Cray Wanderers 1 - 2 Corinthian-Casuals
Isthmian League Premier Division
Saturday 15th January 2022
Report and Photos: Stuart Tree (full set here)
More Photos from Andy Nunn here

Olly Sitch’s 88th minute strike sunk Cray Wanderers hearts as Corinthian-Casuals came from behind to claim all three points in the Isthmian League Premier Division.

The win extends Casuals good form having lost just once in the last twelve outings, notwithstanding penalty shoot-outs.
James Bracken’s much changed side from the midweek London Senior Cup outing was replaced by a more ‘conventional’ looking squad – with the exception of Ben Cheklit, who was missing following a scary bike accident involving a HGV!

The first half played out fairly even with both sides creating no more than the odd chance. Danny Bracken made a couple of well-held stops as Cray edged the best of the efforts. Better in possession, Casuals' Bobby Mills and Olly Sitch had off-target shots to keep the away fan contingent interested.

But with half time looming, the action came in spades. First, Jamie Yila converted Luca Albon’s corner from close range to give the hosts the lead. Cray could’ve doubled it moments later when Kasim Aidoo was bundled over in the box and what looked to be a sure-fire penalty was waved away by the Referee. Casuals capitalised and with the last kick of the half, Olly Sitch pounced to put away his chance, levelling the scores.

The second half continued with most of the momentum in Casuals favour. With twenty minutes remaining, it was all the away side as Cray tired. Sitch had two good chances with his head, but missing the target. The spoils looked like they’d be shared when up popped Sitch once more to latch onto a Kieron Cadogan pass and send the away fans into raptures.

There was just enough time for Cray to muster a response but their best chance was well saved by Bracken diving low to his right. Casuals held on for a closely fought win, though Cray Manager Grant Basey will have plenty of positives to take from his side’s performance as they look to pull away from the danger zone.

“I thought we were really good for the first 25 minutes today,” said James Bracken following the win.

“Our pressure was on point and we created two or three very good chances. But we didn’t hit the target often enough.

“We let them get into the game and we became sloppy. We weren’t good enough. We didn’t find that first pass. We addressed it at half time and we came out and turned it around.

“The substitutes gave us fresh impetus, fresh legs as Cray tired near the end. On the balance of the second half, I think we just edged it enough to get the three points.

“We gave them a lot of respect today because they scored four against Enfield, won against Bowers and only lost narrowly to Bognor in the week. They’re not a million miles away from where they’ll want to be. We know we’d be in for a tough game. They all are in this division. That’s the mindset that we’re trying to instill in the boys.

“We’ll certainly take an 88th minute winner. After a couple of missed chances with headers inside the six yard box, it would’ve been easy enough to lull a little thinking it wasn’t going to be our day. But the boys were relentless. We kept going forward, we kept the pressure up and we kept winning the ball high up the pitch. We looked like we really wanted those three points. And that’s coming from the players on the pitch – not us in the dugout.” 

Corinthian-Casuals 4 - 0 Cray Wanderers
Pitching In Isthmian League Premier Division
Tuesday 14th September 2021
Match report: Stuart Tree. Photos: Andy Nunn

Corinthian-Casuals notched up their third win in seven days with a resounding 4-0 victory over Cray Wanderers in the Isthimian League Premier Division on Tuesday night.

A hat-trick from striker Warren Mfula and a first goal for Emmanuel Mensah ensured Casuals first ever victory over Cray at King George’s Arena.

Coming off the back of two fine wins, 3-1 at home to Worthing and a 1-0 away day victory at Haringey Borough, James Bracken’s side looked to make the perfect week. Conversely, Wanderers were coming off the back of four straight defeats with the most recent just 48 hours before at the hands of Potters Bar Town.

It took 38 minutes of prodding and probing before any kind of deadlock was broken. Mfula pounced on a chance inside the box and made no mistake on capitalizing on the opportunity. It was almost 2-0 a minute later but the striker was flagged for offside, despite the neat finish.

Cray supremo Danny Kedwell introduced himself to the game at half time in a bid to turn his side’s fortunes but if anything, it was Casuals who dominated the second period. Ben Cheklit’s brilliant cross found Emmanuel Mensah at the far post who delighted himself, team-mates and the supporters by claiming his first for Corinth.

