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Match reporter JulesWill the real Wimbledon please stand up!
AFC Wimbledon 5 Raynes Park Vale 1
Report by Julian Booth

It was a gloriously sunny bank holiday Monday in south London, and they came out in style to make this local Merton derby a complete sellout. I decided to boycott the Franchise game at Selhurst Park the previous day, as did many other of my fellow London Clarets… NICE ONE!

I arrived at Norbiton station, and started to walk towards the ground. You were in no doubt which way to go, as there were hundreds of fans streaming in the same direction. I went with a good friend who dragged himself from his relegation bed to come to the game - his team had suffered an untimely demise at Blundell Park the previous day. There was almost a carnival feeling about the place, and all of the supporters just looked glad to be out and able to cheer on their team in their town.

No one wants their team to be relocated 70 miles away. Can you imagine what would happen if that happened to Burnley? I only hope we would have the organisation and dedication shown by the ultra loyal Wimbledon fans.

Our first welcome to Wimbledon came even before we reached the ground, and so did an invite to come and join the Womble fans for a pint in the club bar prior to the kick-off. The reception we got was amazing - very warm and friendly, and a genuine feeling people were glad to see fellow supporters backing their campaign. A lot of fans were interested whether I had been to watch Franchise, and delighted to hear I hadn’t bothered. I was told that all the Wimbledon fans really did appreciate the support from all, and found Burnley one of their staunchest supporters.

The whole atmosphere around the area was incredible. You feel this is a club starting at the bottom, but it's going places, and won’t be at the basement for long. There were lots of other clubs' supporters in attendance. To list a few, I saw Northampton Town, Norwich City, Watford, Brighton and Brentford. The impression is of a very organised club with an infrastructure that has been put together in double-quick time, but that is solid and going to be around for a long while. The buying of the Kingsmeadow stadium from Kingstonian will give them a base for what could be a meteoric rise up the leagues. The first season has been beyond belief for the Wimbledon fans - to finish third in the league (with an amazing 111 points) has to be seen as just the start that was needed, and one that will encourage all these loyal fans to return for more.

Once inside the packed stadium, the welcome continued as a few Wimbledon fans started to sing “Come on Burnley”. Nice one, boys! The family atmosphere of the friendly club is infectious, and we felt part of it straightaway. The once famous crazy gang spirit is alive and well in this small corner of London.

We stood amongst the excitable Wimbledon fans on the terracing on this baking hot spring day; the perfect setting for a thumping win in the Merton derby. The first and most important person to be introduced was the mascot. "Are you mad?" I hear you cry: but no, I’m not. The club had won the right from Franchise to keep the Womble as their mascot. An important win in the battle to keep football in Merton.

The goals started early, with Kevin Cooper controlling a lob into the box only to have his high-class turn halted by a crude challenge from an opposition defender. He coolly slotted away the resultant spot-kick to score his 40th goal of the season. All 40 have been with his feet, and he was no nearer the £1200 accumulated from sponsors if he could only score a goal with his head.

It took Raynes Park only one minute to find an equaliser - and what a strike it was. It came from a swift move ending in a stunning shot into the top corner from number 9, Neil Wickes. The strike was applauded by the sporting home fans that acknowledged the quality of this superb goal.

The goal was somewhat against the run of play, and normality was soon restored with two goals in five first-half minutes from centre half Danny “are you okay” Oakins. Both goals came from corners, and were easy for Oakins as the marking was non-existent. It reminded me of another charitable defence that I had witnessed a few times this season.

It was when he scored his first goal I realised that each player seems to have their own goal-scoring anthem. Oakins’ tune was sung by all the supporters around us to the tune of “Smooth Criminal” by Michael Jackson.

The match was a real derby, with Raynes Park Vale putting in a valiant performance, but at times they were really hanging on. They did show some skill, and you could see why they were quite high up the league, actually finishing in fourth place.

The teams went off at half-time with the Wombles 3-1 up, and fully deserving the rapturous applause from the massed home support. During the interval there was a parade of previous Wimbledon stars from their non-league glory days of the FA Vase win in 1963-ish, I think it was. I missed that bit, as I was eating my delicious burger (or was it a piece of carpet in a bread roll? I’m not sure).

There were also members of the team that got into the league for the first time, including Dickie Guy (remember the Cup defeat and his one-man goalkeeping show? I don’t - too young!). There were also some more familiar names from the 1988 Cup-winning side, like Dave Beasant, Robbie Earle and Terry Gibson.

The match was finished off in the second half with a 20-yard free kick from Robson that flew through the goalkeeper's hands with the style and grace of a Nik the Greek cock-up. The last goal came from Cooper again, as he skillfully lobbed the keeper from the edge of the area to round off a thoroughly comprehensive display by the home side. This was the second time in a matter of weeks that Wimbledon had hit Raynes Park Vale for five; the opposition won’t want to come back to Kingsmeadow in a hurry next season.

This was a totally brilliant day out, and I wish to thank all the Wimbledon supporters that I talked to for making me feel so welcome. This is a club with true feeling, and one that sees the supporters as an integral part of the structure. A lot of league sides could learn from Wimbledon, and if only the atmosphere could be reproduced at every game, football would be a lot richer for it. I wish them the best of luck in their mission to eventually regain league status, and one day watch as Franchise go tumbling back down the leagues.


AFC Wimbledon: 1. Ray Merry, 2. Keith Ward, 3. Neil Robson, 4. Danny Oakins, 5. Matt Everard, 6. Lee Sidwell (Lee Passmore, 54), 7. Noel Frankum (Mark Nicholas, 87), 8. Gavin Bolger, 9. Joe Sheerin (Ally Russell, 65), 10. Kevin Cooper, 11. Andy Sullivan.

Raynes Park Vale: 1. Ed Cornwall, 2. Mike Schofield, 3. Doug Morrow, 4. Lee Cox, 5. Auvil Fyffe (John Wheatley, 73), 6. Joe Victor (Paul Jordan, 60), 7. Graham Morrow, 8. Ashley Martin (Marc Skinner, 60), 9. Neil Wickes, 10. Darren Dobinson, 11. Stefan Perkins.

Scorers: (AFC Wimbledon) Cooper 7 (pen) and 87; Oakins 21 and 34; Robson 53 / (Raynes Park Vale) Wickes 8.

Attendance: 4,560.

"As with all articles on the site, the views expressed in the match reports section are those of the individual contributor, and do not necessarily reflect the view of the Burnley FC London Supporters Club."

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