it was only a couple of years ago when this exact fixture was played out at the Old Spotted Dog. On that occasion, the teams fought out a 0-0 draw in a game that was BT Sport’s featured match. With honours shared, Chris Wood’s team faced a long midweek trip into Essex for the replay. Stanway, who had been the better side for most of the first match, were hotly tipped to succeed, however, a ‘worldy’ from Neil Matthews in the second half won the tie for the Tons. Our visitors have started the season in decent fashion by beating Faversham Town 1-0 at home. Those of us who study form would undoubtedly remember that Faversham beat the Tons 4-0 in a pre season friendly at Aveley. Those of us with a happier and more optimistic disposition say, “Hey, it’s the FA Cup, form counts for nothing!” Whatever happens on the pitch this afternoon, let us hope for a good game and football being the ultimate winner. Last Saturday’s defeat at Basildon was watched by nearly 200 people. However, the biggest surprise of the day was to see our old friend Fahad Nyanja (Ninja) turning out for the Bees, having signed for them the night before. He joins another Ton’s old boy, Justin Maynard, at Gardiners Lane and, as ever with departees, we wish them both good luck at their new club. Despite Saturday’s set back, the Tons sprang to life here at the Dog last Tuesday, eventually, when they pulled back a 2 goal deficit to beat Eton Manor 3-2. As ever there was a great atmosphere and newcomers to the Dog were suitably impressed, one tweeting “My first game @Real_ClaptonFC. What a victory; bloody loved it. COYT” Awareness of the unique atmosphere at the Old Spotted Dog is now becoming widespread among the local community and it is to these people that we must reach out and get involved with our fight to return Clapton FC to the members and not be run as a personal business by Mr McBean. So, well done the players on a fine performance and to the supporters who, really are, Clapton’s 12th player. Once again, thank you for donating to us for this match day programme. This is the official programme as we are the club. Unsurprisingly, Mr McBean’s lot failed to issue one on Tuesday night. You can find out more on the ‘Clapton FC and how we found ourselves in this situation at www.claptonfc.info. So, the road to Wembley starts today for either ourselves or our opponents. Here’s hoping that we witness a fine contest in the true spirit of the competition and continued success for the victors in the rest of the competition. FORZA CLAPTON !
TODAY’S VISITORS - STANWAY ROVERS F.C. Although there was a football club operating in the village of Stanway in the early 1900s, the present club was actually formed on 10th July 1956. The Club minute book shows that the first meeting was held at St.Albright’s Hall, Stanway, chaired by Jack Poole of the Essex County FA. In the early years the club played at Clairmont Road, approximately 100 yards from the current ground. The Club began life in the Colchester & East Essex League and by 1960 had progressed to the top flight and also formed a reserve team. The Club moved it’s headquarters to Stanway School in 1961 and the then Headmaster Mr.Gardham became Club President, an office that all subsequent head teachers held whilst the Club used the school’s facilities. In 1967/68 Rovers won the Colchester & East Essex League and in 1973/74 saw the Club have it’s most successful season thus far, winning the League title and both cup competitions, beating the League Representative team and reaching the quarter final of the County Cup. The following season the Club reached the final of the County Cup at Grays Athletic, losing 1-0 to Takely. In 1975/76 Rovers joined the Essex & Suffolk Border League, the feeder League to the Eastern Counties. This move prompted both the Club and the local Council to seek an alternative site and the move to the current premises at The Hawthorns took place in 1982. In 1991/92 after losing in the final of the Essex Intermediate Cup two seasons running, the Club’s application to join the Eastern Counties League was accepted after finishing in runners up spot in the Border League. The Club’s first match as a Senior Club took place on 22nd August 1992 with Swaffham Town the opponents in a 2-2 draw. Despite an unsuccessful National Lottery Grant application, the Club completed the building of it’s impressive bar and function room, which was officially opened by Colchester MP Bob Russell in March 2001. Five years later Rovers gained promotion to the Premier Division by winning Division 1 under the stewardship of manager Jim McIntyre and have remained there ever since. Since out last meeting with Stanway Rovers they have made significant progress both on and off the field. Soon after our victory in the Cup, the incumbent manager was dismissed and new boss Angelo Harrup took the reins. For the rest of the season, Harrop steadied the ship, finishing in a creditable 13th place. However, last season was a completely different story. They reached the fifth round in the FA Vase and established themselves as one of the top teams in the Thurlow Nunn League. They eventually finished 3rd and could have gained promotion to the Ryman League but for a few minor problems, involving the number of seats at the ground which meant they failed the ground grading. Happily those deficiencies have now been rectified and promotion to the Ryman League is now very much a priority for Harrop and his players. We wish them well as we share similar ambitions. One only has to look at the new toilet block and the plush green turf at the Old Spotted Dog to realise just how serious the apparent ‘owner’ of Clapton FC is.
