SIDES PREPARE FOR SEASON CURTAIN RAISER
WOKINGHAM & Emmbrook, Woodley United and Binfield are ready and raring to go ahead of their Hellenic Division campaigns which kick off this weekend.
The Sumas will face AFC Aldermaston away from home on the opening day of their 2020/21 Hellenic League Division One East campaign.
They then host Chalvey Sports at Lowther Road on Tuesday.
Dan Bateman’s side will be looking continue their momentum after a brilliant last campaign which saw their bid for promotion cut short after the season was deemed null and void.
“The aim is promotion, we want to return to step five football as quickly as possible,” said Bateman.
“We had a brilliant season last campaign and we were almost guaranteed a top four place which would have seen us promoted into the new Thames Valley League that had been planned with the games we had left to play.
“We had put ourselves in a really strong position to achieve a top four finish. Unfortunately due to the circumstances that wasn’t to be and the new league will be pushed back by a year.
“But the plan for this football club is to get back to step five football and we’ll do our best to be in the promotion places come the end of next season.
Meanwhile, Woodley United manager Jamie Williams is hoping that his team can push up the table after this season after they struggled near the bottom of the table formuch of last season before finishing above the drop zone in 15th.
The Kestrels open their season with a trip to Abingdon Town on Saturday, before they host AFC Aldermaston on Tuesday.
Williams said: “I've kept the main core of the squad for next season which is exactlywhat I wanted to do.
“I’ve got a lot of belief in this group of players and I think in the past they’ve let themselves down a little bit.
“I’m more than happy to go again with what we have, so we don’t want too many new players because it's already a good group.
“I don't want another season where we are struggling to stay in the league and I think ability wise with the players that we have, we should be looking to be better than that.
Binfield are poised for an exciting season under their newmanagement duo of CarlWithers and Jamie McClurg in the Hellenic Premier Division.
The Moles were superb throughout the 2019/20 campaign which saw them cruelly denied promotion after the null and void decision, having been second in the division at the close of play.
McClurg andWithers made a brilliant start to management with victory on theirmanagerial debut as Binfield progressed through to the FA Cup preliminary round.
Binfield are away to Ardley United on Tuesday,