Match Preview

On Saturday, after a fortnight of football-less weekends, Blues return to league action at home, against Enfield FC. This is our first “return” fixture of the season after an encounter on the opening day of the season.

The history of Enfield FC is one of the most illustrious in non-league football. The original club was founded in 1893 and after some years in local junior football, spent decades in the Athenian League, before promotion to the Isthmian League in the early 1960s, winning the league title on eight occasions. Things really caught fire in 1981 with promotion to what was then called the Alliance Premier League, the top echelon of non-league football. In the early-mid 1980s, Enfield were one of the strongest clubs outside of the Football League, with two league titles and two FA Trophy wins. The title win in 1986-7 was the final year of the re-election fiasco to the League, before automatic promotion / relegation was introduced. Enfield were firmly shut out by the League fraternity.

In 1990, relegation back to the Isthmian League was followed in 1999 by the sale of their legendary Southbury Road ground. A serious financial dispute followed with the then club owner and a slow drop down the divisions resulted. Sadly at the end of 2006-07, Enfield FC was forced to liquidate, crippled by debts.

A new phoenix club Enfield 1893 entered the Essex Senior League the following season, only losing the title on goal difference to Concord Rangers. The years since have seen a merger with Brimsdown Rovers and a series of ground shares, before settling at Bishops Stortford. An ESL title win in 2022-23 saw Enfield promoted back to the Isthmian League for this season.

Our two clubs met regularly during Enfield’s Isthmian League years in the 1990s and early 2000s (we’ll gloss over a 7-1 thrashing for the Blues in a 1969 FA Cup tie). Enfield have invariably had the upper hand in these encounters. Your writer’s favourite moment was turning up at Southbury Road for an evening fixture to find that great journeyman John Burridge keeping goal for Enfield. And just a couple of weeks later, he played for Falkirk - more clubs than Jack Nicklaus.

This season has been an incredibly rocky one for Enfield. A solid start at this level, including a 3-0 win against Blues in that opening day fixture, was rocked by the sudden and very sad loss of the club’s benefactor, requiring a major restructure and re-assessment of ambitions. Recent weeks have been a real struggle, brightened by a recent win away at Ipswich Wanderers.

So despite what it might say in the form book, Grays will need to be on their guard, in what could be a trappy encounter.

Come on you Blues !!