ARE CLAPTON FOOTBALL CLUB, POSH FC? In a recent internet exchange it was mentioned that Clapton FC had a reputation for being the ‘Posh, Amateur Club. Whilst confident that no members of the Bullingdon Club have actually either played or have been members of the Tons, it is true that the club’s founder W.R. (Reg) Davies was a successful stockbroker. When the club landed the lease on the Spotted Dog Enclosure in 1888 for £35 pa, it was a reasonably ambitious acquisition. The two local teams were Upton Park FC and Woodville FC (now Barking FC) both of whom played in West Ham Park. Both were undoubtedly posh. Upton Park represented the FA on various tours abroad. However Clapton also had some ‘chaps’ among their number and their trip to Belgium in 1890 would certainly been outside the budget of the local ‘oy polloy’. Another Clapton notable was Stanley Briggs, the Tottenham captain. He joined Clapton because he refused to turn professional. He probably had the private resource to be able to do so. A short time later,, the Clapton team included Walter Tull. Tull was not posh. He was an orphan from Bethnal Green and worked as a printer when he joined Clapton. Teammate Clyde Purnell was one of 10 children and worked as a Commercial Traveller. Clapton also had a supporters association, and the club’s 1934 accounts show that membership subscriptions totalled £47 and five shillings which suggests there were a considerable number of members. They included Ian Simpson’s dad Bert, He wasn’t posh. After the war, with the inevitable large scale displacement of people and communities, the club still managed to attract more local people to join and contribute, both on and off the field. But, as other clubs embraced professionalism, and then sham-amateurism, the standard of the Clapton team, populated by less than posh locals, fell behind some of the other clubs in the Isthmian League which, ironically, was a competition founded on the basis of amateur values and the sufficiency of honour in playing the game. Fortunately, Clapton remained strong off the field, aided by the members’ hard work in keeping the lease alive and facilities up to the mark. It was not until the 1960s that the first pint was pulled in the Clapton clubhouse, and it was a pint of Watney’s Red Barrel. That’s not Pimms, and that’s not Posh. Since then the club has been populated from people from all walks of life and social strata. Clapton has changed with the times as it should. Many football teams, of a similar age to Clapton, also have chaps with bowler hats as part of their history. At some clubs, those chaps have been replaced by financial benefactors and other ‘opportunists’, many of who, have ultimately led the club to ruin and extinction. I think ‘posh’ Reg Davies would have applauded the Ultras, as he viewed true support for the club as being paramount. One doubts he would be happy with the debacle behind the scenes at Clapton.. That’s not being posh, that’s being principled. Rather than ‘navel gazing’ at a ‘posh past’, perhaps we should acknowledge the history but, more importantly keep looking to the future. Amateur? That’s for another day.
CLAPTON & THE FA CUP It has been many years since Clapton have been able to boast any success in the FA Cup. The win at Stanway in 2013 was our only success in the competition in the last ten years. The last time Clapton went beyond the 1st Qualifying round was 20 years ago, and our last match in the competition proper was a first round replay in 1957 away at Queens Park Rangers when we lost 3-1. (Scorer – R. Brewster) In the Rangers team that day were England goalkeeper Ron Springett and former Orient manager George Petchey. However, a recent tweet from @FACupFactfile cheered me up this week as, of all the teams in today’s extra preliminary round, we have the second best record, next to amateur giants, Bishop Auckland. If all else fails, look to your history!
However, one of the more interesting episodes happened in 1985/86 when Clapton beat Leytonstone-Ilford 3-2 in the Preliminary Round tie (Scorers – Billy Partridge, Michael Collins and Chris Sharples). The game had been played at Leytonstone’s Granleigh Road because, in the wake of the Taylor Report, the GLC had closed the Dog on Safety issues. It was the first game of the season and some players were reluctant to sign Isthmian League forms given the inevitable travelling, should the requisite repairs not be carried out. Unfortunately, a rule of the FA Cup was that players had to be signed on with their club for at least seven days before they could play in the cup. After the game it was mentioned, in a Committee Room conversation, that the Clapton players had only just signed League forms, following which, the boys from the badlands of E11 raised an objection and Clapton were disqualified. Some history we would prefer to forget.
