Match Preview

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Unusually, just two options from Google Maps this time but both are good options and under half an hour. The choice is yours, via Lower Road or via Shopland Road (no, me neither), and if I remember rightly, a nice little drive through the Essex countryside…what else would you do on a Wednesday night?

No, don’t tell me, I don’t want to know about it!

White Ensign Football Club is a football club based in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. They are currently members of the Essex Senior League and play at Burroughs Park in Great Wakering.

History
The club was formed in 1951 and is named after the British naval ensign of the same name, which is incorporated into the club's badge. They played in the Southend Borough Combination until joining Division Two of the Essex Intermediate League in 2002, going on to win the division at the first attempt, earning promotion to Division One. The season also saw them win the Capital Counties Feeder League Trophy and the league's Senior Cup. They were Division One champions the following season, as well as retaining the Senior Cup and winning the Senior Challenge Cup. In 2004–05 the club retained the league title and Senior Challenge Cup. The league was renamed the Essex Olympian League in 2005.

White Ensign won the Capital Counties Feeder League Trophy for a second time in 2005–06. The following season they were Division One champions for a third time, as well as retaining the Capital Counties Feeder Trophy. Division One was then renamed the Premier Division, and the club retained the league title in 2007–08, also winning the Essex Premier Cup. The following season saw them win the Senior Challenge Cup for a third time. However, this marked the end of their period of success and the club finished second-from-bottom of the Premier Division in 2013–14, resulting in relegation to Division One. They were Division One champions the following season and were promoted straight back to the Premier Division. At the end of the 2017–18 season, the club moved up to the newly created Division One South of the Eastern Counties League.

In 2021 the club were promoted to the Essex Senior League based on their results in the abandoned 2019–20 and 2020–21 seasons.

Ground
In 2002 White Ensign moved to the Len Forge Centre in Southend after being admitted to the Essex Olympian League. The centre had been the home of the Southend Borough Combination since 1981. A small stand was built in 1985 but was damaged in the Great Storm of 1987. A covered stand was later erected, with two uncovered stands with bench seating built on each side. After White Ensign moved into the ground, the three stands were replaced with two seated stands on either side of a new changing room block.

In order to move up to the Essex Senior League in 2018, the club relocated to Basildon Sporting Village, an athletics stadium originally known as the Gloucester Park Bowl. It had originally been planned as a 21,000-capacity stadium in the 1950s (9,000 seated, 12,000 standing), but eventually opened with only a 200-seat uncovered stand. Basildon United moved into the ground in 1967, and a roof was added to the stand. After Basildon United left in 1970, the ground was used by clubs playing in the Southend & District League, Olympian League club Herongate Athletic, and the Essex Eels rugby league club. In 2011 the ground was upgraded, with a 750-seat stand built.

Ahead of the 2019–20 season, White Ensign entered a ground-sharing agreement with Great Wakering Rovers at their Burroughs Park ground.

Honours
Essex Olympian League
Champions 2003–04, 2004–05, 2006–07, 2007–08
Division Two champions 2002–03

Senior Cup
Winners 2002–03, 2003–04

Senior Challenge Cup
Winners 2003–04, 2004–05, 2007–08

Essex Premier Cup
Winners 2007–08

Capital Counties Feeder League Trophy
Winners 2002–03, 2005–06, 2006–07

13/01/24 Essex Senior League BARKING 6
WHITE ENSIGN 0

06/01/24 Essex Senior League HALSTEAD TOWN 2
WHITE ENSIGN 1
(Ezekiel Bademosi)

23/12/23 Essex Senior League ROMFORD 2
WHITE ENSIGN 1
(Ezekiel Bademosi)

09/12/23 Isuzu FA Vase WALSHAM LE WILLOWS 3
WHITE ENSIGN 2
(Mechack Asuka, A.N.Other)

28/11/23 Essex Senior League WEST ESSEX 0
WHITE ENSIGN 1
(Mechack Asuka)

24/11/23 Essex Senior League ILFORD 2
WHITE ENSIGN 2
(Joe Gregory, Joshua McFaull)

After 22 matches, White Ensign are currently in 16th place in the Essex Senior League Premier. They have 25 points from those 22 games – 6 wins, 7 draws, and 9 defeats. They have a -9 goal difference, scoring 28 and conceding 37.

