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SEPTEMBER 2016 7th EDITION

A message from our Chairman, Steve Churcher

In this edition of the Insider, we are introduced to our Ladies team captain Beth KempwhilstdirectorColinFrygives an irreverent reportofourpre season tourof theNorthEast.DirectorAmyWeaverandDaveBrownreportonthefantasticresponsetothe“VolunteerDays”whilstAmyexplainsalittlemoreabouttheAlsfordTeaShack.IhopeyouenjoyreadingthearticlesgivingabehindthesceneslookattheAngelsbutifthereisaspecificsubjectyouwould like to learnmoreabout,pleasedon'thesitate to letusknowandwewilldoourbesttocoveritinfutureeditions.There is no doubt that the new season has begunwell for the Angelswith 16 points from ouropeningsixleaguegamesandonlytwoleaguegoalsconceded.OurFACuprunfor2016/17alsokickedoffatAscotUnitedlastSundayanddespitebeingheldtoa2-2draw,wesubsequentlygotthroughvia a fantastic performance and result toplayWingate&Finchley in the2ndQualifyingRoundonthe17thSeptember.Regrettably, we have not been so fortunate on the injury front with striker Andre McCollinsufferingabrokenleginouropeningfixtureandUgoUdojidislocatinghisshoulderatBurgessHill.Wewishthembothaspeedyrecoveryandwewillkeepyouallupdatedwiththeirprogressinournextnewsletter.AtourAGMweaskedourmembersandowners toencourage friendsandcolleagues to join theclub aswe look to increase our ownership to 500 people. I'm delighted to advise thatwe havealreadyincreasedownershiptoover300andthatSteveMcKimmandourfirstteamsquadhaveallrecentlybecomeownersoftheclub.Itdemonstratesthetogethernessthatwehaveatthemomentandlongmaythatcontinue.ContinuedonPage2

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An enjoyable evening was had by all as wehosteddartslegendEricBristowintheMarqueelastmonth.Once again, the events team worked wonderstransformingthetentintoatopclassdartsvenuefortheevening.I don’t normally single out individuals of theteam for a special mention but I mustcongratulate Pete Elves for building the dartswall and oche's as well as Phil Emblen whoshowed us his skills on the barbecue for a fivehourstint.Welldoneall.It is50yearssinceEnglandwontheWorldCupandwe are extremely pleased that Sir GeoffreyHurst MBE has agreed to be our guest at ourSporting Dinner to be held in the LongmeadMarqueeonFriday14thOctober,2016.Bob“thecat”BevanMBEwillbeourMCfortheevening.Ourdinnerwillonceagainbepreparedby the excellent View Restaurant at West KentCollege.Ticketsarepricedat£45perheador£450foratable of ten and tickets are already selling veryquickly.IfyouareinterestedinjoininguspleasecallPhilEmblenon07784940145assoonaspossibletoavoiddisappointment.ContinuedonPage3

A message from our Chairman - continued

Followingthedepartureoflastseason’scateringteamtheboardagreedthatattheveryleastthedrinksshouldbesoldbytheclub.AlsfordofTonbridgekindlyofferedtodonatethematerials to build our own tea shack. This newadditiontotheevergrowingtimberstructuresatthe ground is located next to the SponsorsTerrace.TheTeaShackwillbeofficiallyopenedlaterthismonth by Alsford but is already being put togooduseeachmatchday.All hot and colddrinks are available alongwithsweets,cakesandchocolatebars.Thereisstillabitofworktodotokititoutandso we are having a fundraiser on Friday 7thOctober in the LongmeadLounge toraisethefunds to do this so hopefully going forwardwecanofferawidervarietysuchassoupandjacketpotatoes.Theeveningwillconsistofafunquizandticketsare£8eachor£5 forstudentswhich includesaploughman’ssupper.Allthemoneyraisedwillgotowards making the Tea Shack. Please dosupportthiseventifyoucan.We hope in future to be able to offer teas andcoffees on the other side of the ground by themain stand andwill look for additional fundingtomakethispossible.Allthiscannothappenwithoutthegenerosityofcompanies such as Alsford Timber andvolunteers at the club to build and run it so ahuge thank you to everyone involved. If youwould like to offer your time every now andagain to help out in the Shack please speak tooneofthevolunteersonmatchdays.

