Next up is one of the most eagerly anticipated days of the season – the Remembrance Day commemoration. The Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal organisers, wartime memories music, excepts from the Robert Laurence Binyon poem ‘For the Fallen’, the laying of the Herne Bay FC Poppy Wreath on the centre circle, a minute’s silence (including thoughts for Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha) and the last post. And in the evening the Comedy Night with a raffle in aid of the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal. Please note: there will be no karaoke.
Formed in 1916 by workers employed at the Vickers armaments factory in Crayford, VCD (Vickers, Crayford and Dartford) Athletic is one of only a handful of teams to have originated during the time of the Great War. Vickers spent its formative years playing in various Junior Leagues around the County until the 1996/97 season which saw the club win the Kent County Premier Division title for the first time in their history by a record 15 points. Senior status was awarded to the club that same year and a successful application to join the Kent League followed. After 12 seasons they won the Kent League title in 2008/09 but spent just one season in the Isthmian League Division One North.
An 8th place finish made this first season a success, but the Isthmian League stunned the club when they deemed ground issues warranted demotion and they went back to the Kent League. Three seasons later, in 2012/13 they finished runners-up to Erith & Belvedere and this enabled the club to gain promotion to the Isthmian League once again. The Isthmian North was won at the first attempt and promotion to the Premier took the club to its highest ever level on the pyramid in their 98-year history. Immediate relegation loomed until Vickers won their last six games of the 2014/15 season to move themselves five points clear of the drop zone, but one season later the inevitable happened finishing bottom of the table and relegated back to the Isthmian North for 2016/17 where they ended in 15th place. They were moved to the Isthmian South for 2017/18.
Herne Bay’s record in the Kent League against VCD between 1996/97 and 2011/12 was played 28, won 9, drew 7, lost 12, goals scored 42, goals conceded 44.
Bay won both encounters last season, in the first Isthmian League meetings between the two sides, 4-0 at Winch’s Field (Junior Aikhionbare, Jake Embery, Nassim Dukali (p) and Jack Steventon) and 3-2 away (Miles Cornwell, Jake Embery and Josh Wisson) after coming back from two goals down.
VCD Athletic started this league campaign with four wins on the bounce, against Ramsgate, Haywards Heath Town, Greenwich Borough and Three Bridges but in the six games since then there have been just two victories, Thamesmead Town and Whitstable Town, with four defeats, East Grinstead Town, Sevenoaks Town, Cray Wanderers and Hythe Town. VCD sit 5th in the table, 14 places and 13 points above Herne Bay, but they have played two games more. Last Saturday they tasted FA Trophy First Qualifying Round defeat 1-3 at home to Leiston whilst Bay were knocking out Witham Town 2-1.
The return fixture at VCD is scheduled for Saturday 23rd March 2019.