Travelling Tanners

I'm amazed, but today's game is on!  Leatherhead have failed to win now in the last four games - roughly since the news of Yanis must have broken internally - and perhaps now the p word can be dropped from match reports.

Today we travel to Tooting & Mitcham, a side we beat 2-0 on New Year's Day and a team we could be close to should the point deduction talked about come home to roost. An unlikely 6 pointer.

Kick off at 3pm. Good luck fellas.

Tanners 1 - 1 Billericay

A pre-booked taxi to the airport prevented Glenn from being at this game.  A shame, given his dream that he be crowned league champion at Fetcham Grove.

Billericay are starting to look more accomplished but less special without the likes on Konchesky and Pennant.  Bicknell looks a lethal strike are this level and we would have to work hard to keep him quiet.

It did not take Billericay long to open the scoring.  A breakaway move that found Robinson free to slot his shot under Manny.  The omens were not looking good.

There is nothing like a goal to settle the nerves and from a corner gifted to us by their number 2 - he was a gift that kept on giving - we scored.  Pollock nodding home past their stranded 'keeper and a number of defenders on the line.

Nana had a great game.  He used his body well to hold up the ball and had pace to spare to trouble the defence.  On another day, any one of his three shots would find the back of the net.

Second half and Leatherhead made Billericay look ordinary for 30 minutes.  Our guests struggled to retain possession, and while not bereft of chances we looked the more likely.  That changed when Billericay threw on O'Hara to pack an extra punch in midfield.  Meanwhile Sammy took himself off which handed the initiative to our guests.

Some how we managed to hang on and over the four games of football we have faced each otehr this season, Leatherhead edge it 5-4 on aggregate.  Money well spent Glenn.

Dorking Wanderers 1 - 1 Tanners

Honours even as 1,014 people cram into the Westhumble ground on false pretences.  With the new ground months away, a large crowd - consisting of mainly Leatherhead supporters - descended on the old ground in hope of at least seeing a good game.  Rumours of point deductions (yes, it is April again!) may have played a part in our recent slump as such a deduction would sweep the rug from under Sammy Moore's play-off chasing feet.

What the crowd saw was a competitive game, where the hosts were clearly more fired up, dishing out some robust tackles with not many of their players were spared a yellow card.

Leatherhead were playing some good football though.  With Sammy back in the side our chests just seem to puff out a bit more and we have some purpose to our play.  It was from nice intricate play that D'Sean found himself in the box, cleverly placing his body between the ball and the defender who could not resist a tackle.  He caught our player and a penalty awarded.  Derry sent the 'keeper the wrong way.  1-0.

Dorking levelled the match on the stroke of half time when they won a freekick on the edge of the box.  The player fell inside the box, so no doubt the home fans were disappointed with the ref, but not with the end result.  Our 'keeper asked for players not to jump (strange), but could not resist and the ball glanced off of Sammy Moore and dipped into the goal.  1-1.

The second half, and it was Dorking who looked the more likely overall.  They scored but it was ruled out for offside.  They also had a Peter Crouch-esque player who proved a useful outlet for them.

We had our chances though.  Derry was put clean through but put his shot just wide.  We also though Jerry and Lee were denied clear shooting chances in the box but were pulled down on both occasions.  The unwritten rule of only one penalty a game was used by the ref.

Dorking were reduced to ten men, but that just upped their time wasting which the ref failed to get hold of and so the game nudged its way to the final whistle.

With a win in the league coming hard to come by over the recent games, I would say the Surrey Senior Cup is now something to take very seriously...

Travelling Tanners

I really wish our official site would tweet more reminders about games.  The odd video wouldn't go a miss either... but luckily you have me here to remind you (in case you had forgotten about this cracker) that tonight we travel to Dorking.

Tonight we travel to Dorking's familiar ground at Westhumble due to massive delays and overspend at their proposed Meadowbank stadium.  Disappointing as many of us bought tickets in January on the premise we would be treated to fruits of Mole Valley DC's labour.

While Dorking struggle off of the pitch, we struggle on it with just one goal in three games.  The last being against our hosts tonight.  Hopefully we can start firing again to retain bragging rights and prepare for the visit of Billericay on Saturday.

Kick off at 7.45.  Directions can be found here.  See you there!

Tanners 0 - 1 Needham Market

A horribly lacklustre draw turned into a horribly lacklustre defeat when the new 'keeper dropped a harmless cross in front of a Needham Market player on 88 minutes.

 

You would be forgiven for thinking that we were the ones who had travelled 100 miles to play the game as we looked leggy and uninventive tonight.

 

We had struggled to get a win in the away fixture and Needham seemed to have our number tonight. They were very well organised in defence and coped very well with our crosses and hopeful balls.

 

A defeat was harsh tonight but our lack of goals is a concern. We have the joint lowest goals scored in the league but one of the best defences. It's an unusual combination for a team in play off contention.

 

Sammy and Jack will need to put their thinking caps on tonight and try and find us some goals on Saturday. All is not lost in the push for a play off place but with a fixture pile up and a small squad it's going to be tough.

Needham Market are coming

Things are looking good for the game tonight!  Conspiracy theorists thought our Monday night game was called off a little prematurely but no such fears tonight.

The P-word is now being spoken openly, although teams like Staines are showing new interest in one of the places.

Kick off at 7.45.  Good luck fellas!

Game off!

Unsurprisngly tonight's match has fallen foul to weather.  A shame as this adds to the backlog of games we have building up.

Hopefully our pitch will ready for the visit of Needham Market on Wednesday...

Tanners 1 - 0 Wanderers

The Leatherhead supporters spent some time in the bar to get to know each other again after three three week mid-winter break.  So much to talk about. Why have we not heard about what happened with regards to the SSC?  Why did we agree to play the game at the new Meadowbank a month later when we should have been getting games under our belt?  Why do MVDC give one club £8million while we beg for repayment plans?

On the pitch and Leatherhead ground out a hard fought win.  The first half was messy and had a ref that wanted the game to be largely about him.  He awarded a penalty for some robust man-management by Jerry (note; dangerous arms to the back of the head are OK as Ruel discovered).  The penalty was saved but the ref would go on to be a general nuisance all game.

Second half and the new style 5-3-2 formation ditched in favour for something more attacking and Derry was added.  This paid off as Midson headed back across goal for Derry to place his header past the 'keeper.

Some panicky last few minutes as we either forgot where the corner flag was or forgot how to run there and Dorking looked good for an equaliser but we held on.  So on to the next game then, same time tomorrow anyone? 

Dorking Wanderers are coming

So much for Leatherhead fans to feel disgruntled about this week.  The continued silence over the Surrey Senior Cup debacle.  A situation that if handled differently could have allowed for other fixtures to be rearranged, but other clubs find such requests hard to understand when you have your head in a bucket of sand.

Throw in the news that our precious cousins from down the A24 won't have their £8 million pound stadium ready for the return fixture, despite charging us in advance for the pleasure, you really have yourself the perfect storm... meanwhile a less than perfect snow storm threatens to get the game postponed anyway.

Keep checking up here for details of the game status, if it is on I will see you there!

Sevenoaks 1 - 3 Tanners

Following the cancellation of the game at Burgess Hill (one of only two games to fall foul of the weather in our league), Sevenoaks stepped in with a friendly to give us a run out.

Lee Minshull played himself in a false 5 position, getting two well taken goals.  In the first half his side volley beat their 'keeper when they failed to deal with a corner, and in second half he stole the Nail McManus to curl one into the far net.

Pollock also made a name for himself.  Leatherhead switched to three at the back to accodomate the new signing but he decided to sneak up the pitch, find himself through on goal and slot home the second.

Sevenoaks were no push overs though.  They forced Manny into two double saves; one he pulled off, the other proved to be too stong for his hand and went in.  In the second half in particular they really took the game to us and it took Midson to come on and steady the ship.

Not a bad day, and good preparation to Wednesday and the visit of Dulwich Hamlet...

