Whitehawk

Whitehawk FC is a non-league football club from the Whitehawk district of Brighton on the Sussex coast, who were formed in 1945 as Whitehawk & Manor Farm Old Boys FC, playing games at Brighton Corporation pitch No2 in East Brighton Park.

Initially Whitehawk competed in the nine team Brighton Junior Cup before they joined the Brighton, Hove & District Football League after one season. The club sailed through the four divisions; winning leagues and cups along the way.

This led to permission being given to occasionally ‘enclose’ a pitch in East Brighton Park in 1950 for the first time. The Hawks were admitted into the Sussex County League in 1952-53; for which grounds had to be enclosed for every match.

Brighton Corporation gave permission for the club to move permanently into a new ground at the north end of the park adjacent to the Sheepcote Valley camp site in 1954. The Enclosed Ground was created.

Young defender Derek Tharme was signed by Tottenham Hotspur in 1956 before the club changed their title to Whitehawk FC in 1961 after finishing as runners-up of the league in three consecutive seasons.

‘The Hawks’ lifted the league title in 1961-62 under manager Billy Thew as Billy Ford banged in the goals as the team completed a treble with cup victories, leading to a civic reception, open top bus tour and the construction of a grandstand the Enclosed Ground.

Whitehawk regained the title in 1963-64 after the previous campaign had been abandoned because of bad weather. Thew departed a year later to Newhaven; taking several players with him.

The 1966-67 campaign saw Whitehawk relegated to Division Two under Ron Pavey before regaining their Division One status a year later as they lifted their league title with Billy Miller in charge of the team.

John Marchant had a spell as manager before a further demoted was suffered in 1976-77. A clubhouse was erected in 1980 before the team was crowned as Division Two champions in 1980-81 with Sammy Donnelly as manager.

A third league title was secured in 1983-84 before youth player Ian Chapman was signed by Brighton & Hove Albion in 1986 on his way to a fine Football League career. Steve Brown was another club youngster who made the step up, joining Charlton Athletic.

Whitehawk ended as league runners-up in 1986-87 with another youngster Darren Freeman departing in 1992 before progressing to a fine career in the League. Whitehawk came second in the league in 1993-94.

Chapman returned to the club in 2002 as manager; as the Hawks ended as runners-up in 2002-03 and 2006-07. Russell Bromage was in charge of the team as once again the side were just edged out for the title in 2007-08.

Freeman returned as manager to oversee a fourth Sussex County League title in 2009-10 with promotion to the Isthmian League coming as a reward. The same season saw the team go all the way to the semi-final of the FA Vase before going out to Wroxham.

With the help of wealthy backers Whitehawk were denied promotion in their debut season as they went out in the play-offs to Leatherhead at the semi-final stage. However, the 2011-12 campaign saw the Division One South title being secured as well as a Sussex Senior Cup triumph.

Whitehawk applied to use Withdean Stadium for the following campaign while the Enclosed Ground was developed, but their application was blocked. The team won the Isthmain League in 2012-13 to reach Conference South.

The Enclosed Ground installed the temporary seating from Withdean as an application was made to change the clubs name to Brighton City FC for the 2013-14 season. The FA turned down the request.

Further finances were spent on the playing squad with Craig Brewster, a former Scottish league forward and manager of Inverness Caledonian Thistle and Dundee United came in as Assistant Manager to Freeman.

The club was embroiled in controversy as former players Michael Boateng, Hakeem Adelakun and Moses Swaibu were charged with conspiracy to defraud as part of an investigation into match-fixing around Christmas 2013.

Freeman was dismissed as manager in January 2014 with the team in the relegation places with Steve King replacing him. The Hawks reached the play-offs of the renamed National League in 2014-15, defeating Basingstoke Town before losing to Boreham Wood.

Whitehawk reached the first round of the FA Cup in 2015-16, defeating Lincoln City before going out in a home replay to Dagenham & Redbridge in a game shown on live TV by BT Sport.

A further application to change the club name to Brighton City was made in December 2015 before being withdrawn a few months later as cash continued to aid the team. Pablo Asensio took over from King, leading the team to the play-offs once again.

Ebbsfleet United ended any hopes of promotion before Asensio was replaced by Richard Hill after eight games of the 2016-17 campaign. The new man’s spell was short lived with Alan Payne and Paul Reid taking over as joint managers.