It was all Casuals from here. Just after the hour mark, the game was put to bed when Mfula grabbed his second of the night, slotting under Jack Turner for 3-0. And when the striker was felled in the box ten minutes later, no one was going to deny him the chance to claim the hat-trick.

All season, Casuals have been playing to these standards but hadn’t capitalised on chances as well as perhaps they should. There were no issues in that department on this night and Bracken can be delighted with how his side had put Cray Wanderers to the sword.
 
“For a 4-0 win in this division, it can only be a great night for us,” said Manager James Bracken following the result. “It’s two clean sheets on the spin, three wins in the space of a week against teams that are perceived to be top half sides, pushing for playoffs.

But to us, it’s just another game of football. We just look to get out there on the pitch, take our chances and bring intensity that other sides will struggle to cope with. We’ve done exactly what we’ve set out to accomplish.

“I’m enjoying the football at the moment. It’s entertaining. If you’re a Casuals fan and you’re coming down here, you surely must be enjoying it. If you aren’t, there’s clearly something wrong with you. It’s brilliant that everyone’s been jumping on board for the ride with us. Once again I thought the noise was great – it was a top atmosphere. It keeps us going. There’s no reason why that won’t be the same again come Saturday. We’re capable of putting a performance in once again like that, not just against Leatherhead in the Cup but every single week.

“The boys that are starting are playing so well and we have a strong bench, so I’ve not even had to mention that we’ve got seven players missing! If we’d been losing, you’d probably hear me saying we’d need them back. But the boys who have the shirts at the moment are doing so well, we’re not particularly missing them. There’s not too many sides in this division who could have seven players out and still do what we’re doing. We’re doing a lot that’s right at the minute and we need to carry that on.

“Come Saturday, the Leatherhead cup game is winnable. We can beat anyone in this league. We’ve beaten Worthing, we’ve beaten Haringey. We’ve beaten Cray. We should’ve beaten Kingstonian; if we’d taken half our chances, we’d have won that game.

“Five and a half of the last six league games, we’ve been far better than the opposition. We need to carry that on.

“We’ve put a lot of work in pre-season to get this side to where they’re at. We have them settled into a way of playing that is effective. The boys we have are fantastic. They have discipline, they have all the work ethic you could ever ask of them. We have quality, we have guts, we have determination. I’m looking at them and I cant see what we lack. If we were playing against us, I can’t see how we’re going to score a goal. It’s a problem for the opposition. How are they going to stop us?

“Hopefully we’ll start to get a little respect now. I’ve spoken a lot about this over the last few weeks. Too many just say ‘they were poor tonight’ rather than giving us credit. We’ve beaten Worthing and we’ve beaten Haringey and we’ve beaten Cray and now if we go and beat you, perhaps it’s time they gave us credit and say ‘Corinthian-Casuals are a decent side’, rather than ‘oh, they must catch everyone on their off-day’.

“We’re hungry for the next game. We have points to prove. We’re back at it now. We want to achieve something. I’m into my seventh year here. I don’t want another season of scratching around mid-table or the bottom of the table, losing by one goal each game.

“Every year, I rebuild a team here. Of course, I have a core of players who are very loyal to me and are great lads. But ultimately, each season is a rebuild. This isn’t a side that’s developed into a Step Three team over the last three years and now starting to blossom. This is a team that I’ve built in the space of around twelve weeks. We’ve shaped a brand new squad in that time. Obviously, we had players returning but we also have a lot of new faces. Some people don’t understand this. With the nature of this club, I typically have to rebuild every year… and that’s not easy.

“I can’t bemoan any of that though. We’re in a good place though. We need to be relentless in continuing this form. I’m fully aware that we’re punching above our weight. No one thinks we should be here on our resources. In the past, I’ve given the players too much leeway based upon those circumstances. I’ve been reluctant to batter the boys if we’ve come away with a narrow loss, been so close to winning or missed a few vital chances.

“Now, the mentality is ‘so close isn’t good enough’. I don’t want to be the also-rans or the nearly men. I want to win. And if we don’t win, then I won’t be brushing it under the carpet. I want us to understand; What was the goal we conceded?’ Why did we concede it? Let’s not concede that goal again. What chances did we create? How do we create more? Do we need to work on our finishing?