Travelling Tanners

Burgess Hill are having a pitch inspection at 10.30, pre-empting some heavy rain over night.  I just hope they get round to telling us quicker than our officicial site, Surrey Senior Cup decisions, or we'll only hear while watching Match of the Day.

Our hosts, subject to the weather, sit at the bottom of the table.  Inconceivable at the start of the season with Worthing not being able to buy a point.  We, meanwhile, still dream of sneaking into the top 5...

Kick off at 3pm.  Directions can be found here.  See you there!

Enfield Town 0 - 1 Tanners

If anyone turned right at the no right turn sign on leaving the ground, they will get a nasty surprise in the post in the next couple of weeks. I found this to my cost last season but even that shouldn't take the gloss of an excellent win today. It certainly wasn't one to twitch your nose at and decide to go shopping for rabbits instead.

Every game now seems like a must win as we have gradually scratched our way into play-off contention since the FA Cup run ended. This was another extremely professional and hard working performance at a ground where we have often been Enfield's bunny. Lettuce hope the winning run continues.

Nathan Wood was rewarded for his efforts against Ks on Wednesday with a start on the right wing and he was very lively in the first half. Sammy marshalled the midfield with his usual skill and excellence. Jack could have had 3 penalties in the 1st half as he was repeatedly barged over by the Enfield number 5 but the referee wasn't convinced by any of them although he would have been given free kicks anywhere else on the pitch.

The goal came fortuitously as a Tom Richards free kick was deflected into the net by a cotton-tailed defender on 35'. Enfield applied some pressure in the 2nd half but we kept our hare on and were fairly comfortable. The boys get a well deserved midweek off and good timing as well with Siberia coming to the UK. 

Massive game next Saturday as we host Hendon. Can we pull another rabbit out of the hat?

Travelling Tanners

Leatherhead travel to Enfield Town today, looking to build another run of wins to help us put more pressure on the p***-off places.

I'm rather in love with their ground.  That stand is quite something to behold and they are a well supported club.  Pity the pitch is sometimes hard work and our results haven't been to spectacular either (perhaps as a result).

Kick off at 3pm.  Directions can be found here.  Good luck fellas.

Tanners 2 - 0 Ks

The five players I mused over last night were indeed absent as kept a solid defensive line up while experimenting upfront, opting for some of the younger players on the fringes.  Ks made a similar amount changes giving four U18s a chance, three of them making their debut.

Sammy was rewarded for his throw of the dice as the attacking line up performed well.  Guided by the experience of McManus and Clohessy, Williams-Bowers and Wood began to shine.  It took a while for it to click, with the opening 25 minutes being something of a stand-off, but when it did there was only one team in it.

There are a number of supporters who offer the advice of "hit it" as soon as we get the ball about 35 yards out.  This is someone infuriating as they are not shouting at Lionel Messi but at Lee Minshull, so it was with mixed feelings we celebrated Reece's goal as he placed his shot from distance into the side netting.

Ks had some chances - Manny pulling off a fine save that had to be cleared off of the line and scoring an offside goal - but overall they lead a charmed life.  All too often a deflection from a shot or a wayward parry from the 'keeper would squirm agonisingly wide where on another day at least one would creep over the line.

McManus helped us to make it safe but using his now trademark tomfoolery to mesmerise the defence and force a rash tackle.  Penalty awarded.  Some of the confusion was self-inflicted though as their 'keeper became tired of the lack of organisation in his defence and started ordering them around.  The poor no 14 for example (only on for a few minutes), was ordered off of the back post and to mark a player at the front post.  Having been no doubt told by his manager to take over at the post he was somewhat conflicted and tried to keep both masters happy by doing neither and standing somewhere in the middle.

Williams-Bowers stepped up and confidently placed the penalty into the back of the net, despite the 'keeper guessing the right way and getting a hand to it.  Two nil and the game won.  The chance to go and play a greatly reduced squad at Met Police the prize.

Ks are coming

I can't think of a cup tie more quintessentially more Surry than Leatherhead v Ks... Walton Casuals v Walton & Hersham perhaps but it is up there as a classic. 

The bigger question is more over how many players will be rested...  Moore, has a knock or a niggle.  Midson, could do but unlikely.  Ruel, he is young but too important.  Derry, too handsome.

It will be a shame if too many players are rested as this is a competition we would love to win.  Ks are a side we would love to beat.

Kick off at 7.45.  See you there!

Tanners 2 - 1 Brightlingsea Regent

Brightlingsea Regent waltzed into today, sounding like a clumsy hero in a poorly written pantomime.  With the popular Zak having recently departed, Manny would have been hoping to avoid being the villain.

It was a subdued start from both the players and the crowd.  Perhaps over recent weeks we had forgotten what to do... but soon it was clear Leatherhead looked the more accomplished side.  Midson could have had a hatful with good heading opportunities spurned and a low cross was met by an air stroke.

The ref was making a name for himself too.  The highlight in the first half was booking McManus as a reward for pulling off a fantastic tackle, winning the ball cleanly but perhaps the theatrical tumble the Brightlingsea player took convinced the ref there was more to it.  Rather than use his assistant he guessed and got it wrong.

A lot of out play was coming down the right with Sean, but our goal came through the middle.  Ruel slotting a pass to Midson who just found enough space to slot it past the keeper and inside the post.  1-0.

Second half and we pressed for another but the ref's erratic decision making made it hard work for both sides.  Moore, who was finding it hard to hide his frustration, took himself off and we lost our shape a little.  Over committing and allowing Brightlingsea to score on the break.  Manny would not have thanked his team mates for leaving him so exposed, leaving him no chance.

Just when a point looked to be our only reward from the game, the ref came to our rescue.  Midson received the ball by the goal line in the penalty area and was met by a clumsy two footed tackle.  The ball was missed... I am not sure to the extent Midson wasn't missed but he went down and the ref decided on a penalty.  Midson recovered from the tackle enough to slot it away.

Three points and we now concentrate on the Surrey Senior Cup on s.

Brightlingsea Regent are coming

The 5am pitch inspection passed so we are good to go!  See you at 3pm...

Leatherhead v Needham Market (Pools Panel Home Win)

A great day for Leatherhead as none of the teams there or thereabouts won.

The pools panel win means that we would have gone 7th just one point behind 5th placed Staines.

Meanwhile across Surrey other teams braved the very dangerous soft conditions and played an actual game.

Needham Market are coming

The club have thrown caution to the wind and arranged a Happy Hour tomorrow, which can have mixed results in terms of atmosphere behind the goal...

It was a 0-0 draw with Needham Market in December that sparked us into life and set us on our fine run of form.

Kick off at 3pm.  See you there!

Tanners 2 - 1 Burgess Hill Town (BHT)

This was hard work for all concerned. The pitch was heavy, the weather was freezing, and BHT were up for a battle.

And the last thing you want on a brass monkeys night is a 5 minute delayed start while the 'keeper changed his kit at the behest of the referee.

This was a must win if we were to keep the play off dream alive. The pressure seemed, to weigh heavily as we were frequently predictable and relatively easy for to defend. There was plenty of pressure usually involving crosses from Sean but little creativity and the mysteriously accented 'keeper had little to do except complain about his recent groin injury.

BHT livened the game up in the 2nd half by taking the lead on 55' with a header. We responded with purpose and equalised through Sean on 67' at the far post from a cross at close range. There was just enough time to bundle in a winner on 85' to much relief and chattering of teeth. The 'keeper immediately decided enough was enough and shambled off injured.  He was replaced by a sprightly young man who looked delighted with the chance to come off the bench and run around a bit to warm up.

The play offs remain a possibility just but another win is needed on Saturday against Needham Market.

Wingate & Finchley 3 - 1 Tanners

Wingate & Finchley proved to be the yang to Hendon's ying as we crashed to a 3-1 defeat.  Leatherhead had enough chances to win it but on the day it didn't work out for us.