JOIN CLAPTON FC In 2014 the three remaining life members of Clapton FC mandated the supporters group, the Friends of Clapton FC, to hold a meeting to propose the re-formation of Clapton Football Club, the club that was formed in 1877 as Downs FC by Mr W.R. Davies. It had become apparent to the life members and the membership of the Friends that the entity that was calling itself Clapton FC was no longer the members club. This entity, which had claim to the history, tradition of the real club and was continuing to pass itself off as Clapton FC is Clapton Members Club and is run by Mr Vincent McBean, the former Chairman of the defunct Woodford Town FC and who now describes himself as the Clapton's Chief Executive. Mr McBean was known at Clapton as his Woodford Town club had been evicted from their Snakes Lane Ground and were ground sharing at the Old Spotted Dog. Using a Public Limited Company, Knights Securities plc, of which he was the founder, he replaced himself as a director with family and business colleagues, and then, as the company's agent, agreed a purported sale of the club to the company for ÂŁ63,000. Notwithstanding that the 'sale' of the members club was unconstitutional and unlawful, Knights Securities plc even failed to pay any of the money due on the 'contract' before they sold the club to Mr McBean six months later for just ÂŁ3,000. Mr McBean has since described these transactions in correspondence "some friends of mine bought the club and then I took it over." Unsurprisingly, Knights Securities plc were struck off by Companies House on 13th February 2001 having failed to file accounts. The business presently being run by Mr McBean is no longer a member's club and therefore cannot be Clapton Football Club. It might be a proprietary entity known as Clapton Members Club, but who knows? Any attempt to join Mr McBean's club has been rebuffed since at least 2013 with the response that the club is undergoing re-structuring. He has, however, declared a membership of 9 (nine) to the Football Association most of whom are the same friends and family from Knights Securities plc and other business and 'charitable' ventures in which he was involved. The real Clapton Football Club, has elected officers and a committee. It has accumulated sufficient information and evidence with which it can confidently show dealings by which Mr McBean's is passing off as Clapton FC, despite his protestations and self praise. This information has been passed to the football authorities and they have responded that they will take no action until we get a Court order. Today, with no thanks to Mr McBean, Clapton is the best supported team in the Essex Senior League, their last home game of the 2014/15 season
attracting over 500 supporters. Three years ago, matches were attracting 15 spectators. It is no mystery why Mr McBean will not open his club to members because, as with any democratically run members club, officers come up for re-election and, unsurprisingly, he is unwilling to risk his position at the club even though he speaks very highly of his achievements. In his words, "Those of you who know me rest assured my honour integrity and passion to pursue what I believe is right has not, and will not ever change" Ironically, by his firm resolution not to change, Mr McBean words make a compelling case for you to join Clapton FC. Help us return the club to being run by the membership for the membership. JOIN CLAPTON FC. http://www.claptonfc.info/club/join.htm
CLAPTON FC - Results and fixtures 2015/16 Date 08 Aug 15 11 Aug 15 15 Aug 15 22 Aug 15 29 Aug 15 05 Sep 15 12 Sep 15 19 Sep 15 26 Sep 15 03 Oct 15 10 Oct 15 24 Oct 15 31 Oct 15 07 Nov 15 14 Nov 15 28 Nov 15 05 Dec 15 12 Dec 15
Comp Opponents Ven Result ESL Basildon United A Lost 1-2 ESL Eton Manor H Won 3-2 FAC Stanway Rovers H ESL Enfield 1893 H FAC Bowers & Pitsea or Ilford A FAV Codicote A ESL Greenhouse Sports H ESL Sawbridgeworth Town A ESL Burnham Ramblers H ESL Wadham Lodge A ESL Ilford H ESL Hullbridge Sports A ESL Barking H ESL Bowers & Pitsea A ESL Newham H ESL FC Romania H ESL Stansted A ESL London Bari A * provisional upon result of Stanway Rovers FA Cup tie ESL = Essex Senior League FAC = FA Cup FAV = FA Vase
*
An up to date League Table for the Essex Senior League can be found at http://full-time.thefa.com/Index.do?leagueid=2829940 The contents of this programme, save for the fixtures or where otherwise stated, are the copyright of Clapton Football Club
TONIGHT’S TEAMS
CLAPTON F.C. Red and White … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …
from Pepe Diagne Quentin Monville Kevin Plange-Tabil Kristian Haighton Tobias Lancaster Geoff Ocran (Capt.) Tom Webb Mendez Gomez Nathan Cook Jerry Jairette Andy Mott Shomari Barnwell Freddie Morris James Briggs Pete O’Connor Jake Stevens JoJo Degraft Idu Bogdan Andy Bolikango Troy Ricketts Jamie Lyndon Peter Moore Colin Justin
STANWAY ROVERS F.C. Gold and Black from Brett Angell Lee Branson Jack Cherry Daniel Clarke Jake Clowsley Samuel Cripps Jake Egnier Jemel Fox Jack Harrington Charlie Hayes Craig Hughes Ryan Lines Jack Luckman Ryan McGibbon Joss Neale Jordan Palmer Terry Rymer Michael Schofield Jamie Shaw Jack Smith Pip Boyland Ben Newson
… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … TODAY’S MATCH OFFICIALS
Gary Baker, Gavin Holleran, Kojo Amwuku
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