Kentish Football 
Greenwich Borough boss Steve Firkins wants support from the Bromley area to increase gates
Thursday 06th January 2011
GREENWICH BOROUGH manager/secretary Steve Firkins has issued a rallying cry for support ahead of Saturday’s Kent Senior Trophy tie against in-form Erith Town, writes Stephen McCartney.
Boro’ are the worst supported club in Kent, attracting average gates of only 24 to Oakley Road, the ground they share with their Bromley based Kent League rivals Holmesdale.
But with Bromley away to St Albans and Cray Wanderers travelling to Carshalton on Saturday, Firkins hopes this game will allow his club to tap into Bromley’s football followers.
Greenwich Borough were defeated in last year’s Kent Senior Trophy Final, which was the first piece of Faversham Town’s double, and Firkins is looking forward to the Second Round clash.
“That will be a good game,” he said. “Erith Town have moved themselves up into second place, obviously they’re the form team at the moment, so we’ve got to be at our very best to get anything from the game.
“We’re just looking forward to getting back onto the pitch really. We haven’t had a game since, I think it was the 20th November, when we drew two-all against VCD.
“The good thing about Erith is they’ve managed to get a game in last weekend, so they’re a little bit fresher than us, match wise.
“We have managed to maintain a decent level of training ever since the poor weather has been about so fitness wise we should be ok, it’s just match fitness really.”
Greenwich Borough like to get the ball down and play on the deck, and Firkins is also pleased that his side have the best defensive record in the Kent League, conceding only 10 goals in 11 league games.
“It makes a change!” added Firkins. “We’re quite happy with the way we have been playing but to be honest in the early part of the season we were very scratchy, but we made a couple of signings since and we look a little bit more solid.
“We’re happy with the way things have gone. The early part of the season we weren’t playing well so we know there’s better to come hopefully.”
With his side in sixth place in the Kent League with a record of seven wins and no draws from 11 league outings, Firkins said: “We want to finish as high as possible. I think everybody seems to agree it’s an open league this year, no-one’s got command of it although Herne Bay have pulled away a little bit but they’re eight points ahead of us but we can peg that back if we win our games in hand.
“But I’m an old head who likes the points on the board than play catch up. At the moment Herne Bay look like the team to claw back and beat.”
Firkins is another Kent League manager that’s not too impressed with the fixture back-log.
“I think that will definitely change over the next couple of weeks I should imagine,” he said.
“Looking at the weather today it’s been absolutely awful. The next problem we’re going to end up with waterlogged pitches and the like.
“Once we get back playing again I can see February and definitely March where people could be playing two (games) a week, especially if their that far behind, especially with some of the club’s like Herne Bay and Beckenham, who are still in the FA Vase and other cup competitions. They could have a massive fixture backlog.
“I would imagine the next fixture schedule will include a lot of midweek games, which I’d imagine we will be included in that as well.”
Firkins hopes for a larger-than-average attendance against an Erith Town side that climbed up to second place in the table, following their heroic 4-3 win at Tunbridge Wells last Monday.
Tony Russell’s side were 3-1 down with only 16 minutes to go, but staged a remarkable comeback in the Culverden Stadium mud.
“Since we first took over two years ago, we try to play attractive football,” said Firkins.
“I’ve noticed teams try to play the ball on the floor more this season. There’s a lot more teams getting the ball down and a lot of teams are playing better football and attacking football and we’re a team that can do that. We’re a young side that likes to play.”
On the club’s struggle to attract support, Firkins said: “It’s very hard to coax people to Oakley Road from the Greenwich area. People local to that haven’t got any affiliation to Greenwich Borough - it’s Greenwich Borough in Bromley. There’s no affiliation there. You’re reliant on ground hoppers and away support.
“That was always going to be a big issue but the main thing was we either fold it there or then or to try to attract a new bread of supporter, but it’s very hard, especially when you’ve got competition with Bromley and Cray Wanderers literally around the corner.”
Firkins explained why his club can’t switch to another midweek date as Bromley, Cray Wanderers, Holmesdale and nearby Beckenham Town all play their midweek games on Tuesday night‘s.
“It’s very hard to maintain any sort of support,” said Firkins. “We tried to attract a couple of local schools and things like that, it’s very hard to do.
“Unfortunately I think there’s some sort of problem with midweek games at Oakley Road, that’s what I was led to believe last year.
“They (Holmesdale) can only have the floodlights on, on certain nights and one of them is certainly Tuesday. I know they (Holmesdale) were trying to speak to the local authority to try to extend that to possibly a Thursday or a Monday.
“We maybe like to try Friday night even, instead of a Saturday to try and coax a few people down. At the moment our hands are tied on that aspect as we haven’t got permission to extend the lights on any other night than a Tuesday.”
Visit Greenwich Borough’s website: www.greenwichboroughfc.com
Greenwich Borough v Erith Town
Kent Senior Trophy Second Round
Saturday 8th January 2011
Kick Off 3:00pm
At 68 Oakley Road, Bromley, Kent BR2 8HQ
Red Dragon I.T. Ltd