A bright Leatherhead start was undone by a long shot that beat Zaki where we thought he had it cover.  I got a bit too close to the action when Tom forced the 'keeper into a fine save, with the ball clipping the post but hitting me firmly in the chest.

MCS now plies his trade at Wingate & Finchley, and always seem to have a hand in goal when playing against us.  Sure enough, he was brought down for a penalty to make it 2-0.  It got even worse when we left their striker completely free on the edge of the box to allow him to collect a pass and place his shot without a challenge.  Meanwhile, we had a goal-bound header cleared off of the line and had a clear penalty interpreted as a dive.

We rang some changes and continued to apply pressure but it did not seem to be our day.  As the game wore on, Sammy's hat was showing better body language than the manager himself; standing erect and proud while he slouched on the touchline.  Hopefully he will pick himself again soon.

Jack Midson pounced on a spilled shot to make it mildly interesting at the end and had Tom Derry's shot not been ruled out for offside we probably would have lost 3-2, but alas it was not to be.

Hopefully a return to form will be on the cards on Wednesday, when we entertain Burgess Hill Town...

Travelling Tanners

After Tuesday's success in North London, Leatherhead will be eager to go back to get a similar result and a similarly placed team.

Such is the prospect of a good game, some are making the trip by train.  They set off at 10.53 from Leatherhead station and will take in a pub (Chandos by Finchley Central) before the game.

Kick off at 3pm.  Directions can be found here.  See you there!

Hendon 1 - 4 Tanners

There are games where Leatherhead can have chance after chance but somehow you know that the ball won't cross the line.  Thankfully, last night was not one of those games as we scored with ease to rush to a 4-0 lead.

I was already in a good mood as the soup did not disappoint.  In terms of football food I would put it up there with a hotpot pie at Marine and a balti pie at Aston Villa.  We did not have to wait long before our spirits were lifted further by an early goal.  The 'keeper, despite his 7 foot frame, failed to deal with a corner swung in towards the goal and the ball fell kindly to Ruel who scored just minutes into his debut.

Leatherhead continued to look upbeat and created some good passages of play.  Our second goal was something of an oddity though.  Dan Gallagher launched a rather harmless looking shot towards the goal.  It lacked power and you felt sure that the 'keeper would deal with it, but somehow he either misjudged its flight or saw it late but the ball kissed the underside of the bar and went in.

Second half and we were met by drizzle and a more determined Hendon side and the game suffered a little, from a Leatherhead supporter's perspective.  We had enough time to debate what a stupid choice the away kit was; too close to green to allow enough of a striking difference.

Leatherhead did somehow manage to distinguish themselves from the home team enough to score two more.  Some nice work down the left hand side and a good cross from Theo found Derry at the near post.  His instinctive strike beat the 'keeper low down at his near post.  Then Midson broke free down the middle, but had hardly left the centre circle when he saw the 'keeper way off of his line.  A cheeky lob beat him to make it 4-0.

Hendon did pull one back.  A powerful strike from distance that beat Zaki and deceived us from behind the other goal.  We thought it had struck the post and bounced clear.

A fine win, and back to that neck of the woods for Wingate & Finchley on Saturday...

Travelling Tanners

There or there-abouts Hendon host us tonight, and what hosts they plan to be; bringing back their famous mulligatawny soup with real ales to wash it down with.

Hopefully we are as organised as Hendon.  Last season a young lad called Mendes was a joy to watch, while an old lad had not completed his forms properly thus wiping out our 3-1 win.

Kick off at 7.45.  Directions can be found here.  See you there.

Game Off

The Surrey Senior Cup, unsurprisingly has been postponed due to a waterlogged pitch.  Persistent rain over the last 24 hours has made the Fetcham Grove pitch, and my back garden, unplayable.

Details of the rescheduled game will no doubt follow shortly...

Thurrock 2 - 0 Tanners

It was one of those days when the ball wouldn't fall for us, and we weren't going to score if we played all night.

 

The unbeaten run came to an end unceremoniously on a miserable day at a ground sandwiched between the M25 and a budget hotel. A superb number of travelling fans arrived in confident mood and we all nodded smugly to each other when we saw the team was at full strength.

 

We started brightly with plenty of possession and threatening positions. The best chance came early on when the steadfast Jerry had a free header from 8 yards but it sailed over the bar. Unfortunately this wasn't a sign of anything to come, and we failed to create any more clear chances from all our possession. Our patient build up lead to little else. Thurrock were more clinical and simply shot and scored on 37 minutes. 4 minutes later and it was 2-0.

 

Sammy had had enough of himself by half time and took himself off. He must have said something to himself. A brief resurgence at the start of the 2nd half gradually petered out. Jack had also had enough of himself and on 69' replaced himself.

 

Thurrock are now officially a bogey team.

 

Expect an understandable 11 changes for the Surrey Senior Cup on Wednesday as a small squad have played twice a week since mid December and Dulwich visit on Saturday.

Travelling Tanners

The nine game unbeaten run will no doubt feel as heavy as the pitch today as we travel to mid-table Thurrock in the league.

The well earned draw kept us in 9th place, but now just three points behind the ****-off places with games in hand.

Kick off at 3pm.  Directions can be found here.  Good luck fellas.

Margate 0 - 0 Tanners

We have all been there (usually at Woking), a freezing cold night with little going happening on the pitch.  That is the picture the commentator painted on Pundit last night, and suddenly the task of packing the contents from under the stairs seemed more pleasurable.

This is many ways was the game I thought we were going to play in the FA Cup. Organised defending with careful measured attacks.  By all accounts our first real shot (although off target) did not come late into the game.

The win streak ends, but we are still unbeaten and in the chase...

Travelling Tanners

It's not the FA Cup 4th Qualifying Round, but it is close.  Two teams on the same points that lurk just under the ****-offs battle it out tonight.

Leatherhead are having quite the purple patch with seven wins in a row, but Margate are a side who just beat Dulwich Hamlet... they can put on quite a moving display.

Kick off at 7.45.  Directions can be found here.  Good luck fellas.

Tanners 1 - 0 Tonbridge Angels

Leatherhead's recent run of form is the best it has been since the 1996-97 season, where we last won seven games in a row.  Caution for Sammy though, as that appears to be a stumbling block having reached the same amount on three other occasions before we get to our best ever run of 11 (1948-49).

Leatherhead do appear to be on to something though, having won the last two games largely through a war of attrition and retaining possession.  Something that seemed unthinkable only 12 months ago.

The opening exchanges were entertaining enough.  Not the changing of ends before kick off though, that was just annoying and made buying half time tea harder.  I would say we had the better of it in the first half, given the Tonbridge 'keeper was taking an age to take a goal kick.  Our goal came from a fine free flowing move that saw Tom Derry running free down the right, who picked out Tom Richards' run into the box.  His powerful side volley gave their 'keeper no chance.

Second half and Tonbridge grew into the game a lot more and the crowd became a little nervous.  A fine save from Zak being the peak of nervous energy, but somehow we regrouped and saw the half out with another period of playing the ball into the corner.

A tricky midweek away trip to Margate approaches on Tuesday, where they will no doubt be looking for FA CUP revenge.  Bring your dolphins.

Tonbridge Angels are coming

The club are predicting a big crowd tomorrow.  Free entrance for kids (although I thought most of the blighters snuck in free anyway!) and Tonbridge should bring a few.

Support will be needed as our guests sit just three points behind us and no doubt have ideas of climbing the table themselves.

Kick off at 3pm.  See you there.

Tanners 2 - 1 Merstham

I don't think we are high enough up the league that we could consider our guests a banana skin, but to lose to them would certainly be a massive prick to our bubble. It was good to see Hayden Bird again...

I have heard a lot of good things about Leatherhead's style of play while I was on holiday and I was more than a little bit concerned that I would be the unlucky returning charm last night.  Certainly, while we looked the better side, we appeared somewhat laboured.

