Season 2019-20 – Tunbridge Wells
The season may have come to an sudden end and all results expunged but games did take place and plenty of teams had a year to remember. Here we look back at some of the sides that had an impressive Premier Division campaign.
Tunbridge Wells
Tunbridge Wells finished in 5th position in the table, 14 points off the team at the top and 12 away from the side in the other promotion earning place. They had 13 games to go, far more than any other contender, and had a reasonable chance of closing the gap had the season come to it’s natural conclusion.
Wells averaged 2 points per game which would have seen them reach 72 points in total had they kept that same form through 36 games. The previous few years have seen them collect 37, 46, 37 and 39 points so this was clearly their best term in some time.
Their PPG average was the 5th best in the Division.
Selected League wins
5-2 v AFC Croydon
4-1 v Crowborough Ath
2-1 v Sheppey Utd
7-0 v K Sports
5-0 v Canterbury City
League Defeats x7
5-1 v Chatham Town
2-1 v Corinthian
3-0 v Punjab Utd
4-1 v Sheppey Utd
2-0 v Lordswood
2-1 v Beckenham Town
4-2 v Erith & Belvedere
17 players scored for Tunbridge Wells this campaign with Josh Frogatt hitting the net the most with 10 League goals plus a further 6 in the Cups.
Top League Scorers
Josh Frogatt 10
Jason Thompson 8
Euan Sahadow 7
Chris Lawall 5
Matt Day scored 10 this season aswell, 2 for Wells and 8 for Canterbury City beforehand.
Tunbridge Wells still had 13 games to play. They were against…
Erith & Belvedere, Hollands & Blair, Glebe, Erith Town, Deal Town, Canterbury City, Lordswood, Punjab United, Bearsted, Beckenham, Corinthian, Welling Town and Erith Town
2019-20 Cup Competitions
FA Cup – Second game defeat to Haywards Heath
FA Vase – Third game defeat to Southall
Kent Senior Trophy – First game defeat to K Sports
Challenge Cup – In semi-final v Glebe
Summary
The season came to a halt far too early for Tunbridge Wells as they were one of the 5 sides in the promotion hunt and with 13 games to go were hoping to close in on a top 2 finish. The campaign started strongly for Wells and they topped the table when the opening month had finished giving new boss Richard Styles the perfect beginning to life at the Culverden. In recent times the weather caused them huge problems and as a result no league games have been played on their home turf during 2020. That disrupted their flow and meant they had many games in hand on those above so nobody would have been more frustrated than them that this break came at the time it did.
Unfortunately their Challenge Cup semi-final will never take place but there is no doubting that this campaign has been a very good one for the Wells and they are now in a great place from which to build from and improve again next time around.
A message from the Club…
Dear Friends of Tunbridge Wells Football Club,
We don’t need to tell you that we are living in unprecedented times. The effects of the coronavirus pandemic have quickly reached far and wide. Of course, our thoughts are first and foremost with all of those who have been impacted by this awful virus. We hope that all of our players, members, volunteers, supporters and committee remain safe and healthy. The same is true for our wider footballing family.
Tunbridge Wells Football Club isn’t immune from the knock-on effects of the virus and unfortunately this has only exacerbated what was already a difficult situation. An extended period of inclement weather (including the wettest February on record) has meant that the football club hasn’t played a Saturday home fixture in 2020 and our last home game of any kind was Tuesday 7th January.
The club is reliant on four key revenue streams: Gate receipts, the clubhouse bar, sponsorship and a contribution from our Junior Club. All of these are incredibly important but by far the largest of these is the revenues from the match-day gate and bar. To be without these sources of cashflow for nearly two and a half months has been incredibly challenging.
We had hoped that a good run of home games in March would bring a much needed boost to the club finances. Despite a generous donation to the football club from the Independent Supporters Trust (TWIST), the announcement of the suspension of SCEFL fixtures for what may be an extended period means the club is now facing an existential threat.
As it stands, the club faces the very real prospect of having no match-day revenues for 7 months; January to July (the hosting of our first pre-season friendlies). This is unsustainable.
It is for this reason that the Board of Directors have taken the decision to launch a crowdfunding appeal. Our fundraising target is £20,000. This would help to replace the anticipated revenues which would have been generated by:
– the remaining 12 home league and cup fixtures,
– the hosting of end-of-season cup finals at the Culverden,
– music event Party on the Pitch,
all of which we must assume from a worst-case planning basis will now not be taking place.
We understand that this is a big ask.
We are incredibly fortunate to be a well-supported club. From the hundreds who watch us on a Saturday, to the thousands who cheered us on at Wembley, it is to you that we turn for help in securing the future of the club until the beginning of the new season and beyond. Any donation, large or small, would be gratefully received.
We sincerely wish we didn’t need to do this. The future of the club is in your hands. We need your help.
Thank you for whatever assistance you can offer.
Tunbridge Wells Football Club