The appointment didn’t work out, leading to Andy Woodman arriving as boss as the side narrowly avoided relegation. Star player Sergio Torres departed along with the manager at the end of the campaign, with skipper Jimmy Dack taking over.

King returned for a second spell in charge in September 2017, but he couldn’t save Whitehawk from relegation back to the Isthmian League. The clubs’ youth manager Jude Macdonald took over team affairs.

The team continued their slump as they were relegated to Division One South East at the end of the 2018-19 season, as the board kept faith with Macdonald.

Whitehawk FC will play in Isthmian League Division One South East in the 2019-20 season.

My visits

Thursday 25^th September 2008

It was a lovely September early morning with Yorkshire playing Sussex on day two in the County Championship and looking in real bother with relegation a real possibility. I headed down to the coast and decided to have breakfast at the Wetherspoon outlet, The West Quay. It was a delight to sit and overlook the sea and put me in good form for the day.

My other reason for my choice of location was the chance to visit Whitehawk for some photos. The walk up to Wilsons Avenue was longer than I thought. The lane down to the ground was certainly a surprise, with the steep banking and pitches of East Brighton Park on one side and the hills of the South Downs on the other. Brighton Racecourse was at the top of the hill looking down on proceedings.

The gates to the ground were locked, so I continued past the camp and caravan site and eventually found a way in at the top end. The Enclosed Ground was a basic venue, with one stand containing seats in the middle, either side of the players tunnel, and standing flanking them.

The rest of the ground had a hard standing walkway around it. The side opposite the stand appeared to be out of bounds. The clubhouse was down in the far corner. The pitch sloped down to that end and again in the corner.

I made my way back and caught a bus to Hove, where David Wainwright and Adil Rashid performed a miraculous comeback batting for Yorkshire, eventually declaring on 400-9 after been 80-6 at one stage! The sun shone, I got a deckchair and the bar sold real ale from the wood.

It was a perfect day!

Whitehawk 3 Staines Town 3 (Tuesday 7^th January 2014) Conference South (att: 126)

The weather was so different to my previous visit to Whitehawk. My list of possible fixtures was diminishing one by one, so I had a decision to make. I’ve never shirked away from an opportunity of a ride down to Brighton, and with me having the week off work and Twitter confirming the match was definitely on, my mind was made up.

I took the train from West Hampstead and changed at Kings Cross for a fast service to the coast. The rain that was blighting the area had stopped and it wasn’t too cold. The evening’s entertainment got underway in the Evening Star near to Brighton station. 

The Hophead was excellent as ever, but steep at £3.30. The pub, while good, was heading up in the pretentious stakes; in my humble opinion anyway.

I decided to change scenery and take a bus down to the Marina. I was armed with my CAMRA Wetherspoons vouchers, offering me 50p off a pint of real ale. I considered this offer at £23 a year, with £20 returned in beer vouchers to be wonderful value, and I never tired of using the discounts!

However, there is a down side. The West Quay is a grand pub, but it was busy with shoppers and those down there for pre entertainment refreshments. There were not enough staff to deal with the hordes, so I left after just one pint to seek out the clubhouse at The Enclosed Ground instead.

The lane down to the ground was unlit, so I had to use the torch on my phone. The turnstiles seemed extremely narrow as I paid my very reasonable £10 entrance fee. Well either that or Christmas excess had caught up with me? 

I headed straight to the bar to read the reasonable £2 match programme. The bar had a selection of bottled real ale. I ordered a Snecklifter from the cheery barmaid, which cost £3.40.

A decent gathering of Staines fans had made the journey south to cheer on their side, making themselves heard all evening. A few minutes before kick off it was time to go outside to survey my surroundings.

The Enclosed Ground had received some poor reviews the previous season from visiting Isthmian League clubs as temporary seating was installed, but I wanted to see it properly for myself. Many a bitter fan over the years has been unfair after seeing their team defeated.

The original stand was now all seated, but still stood back from the pitch. There was hard standing nearer the pitch on either side out in the open. The far side was still banked and out of bounds to fans, but offered great potential in the future. 

Both ends had great semi temporary banks of seating previously used at Withdean Stadium, when Brighton & Hove Albion had been in residence. The clubhouse end had some covering over the centre, but the scaffolding holding up the roof restricted some views. The far end had a gap between the two sections. 

The structures had seen batter days, and the floorboards creaked badly in places. It did the job, but looked really strange. This added to the severe contortions and undulations of the pitch made it look like a venue that Picasso would have been proud to design.