We thought Jerry had scored in the first half.  Coolly bringing down a ball on his chest and drilling it past the 'keeper, only to see it ruled out for offside.  Although, there was more than a hint of the lino not seeing the defender's position when the ball was kicked.

Second half and we looked even more unlikely to score for the first 30 minutes as our guests wasted time right from the whistle.  To add insult to injury they scored from a fantastic effort from distance.  This appeared to be something of a tactic as they had tried from distance a couple of times before, but this effort was unstoppable as it bent into the top left corner.

The Merstham 'keeper brought about our comeback, seemingly more interested in asking the lino how much time he had more to waste (about 18 minutes) than the run of Midson who score from the type of header you only normally see in league football.  From some distance and purposely placed into the top corner.

Finally Leatherhead were fully on top and we started to attack with real purpose.  Tom Derry was put through on goal and for a second it looked like he had given up on the idea of scoring, but this was just the ice cool composure of a player who can simply bend the ball around the 'keeper into the side netting.  2-1 and it was now our turn to waste time in the corner.

This timewasting was a little hard to watch but did the job as we won our sixth game in a row. Tonbridge Angels arrive on Saturday to test this winning streak further...

Merstham are coming

Merstham take centre stage in this league production of the Mick Sullivan Derby.

The official preview stated our visitors were struggling, but I think that is a little harsh.  They have a bit of a nasty defeat recently but if it were not for this purple patch of form we would be very much along side them, so I treat our guests (who always seem to raise their game against us anyway) as dangerous opposition to face.

Curtain raises at 7.45.  See you there!

Leiston 1 - 2 Tanners

This was an outstanding performance by Sammy Moore's Green and White Army. 

Well about 30 of us made the long trip so more of a Platoon, but those that made the effort were richly rewarded with the league performance of the season. 

Fortunately, the game wasn't all ticket but then Leiston aren't a massive club like Dorking Wanderers.

Leiston were blown away by our speed, skill and commitment in the first 30 minutes and the ball was rarely out of their half. We could easily have been 2 up but, and as often happens when you don't take your chances, Leiston ran the down the other end and scored. Sammy's side are resilient and mentally tough, heads stayed up, and we got our reward with a superbly taken goal by Tom Derry on 40 minutes.

The 2nd half was much more even and Leiston started to show why they started the game in 5th. A defensive mix up gave the ball to the gaffer outside the box and Sammy slotted the ball past a stranded keeper with the precision of a Swiss watch. Leiston threw the kitchen sink at us but we would not be moved.

Merstham are next up. Hayden Bird has always liked to Grouse about us and gets his team fired up but Toucan play at that game. With Jack and Tom Storking the goal, Zak Swallowing up any crosses, and a Swift midfield, we can hopefully enjoy a Nightjar after the game.

Travelling Tanners

Leiston is on!  This game has taken on significance thanks to an amazing run of form over the festive period.  I just hope it isn't all ticket.

Kick off at 3pm... so leave soon... good luck fellas!

Tanners 2 - 0 Tooting

A slam dunk of a festive period from Sammy and the lads as we grab 12 points out of 12.

Remarkably, if we win our games in hand we would be in the play-off zone but there's a lot of work to be done before then.

This was a relatively straight forward game and could easily have won 4-0 as we were too strong for Tooting. Goals from Jack and Tom in the first half saw us comfortably pick up the points. Jerry missed 2 sitters probably put off by the infantile excitement whenever he comes up for a corner.

Sam who? Ambrosine who? That's show business.

Tooting & Mitcham are coming...

Happy New Year to you all. Today we welcome our old friends Tooting & Mitcham in this league encounter.

We have climbed up the league impressively over the festive period, but a four point gap means no further progression can be made today.

Kick off at 3pm.  Good luck fellas.

Met Police 1 - 2 Tanners

A well deserved away win saw Sammy Moore's Green and White Army leap 6 places in front of a superb following of more than 250 away supporters.

Dare we dream of reaching the play-offs and beating Dulwich away? Maybe not yet, but with winnable games to come against Harrow and Tooting we could finish the festive period with 12 points from a possible 12.

There were some sad mutterings before the game about the loss of Sam Blackman who allegedly had got a bit greedy. The good news though is we won't have to listen to the tiresome ginger ninja chants anymore.

Tanners started off playing great football and could easily have gone into the break 2 or 3 up. The gaffer was back in the side adding quality and composure to the midfield whilst Jack was still recovering from a niggle. It was Niall who broke the deadlock with a stunning curling strike from the edge of the box and we shivered off to the bar 1 up.

The 2nd half was hard work and the (the no Police in the) Met Police side equalised with a header from a corner. It looked like we'd have to settle for a draw until Gerry, justifying his adulation at corners, fired a header into the corner of the net in injury time.

Ks are here

Today we face our old friends and tenants, Kingstonian. With games in hand disappearing we are running out of excuses for being so low in the table, but a win would take us above our visitors.

Two new signings get thrown into the battle to help our cause.

Kick off at 3pm.  Good luck fellas.

Travelling Tanners

A Yannisless side travels the 110 miles for this gruelling midweek fixture. I doubt many will be making the journey tonight...

It's a big game though.  They find themselves looking over their shoulder at a resurgent Worthing, something we may well be doing if we lose tonight.

Kick off at 7.45, good luck fellas.

(Not yet playing for ) Leatherhead 0 Wigan 4

A disappointing day for those still hoping to play for Tanners as table topping Wigan proved too good for AFC Wimbledon.

The curse of the newly approved new stadium struck early at a freezing and packed Kingsmeadow. Meanwhile, those who used to own this ground couldn't play because of a frozen pitch at Fetcham Grove. 

AFC fought hard in the first half but missed the clinical finishing of Midson. Neil Ardley looked increasingly concerned as the game wore on as Wigan eventually took the lead in the second half. A crazy tackle saw them down to 10 men and then Wigan had as much fun as Steve Smith and scored 3 more.

On to Needham Market on Tuesday for the real Tanners and with the temperatures warming we may actually have to play this one.

Game off

The local derby against Dorking Wanderers has fallen to a frozen pitch, despite warmer weather creeping in for much of the day.

No game Saturday due to other teams being in the FA Trophy so more time to get your Christmas shopping done.

Burgess Hill are coming

A new frosty period descends on Fetcham Grove, leaving the warmth of the FA Cup far behind, as we focus on the league (and the Surrey Senior Cup!) with mixed results.

Wednesday night was a combination of misfortune and (mainly) lack of application as we made life quite comfortable for our guests.  Tomorrow we see a team in a similar position arrive and we simply have to up our game if we are going to have any hope of climbing the league.

Kick off at 3pm.  "Double socker" klaxon is sounding.  See you there!

Tanners 0 - 2 Thurrock

For the 200 hundred in attendance, we could reflect on a fine weekend and yet be a bit sniffy about the absence of approximately 900 supporters who lost their way to the ground last night.  Supporting Leatherhead isn't all league quality stadiums and TV cameras you know... but the queue for the tea bar was mercifully small so we couldn't complain too much.

On the pitch we started well.  Thurrock seemed quite rattled and could not cope with our attacks, their keeper for one lost the ability to kick and sent balls squirming in all directions.  This dominance lasted about 20 minutes before Thurrock regained control and looked quite comfortable.

On the stroke of half time Leatherhead failed to deal with an areal ball and it plopped into the back of the net.  This trick was repeated in the second half and Zak was lobbed by a looping header and the ball nestled into the side netting.

We tried to rally but found ourselves offside.  Nash did plant a powerful header straight into the chest of the diving 'keeper but even it had beat the impressively large shot stopper it would have been the last action.

On to Saturday and the visit of Burgess Hill... just two points behind us and a must win if we have any aspirations of play-offs.

Thurrock are coming

I don't think we should be too disappointed after our FA Cup exit as we gave it a good go and were beaten by a better team with form on their side.  That should help, as they players need to get back on with the job at hand; the league and the Surrey Senior Cup.

