SWANLEY FC 2016-2017 Season Review

So a year has passed since Swanley FC started on its long journey.
That journey started with one team playing at U16 age group, but we had a plan to build the club from the bottom up with good foundations.
It was always going to be difficult but with the support of the players, parents and Swanley Town Council we had a good chance of success.
During the year we have tried to get involved in the community as much as possible, we have helped out at St Marys Summer fete, plus we also took part in the Swanley Mayors Charity football game which ended in a draw.

The Academy

One of our main aims this year was to engage with the local children and start running a Saturday Academy for 5 and 6 year olds. The 6 year olds would then go on to form our new U7’s team for next season.
We are really pleased with the children that have come along, they have been training really hard and on 10th June 2017 they will pull on the Swanley FC jersey for the first time, when they take part in Dartford FC’s Festival of Football.
Enjoy the experience guys, do your best and play with a smile on your face.

The U16’s

In September the U16’s entered the Kent FA U16 Cup. This was the first time the boys had ever played in this competition. The competition involves teams from across Kent. Our first ever fixture was a home game against Westerham. The boys were fantastic coming from behind twice, it looked like the game would need a replay, but in the dying minutes Westerham scored to win 4 – 5.
Westerham would go all the way to the quarter finals before losing to the eventual winners.

Now the U16’s started their league campaign in the U16 Selkent B East division.
They started by drawing their first game and then winning the next 6 games. It was a fantastic start and for the rest of the season we were fighting for a top 2 finish. However we couldn’t keep up the winning streak.
The season would end with Swanley FC in 3rd place, a great achievement in our first full league season.

We also entered the Selkent League Cup, we got through to the last 16 before losing to Welling who were the eventual runners up.

The end of season Selkent Shield competition saw us placed in the tough Green Shield which included 3 teams from the A league. We did extremely well winning 4 games and losing 1 to finish up topping our group. We were in the final and would face Eltham Lions, it was a very tight game but in the end we couldn’t overturn Eltham and finished as runners up.

So this season the U16’s have played a total of 39 games, they have won 23 games, drawn 6 games and lost 10 games. They have scored 91 goals and conceded 64 goals.

Next Season

We are really looking forward to next season, the academy will start to recruit for a new U6 team, they will be training hard, learning new skills and making new friends.
The new U7’s will be entering the Selkent League, where they will keep learning and improving.
The U17’s will look to continue their improvement and look to do better in all the competitions they enter.
Swanley FC will again be out and about in the community. We will be at ST Marys Summer Fete again this year and will we also be at Swanley Town Councils Armed Forces Day.
We are always on the look out for new players, coaches and Mangers for the teams, so if you would be interested in joining Swanley FC then please get in touch.

Thank You

Swanley FC would not be possible without the huge amount of support and volunteer help we have.
Thank you to all the backroom team that arranges training, kits, matches and the finances.
A huge thank you to our sponsors, Swanstaff Recruitment Ltd & C S A Car Sales. Thank you to our trophy supplier Supreme Engraving.
A big thank you to Swanley Town Council for their support and encouragement.
Most of all a massive thank you to the players for their efforts and hard work, also to the parents and supporters who come along every week in all kinds of weather to support the teams.