WE'VE COME SO FAR

A LOOK BEHIND THE SCENES OF SUFFOLK CLUB LONG MELFORD

- David Bauckham

THEY MAY be second in the Eastern Counties League Premier division after an eight-match unbeaten run, but Long Melford manager Jamie Bradbury is refusing to get carried away.

“This time last year we were in the middle of a two month run without actually winning a game, and we got ourselves into a relegation battle because of it,” he says. “So we’re just trying to enjoy winning football matches as much as possible.”

Bradbury is right to remain cautious, after all it is unusual to find a club with a negative goal difference occupying such a lofty position.

“Stanway Rovers, who put nine past us have a lot to answer for,” he laughs. “They battered us, and we had as good a side as we could have put out that night. It was just one of those games when nothing went our way. But they were on fire and cruising. Thankfully we’ve put it behind us.”

Up until my visit for the game against Thetford Town last Saturday, Long Melford had not lost a league game since September 21, and have arguably been punching above their weight since winning promotion in 2015. A recent ground assessors’ visit identified a few minor issues, but grading would be the least of the problems to be faced if promotion became a possibility.

“We’d need to improve, and we just don’t have the finances to do it,” Bradbury admits.