League action returns tonight.  Thurrock come to the Grove who are in a similar place in the league, albeit after playing more games.  Should be a good measure of how we will adjust to life without the glamour of the cup.

Kick off at 7.45.  See you there.

Wycombe 3 - 1 Tanners

To get over 1,000 fans at an away game is an achievement in itself, but to play out a game in front of them where for 45 minutes we had perhaps the better of it shows how far the club has come.

Wycombe are a different club to Torquay when we last faced league opposition.  Torquay were finding life hard in their league while Wycombe are fifth; off the pitch we were welcome into their bar at Torquay, here we drank in the car park.

Once in the ground it was clear who was looking forward to the match more, and if Wycombe were to lose it would be partially down to their lack of support.  A lack lustre following if ever I saw one while the away end (as is often the case anyway) were in fine voice.  I was lucky enough to be in the main stand for only five minutes just prior to kick off and the sound coming from the stand was impressive.

Like Torquay, Leatherhead surprised the hosts and got off to a good start.  It was a set piece on 2 minutes that we got our goal in Torquay so it seemed like an age before we scored from a set piece on 7 minutes.  A ball swung in from Sammy Moore and the defence panicked, pulling on Midson's shirt to prevent his run.  The ref, in a picky moid, gave the penalty which Midson confidently put away to get his tally to 12 goals.

Leatherhead could have really gone on to make things very difficult for Wycombe was Colhessy was through on goal and brought a good save from the 'keeper and soon after we struck the bar.  Meanwhile The Beast was firmly in Jerry's pocket and we were looking quite comfortable.

An area where Wycombe were dominate though was midfield.  Constantly pressuring us, forcing us into mistakes and winning free kicks and that is how they got themselves back into the game shortly before the half hour mark.  Despite being quite a way out, the free kick looked dangerous as soon as their midfielder purposely placed the ball down.  Zak might have been expected to cover more ground to save it but it was well struck.  By not retaining to half time the lead perhaps allowed Wycombe to regroup a little easier as in the second half the game was very much Wycombe's.

Their midfield were even more composed, hunting in packs and they started using possession better.  The Beast was now finding more space and his powerful shot on 76 minutes could only be parried into the path of a Wycombe striker who bundled it over the line.

Wycombe perhaps knew Moore was "getatable" and this proved to be the case when he received a niggly tackle from behind and the Wycombe player persisted in harassing him while finding his feet.  He unleashed a swinging elbow to get the player off of his shirt but the move was far too aggressive for this ref and he received a second yellow.  Despite being down to 10 we nearly scored from the freekick Moore had just won, but Minshull's header sailed well over.

A fast breakaway move stretched our depleted side and The Beast scored with a powerful diving header to make it 3-1.  The hopes of being in the third round hat dashed, but memories of a great cup run and day out will live on for a long time.

Wycombe hospitality did not extend to anything after the game, unless you approached the bouncer with a middle class accent and claimed to be neutral and got into the bar to congratulate the players.  Now they must dust themselves off for league action that starts this Wednesday... we hope to see as many of the 1,152 that enjoyed Sunday at The Grove then...

Travelling Tanners

In 2003 our hosts were travelling to their last game of the season needing a win to stay up and while stopping halfway stumbled across a statue of a statue of a Native American.  They saw this as a lucky sign and vowed, should they win, the statue would be bought. 

They won and the lucky statue took them all the way to the FA Cup semi final the following season... now we have our own lucky charm in the unlikely shape of the dolphin.  While the providence of the dolphin has come into question, it has strangely captured the imagination of the team and I believe it will feature amongst the fans tomorrow.

Not much else needs to be said about tomorrow.  To reach the second round would have been beyond any expectations at the start of the season, a campaign that started with the future of our home ground even in serious doubt.  This cup run has brought the much needed funds to clear debts and get the ground out of the sights of millionaire academy owners.

There is everything you need to know about the game here.  Kick off at 2pm.  See you there!

Banstead 2 - 5 Tanners

For once an experimental side did not capitulate, as with the league cup, but went on to notch up an impressive 5-2 to see us through to the next round.

A handful of supporters made the journey and could only recognise about three names on the team sheet.  Finding goals came easier than hot food as Leatherhead found themselves 2-1 up at half time and then went on to score three more until they pulled one back at the death.

The Surrey Senior Cup dream goes on, but now we focus on Wycombe...

Travelling Tanners

Going to Banstead is like putting on an old pair of socks (and I recommend you put on a couple more pairs for the visit to the tundra) as this was a ground I regularly visited when I first started supported Levred in the mid-90s.  In those days we made this journey twice as they ground shared with Epsom & Ewell.

Tonight we face our old friends in a Surrey Senior Cup tie that has taken on greter significance than we could have predicted when the draw was made.  A rush of blood to the head saw two of our most influential players sent off seven days before and they can only feature in our historic cup game due this fixture being pre-arranged.

We love the Surrey Senior Cup though and to advance would be great, but understandably the cotton wool will be out in force tonight and we already have news of Academy Players getting the nod.

Kick off at 7.45.  Directions can be found here.  Good luck fellas.

Tanners 2 - 0 Enfield

A war of attrition today as two sides battled out a rather uninspiring game, but let us not underestimate the impoartance of the win.  Three points without Jack would have been hard to believe a few weeks ago.

The first half had its moments, with one weak header going wide from us and a series of offside decisions at the other end.

Second half we upped it to create a period of about 10 minutes of excitement, which would be cut down to about two in edited highlights.

McManus was the goal hero today.  He made a nice amount of space for himself before directing his shot past the 'keeper and in off of the post.

The Enfield 'keeper then seemed to get the jitters and made a series of blunders, the most calamitous being from a back pass that he failed to get under control.  McManus pounced and header the ball away from the juggler and then fired his shot in from a reasonably tight angle.

We all had a good laugh when a shot going well wide was nearly directed in by an Enfield midfielder; but we were laughing through gritted teeth as the temperature was dropping with little prospect of future entertainment.

Three points and now we focus on the Surrey Senior Cup.  Please let there be a Surrey Senior Cup...

Lowestoft Town 3 - 1 Tanners

Getting to Lowestoft was never going to be an option for me midweek, so I looked forward to a quiet night, perhaps sit down with my laptop and make some sarcastic tweets over how the game was going. Hell, I might even pretend I was there... but that all changed in the opening minutes.

First of all (from a contact) Midson received a yellow for handball outside the box, a decision he queried and received a second yellow.  One off.  Almost from the resulting play Moore dived in and got a yellow and, not picking up on the subtle signals that the ref was not tolerating back chat, queried this decision too and got the same treatment.

Leatherhead soon conceded but fought back to make it 1-1, a Minshull header giving us hope.  By all accounts we never gave up but to be two men down (and two key men) it was hard work and so we lost a perhaps winnable game.

This was all immaterial to the excitement levels on Twitter.  Would our two key players be out for Wycombe?  The laws of the game were sent to some of the highest judges in the land (well, a Twitter poll) and it appeared OK.  Then Brady (a man I dare say has first hand experience of suffering punishment through discussing decisions) confirmed the key to this is the Surrey Senior Cup game on Tuesday.  Pray for sun.

Travelling Tanners

First a brief summary of last night where Billericay arrived at The Grove to play Kingstonian.  Without Tamplin (in hiding in Dubai) there was no silly song (replaced by "****** come on"), Paul Konchesky (on the bench) and Pennant (on the bench as usual) and an altogether better atmosphere.  Sure Ks fans threw some fake money at the 'keeper but he suddenly started to appear pleasant.

First half and Ks could perhaps claim to have had the better of it, but in the second half the conference quality of Billericay's players told and they soon found themselves two nil up.  Then Billericay's keeper admitted it was a dive for our first game and wished us good luck against Wycombe which really took the win out of our sails so we left early.  It got us out of the house though.