The playing surface was OK, but it cut up at an early stage. The rain that began to fall after around thirty minutes added to the already slippy surface and added to the errors and excitement.

Whitehawk started the game in the relegation zone, but showing signs of recent good form. Indeed they started the evening in fine style against mid table Staines. The home side took charge in the first sixteen minutes as goals from Tommy Fraser and David Da Silva put them 2-0 up. 

It could and should have been more as the Staines defence looked in total disarray. The home fans were cheered on by half a dozen fanatics behind the goal open to the elements, including one blowing a hunting horn.

From the dry at the other end I saw big striker Louie Theophanous score with a fine finish after some good close control to reduce the arrears. This signaled the time for me to get some nourishment. I had intended to eat at the pub, but the queues were just too big. I settled for a bacon cheeseburger, which was nice but overpriced at £4.20 and a Bovril.

After taking photos up the far end I settled for a seat in the Main Stand near to a fella who looked very much like a coach or scout from another club. The game was a cracker for the neutral as Whitehawk continued to pour forward in search of sealing a vital three points. They continued to miss opportunities, while Staines gradually got into the game. Their boss Marcus Gayle made a couple of smart substitutions.

With ten minutes remaining Theophanous nipped in at the near post to finish a free kick to draw the teams level, to many groans from the home support. Me and the coach laughed and reflected how typical that it was if you continue to miss chances. The away fans really had something to celebrate a few minutes from full time as substitute Bajram Pashaj fired home, to complete a remarkable comeback.

My bus back for a fast train was due so I departed as the game headed into stoppage time. I missed the equaliser as Sam Gargan rescued a point for Whitehawk. Surely they would have still have been disappointed with just one point from a game that they generally dominated?

I climbed the hill past the East Brighton Park pitches and caught a bus that took me on a tour of the area and past the racecourse to bring back some happy memories before dropping me in the town centre. The rain was getting heavy as I got my train back to the capital after another fine evening out in a town I had a lot of time for.

Whitehawk 4 Hendon 1 (Saturday 26^th October 2019) FA Trophy Second Qualifying Round (att: 207)

You sometimes have days when you wonder why you bothered choosing your particular game. This was up there, yet things had started out well. I woke fresh and eager watching an incredible England rugby performance as they dominated New Zealand in the World Cup semi-final.

Fed nicely I headed to West Hampstead to take the direct train to Brighton. The weather was fine, and I was cheered by a couple of cock on pints of Hophead in the Evening Star; where service was excellent despite the growing crowds before the Brighton v Everton match.

With a one-day bus ticket obtained I boarded the number 7 bus to the Roedean Road stop before taking a brisk ten minute walk to the ground. Admission was £10. I was given a receipt which said Sussex County Cup v Pagham. The gent inside told me he’d programmed the machine wrongly!

Grabbing the £2 programme I joined the other fans in the clubhouse; with the usual suspects from NW9 in attendance. The bar was selling American Brown ale straight out of the barrel from the local Dark Star Brewery.

The “café” looked like a stall on Brighton seafront and sold similar wares. Some were moaning that their fried chicken was taking a long time, so I went for a hot dog, which was OK if a little on the expensive side.

I listened to the woes of those who’d travelled on the team coach. One of the windows had inexplicably fallen out as Pease Pottage services. It should have been a warning for what was to come.

I chatted to the chaps who’d talked me into making the journey after Hendon’s fine performance the previous Tuesday, when I was wavering and considering going elsewhere and ticking off a new ground. Their names were heavily pencilled into my memory!

With kick off approaching the rain started to fall heavily. We took up a position behind the goal under the leaking cover and next to the Whitehawk “Ultras” as the Dons were to play into the wind but down the slope in the first half.

I’d read all about the young vocal support on the Wealdstone forum. The Stones fans were not particularly keen, but I was well aware that they have moments of their own. It had got a bit nasty on a couple of occasions.

The whole ultra phenomenon was wearing a bit thin with me, if truth be told. Maybe it was an age thing, but it all seemed to have a feel of virtue signalling about it. I just want a game of football and to support my team rather than going all political and campaigning.

Sure, it’s fantastic to see increased gates and youngsters taking an interest in their local clubs, but there was something a bit sickly about it all. As I say, it’s probably an age thing. It was certainly the first time I’d seen a disco glitter ball hanging from a stand roof.