“I have cut boys some slack in the past because when you’re not winning games and had some tough spells, you don’t want to ride them too hard, because they feel it as much as you do. You need to be human and pick them up. But now, I’ve been a human and now I want to win. And what better way to enjoy your football than to win?

“We always enjoy our football here. You won’t find a footballer that’s played here in the last seven years that hasn’t enjoyed playing football with me, Prings (Dan Pringle) and this club. Everyone’s enjoying it. But as I say to them, ‘what’s more fun than winning?’ You can’t show me anything that’s more fun than winning. If you show up to football and you don’t win, I’m telling you now, I haven’t had fun. No fun!

“If you come to watch, have a catch up with pals, have a few beers and a good laugh behind the goal, you’ve probably had a good night even if the boys lost. That’s okay. But that’s not for me. If I lose, and Prings loses, and the players lose, it’s sh*t! You want the ground to swallow you up. You’re waiting for the next win. We want to win. We’re not just going out there and saying we’re going to win. We’re asking HOW are we going to win? We’ve coached them to win. Now it’s about maintaining those levels of desire to win matches.

“I said to them before the game, I want a good performance with the ball, as I didn’t think we were particularly good with the ball on Saturday. I wanted a perfect defensive display. I love defending. I was a defender at heart really. I love defending. Give me a team from two levels above and battle out a nil-nil draw, f**king fighting for our lives, getting behind the ball and making it hard for teams. I get a buzz off that. I know that sounds wrong. Too many coaches these days are clipboard, positional play and possession. Well, you need to be hard to beat first. I think we’re getting that right. That side of the game is just hard work, desire, commitment and bravery. Nothing can affect that apart from the individual. If the player goes out there with the right attitude, that he wants to work hard, be brave and keep his discipline, then he’ll be hard to beat. And we’re doing just that at the moment.

“Long may it continue.”

​"I’m always happy with a clean sheet away from home," said Manager James Bracken after the 0-0 at Cray Wanderers.

"At Cray, over the course of the season, we’ll look back on it as a good result."

"They scored a couple in the week against Folkestone so we’ve come here and shut them out. We had our opportunities too. We had the ball in the net, plenty of promising attacks though our final ball just let ourselves down.

"There’s no complaints from me today. Nothing but positives.

"Defensively we’re looking good. We’ve let in two goals in the first three games – that’s the best record in the league. We’ll continue to work on our forward play, and it’ll come good. I believe when we score a goal, with the defensive displays we’re putting in, we’ll wrap games up on the counter-attack and that’s where we’ll win matches.

Speaking on his Brother, Danny Bracken making his 400th competitive appearance, James said, “He’s been a fantastic servant to this club, more so than anyone else I know. Today, he’s had a good game. He didn’t have too much to do but what he did have to deal with, he made it look easy. That’s pleasing from my part. 400 games, a clean sheet – he can enjoy that like the rest of the team should."

Looking forward to next Saturday, at home to Carshalton Athletic, Bracken had the following to say.

"Carshalton is another stern test. But we can’t take past records as an indication of what will happen. I saw the stats before the Merstham fixture which stated that I’d never lost a league match played on the 13th of a month… well I have now. We might have beat Carshalton three times last season but it certainly doesn’t mean we’ll beat them this time around. I don’t read into stats too much. I don’t believe in ‘Bogey sides’. There are sides that have your number and if that’s the case, the next time you meet, you approach it differently.

"If we play like we did at today and at Haringey, then we’re in with a massive shout of getting the win. However, if we play as we did against Merstham, we’ll get nothing from it. What we worked on in training was much more evident today and as a Manager, that’s all I can ask. You saw that from the boys, the amount of effort they put in and the commitment to what I asked of them.

"Yes, we’d like to have more points but as a start of a season, I’m happy with where we’re at. Just make those improvements in the final third. I’m not delighted with only having one point from three games. It’s not the best. But it’s early days. Cray have two points, Kingstonian three points. One win on Saturday and we’ll go above a lot of good sides. But I’m delighted with the attitude with players and the group as a whole."

Cray Wanderers 0 - 0 Corinthian-Casuals
Isthmian League Premier Division
Saturday 17th August 2019
Match report and photos: Stuart Tree (photos here)

​Corinthian-Casuals earned the first point of the season in a gritty 0-0 stalemate at Cray Wanderers that couldn’t see the sides separated.