On to tonight and it is the longest mid-week journey I think in the league as we take on Lowestoft.  Providing our players didn't use up all of their goals we could hope for something from this game, but it is a long way to travel having played so often

Kick off at 7.45.  Directions can be found here.  Good luck fellas.

Tanners 4 - 0 Wingate & Finchley

Wingate & Finchley could not have predicted the response from the FA Cup win that they were on the receiving end of yesterday.  During this cup run we have been fragile in the other competitions, but perhaps by finally getting to play a league club has brought some closure to the team and they can relax (for now).

The first set back for the visitors was their 'keeper; he pulled a thigh muscle and had to ask a friend to help take goal kicks.  The second setback was that Midson and Nash were on fire.

The first goal came from Midson, receiving the ball in the box and sent defenders and the 'keeper diving in all directions except from where he coolly dispatched his shot.

The second was from a Midson / Nash combination.  Midson stole the ball off of a defender, ran to the bi-line and crossed to Nash who slotted it in.  Nash then made himself some room in the area to slide in another... and header home his hat-trick on the stroke of half-time.  Some debate over whether this was a perfect hat-trick.

Second half brought no allowed goals, but both teams scored from offside positions in quick succession.  Nash again for us.

A win that makes our league position look healthier, but a different kettle of fish with the long trip to Lowestoft on Tuesday...

Wingate & Finchley are coming

Still on a high, mentally and physically exhausted... and that is just us supporters following the heroics of Thursday. Now we face league opposition in the shape our friends from North London.

Wingate & Finchley sit in a nice position in the league and would be tough to beat on an ordinary Saturday... but with FA Cup Round 2 two tickets on sale it just isn't.

Kick off at 3pm.  See you there.

Billericay 1 - 3 Tanners

I'd like to think we could chalk up tonight's win due to arrogance.  Arrogance that Glenn Tamplin would grin while predicting he would tear us apart in the replay.  Arrogance that he would settle for a draw.  Arrogance that he would play on Tuesday.  That would be doing us a disservice though as we thoroughly deserved our win tonight.

The first half had BT Sport continuously trying to coax positive answers from the pundits over Billericay but at half time the managers from Wycombe and Woking were resolute; Leatherhead were the better side.

In the second half we were event better, but I feared the worst when they scored from an offside position.

Midson does not disappoint in the FA Cup and he was soon at hand to head our equaliser and in the 70th minute, following a clear foul in the area, he dispatched the penalty to put us 2-1.

The ref was promised a new car so found 5 minutes of injury time but it only allowed us to smash a third goal through the money grabbing hands of their 'keeper to make it 3-1.

A victory for football and now, finally, our FA Cup can begin.  We are off to Wycombe.

Travelling Tanners

When Glenn Tamplin's massive ego took over while being interviewed on the BBC, he perhaps did both teams a favour.  It created just about enough interest in the game for us to get on the TV, which I appreciate as I can now watch the game from a bar in Poland.

The prediction was that they would destroy us in the replay, and he may well be right.  Better sides than us have received a good beating and only last night, while they could have perhaps focussed on the FA Cup, they beat Merstham 3-0.  If recent Leatherhead performances are anything to go by, if Billericay come out with only ten men and play two second halves it could well be 10-0.

Football isn't as clean cut as that though, as our fellow Surrey based team Woking will testify.  Despite Billericay's big money signings we have gone toe to toe with them for 180 minutes and are only one goal down... that goal being a very dodgy penalty.  A ref that sees that interview will hopefully give it some more thought before pointing to that spot again.

Kick off at 7.45, although get there early in case there is another queue to get in.  Directions can be found here.  Good luck fellas!

Royston 3 - 2 Tanners

Sammy was covered in cotton wool for this one and Brades was covered in an unkempt beard. Rod was also present, starting to show an interest again now he has the chance to get on TV. 

There were just 15 lost souls supporting The Tanners compared to 1,500 the previous weekend. At least we were well qualified with a high percentage of our supporters holding a PhD.

A strangely subdued Jack started the game but was a shadow of his usual self, particularly compared to his heroics against Billericay where he played centre forward and centre back. Perhaps he was rightly concerned about picking up a knock or a niggle before the big one.

We started full of vim and vigour for the first 30 minutes and completely forgot that we were nervous about appearing live on TV at Tamplin Towers Theme Park on Thursday. Liam and D'Sean put us two up and we were looking great.

Slowly we started to tire and look leggy. Royston worked their way back into the game just before half time. The 2nd half was a bit of a disaster. Royston equalised then the referee gave us no chance by sending a Royston player off. A goal in injury time meant that for the 3rd time this season we lost to 10 men.

In preparation for our FA Cup Replay, and out of respect to the beloved Glenn Tamplin, I will leave you with Isiah 40;31 

But those that hope in the Lord will renew their strength
They will soar on wings like eagles
They will run and not grow weary
They will walk and not be faint

Travelling Tanners

The joyous occasion of a new ground is potentially tarnished with the understandable onset of cotton wool, that has already claimed Sammy Moore, as we take on Royston Town today in the FA Trophy. 

Some of our new players do not appear cup tied in this competition so I hope they can give some of our squad a rest while trying to add to the FA competition satchel we have accumulated this season.

Our hosts ply their trade in the Evo-Stik Premier League and are placed in a similar position.

Kick off at 3pm.  Directions can be found here.  See you there!

Tanners 1 - 2 Folestone

Leatherhead's form in the league continues to slide away despite an encouraging first half.  Our guests could not have predicted the fast start to the game we initiated, thanks to a lively new signing in Nash.  It was through Nash we got our opener as he was brought down in the box (and not outside it) and took the resulting penalty.  It is clear he is not short of confidence as he took the penalty like it he was trying to get the ball out of a bunker and into a green.

Despite the pressure we let Folkestone back into the game on the stroke of half time.  I missed this goal I have to confess.

Second half and our energy levels dropped and the offside count rose.  Folkestone decided to test our 'keeper from range and were right to as one slid through his hands as he was diving to save it.  A second attempted save from another shot fell to a striker who scored but was deemed to be offside.

We had one header on target in the second half so there was little to lift the loyal crowd who were there despite not having the glamour of the FA Cup to prompt them.  That or 1,400 people snuck in for free.

Off to the Trophy then...

Folkestone are coming

By Sammy's own admission, this is going to be a tough game for all concerned tonight.  After the physical and mental strains of just watching Tamplin being interviewed, let alone the disappointed of the penalty that wasn't a penalty, we have to try and focus on the league.

The squad is in a bit of flux.  We have signed a couple of players that are cup tied and so should be fresh on the one hand, but an unused player in Calum has left to play his football elsewhere.

Folkestone would be a tough game anyway.  They are pushing for a play-off place and will no doubt look to exploit our distractions.

Kick off at 7.45.  See you there!

It's Wycombe Wanderers

Should be avoid being thorn apart by Billericay next Tuesday, we will face The Chairboys in the second round.  A club who created their own FA Cup history by getting through to the semi-final on the back of getting Roy Essandoh via a Ceefax ad (a player we later saw at Bury Town) in 2001.

Tanners 1 - 1 Billericay

Leatherhead get their name into the hat for the Second Round draw but with a tough task ahead with the replay at their place.  For a while it looked like the task was going to be too big this time round as a timid Leatherhead failed to get to grip with their guests.  After 15 minutes we calmed ourselves down and got into the game and looked the most likely to score.

Paul Konchesky, I have seen him three times now and I have no idea why they persist with him.  Subbed off last season, sent off this season and today found himself distracted by the crowd.  So much so he wondered off the near post to allow Midson to steal in and deftly flick a low ball into the net past the stranded 'keeper.

That goal pretty much summed up the two sides in the first half.  Leatherhead were prepared to throw themselves at the ball, Billericay to trot around and take the money.

Second half and Billericay were a lot more focussed; perhaps their physio had managed to paint a few lions in the away dressing room or there was an extra chorus from R Kelly.  It was a shame though that their equaliser did not come from some noteworthy passage of play or individual skill, but from their player diving outside the box and conning the referee.  Zak got a hand to it but it was too powerful.