Hendon’s pressing and intense performance against Walton Casuals earlier in the week was soon a distant memory. The line up had changed owing to unavailability and looked hugely weak in midfield. The large undulating pitch and smart opponents would soon expose it.

The Hawks came close to open the scoring on four minutes when Connor Tighe latched onto the first of many defensive errors to set up John Paul Kissock whose shot was narrowly off target. It was a warning that the visitors failed to heed.

Henry Muggeridge was pulling the strings in midfield with skilful play. David Martin crossed low for Tighe who got in front of Kraig Noel-McLeod to steer his effort past keeper Chris Grace on seven minutes.

Hendon offered some attacking play, but all too often procrastinated and played as individuals rather than a unit. Muggeridge made his opposing and overstretched midfielders look leaden footed.

The hosts made it 2-0 on twenty minutes. Muggeridge was played in through the porous defence. Grace managed to block his effort on the edge of the box, with the rebound falling to Tighe who scored with a delightful lob into the empty net.

The mood among the away support was not good; and not particularly helped by the taunting by the posse to our right, who I described as the focus group led by Graham Norton’s Father Noel Furlong character on Father Ted.

Their brief chorus of “We hate Wealdstone” raised amusement. It wasn’t hard to understand how those polar opposite set of fans had disagreed in the past. We definitely needed something to smile about, as there was precious little fun on the pitch as an away fun.

Hendon continued to lose possession in attacking areas or over elaborate when getting a shot away in difficult conditions for goalkeepers would have been a shot would have been a far better option. To be fair Reece Mitchell went close with a bending effort.

Photo: Derek Beech

We retired to the bar at the break to try and warm up and work out what was happening on the pitch. At least the beer was decent. After the interval a hardy gathering went behind the open end with the wind and rain in our faces hoping to see a comeback.

Francis Amartey had a shot saved by Hawks keeper James Broadbent within a few minutes. Tighe came close to completing a hattrick when Grace made a good stop following a Muggeridge centre.

Hendon were definitely still in the tie, but they were stretched without the ball. Kissock was having a good game at the base of the hosts midfield, which offered additional help to his side. Whitehawk were simply set up better. Hendon’s shooting was all too often inaccurate.

With just over twenty minutes remaining the Dons had a guilt edged chance to get back into the tie. Amartey’s shot was pushed out by Broadbent to Connor Calcutt who took far too long to put away the chance and saw has effort smothered by a defender.

Whitehawk had a goal ruled out for offside shortly after when Muggeridge put in a delightful centre for the big substitute Duane Ofori-Acheampong to head in. The visitors went straight up the other end to reduce the arrears when Calcutt steered a cross home.

Photo: Derek Beech

We said that the next ten minutes were vital but didn’t have to wait that long before Hendon conceded a farcical goal. The referee awarded them a free kick in the right back position. Keeper Grace passed it to defender Luke Tingey in the area.

Whether he didn’t hear the whistle or just lost track of proceedings, only he’ll know. He stopped the rolling ball with his hand to take what he thought was the free kick. The man in black pointed to the spot where Martin made no mistake to make it 3-1.

That was about it as far as the Dons were concerned, as any remaining stuffing was knocked clean out of them. Eight minutes from the end Lewis Unwin saw his twenty five yard effort gather pace off the wet pitch and go past Grace to complete the rout.

It was a pasting looking at the scoreline, yet Hendon had more than enough chances to get a draw out of the game with better finishing; even if they did fly on the seat of their pants at times when the Hawks streamed forward. Make no mistake. The better team had won.

It was appreciated that a couple of players and a member of the coaching staff thanked us for our support and apologising before disappearing down the tunnel. I’d had enough and set off to find a bus back into town.

Even that wasn’t without incident as I eventually got back into the centre in a worse state than I left the ground. I was of a mind just to take the train straight back to the capital. However, I gathered myself and decided to find a nice warm pub.

The 3 Jolly Butchers wasn’t cheap, but the Hophead was good; as was the old punk and new wave background music. It must have been alright as I stayed for a second pint before heading back to the Evening Star for a swiftie before the train.

The journey allowed me some shut eye, so I was ready to go again on alighting. The Railway had a DJ playing 80’s and I inadvertently bumped into my niece Sally. The evening finished in JJ Moons in Kingsbury where I caught up with the tales from pals who’d been to other games.

I certainly rested well the following day!