Alsford Tea Shack by Amy Weaver and David Brown

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A message from our Chairman - Continued

IfyouhavesupportedtheAngelsforanylengthoftimeyouwillundoubtedlyknowthatwearecontinually looking for new avenues to increase our revenue streams and to that end, I'mdelightedandproudtoannouncethatTonbridgeAngelsFCareoneofsevenlaunchpartnersofthenewTonbridgeHiveLottowhichwaslaunchedbyTonbridge&MallingBoroughCouncillastFridayafternoonatTonbridgeCastle.This new online lottery enables the community to raise much needed funds for the causesclosesttotheirheartsandtheHiveLottohasbeenstructuredsothatboththeplayerandtheirchosengoodcause(HopefullyTonbridgeAngels!)canhitthejackpot.I'mobviouslyalreadyveryappreciativeofyourfantasticgenerosity,butifyouwouldliketoseethe Angels benefit further, it really is very simple to join the lottery by going to thewebsitehttps://www.hivelotto.co.uk and choosing Tonbridge Angels FC as your good cause whenbuyingaticket.

• Eachentrantreceivesaunique6gamenumberforeachentryintothelottery.• ThedrawwilltakeplaceeachSaturday.• Thejackpotprizefora6numbermatchwillbe£25,000PLUSafurther£25,000willbe

paidtothegoodcausenominatedwhenbuyingtheticket(HopefullyTonbridgeAngels!).• Prizeswillalsobepaidfor:-

Ø 5numbersmatched=£1,000Ø 4numbersmatched=£100Ø 3numbersmatched=3freeentriesintothenextdraw

Therewillalsobeamonthlybonusdrawforaprizeof£1,000Foreveryticketpurchasedfor£1.00,50pwillbedonatedtoTonbridgeAngelsFC(Ifselected!),18pgoestotheT&MBCcentralfundfordistributiontogoodcauses,20pgoestowardstheprizefundandtheremaining12pisfortheexternallotteryprovider.Goodluck!Steve

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WiththeTAFCLadiesfirstseasonapproaching,wecaughtupwithcaptainBethKemp(below)toseehowtheseasonisshapingup-HiBeth,howlonghaveyoubeeninvolvedwithTonbridgeAngelsLadies-andwhatisyourrole?I joined Angels in December after leaving another club,my current rolewithin the team is captain(defence/midfield)WhatwasitthatbroughtyoutotheAngels?I was playing for a team based in Crawley and although I enjoyed playing for them the travelwastakingupalotofmytime,IhadseentheadvertsonFacebookfortheAngelsandthoughtitwouldbeagoodopportunitytoplaysomelocalfootball!Itrainedforacoupleofmonthsbeforedecidingtoleavemyoldclub!Areyoupleasedwiththeprogressmadebytheteaminitsbrieflifesofar?Iamreallypleasedwiththeprogressthathasbeenmadebytheteamsofarthisseason,commitmentto training is great and their desire to develop and improve is obvious! As a teamwe have a greatcohesionandthisisgoingtobeahugeadvantagewhentheseasonstartsinacoupleofweeks.What are your thoughts on the season ahead for the Ladies and what do you think can beachievedinboththeshortandlongterm?Iamexcitedforthecomingseason,Ithinkitwillbetoughwithalotoftheplayersexperiencingtheirfirstleaguefootballandforsomeitwillbetherefirstexperienceofweekly11asidefootball.Butwiththeteammoraleashighasitisandplayingtoourstrengthsitshouldbeagoodstart!I'dliketoseeamid table finish for our first season in league football, obviously I'dbehappy ifwe finishedhigher!Long term I seeAngelsgoing fromstrength to strengthas the seasonprogressesgetting somegoodresultsunderourbelt.Haveyoubeenabletoget toamen's first teammatchso farandhavetheclubwelcomedtheLadiesintothe'Angelsfamily'?Honestly,Ihaven'tbeentowatchamen'sfirstteammatch...Inyears.I'mlookingforwardtotheseasonandhopetobeabletopopdowntosupporttheguys!Asplayersforthesameteamitmakessenseforustoshowourfacesasandwhentimeallows.Wewereinvitedtotheendofseasonwiththementhisyearandhopethatissomethingthatwillbeayearlyoccurrence.Whatmorecantheclubandcommunitydotoboosttheprofileofwomen'sfootballinthearea?Itwouldbegoodtoseemoreabouttheladiessquadinandaroundthestadium,picturesandprofilesthat sort of thing. Otherwise Iwould say there needs to be a focus on spectators, getting people towatchandsupportusatgames.Raisingtheprofileandinterestinwomen'sfootball!