Billericay looked the most likely to win it, and even when Leatherhead did attack we often got in each other's way and it broke down.

On to Billericay then and Glenn Tamplin showed his class, showing off in front of a pretty BBC reporter, and stated we need not even turn up as we are going to get thrashed.  Footballing gods, please take note.

Billericay are coming!

Glenn Tamplin and his array of highly paid talent arrive at the Grove for the First Round proper of the FA Cup.  He won't be looking forward to this one, after being beaten here last season, losing O'Hara as a result, and twice making approaches for Leatherhead's manager... and failing... twice.

Leatherhead have approached this game in exactly the same way as we did for Margate, and while the task is bigger I hope we can come out with the same result.  On paper we lose this one, easily, but by sticking to a game plan and some luck who knows.

Kick off at 2pm.  See.  You.  There.

Ticket update

The club have asked me to post that there will be a number of tickets available at the gate. The capacity is 2,000 and we've enjoyed good pre-sales from both clubs.  Perhaps get there early tomorrow to avoid disappointment and queues...

Training Tanners

So; what would have any Billericay scout have learned from yesterday?  If confidence is inversely proportional to activity then we are ready, if not over confident as precious little happened from the advertised start time to just after 8pm.  The players emerged from a lengthy session of sitting down in the dressing room and chatting.

Fans of watching grown men chat were in for a further treat as the dressing room chat was followed by a further chat but in a circular formation in the middle of the pitch.  This was followed by some warm up exercises that took place, annoyingly, on the furthest point from the invited fans.

Then, on about 8.20 they got into some light pass and move drills and set up into three groups of defence, midfield (the largest) and attack.  At about 8.40 I had to go as I did not want to miss The Apprentice but they stuck to a variety of pass and move drills with some players switching between the groups.

Was it a waste of time for the fans?  If you left at 8.40 then perhaps but maybe later on we saw something more challenging.  The whole experience was rather comforting though, a chance to catch up with fans and perhaps dare to dream that we can send the big money men of our league back home with us in the second round... or at least to plan how to make a quick getaway...

Tanners 1 - 0 Hythe

One of the friendliest cup games you could ever wish to see. The referee didn't really need to bring his whistle to this one, as we tried to quietly win the game without Jack getting a booking and without anyone getting a knock or a niggle.

The plan couldn't really have gone any better. A solitary goal from a penalty with 10 minutes to go courtesy of Jack was just enough to see us through to the next round. 

The queue for FA Cup tickets caused more interest than the game along with rumours that Glenn Tamplin had bought up 6,000 tickets and ordered 100 coaches. One of the coaches is being specially adapted to transport Glenn's ego.

A nervous week lies ahead for all Leatherhead supporters. There is one good omen. In 1974 we also played fellow Isthmian opposition in the FA Cup 1st round in the form of Bishops Stortford. The rest is history.........

Hythe are coming...

It's my birthday, and I'll cry if I want to.  Historians will know my birthday is not a lucky day in the Tanners' calendar, with us only winning one game on this day that I can remember... OK it was Sudbury to take us through to the first round proper, so not a bad one to have under your belt but it is slim pickings.

Our guests are Hythe.  A side we battled for several hours through the traffic to lose to in the FA Cup last season.  It is also the FA Trophy a week before the big one, so I am not entirely sure how this will go despite our higher league status.

On the plus side, we have a new striker from Dover (who isn't cup tied) to take a look at.  Could he be the answer to our dependence on Midson?

Kick off at 3pm.  Good luck fellas.

Staines 3 - 0 Tanners

A profligate Leatherhead leave Staines this stormy encounter empty handed and with a manager speaking of ringing the changes.

Despite the score line, it was a reasonably entertaining game for a Leatherhead fan.  We were bright, positive and you could not fault the team for effort.  There were other positives in Beere looks like he is going to be a handful for the opposition this year and young Nathan Wood (I haven't seen him before) looked like he could handle himself too.

The chances.  We had a few.  Midson was probably the most guilty of missing the clearest chances; blasting high over the bar from close range.  You cannot blame him for his bicycle / side kick from just going wide; it was a wonderful bit of improvisation.  Beere then struck the post and then just went over.  Woods could have scored but seemed to be distracted by the possibility of being offside.  In the second half Blackman sent his volley straight at the 'keeper.  You get the point.  We had chances.

Meanwhile it was a different story in defence.  The warning signs were there when Minshull twice gave the ball away to put us under pressure.  Then, just as everything was looking solid again, we switch off and allow a striker to be completely unmarked in front of goal.  1-0.

This trick was repeated two more times in the second half.  We switch off, they play a simple ball to an unmarked player.  Shoot.  Score.  The third goal beat our 'keeper near post from an angle to further highlight the bad day we were having.

On another day we win this game 3-0... I hope we have one of those days in a couple of weeks time...

Travelling Tanners

Leatherhead travel to Staines Town tomorrow in their last league game before the big show down with Billericay.  I can't see it going well if I am honest with you, but I am slightly more hopeful than I was with the Folkestone game.

Staines had a good start to the season, scoring 12 goals in the opening three games, and sit four points above us (albeit having played two games more).

Directions can be found here.  Kick off at 3pm.  See you there!

Folkestone 3 - 0 Tanners

As I looked at the 2 hour journey to Folkestone I wondered what the prospect of getting a Leatherhead winning perform would be.  Mentally and physically tired; key players inured; a new player coming in; and an opposition with no other distractions.  Fortunately work commitments meant I could not leave in time as, had I gone, I would have been disappointed.

To be fair the first half it sounds like we made a fight of it.  Good spells of pressure and going close.  In the second half, the novelty of having a new player in the centre of midfield wore off and we played pretty much as I had predicted and we were brushed aside.

Not even the emergence of Sammy Moore could lift the side as we conceded three goals without response.  "Unacceptable" tweeted the manager... we will have to lift ourselves for Staines on Saturday.

Travelling Tanners

What a mixed night it was.  The highs of getting a home draw, the lows of picking the one team we would least like to face and while I was accused of jinxing it, we should not forget they are not there yet and face a strong team in Brackley.  

We then got into the Fans' Forum where Moore and Midson talked about their plans which involved bringing a couple of players in for the short term and building a bigger club in the long.  There was also sad news that Paul Semakula has decided he cannot commit to playing due to having a young family.  The timing seems strange, given that we are through to the First Round of the FA Cup, but that is the story we have been given so we will have to stick with it and wish this excellent servant of the club well.

Onto tonight and it is going to be a tough task.  Sammy Moore's ankle has swollen up (probably the ripped skinny jeans preventing good blood circulation) and Midson looked a little sore so we could be down two key players straight away.  We do however have a couple of players coming back, not least Beere who was cup tied.  Our hosts are just 2 points behind, so will fancy their chances to capitalise on a potentially mentally and physically drained side...

Kick off at 7.45.  Directions can be found here.  Good luck fellas.

Margate 1 - 2 Tanners

Leatherhead get themselves into the hat for Monday night's draw after executing the perfect game plan.  Before the game, there was much talk about how we were hoping for a draw and that is how the first half panned out.  Tight and with little ambition from either side.  The second half was a different kettle of dolphins though.

Margate, perhaps lulled into a false sense of security, did not seem prepared for Leatherhead's pace from the wingbacks and we piled on the pressure.  The ref, who had mollycoddled the home side in the first half, now started giving us a few decisions to help build our confidence further.

Some thought we had our chance when Midson stuck the bar from close range; others thought it was never going to happen when Clohessy was brought down in the box; and when a corner routine found a player who scuffed the shot so badly it went backwards we were in despair but Moore had different ideas. 

From the scuffed shot he purposefully directed the ball to the back post.  Pidgley (whose main contribution to the game was to make the movable goals narrower and be the pantomime villain) was a mere spectator as the ball found the top corner.  Wild celebrations followed.

