CAFC vs Cray Wanderers – Preview
Carshalton Athletic welcome Cray Wanderers to Colston Avenue on Saturday in the Isthmian Premier Division.
Robins Review
Peter Adeniyi’s side returned to winning ways on Saturday after Luke Read’s stab home earned the Robins a hard fought 1-0 victory over a tough Cheshunt side. Carshalton currently languish seventh in the Isthmian Premier on 55 points, level with Hashtag and Chichester City, and five behind Dover Athletic, who occupy the final play-off spot. With eight games remaining of the 2024-25 campaign, there will be hopes that the lads can carry forward the momentum from Saturday into the weekend against Cray Wanderers.
Cray Wanderers
Cray Wanderers ran out 3-1 winners against Canvey Island on Saturday after former Robin Soul Kader bagged a sixth goal in five games. The club currently sit in ninth place in the Isthmian Premier Division, with 51 points from the maximum 34 games played. While they are just four points behind the Robins and Chichester City, the Wands must also be cautious of Chatham Town, who have a game in hand and are looking to close the three-point gap.
The 2024-25 campaign got off to a rocky start for Cray. Despite an opening 2-0 win over Hashtag United, the Wands went on a four-match losing streak, suffering defeats to Cray Valley PM, Hendon, Lewes, and Dulwich Hamlet. However, the team found a spark in the FA Cup First Qualifying Round, where they thrashed Larkfield & New Hythe 8-0 in a replay. This victory seemed to boost their confidence, although a subsequent goalless draw with Horsham in the league brought them back to earth.
Despite struggling to replicate their cup form in the Isthmian Premier, Cray managed to beat Wingate & Finchley 1-0 in the FA Cup Second Qualifying Round. More cup victories followed, including a win over Chatham Town in the Kent Cup First Round and Hastings United in the FA Cup Third Qualifying Round. However, league performances continued to falter, with a disappointing 3-1 defeat to Bognor Regis Town marking another setback.
The club’s cup run eventually came to an end, with Cray losing 4-3 on penalties to Brentwood Town in the FA Trophy Third Qualifying Round and a 1-0 defeat to Tonbridge Wells in the FA Cup Fourth Qualifying Round. A crushing 4-1 loss to Chatham Town and consecutive goalless draws against Hastings and Whitehawk extended their winless league run to nine games.
Things began to improve at the end of the month, with a vital 1-0 win over Cheshunt. This result sparked a better run of form, with two convincing victories against Hashtag United (3-0) and Potters Bar Town (4-0). By mid-November, the Wands had exchanged their cup form for a more consistent league run, securing three 1-0 wins over Bowers & Pitsea, Chichester City, and Dover Athletic, the latter a crucial result.
However, the tough times returned with losses to Billericay and a narrow Boxing Day defeat to Dartford. The new year brought a turnaround, with Cray securing four consecutive wins, three 1-0 victories, against Hendon, Dulwich Hamlet, and Potters Bar Town, followed by a 2-1 win over Hastings United in mid-January. Unfortunately, the Wands ended January with two losses to Whitehawk (2-0) and Wingate & Finchley (1-0).
Since February, Cray has regained confidence, with three important wins over Chatham, Cheshunt, and Folkestone Invicta, a draw with Bognor Regis, and a narrow 2-1 loss to Canvey Island. The team will look to build on this momentum as they push for a strong finish to the season.
Likely line-ups
Carshalton Athletic
Foley, Sankoh, Atewologun, Read, Shonibare, Saraiva, Frimpong, Dada, Ifeanyi, Smith, Babajide
Cray Wanderers
Rowley, Orji, Dowrich, Sutton, Taylor, Adaja, Raymond ©, Kader, Williams, Clunis, Ebuzoeme
Team news
Carshalton Athletic
Nathan Paul-Lavaly has returned to parent club Bromley, while Darnell Goather-Braithewaite was absent from proceedings on Saturday.
Cray Wanderers
Cray Wanderers have named an unchanged starting XI for two consecutive weeks, with midfielder Frankie Raymond’s red card being rescinded, making him eligible to play in the 2-1 defeat to Chichester City.
Pre-match analysis
The club boasts one of the strongest defences in the Isthmian Premier, ranking fifth for fewest goals conceded with 37. However, their struggles in attack have been evident, having scored just 38 goals—only Hastings United and bottom-placed Bowers & Pitsea have scored fewer.
Key Player
Soul Kader will be a familiar name to Robins fans, having spent a few weeks on loan from League Two Bromley with Peter Adeniyi’s side at the turn of the year. However, Kader left Colston and moved to Cray after struggling to secure a starting spot, largely due to the impressive form of David Smith. Since joining the Wands, Kader has been in scintillating form, scoring six goals in just five games, including a brace in the thrilling 3-2 win over Folkestone Invicta, and netting in Saturday’s 3-1 over Canvey Island.
The Gaffer
Cray Wanderers announced on 22nd March, 2022, the appointment of Neil Smith as manager. Neil came in for the remaining six games of the season and helped to stave off relegation, and from that helped build a much more successful 2022-23 season which saw Cray finish in their highest ever league position of 5th, most points and goals in an Isthmian Premier season. After a difficult start to last season Neil managed to guide the Wands away from relegation to help the club start life at Flamingo Park in the Isthmian Premier.
Neil had a distinguished Football League and Non-League career as a player and coach and later as a manager.
He started out in the Tottenham Hotspur youth system and was signed as an apprentice in 1990 but never got a chance to play so initially went on loan to Gillingham in 1991 and remained there for six years making over 200 appearances for the Medway club. He moved on to Fulham in 1997 for two seasons and scored against Tottenham in the FA Cup. In 1999 he moved to Reading and all three Football League clubs he gained promotion as a player.
He had a short spell at Stevenage Borough and then on to Woking in 2002 for five seasons and became interim manager for a spell. He continued in player management at Welling United and after short spells as a player at Bromley and Maidstone United he called time on his playing career.
He went into coaching at Grays Athletic, Croydon Athletic and Lewes and then to Bromley in 2011 and was Assistant Manager when Bromley won the National South title in 2014-15. He became first team manager in 2016 and established Bromley as a credible National League force and took them to the FA Trophy final at Wembley in 2017-18. He remained at Bromley until March 2021, until his departure from the club, but has taken on a new challenge at Cray Wanderers with gusto where he helped introduce a new Academy side and the prospect of the new stadium at Flamingo Park.
(Source: Cray Wanderers)
Match Details
Date: Saturday, March 15, 2025
Venue: Colston Avenue
Kick-off: 03:00 PM
Admission: Admission: £11, £8, £5 (online prices) on the gate is a pound dearer.
Tickets: https://form.123formbuilder.com/566
