THE SQUAD

MANAGER

RICK ANDREWS

COACHES

DALE BROOKS

RICKY CORNISH

DANNY POTTER

PLAYERS

Season 2003-2004 saw Harvey led his team to the club’s fourth Ridgeons League title and also won the Suffolk Premier Cup again defeating Bury Town 4-0 at Portman Road Ipswich. The club also reached the final of the F.A. Vase but lost 2-0 to Winchester City at the home of Birmingham City, St Andrews. The Reserves lost in the final of the Essex and Suffolk Border League Cup.

LIONEL AINSWORTH

MARLEY ANDREWS

OLLIE BROWN

BRAD BYRNE

JOE CARROLL

HARRISON CHATTING

GEORGE COCKLIN

Improvements were made to the Brundon Lane ground with it becoming fully enclosed, new turnstiles and a fully automated sprinkler system installed. The pitch was also revitalised with a professional groundsman being employed.

ROMARIO DUNNE

JOE GRIMWOOD

REECE HARRIS

SAK HASSAN

BEN HUNTER

DYLAN KIRK

NNAMDI NWACHUKU

JOSH MAYHEW

JOSH POLLARD

JAMIE SHAW

In 2004-2005 the club were again successful, they won their fifth consecutive Ridgeons Premier League title (a record for the Eastern Counties League), and again reached the final of the F.A. Vase. This was the third year in succession another record at the time, unfortunately they again lost. Didcot Town won 3-2 at White Hart Lane Tottenham in front of 8862 spectators.

JOSH STOKES

ALFIE STRONGE

JAKE TURNER

The new season 2005-2006 saw the club continued to play in the Ridgeons Premier League and finished third in the table after leading for the majority of it. The Ridgeons League Cup was won for the first time in the club’s history and the fifth round of the F.A. Vase was also reached.

The Reserve side played in the newly formed Ridgeons Reserve League Southern Division and won that. In the play off between the North and South winners, they were runners up. The highlight of their season was winning the Suffolk Junior Cup at Portman Road Ipswich.

For the 2006-2007 season the club decided to accept promotion up the non-league pyramid

Manager

RICK ANDREWS to Step 4, and a position in the new Ryman League Division One North. The club also changed managers with Mark Morsley taking over from Gary Harvey, to become the club’s third manager since their creation. Morsley joined the club after guiding Needham Market in the previous three seasons and he brought a good backroom staff to King’s Marsh with him. The season panned out to be a good one, reaching the play-off finals in the league and did well in other competitions. Pre-season was fairly ordinary but the start of the Ryman League saw the first four games won.

AFC (Amalgamated Football Club) Sudbury was formed on Tuesday 1st June 1999 from the amalgamation of Sudbury Town (founded 1885) and Sudbury Wanderers (founded 1958) making it then the newest senior club in East Anglia.

The first ever game was played at The Priory Stadium (the previous home of Town) on 17th July 1999 against a full Colchester United side in the Harwich Charity Cup Centenary Shield Semi-Final, and saw a 2-4 defeat after extra time in front of 397 spectators.

In the F.A. Cup the club made it to the Fourth Qualifying Round going out to a last minute goal to Leatherhead. Success in that and the F.A. Trophy where the First Round was reached going out away at Newport County meant the league games fell behind. Further progression in the Ryman League Cup saw the club reached the Quarter Finals before being defeated at Staines Town also slowed league progress.

The club now plays at King’s Marsh, Brundon Lane, Sudbury, which Wanderers purchased in 1972 and were previously water meadows, from which two pitches and a training area were created. The clubhouse was opened in 1985 and the dressing rooms in 1991. Floodlights were added in 1992 and the following year a 200-seat stand was built in addition to the two areas behind the goals being covered. In 2000 a new stand, ‘The Shed’, was opened and caters for 300 standing fans.

The two clubs left behind proud histories:

From the end of December 2006 AFC played only League games (28) something that had not been done in previous seasons due to the F.A. Vase. The league position improved from thirteenth to eventually on the last day of the league season finishing in fifth to clinch the last play-off place.

Sudbury Town being beaten 2-1 by Brigg Town. After this the club’s first manager Keith Martin stepped down and was replaced by the reserve team manager Gary Harvey.

A fine 4-2 away win in the play off semi-final against Enfield Town, saw AFC have to travel to Harlow Town. Again the team showed its resilience going two goals down before levelling in the final two minutes. Extra time could not separate the two sides but AFC failed in the penalty shoot out, to miss out on promotion at the first time of asking.