It was not too long after Midson got his mandatory goal.  He had just pulled a shot wide but on his second attempt his powerful volley beat Pidgley easily and we were certain the job was done.

Margate had other ideas and for the first time really started showing some ambition and put us under pressure.  A wonderful side volley sent the ball into the net with Margate players following soon after to get the ball back into play.  The ref then did that annoying thing of applying the injury time for the whole game on at then end (with little in the first half and then three minutes for the second) to really make us sweat but we held on.

7pm Monday is the time for the draw.  The romantic in me wants a big club away but to be in the draw is still a dream come true.

Travelling Tanners

This game should need no introduction.  Tomorrow we travel to fellow league cohorts Margate in the best chance we have had to make it through to the First Round since 2006.

Margate are the bookies' favourite.  They are playing at home on their 3G pitch.  Our form, despite the spin of being unbeaten in three, has not been the best if you include the League Cup etc. and we haven't really found a solution to the loss of Chike.

That said, we will be up for this.  We cancelled our mid-week game to focus on the game and to add an extra layer of bubble wrap to Sammy Moore on top of what has been a hefty layer of cotton wool.  Let us not also forget, we are level on points with only goal difference separating us.

We should travel in good numbers.  Two coaches - my first coach trip since Abingdon - and many under their own steam.

Kick off at 3pm.  Directions can be found here.  See you there!

Tanners 2 - 1 Harlow

Sighs of relief all round as Tanners secured their first win in 5 league outings and moved into a comfortable mid table position.   

We are a well organised and hard working side but, since Chike left, lack invention and creativity. I am sure Sammy will be looking to address this as Midson is our only real goal threat. 

The midfield need to start contributing goals if we are to press for a play-off place.  Harlow are 3rd bottom and showed us why. They offered little, although gladly accepted the goal that was gifted to them. 

Jack came to the rescue with a header from a cross and Rees Williams Bowers (sounds like a show jumper) found the winner in the 2nd half from close range.  

A word about the referee. Useless.  

The players now have a week off to prepare for the big one on Saturday. The chance to get into the hat for the FA Cup 1st Round Proper for the first time since I pranced around in a suit at Torquay in 2006.   

Time to think about your dream fixture. Home to Charlton Athletic or Blackburn Rovers? Maybe away to Blackpool? Or the nightmare scenario.. Away to Billericay.

Harlow are coming...

Harlow arrive to The Grove in what I predict will be a largely one sided game.  We will have our eyes on a bigger prize.

Kick off at 3pm.  Best of luck.

Worthing 1 - 1 Tanners

First of all, Leatherhead should be proud and excited about reaching the 4th Qualifying Round of the FA Cup.  It is our "cup final" and understandable that we would want to focus on this but against a side that only has one point we could afford to dream about getting all three.  The best way to prepare for winning a game is to win games in my opinion.

So we travelled to Bognor Regis and made heavy weather of things.  We did have the ball in the net in the first half but it was ruled out for offside, other attempts were described as tame on Twitter.

On 70 minutes, Worthing took the lead; ironically during our best spell of pressure.  A powerful header at the back post that would have been a worthy winning goal.  Luckily Midson, our only real goal threat it seems, was at hand after a string of corners to snatch it in the last minute of injury time.

A point and Harlow will no doubt arrive with their tails up on Saturday...

Travelling Tanners

The next game isn't Harlow at home (fist bump hi five), it is in fact away at Worthing (well Bognor).

This should have been the home game but their pitch issues forced us to switch them.  Sadly for our hosts, their pitch issues have not improved so they are using Bognor's pitch.

It does not seemed to have mattered what pitch Worthing play on, they have suffered with only one point but perhaps a good time to play us.  I wonder how many players will be wrapped in cotton wool tonight.

Directions can be found here.  Kick off at 7.45pm.  Good luck fellas.

Ashford Town 1 - 2 Tanners

Leatherhead win this surprisingly low key game to book their place in the 4th Qualifying Round after coming from behind.

Off the pitch, Ashford did not seem prepared for the match which was surprising since the first group of supporters must have arrived via the coach just in time for breakfast.  One person running the bar and a queue for food that rivalled Dulwich Hamlet's gourmet burger experience.

On the pitch they were far more organised and took full advantage of Leatherhead's lack of confidence by taking the game to their visitors from the start.  A mis-timed tackle in opening minutes gifted them a penalty and the lead after just two minutes.

Leatherhead, thankfully, did manage to compose themselves to respond. D'Sean was a constant threat and from set pieces our size always caused problems.  For all the skill we had our goals were forged from classic cup desperation. 

In the first half Minshull headed the ball from close range from a corner.  While winning the ball fairly he made enough contact with the 'keeper that would normally see the ref ruling it out on another day.  In the second half a goal mouth scramble saw the ball initially bundled over the line but headed out with the goal being given but Midson was at hand to side foot the ball into the net to make sure.

The visitors did pressure in the last 10 minutes, helped by an erratic ref, but we held on to book our place in the non-league final... just a game away from the big time.

Travelling Tanners

While cardboard cut-outs of the FA Cup are being wrapped in tin foil, Sammy Moore is being unwrapped from his protective layer of cotton wool.  We travel to Ashford Town in desperate need of leadership and goals.

Our hosts ply their trade in the Evo-Stik South East league and are doing very nicely, thank you very much.  They sit in third place, taking 16 points from a possible 21.

Leatherhead have lost their way after living up to their title of "ones to watch", but hopefully the returning Moore can get us firing again.

Kick off at 3pm.  Directions can be found here.  See you there!

Levred 0 - 2 Margate

Leatherhead continue to flounder without their manager playing in midfield.  The club is too busy tweeting emojis to provide an official explanation but there are rumours that tonight was due to the FA Cup, which if true is a shame.  Leatherhead now look completely bereft of confidence and still have no real replacement for Chike to provide any real threat.

It was not as if Margate were all over us.  For periods of the first half we were creating some good chances, one forced Pidgley into a fine save and another bouncing off of a defender who had no idea where the ball was.  Leatherhead are proving to be brittle at the back and with Margate's few shots on target they found themselves 1-0 up.

Leatherhead fans hoped for a response and they were left disappointed.  We played even worse and probably only created one or two chances while Margate were striking the underside of the cross bar, had two goals ruled out for offside before they went 2-0 up.

You know when the squawking of a Margate supporter is the most entertaining part of the game it has been a bad night out and Ashford will be licking their lips at the prospect of facing this dross on Saturday... still at least all the players had the night off from playing and managing last week in the league cup... smart move... I mean, what could go wrong..?

Margate are coming

After taking the last 10 days off, Leatherhead will hopefully approach this game slightly more professionally than they did last week in the league cup.  We may not have the same riches as Pep Guardiola, but failure to show the game the respect it deserves resulted in 9 goals conceded and none scored over the last two games.

Perhaps this may also be put down to finding life without Chike more difficult than expected.  His pace does not look to have been replaced which proved to be so deadly up until his departure.

Margate site one place above us by virtue of scoring four more goals than us, but they will be hoping for more than 12th place and present a challenge to get all three points.

Kick off at 7.45.  See you there!

Dulwich Hamlet 4 - 0 Tanners

Leatherhead were well rested having not played mid week. Unfortunately the defence carried on resting for the first 20 minutes today by which time we 2-0 down. 

Surely the players would have been better prepared by recording a handsome victory over Chipstead rather than sitting at home?

If you enjoyed queueing for rides at Disney World, come to Dulwich. Dulwich fans spend their whole time queuing; admission, beer, tea, toilets, traffic lights, 20mph zones, bus lanes, waiting for a play-off win.

We had chances today but they were squandered. However, Dulwich could easily have had 6. There was a bit of belief lacking today. The talismanic Moore sat the game out and was sorely missed. It is assumed he was injured but no official reason was forthcoming. 

So a trying week ends on 0-9.  Ashford Town will be looking forward to the FA Cup fixture rather more than when the draw was made on Monday.