On Saturday 8th March, Grays Athletic visit old friends and rivals, Maldon and Tiptree F.C.
Saturday is International Women's Day and games in the Isthmian, Northern Premier and Southern Leagues are being dedicated to the #HerGameToo campaign.

Maldon and Tiptree currently lie in 13th place with 40 points from 33 games and therefore 4 points ahead of the Blues, but having played 3 games more.

A lot of water has passed under the bridge since we played the Jammers at the EMR stadium on 2nd November. That game was a tetchy affair, with the teams sharing 9 bookings. Grays took the spoils thanks to Matas Skarna's long range effort in the second half.

This was the penultimate game in charge of The Jammers for then manager, Dave Huzzey, who left, to take up a position at Colchester United's Academy. Brett Munyard was brought in from Brightlingsea Regent and immediately oversaw an upturn in form with a 9 match unbeaten run, lifting the team away from the relegation zone. The club and Brett parted company in early January, with Liam Bailey appointed for his 2nd spell as interim manager.
Kevin Horlock was subsequently appointed as Maldon and Tiptree's 4th manager of the season, on 5th February. Kevin had a distinguished playing career, capped by Northern Ireland and representing amongst others, Man City, West Ham and Ipswich Town. Having had a spell as manager of The Jammers between 2016-18, he spent 5 years managing Needham Market, winning the Southern League Premier Central Championship last season and with it promotion to Step 2 football.

The Jammers have, understandably given all of these changes, had a disrupted season. However, they have won their last two games, thrashing Basildon United at home and then an impressive victory at Witham Town.
The F.A.Cup saw a disappointing loss in an Extra Preliminary Round Replay to Stanway Rovers, (who could be promoted to our Division next season). A sweet victory over local rivals, Heybridge Swifts, in the F.A.Trophy was followed by victory on penalties over Corby Town. The run was halted by Canvey Island in the final Qualifying Round, 2-1.
The Jammers did not enter the Velocity Trophy this season and lost on penalties to Hornchurch after a 1-1 draw in the 3rd Round of the Essex Senior Cup.

However, the big news this season has come with a change of owners. After several years of ownership by the Cowling family (also owners of Colchester United), the club and the land the stadium occupies, have been purchased by the Drewitt-Barlow Organisation. The purchase has attracted national publicity; Barrie and Scott Drewitt-Barlow, the #Gaydads, are Essex based, successful entrepreneurs and have a high profile from a number of TV appearances.

The #Gaydads have big ambitions for Maldon and Tiptree. The appointment of Horlock and acquisition of players such as goalkeeper Elliott Justham from Dagenham, talented young forward, Amine Sassi from Concord and of course, former Blues favourite, Gary Hooper, have raised interest significantly. Before the acquisition, home crowds were nearer 150 than 200, but the two games since have seen 477 and 668 through the gate.

Changes are being made at pace. Scott Drewitt-Barlow has been appointed the club's General Manager, the club's badge has been changed and the ground renamed the Drewitt-Barlow Stadium. Liam Bailey has been appointed to lead the clubs new Academy. Improvements are being made to the Jammers Sports Bar and initiatives introduced to attract more fans to games.
It's clear that the new owners are investing more than just money into the club and its good to see positive feedback from the Jammers Supporters Association who had become frustrated with the approach of the previous owners.
It will be fascinating to see all that's happening when we visit on Saturday.

Close season will no doubt see further developments on and off the pitch. Kevin Horlock will be looking to build a squad to compete for honours in 25/26. It's going to be an exciting ride for Jammers fans and one that other clubs will be watching and learning from.

Our past history with Maldon and Tiptree goes back to Cup games with the two original clubs. Grays beat Maldon Town in the Vase in 1977/78 and Tiptree United in the F.A.Cup in 1988/89. Since their amalgamation to Maldon and Tiptree in 2010/11, they have been regular opponents. There have been 19 league games to date, with 7 wins for the Blues, 8 for the Jammers and 4 draws.
We enjoyed a hard fought battle for the Isthmian North title in 2012/13, with Grays overhauling the Jammers in the second half of the season to take the honours.
In the curtailed 2020/21 season, we were paired with one another in the 2nd Qualifying Round of both the F.A. Cup and the F.A.Trophy. Both games were played at Park Drive, with Maldon and Tiptree victorious; on penalties after a 2-2 draw in the Cup and 4-1 in the Trophy.

There are many current players who have played for both clubs. In the Maldon & Tiptree team are Kai Brown, Kien Connolly, Chris Millar, Joe Paxman and the aforementioned Gary Hooper. In the Grays squad, Alex Moss, Mike Finneran, Louie Remi, Shane Temple and Tyler Brampton have all played before for Maldon and Tiptree.

The form of the two teams coming into Saturday is contrasting. Maldon and Tiptree have won 10 points from their last 6 games, whereas Grays have managed just 1 point in that time, despite some decent performances.
However, Grays supporters have been given a boost this week by the signing of forward, Sam Bantick. In his two previous spells with The Blues, Sam made 59 appearances, scoring 31 times. Given that Grays have looked goal shy in recent games, Sam's signing could be just what we need to finish off the chances that are being created.

Getting There

Most Grays fans could find their way to Park Drive blindfolded (but please don't try!). For anyone who hasn't been before, take the A414 to the Morrisons roundabout on the outskirts of Maldon, then turn right on the B1018 signposted for Promenade Park. Go straight on at 3 roundabouts and the entrance is on the right, just before Madison Heights Bowling Alley.

The postcode is CM9 5JQ.

There is bound to be a large crowd on Saturday, so please try to get there early. If the car park is full, please remember to park with consideration for local residents and other road users.

If anyone is travelling by public transport, the best advice is to get to Chelmsford Railway Station and take either the 31, 331 or 332 bus service from the garage outside. The journey should take around 45 minutes and the nearest bus stop is in Mundon Road about 5 minutes walk from the ground. Please check for any planned engineering works or other disruption to services.

The game is another difficult challenge but also a big opportunity to get ourselves moving forwards again. We look forward to seeing all of you at the game, getting right behind our lads.

Come on you Blues!