Earning points at Hayes Lane has always been tricky. Memories of a 4-2 defeat when the sides last met at Bromley were still fresh. Undoubtedly, James Bracken will be the happier of the two Managers taking a point from home.

Wanderers - last season’s Bostik League South East champions had already drawn a blank at King George’s this season in another 0-0 draw against tenants Kingstonian. They were unlucky not to pick up at least a point against Folkestone in the week, losing 3-2 in time added on.

Casuals had been somewhat unlucky not to already pick up points, with two narrow defeats in the opening fixtures. Whilst the Amateurs were still awaiting their first goal, they also had the best defence in the league, only conceding twice.

Therefore, only two changes were required from the disappointing loss to Merstham last Tuesday; in came Matty Bakare for Josh Uzun and Mike Dixon replaced the absent Nat Pinney.

Ever present in goal was captain Danny Bracken, celebrating his 400th competitive appearance for the Casuals – a remarkable feat for a player about to enter his tenth year at the club, and all before the schoolteacher reaches his thirtieth birthday. A clean sheet was all he could ask for on this special occasion.
​
A match report usually details pivotal moments in the ninety minutes, but there were few to pick out as both sides cancelled each other out. Casuals arguably started the brighter of the two sides and exploit space. Kevant Serbony found himself in the action firing wide on a couple of occasions. At the other end Freddie Parker’s low shot was well stopped by Bracken who wasn’t going to let anyone spoil his day.

The closest anyone came to breaking the deadlock was on the half hour mark. Juevan Spencer’s low cross to the back post was met by a sliding Ollie Sitch, who finished well, all in vain as the Assistant Referee raised his flag for offside. Fans would have to wait to celebrate their first of the season.

Mike Dixon also tested Lewis Carey in goal after a good run from the channel, taking on the shot himself and forcing the corner.

The second half never reached the highs of the nearby Biggin Hill Airshow display as the pace of the game dropped and loose passes became more common. The adage of ‘it’s got 0-0 written all over it’ from local Palace fans rang true despite a late surge from Cray who had two good chances to win it. Bradley Prichard’s header from just yards out tested Bracken’s reaction time and the keeper made a sharp stop. More fortunately, Charlie Allen’s shot just wide of the post left a few Casuals hearts in mouths.

Just like last season, Casuals pick up their first point of the campaign in the third game of the season. The positives are how defensively tight James Bracken’s side are looking with the joint best record in the league. Start adding goals to the tally and Casuals will themselves, be looping the loop.

Read James Bracken's post match thoughts here.

Corinthian-Casuals 0 - 1 Cray Wanderers
Bostik League South
Saturday 24th March 2018
Report and Photos: Stuart Tree (full set of pics here)

​Corinthian-Casuals suffered a set-back in their promotion bid from the Bostik League South succumbing to a 1-0 defeat against fellow contenders Cray Wanderers.

A 10th minute Junior Dadson goal was enough to separate the sides condemning Casuals to their first defeat in nine games. Their cause wasn’t helped when striker Gabriel Odunaike was dismissed following an off-the-ball incident.

Though winning each of their last eight matches, Bracken’s side looked lethargic to begin with. Cray pounced on 10 minutes. A defensive mistake from the visitors drew Casuals in to attack but a quick break down the channel saw Charlie Macdonald cross into the box where Dadson was on hand to volley home.

Casuals rarely troubled Nick Blue in the Cray goal though Harry Ottaway had a claim for a penalty turned down following what appeared to be a push in the box. Wanderers could certainly feel aggrieved that they also weren’t awarded a spot kick when Dadson was felled by Jack Strange.

Corinth’s approach to the second half was in stark contrast to the insipid display in the first. Though it took a controversial catalyst to get them going. With play up the other end of the field, Gabriel Odunaike and Jay Leader were involved in an off the ball altercation. With other players intervening, Leader fell to the floor dramatically clutching his face. After lengthy discussions, the match officials concluded that Odunaike must’ve struck Leader and dismissed the striker from the field of play. Whilst Odunaike’s reaction to being sent off cannot be condoned, it was telling in its ferocity of injustice at the decision.

