News of the Rocks Lane return
Wandsworth Athletic returned to competitive action in November, following enforced absence due to player unavailability. It was an exciting time for the club, but with injuries continuing and squad disruption alarmingly high, it was perhaps understandable that the season yielded modest returns.
Four wins, two draws and four defeats perhaps doesn’t truly reflect on a period of transition, particularly as the campaign ended positively. The fixtures computer served up some unkind and difficult early tests, and with personnel changing weekly, Wandsworth slumped to three defeats and a draw from the first four games.
Slowly but surely though, the side settled down and performances improved. However, the main headline from the early season was a bad one, as it was finally confirmed that the effervescent Andy Michel would be sidelined for several months with a cruciate ligament injury. The one positive to take from this is that Michel now has some sort of timescale for recovery and he can build towards a triumphant return in 2012. The news from Tim ‘Tank’ Rickard was also disheartening as it soon became clear his metarsal injury would keep him out for the entire campaign. Supporters are desperately hoping Rickard will return to action in the spring.
Alex Platt, Zaid Shoubber, Pete Thorn and Ricky Tavares were largely unavailable but this did give others a chance, and the exciting news for Wandsworth is that several players are starting to look good for the coming months. Joey ‘The Don’ Hancock, Kyle ‘Coyle’ Soulsby, and the returning Misha Mantel and George Rendel all finished the season strongly, plus Sam Lewis (brother of Wandsworth number three Ben ‘The Engine’ Lewis) was snapped up on a free transfer. The squad should have a stronger and more settled feel to it for the forthcoming games.
Club stalwarts Matt Snelling, James Platt and Ben Lewis topped the appearance charts again (alongside the returning Hancock), with Platt finishing top scorer. The season ended with an encouraging four match unbeaten streak, including three wins; Wandsworth will hope to carry this momentum into the next campaign.
Off the field, rumours have circulated online that the Wandsworth Athletic firm, intriguingly marshalled by the injured Michel and Sasan Molaie, has been causing havoc with rival fans. One anonymous supporter commented: “The Wandsworth top boys ran us up and down Rocks Lane. They seem to be controlling things in South West London now.”
Official club sources declined to comment on this story.
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