19-20 season summary
The Heath finished the season (technically) in 17th position out of 21 sides in the Toolstation Western League Premier Division prior to the season being abandoned due to the Coronavirus 19 crisis – with the official announcement on the 26th March 2020 that the season would be abandoned with all matches void and no promotion or relegation.
This was a season of transition for us with a number of talented youngsters joining the club from the successful Almondsbury U18 side, following their manager John Black who joined the Heath as Assistant Manager at the start of the season and partnered his brother, Andy Black, in the dugout.
It was a season of disappointment in the cup competions, with the Heath crashing out in the FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round, losing 3-1 away at Shepton Mallet. We defeated local rivals Longwell Green Sports at home in the 1st Qualifying Round of the FA Vase but were knocked out at home to Exmouth 5-1 in the 2nd Qualifying Round. We lost 2-1 at home to Tavistock in the Les Phillips League Cup Preliminary Round and finally we lost at home to Bristol Telephones on penalties in the 1st Round of the GFA Challenge Trophy.
Despite a record of 6 wins, 7 draws and 17 defeats in the league from our 30 games, and a minus 45 goal difference, we were well clear of the relegation zone as the season was abandoned (13 points from 2nd bottom Wellington). The focus of this season has been transition as 31 players made appearances for the Heath during the season, with 19 of them making their debuts. Of the 19 debutants, 16 of them were under the age of 20 which is some statistic! There have been plenty of bright moments during the season and its been pleasure to see the enthusiasm, determination and commitment shown by these young lads as they’ve integrated into the team, and the club, as well as to Western League football. The effort from the entire first team has been excellent during the season and it was really pleasing to see how tight the squad have been, with every player making a solid contribution. Standout performance for me was Enis Akgun’s simply brilliant hattrick in the 3-3 draw at home to Bridgwater Town in the League. Matt Huxley also edged nearer to 300 goals for the club with a 11 for the season (joint top-scorer with Enis Akgun, despite a few years separating them in age!). Also a big shout out to Heath keeper Ollie Jones, who was an ever present for the Heath and played every minute of every game in his 35 appearances - well done Ollie!
Sadly the Coronavirus crisis has not only robbed us of completing the season but its also robbed us of our end of season presentation evening when we would present a number of trophies for standout performances. Once this nightmare is over and life can return to normal we will arrange some kind of celebration to recognise the performances over the 2019/20 season, forever known as “the season that never was”!.
To all our players, management, supporters, sponsors and committee members and especially our President, Terry Mitchell (El Pres), our manager Andy Black and our Chairman Steve Plenty – thank you for all of your efforts and support on and off the pitch this season, without you all then the club would be nothing. Of special note has to be Keith Huxley, who's dedication to maintaining the playing surface at Springfield has been amazing and resulted in us having one of the best surfaces in the league.
We hope to see all of the players back for pre-season training and we look forward to seeing everyone as we make our comeback in the 2020/21 season in the Toolstation Western League Premier Divison.
PS Keep an eye out on social media for CHFC work parties over the summer; always plenty to do around the ground and clubhouse and any help and assistance will be much appreciated.
Below is a summary of our season in numbers:
Total number of players used = 31
Most Appearances = 35, Ollie Jones
Most Starts = 35, Ollie Jones
Most Goals = 11 each for Matt Huxley and Enis Akgun
Most Substitute Appearances = 14, Ben Allen
Ever Present = Ollie Jones with 35 appearances
Most games as Captain = 25, Joe Woodley
Most Red Cards = 1, Joe Woodley and Danny Carter
Most Yellow Cards = 6, Ross Moorhead
Most Blue Cards = 1, Enis Akgun and Ash Kendall
Goalscorers:
11 Enis Akgun
11 Matt Huxley
5 Ben Allen
2 Matt Binding
2 Simon McElroy
1 Callum Ball
1 Marcus Kelly
1 Kristian Lee
1 Ross Moorhead
1 Eli Nichols
1 Archie Parry
1 Lewis Saunders
1 Ethan Tucker
1 Josh Williams
Final game of 19/20 season = Sat 7th March, Away to Roman Glass St George, Lost 2-1, Goalscorer Enis Akgun
Biggest Win = Won 3-0, Home to Longwell Green Sports in the FA Vase
Heaviest Defeat = Lost 7-1, Away at Plymouth Parkway in the League
Highest Home Attendance = 130 vs Bristol Rovers U18 (Friendly) and 102 vs Longwell Green Sports (FA Vase)
UP THE HEATH