Home form consists of 3 wins, 4 draws, and 2 defeats, scoring 14 and conceding 13. The two home defeats were 2-3 versus Halstead Town in November and 0-4 versus Athletic Newham in October.

In current form they are in 15th place with 2 wins, 1 draw, and 3 defeats, scoring 8 and conceding 13.

Undoubtedly, we have but I couldn’t find any past results and we’ve not played this season yet, the return fixture is due in March, so for the purposes of this little section, let’s just say we have but it remains a mystery as to what happened.

Robert Adams
Iyiola Adebayo
Denzel Adebiyi
Aaron Akoman-Ehikpa
Robbie Allen
Deonte Ashun
Mechack-Kisoka Asuka
Joseph Atoki
Ezekiel Bademosi
Ayodeji Banjo
Liam Barry
Dalton Bonfim
Billy Bonham-Dare
Jaden Bonnick
Kian Bradshaw
Daniel Brock
Nathan Burrell
Josh Cavanagh
Jake Chaplin
Oliver Chaplin
Ashley Chukwuemeka
Robert Criveteanu
Llyam Curtis
Ashley Drury
Ethan Evison
Harry Fairs
Callum Ferris
Albert Galbally
Alexander Gillespie
George Godfrey
Joseph Gregory
Kacper Gruszczynski
Jonnie Gurie
Joseph Gurie
Trevor Harding
Rohan Hart
Tarique Henry
Cody Hines
Jack Howard
Joseph Hunter
Billy Hutchison
Mekhi Hyde
Sahid Kamara
Steven Kodjo
Alfie Lindfield
Ryan Lynch
David Macauley
Darren Masaire
Kyle McAlindon
Archie McFadden
Joshua McFaull
Jack Mead
Bobby Meeke
Callum Merenda
Amer Mohamed
Daniel Monk
Thabo Ngwenya
Destiny Oduh
Akorede Oke
Mark Pinney
Owen Reynolds
Ben Sargent
Max Saunders
Thomas Sauvary-Hines
Robbie Scanlon
Kian Skilbeck
Austin Smart
Adam Smith
Kurt Smith
Jack Sparrow

Owen Spaull
Mitchell Stuart-Evans
Charlie Sullivan
Jack Thompson
Jayden Tshimanga
Valentine Tyrell
Razvan Vladut
Taylor Warden
Woody Wells
Darnell Russell
Joseph Whitney
Nathan Wilson
Brandon Woods
Daniel Wringe

Obviously, Jack Sparrow, just because you’ve always got to keep an eye on that lovable rogue Cap’n Jack!

But seriously though, Ezekiel Bademosi, Joe Gregory, and Mechack-Kisoka Asuka have been on target recently and they have 10, 6, and 5 goals respectively, so they are worth watching out for.

Oh, and you may just see The Black Pearl somewhere on the Southend seafront, so watch out for that also!

Shiver me timbers and up the mainsail (OK, no more pirate stuff!), it’s a Wednesday night in Sarfend, well nearly anyway, and a chance for The Bridge to take their successful roadshow, er, on the road. Going for three away wins in succession, this is a winnable game against a recently struggling White Ensign. As you know, all of that means nothing in football land but Microsoft Bing thinks we have a 41% chance of winning!

There’s a whole world of information out there nowadays, although I couldn’t find any past results for this game but here’s some information from the Microsoft AI-powered chat mode of Microsoft Bing ( I presume there’s a time difference thing going on, as Bing thinks the kick-off is at 11:45 am).

Happy to agree with that and a win could take us up to 6th, dependent on results elsewhere…so buckle up that belt, brace the mainbrace, and don’t forget your cutlass, it’s a trip to the seaside with The Bridge on tour, all aboard the Black Pearl (alternatively take the car!)….
There remains just one thing left to say….