The altercation sparked Casuals into life and despite being down to ten-men, took the game to the Wands. Jordan Clarke forced a fine save from Blue to prevent the equaliser. Harry Ottaway’s inventive looping header clipped the top of the net and Terry Murray volleyed just over. Though wave after wave of Casuals attacks came, the Cray defence stood steadfast and looked to counter. Charlie Macdonald was expertly thwarted by Danny Bracken at the other end.

Despite the intensity of the first half, the failure to get out of the blocks in the first 45 minutes ultimately cost Casuals a ninth win on the spin. The Wands are the only side to have done the double over Corinthian-Casuals this season and on both occasions, were worthy of the three points.

“I don’t feel hard done by with regards to the result,” said James Bracken following the result. “I thought we were terrible in the first half. We didn’t do any of the things I said we had to.

“When you play Cray, along with the other top sides in this division, there are certain things you have to get right. When you play the lesser sides, there are some things you should do but if you don’t, you’ll probably get away with it and still get a win. We’ve done that on a few occasions within this run of eight wins.

“Today, there were very clear instructions on what we had to do, both individually and collectively to stop Cray doing what they’re good at and put them on the back foot.

“We’ve done that in the second half with ten men. It’s just deeply frustrating that it took a sending off and a stern lecture at half time to get a reaction. I asked them ‘where’s your mentality?’ You get into a tough game, you’ve got to show the right attitude and show that you can compete against the teams around us at the top of the division. That’s where we are, on merit, so that’s the level we need to achieve in order to compete.

“First half we let ourselves down. Second half I thought we were fantastic. After the sending off, I thought we only got better. You come away from it disappointed that we lost 1-0 but I can’t say anything negative about the performance in the second half and ultimately the character that the boys showed.

“We dust ourselves down, build on what we did in the second half and go again.

“Losing Gabby (Odunaike) for the next few games is a massive blow. He’s been an ever-present in the starting line-up. His goals, especially recently have been important and he brings a lot of energy and quality to the mix. He’ll be missed.

Speaking of the red-card incident involving Gabriel Odunaike, Bracken said, “I’ve honestly not seen it because the play is breaking at the other end of the pitch. I don’t believe the linesman has seen it either because he’d be looking down his channel looking for throw-ins as the ball is running along the touchline in the opposite half. Then we both look across and see a player down. To be honest, I’ve seen that player down every time we’ve played them. He holds his face a lot. Never seems to show signs of injury but seems to be on the floor a lot… likewise today. Between the officials, they’ve managed to contrive that Gabby has done something to warrant a red card.

“We’ll take the positives in the reaction we’ll get from this loss. In the season run-in, out of 15 games, we could have won 14 of those, drawn on the last day of the season, missed out on automatic promotion and head into the playoffs on a downer. Instead, we have the kick up the backside now and respond. If that makes us go on and win the next six and seals an automatic promotion place, then this result today is a catalyst – and thus a positive that we can look back upon - taking that spirit and character shown in the second half.

“It’s easy for me to say it, but now we have to deliver and I’m always confident that’s what we’ll do.”

Cray Wanderers 4 - 2 Corinthian-Casuals
Bostik League South
Saturday 14th October 2017
Match report: Cameron Smith. Photos: Stuart Tree (full set here).

On a mild October afternoon in Bromley, Corinthian-Casuals’ two late strikes were not enough to salvage any points versus the clinical Cray Wanderers; Bracken’s injury-stricken side sit in 6th place in the unpredictable Bostik League South.

It was Jack Strange’s powering header that hammered into the roof of the net at King George’s on Saturday that sealed Casuals’ place in the next round of the FA Trophy. You would think that the one week break that followed would be a good thing for the Casuals, but in fact, James Bracken wasn’t able to select nine first-team players due to injuries or illness picked up during the week. Coskun Ekim, Kevant Serbony, Danny Cunningham and Tommy Smith were out on the side-lines, whilst a frontline of Jordan Clarke, Ben Cheklit and Reyon Dillon looked to challenge the Cray defence.

Around an hour from Tolworth, Corinthians travelled to Hayes Lane, home of National League side Bromley, who share their 3G artificial turf with Bostik South’s Cray Wanderers. Casuals’ first win in years was last season’s 4-3 thriller at Hayes Lane as Cray had previously proved to be a major bogey side. Located in and around the play-off positions, ‘the Wands’ hope to improve on last season’s mid-table position, and have had a bright start to the 17/18 campaign.