Tonbridge Angels FC Ladies

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Rather inconveniently and much to thedisappointment of all his many friends ‘DutchHenry’ , our much loved (and now missed)coachowner/driverdecidedto‘turnuphistoes’andleaveusinthelurchasregardstransportfortheteam,managementand‘shadowsquad’.After much effort our celebrated and admiredVice Chairman, Chris Drew secured a coachservice from national company ‘Momentum’who actual performed well despite using 5different coaches and drivers during the longweekend thus preventing the sort of rapportthatweenjoyedwithHenry.Indeedsomeofthedrivers were so ‘Scottish’ we struggled tounderstand them but in all legs of the tourwesucceededindeparting&arrivingpromptly.SteveMcKimmorganisedtheplayingsquadwithhiscustomarydisciplinesowedidn’t suffer themayhem of past tours and nobody was in anydoubtthattheweekendwasintendedtobepartofaproperpre-seasontrainingstrategy.

Tonbridge Angels Football Club Tour of Northumbria July 2016

by Colin Fry

Thisdidn’tdetractfromtheenjoymentofourtimeaway;indeeditmadetheplayersenjoytheirtimeonthe‘Toon’evenmorehavingbeenfreedfromtheirshacklesearlyontheSaturdayevening. Theshadowsquadontheotherhanddidn’tneedanyformofrelease;theircollectiveeffortsinvariousbars,thehoteland both clubhouses brought about varying degrees of alcohol poisoning culminating in the aforementionedVCChrisDrewfailingtoleavehishotelroomforthefinalevening’scelebrations.Apooreffort!Thematchesthemselves(versusBedlingtonTerriersFCandBlythSpartansFC)wereinterestingforverydifferent reasons. Bedlington had obviously done very little close season repairs to their pitch and,frankly, it was a disgrace ; unfit for our players to endure. Certainly wewould never be expected toperformonapitchlikethatoneinourownRymanLeagueandsadlythegamereflectedtheconditions.Wesawoutahumbling1–1drawwithnosatisfaction,justreliefthatnoneofourladswerebadlyinjuredonthenight.DespitethisourmuchvaluedphysiosMelvynandTinaworkedlateintothenighttreatingavarietyofstrainsandknocksfollowingasubduedreturntoourluxuryhotel,theHolystonePremierInnwhere,fullofcheapgin,yourstrulywasseentopurloinasliceofcheesecakefromtherestaurantareaandwithoutremorseofferfurtherslicestoequally‘full’shadowsquadmembers.Anepisodebetterforgotten?ContinuedonPage6

ViceChairmanChrisDrewrelaxingontheAngelsNETour

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The following day, and players rested and repaired we visited Blyth where the ground was atcompletecontrasttotheeveningbefore!Thepitchwasbeautifullyprepared,thegrounditselfnicelypresentedandagain,thiswasreflectedinthegame.Blythcameatusstronglyandpurposefullyanddeservedtotakeanearlyleadwithawelltakengoalfrom the edge of the box after which we gradually got into the game and by half time we werebecomingdominant.Steve’s half time chat further galvanised our 2nd half efforts and by the timewe drew level on 77minuteswewereclearlythebetterside.NotwithstandingoursupremacyBlythmanagedtoclingontothe1–1drawandthegeneralfeelingbyallwasthatthey’dbeenverylucky.HospitalityintheSpartansBarafterwardswastypicallyrobustwithSonnyMilesleadingthesingingandcelebrations.Iftheseasonthistimeroundisdisappointingwecouldatleastentertheteamfornextyear’s‘Britain’sGotTalent’witharealisticchanceofdoingwell!ThecoachjourneyhometoKentthefollowingmorningwasarduousandhot.Notidealforheadachesand hangovers, which were noticeably in abundance! Next year we may tour to a closer region,perhapsSuffolk.Watchthisspacefordetails.

