Following a summer made all the longer by the lack of football, Ben Smith’s side brushed off a few of the cobwebs with a narrow, but deserved, 1-0 win against Isthmian League South Central side Tooting & Mitcham United.

Former Glebe midfielder Lanre Azeez edged the Bay ahead with just over 10 minutes on the clock, turning Eddie Allsopp’s cross home from close range.

Mike West almost doubled the lead before the break with a delicate effort which clipped the crossbar before Marcel Barrington’s shot dribbled wide of the bottom corner.

In scorching temperatures, the visitors looked to put the game to bed, with midfielder Kane Phillip forcing the home ‘keeper into a spectacular save midway through the second period.

But the Bay looked in control and despite a handful of chances for Tooting, they never looked like conceding before the ref brought the game to a close.

The Opposition

Abbey Rangers was established in 1976, initially as a youth club for boys aged 7–16 and were named after the nearby Chertsey Abbey. Having played in both Chertsey and Addlestone, they became members of the Surrey & Hants Border League, winning Division One in 2004–05.

After finishing as runners-up the following season, they left the league, joining Division One of the Guildford & Woking Alliance. They were Division One champions at the first attempt, earning promotion to the Premier Division.

The club were Premier Division runners-up the following season and were promoted to Division One of the Surrey County Intermediate League (Western). They went on to win the division and the League Cup in their first season in the league, resulting in promotion to the Premier Division.

After finishing second in the Premier Division in 2010–11, the club joined the Surrey Elite Intermediate League. They remained in the league until 2014–15 when a fourth-placed finish resulted in promotion to Division One of the Combined Counties League. In their first season in Division One, they finished third, earning promotion to the Premier Division.

The 2016–17 season saw the club enter the FA Cup for the first time in their history when they entered the competition in the preliminary qualification round.

Currently, they are members of the Combined Counties League Premier Division South, a division they were transferred into after competing in the Northern equivalent the previous year. Last season, they finished in fourth with a record of 22 wins, two draws, and 10 losses from their 34 games, scoring 72 goals and conceding 45.

They are still without their first pre-season win of the campaign. Having said that, Abbey Rangers have put in two strong performances, both in their 3-0 loss to Eastleigh and their 2-3 defeat to Metropolitan Police.

Opposition Manager

Our hosts on Tuesday evening are led by co-managers Mike Woolgar and Paul Johnson.

Key Players

Daryl Cooper-Smith (Forward) – Goal getter
Jack Watts (Midfielder) - Skipper
Dease Kerrison (Goalkeeper) – Shot stopper