Bromley FC, from the leafiest reaches of South East London, is on something of an all-time high. We went down to check it out.
Town meets country in the London Borough of Bromley. The former Kent market town has long been absorbed by ruthless London expansionism but retains plenty of green spaces despite the encroachment of 1930s housing estates and the incarcerating strangle of the M25. Suburbia or bust.
Bromley’s gifts to the world are many and understated: HG Wells, Charles Darwin, Enid Blyton, David Bowie from Beckenham, Emma Raducanu, punk music, TV chef Gary Rhodes.
It’s also here that I spent the first five years of my life, so with Bromley FC flying high in the Vanarama Conference, a few places away from the Football League, I figured it was high time I popped down to Hayes Lane.
Bromley FC’s ground is a 20-minute walk from Bromley South overland, so by the time you get there you’re ready for a drink. Fortunately, there are two bars ready to quench your thirst.
Hayes Lane itself is a tidy and charming, old-fashioned ground, with concrete stands on three sides and a seated grandstand. It reminds me of a lower league ground in Europe – which is not a derogatory analogy; these charming, no-frills grounds remind me of football as it was and is the reason many of us flock to lower league football.
Hayes Lane’s capacity is 6,000, more than former La Liga side Eibar’s stadium.
Former Football League member and Conference high-flyers Cheltenham Town were the visitors on a chilly but clear October night, with all the meaningful action packed into the final 15 minutes.
The visitors bundled in a rebound on 78 minutes, only for Bromley to claim – and score – a penalty with two minutes of normal time to go. Just when the home fans thought they had snatched a point, it was cruelly stolen from them in injury time with a fine strike from Cheltenham sub Asa Hall. It finished Bromley FC 1-2 Cheltenham Town.
Hayes Lane is just off the A21 or a 20-minute walk from Bromley South overland station.
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