Match Preview

The March to the Wembley Arch took a stutter a week ago on Saturday and Tuesday gives the lads a chance to make amends. Southern Counties East Premier Division AFC Croydon Athletic had beaten Virginia Waters 1-0 in the Extra-Preliminary Round thanks to a goal early in the second half. This set up the FA Cup Preliminary Round tie at Winch’s Field. The Rams were 2-0 up 11 minutes into the game but Zak Ansah replied just before the half hour and then equalised deep into time added on.

AFC Croydon Athletic was formed in 2012 by fans of Croydon Athletic F.C. after they withdrew from the Isthmian League during the 2011/12 season and eventually folded. Prior to their resignation, the club's major shareholder Mazhar Majeed had been jailed following his involvement in the Pakistan cricket spot-fixing scandal and the club had been locked out of its ground by the council and the club chairman, David Le Cluse, was found dead, with a bullet wound, having committed suicide in a garage in Sutton.

The new club joined Division One of the Combined Counties League for the 2012/13 season. In their first season they finished eighth and then seventh the following season and were runner-up in 2014/15, earning promotion to level eight of the pyramid. Rather than entering the Premier Division of the Combined Counties League, they were transferred into the Southern Counties East Football League. The first season in the SCEFL saw them finish eleventh, followed by 7th, 13th and last campaign they ended 15th from 20.

Before this season we had never met AFC Croydon Athletic but did lock horns with their predecessors Croydon Athletic FC in the Preliminary Round of the FA Cup in 2003/04. In their seven seasons in the FA Cup this is only the second time they have progressed further than the extra preliminary round; in 2018/19 after beating Rochester United and Hanworth Villa (after a replay) they went out 0-1 at AFC Uckfield town in the first qualifying round.

The Rams sit in 9th place in the SCEFL Premier league with two wins, one draw and one defeat. They were knocked out of the FA Vase on Saturday losing 0-2 at Sheppey United who featured Dan Birch and Connor Wilkins in their starting line-up and Danny Leonard and Steven Ita on the bench.

The winners will bank £2,890 with the losers receiving £960. The next round, the First Round Qualifying, will take place on Saturday 7th September 2019 with the winners travelling to Haringey Borough.