The chocolate & pink of Casuals and the yellow of Cray started proceedings on the 3pm mark, with the hosts clearly the better side after fifteen minutes. Sustained pressure and decent passages of play resulted in the opening goal. No.10 Aaron Rhule was free at the back post when a cross floated straight onto his head and into the back of the net. It was 1-0 to Cray after the first 15, how would Bracken handle conceding first? The answer was to continue with his original strategies, and hope that Wanderers would falter. The home side did not falter much, but did allow Casuals to get back in the game- the best chance was via a Josh Uzun corner, in which Mu Maan nearly bundled in if it wasn’t for the hands of Cray keeper Nick Blue. Then, in the 40th minute, Karl Dent stood over a free kick from 25 yards out for Cray, and curled an accurate effort into the bottom left corner of the net, leaving Danny Bracken stranded, unable to palm away the shot. This strike from the no.8 had condemned Casuals to a two goal deficit just before the break.

As the referee started the second half, both set of supporters switched sides and filled up on the grub in the clubhouse. Would Corinth finally have something to cheer about? No. A low cross in the 60th minute was converted by Rhule, who was at the back post again to score for Cray. At two goals down, it seemed Casuals still had an opportunity to claw themselves back into the game, but as the third goal was netted, that opportunity slipped from their grasp even more. Despite the disappointing 3-0 score-line, the Corinthian contingent behind the goal were still singing loud, and completely drowning out any noise from the Wanderers, and were halfway through a song when no.9 Michael Power scored two minutes after the third. It was now 4-0 to Cray.

Over? Far from it, said Malachi Robinson. It was the 64th minute when the left-back latched onto a terrific cross from the right flank; a booming tap-in flew past the Cray no.1 as Casuals fans were eventually able to celebrate. One down, three to go! It took a tad longer for the second to arrive, but when it did… Jordan Clarke had a relatively quiet game before the 72nd minute, and wasn’t able to advance past the yellow-shirted full-backs, until now. The no.11 picked the ball up on the left flank and swerved past three or four players in an epic run as he edged closer to the goal, and capped off this individual brilliance with a fake-shot before teeing up Reyon Dillon in the six-yard box, who sliced the ball in. The loudest cheer of the afternoon was when Dillon sprinted to the halfway line in an attempt to save time; it was 4-2 with twenty minutes left.

The final stages of the match included an agonising Josh Uzun free-kick that plummeted into the gloves of the Cray no.1, who dived to palm the ball away, amongst other Casuals half-chances. But in the end, James Bracken’s eleven (despite the late substitutions of Uzun and Jamie Byatt) could not comeback from Cray’s mountainous lead as the fixture ended 4-2 to the hosts.

Carshalton’s 2-1 loss at Guernsey and Hythe Town’s win over high-flying Whyteleafe was not pounced upon by Corinth, who sit inside the play-offs on goal difference in 6th place. A daunting trip to Brighton was next on the agenda as Lewes awaited the Casuals storm on a Wednesday night, before Saturday brought football back to Tolworth for Hastings United at home.

"We were 2-0 down before we got going. The first 45 minutes was a write-off," said James Bracken after the match. 

We didn’t stop them from playing, though they’ve only had two efforts on goal in that period. But hey, they’ve scored four goals and fair play to them.

We never asserted ourselves in the first half. Whether it was showing them too much respect, which isn’t warranted. They’re an okay side but no more than that. They should’ve been comfortable with the win at the end, but we made sure it wasn’t.

We had nine missing today. I know that Horsham said last week that they had eight players not fit and lost 8-0 to Cray. Well, I had nine missing.

But it’s not an excuse. The team that we put out was good enough to win as they proved in the second half by scoring two goals away from home. We can’t concede the first half of a match. We can’t defend like we did for a few of their goals. You’re not going to get away with it. We got what we deserved. You cannot concede four goals and expect anything from the match.

We need to look at this, improve and make sure we’re better in the next game. We need to kick on.

I’m hopeful that one or two will be back for selection for sure. Three or four of the lads back would be better. But if these lads who played go again, they get my full faith, my full support and we’ll be ready. So don’t bet against us.