Tour of Northumbria - Continued

VolunteerDays26THJune&31STJulybyAmyWeaverandDavidBrown

Mostofyouknow,SteveChurcher,DaveNetherstreet,ChrisDunkandtheirarmyofloyalvolunteersare present at the clubmostweek daysworking hard tomake the home of theAngels a safe andenjoyableplacetobeforfans,staffandplayers.Butperhaps,likeme,youmaynotappreciateexactlyhowmuchtheydo.SowhenIaskedDaveNetherstreetifhethoughttherewouldbeenoughjobsforavolunteerday,hiswrysmileandlonglonglistof jobswasconfirmationthatavolunteerdaywouldcertainlybeabusyone!Withapromiseofmusic, funand foodadatewas set to spendaSundayworking through the list.DavidandIpromoteditthroughFacebook,JimRowepostedonthewebsiteandDaveParkerletalltheownersknowviathenewsletter.Wedidn’tknowhowmanypeopletoexpect,butwereblownawaywiththeresponsewithatotalof44peopleturninguptohelp.Itwasclearweallmeantbusinessmakingtheclubwealllovelookasgreat as possible with volunteers grabbing brushes, gloves, paint and hammers and immediatelycrackingonwithvariousjobsaroundtheground.Muchwasachievedduringthe6hoursinperfectLongmeadweatherandwhileweallenjoyedaBBQexpertlycookedbyDunky,withafewdrinksafterwardstheenthusiasmandsenseofachievementledus toagree toputasideanotherday tocomplete theprojectsstarted.Among thosewhoturnedupoverthe2daysweretheclubchairman,2otherdirectors,fansbothnewandlong-standing,parentsofplayersandmanyyoungersupporters,whochosetohelpoutratherthanchasePokemon.FormanyyearsDavidandIwouldgoalongtoLongmeadandtakeforgrantedtheworkthatgoesonbetweengamesbutvisitingmanyawaygroundshasmadeusrealiseandappreciatethehardworkwhich goes intomaking the safe, tidy, spacious stadiumwehave, a stadiumwe should all be veryproudof.ContinuedonPage7

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VolunteerDays26THJune&31STJulybyAmyWeaverandDavidBrown

Hereisalistofsomeofthejobsstartedorcompletedoverthe2dayswithsomefinishedduringtheweekbyothers.Removecracksinwalls Fencepainting–lotsof! NewstepstodirectorsboxforeaseofaccessRe-felthomedugout Cleanallseats NewfencebetweenclubshopandgarageRe-attachbrokenseats Cleansigns ClearvegetationbehindbuildingsClearareabygate1 Fitnewwaterheater PaintyellowchequeredareasSweeping WorkonTeaShack PaintingmainclubhouseentranceWeeding Buntingsewingformarquee RemoveoldrooftoplayerstunnelRepairfencing Cleaningturnstilebuildings Paintyellowchequeredareas.plusmanyotherjobs.Manythankstoallthosewhovolunteeredtheirtimeandmadeitafun2daysWewillbehaving1morevolunteerdayonSunday2ndOctober to finishpainting the insidefence,clearingbehindthesponsorsloungeandlayingslabstohousethetraininggoalsandafewotherjobs.WeatherpermittingwewillhaveaBBQattheendofthedaysoifanyonewouldliketojoinuspleaseletDavid,AmyorSteveChurcherknowtoexpectyou.

Amazingbeforeandaftershotofbehindtheclubshop&offices,courtesyofthehardworkofVanessaYates&hermumVeronica

Andturntopage8formorepicturesofamazingTeamwork!

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VolunteerDays-Continued