Happy Valentines Day and like every true romantic no doubt you have bought your loved one the gift of a ticket for Chesham United v Enfield at The Meadow tomorrow!
Sadly tomorrow’s game will be preceded by a minutes applause in memory of former player, from just this season, Devonte Aransibia who passed away this week at the age of just 26. Everyone at the club wish to extend their thoughts & condolences to Devonte’s family, friends and his former teammates at this incredibly difficult time. Many of us will hold fondly the memory of sheer ecstasy earlier in the season when Devante scored the winner against Aveley deep in extra-time when we came back from 2-1 down on 90 minutes to win the match 3-2. The sheer joy on everyone’s faces that day will live with me forever, it is incomprehensible that the scorer of that goal is no longer with us. Please join us at The Meadow, and be in your position in good time, to applaud the memory of Devonte’s life.
Tomorrow we face an Enfield side that, like us, were promoted into the National League South and although they have spent much of the season in the bottom four, they are one of the form sides currently and will be all out to continue their battle against relegation. In recent weeks we have struggled terribly with injuries and illnesses, it is a credit to the management and depth of the squad that we have managed to battle out points and maintain our mid-table league position. We cannot afford to be complacent, but I am delighted with how the season has gone so far, we are the highest placed of the four sides promoted into the league this season, something we should be very proud of. With your support, I hope we can maintain that statistic for the remainder of the season.
We have had a fantastic response to last week’s request for volunteers to fulfil the role of liaison between the supporters and the Board with many high-quality applicants stepping forward. Over the next week we will be meeting to discuss how the role will work and publicise introductions so that every supporter will know who to contact and how to get their views, suggestion and ideas (oh ok, complaints as well!) across to the Board. Thank you to everyone who responded so positively to that request.
I do have another plea this week! We are looking for a builder who can supply and fix a L-shaped structure in the club by way of a donation. The area is 10 feet long, 8 feet wide and only front and one side is required with the removal of a wall and a serving hatch built into the structure. There will be no door openings required. If you, or anyone you know, would be willing to take on this job free of charge over a couple of days it would be hugely appreciated and I am sure we will supply you with ample tea, biscuits and some match tickets as a thank you. This structure will immensely improve spectators match day experience. The internal fixings will be supplied by the club but will require fixing and there will be a need for some concreting, if you would like to discuss the job, or meet up to take a look, please contact me at chairman@cheshamunited.co.uk or see me on the terraces at the game on Saturday.
You may well have seen in the media recently that the National League is stepping up the campaign to get a third promotion spot into the EFL, something that has been on the radar for a number of years and you can see why when you just look at the quality of clubs at the top of the non-league game nowadays. It is not just about the former league clubs that have dropped down, there are clubs that invested time and money wisely to create a sustainable environment that can comfortably see them cope with playing at a higher level, creating a bottleneck at the top of the National League.That all has a knock-on effect down to our league where we are also starting to see a bottleneck of sides that are well-equipped to compete a league above, and in some instances appear to be ready even to cope at EFL level. It seems incredible that we are playing in a league, effectively the sixth tier of English football, where there are half a dozen full-time teams competing for promotion alongside several excellent still part-time sides, like Worthing and Truro, who also have their eye on promotion. It has created what I believe to be one of the most exciting leagues in the country this season and we are so pleased to be a part of it. The coming weeks and months are going to be fantastic, be sure to tell your friends and family and bring them along to games.
Elsewhere the women’s first team had last weekend off with no game but they played last night against Actonians (Thursday) winning 1-0 and will be back in action at home this Sunday in the semi-final of the Berks & Bucks Senior Women’s Cup against Newport Pagnell Town. A win in that fixture will see them through to the final on March 16th against either Maidenhead or Reading. I’m sure the ladies would appreciate a good crowd for a 2.00pm kick-off. Entry as always is through the Chess Suite.
On a personal note, it was wonderful to wander the terraces on Saturday with supporters and I thank you all for your kind words following my short stay in hospital. It was great to bounce back with a win against Weymouth, a contrast to Tuesday night when the first-half was a bit of a horror show, but we did well to stay in the game with the aforementioned injuries and illnesses and, despite the defeat, we can look forward optimistically to facing Enfield tomorrow.
When you come to the game tomorrow, make sure you pick up a copy of the matchday programme that this week spans the generations with two excellent articles. One a reflection of times at Chesham United from a former player whose first association with the club was in 1955 and another is a match report of last weekend’s game v Weymouth from a member of one of our Under 12’s youth teams. How great it is to have all generations wanting to share their passion for the club.
Thank you for your support, this week more than any other.
Peter Brown
