Welcome This is the first issue of Out of the Blue. Out of the Blue is the Wingate &

Finchley fanzine made by fans and for fans. It is made by the BlueArmyUltras

and each copy is released monthly. In each copy we interview players and

other notable people to the club, discuss about what’s happening at the

Maurice Rebak and also talk about other news related to the club and ultras.

Editors summary: This month has been full of change. Firstly, our manager

Keith Rowland and his assistant Ritchie Graham have left because of our

team’s poor form. Secondly, we played Northwood in the Middlesex Charity

cup where the former U23 manager Dean Barker now manages and many of

our players from last season play for him. Also former England player Nicky

Shorey has been appointed manager and Glen Little has been assisted as his

assistant.

Form: Our form this season (correct to 14th October) has been quite poor. In

10 games we had 3 wins, 2 draws and 5 losses. We have had some good

performances so far and also made Tonbridge concede their first goal of the

season at matchday 6. We had then win two games in a row and even won

the game against Cockfosters 6-1 with two goals and two assists from

wonderkid Brandon McKenna. Every season is different and we all wonder

what is to come from the rest of the 2018/19 season.

YouTube: We have a Youtube channel called “BlueArmyUltras TV”. It has

some videos of us and also some compilations of our players. It will also

feature a Football Manager 2019 save of Wingate & Finchley once the full

version of the game comes out. This, we assume, will be interesting content

and is also intresting to see how the club changes in-game through each

division.

Management

In the last week, we’ve had a change of management. Keith Rowland and

Ritchie Graham departed us after around 3 years at the club. He made us

finish 5th two seasons ago and also improved the club’s stature. We’re

thankful of what Keith and Ritchie have done with the club.

Nicky Shorey is now in charge of the Blues and Glen Little is his assistant.

Nicky Shorey in his old Aston Villa days

The first game he has managed was Wingate vs Leatherhead on the 13th

October. He has played many games at Championship and Premier League

level and even played 14 games in the Indian Superleague for Pune City. He

played twice for England and made his debut at the first England game at

the new Wembley Stadium. He has had non-league playing experience with

Hungerford Town in the National League South.

We have also brought in Glen Little as our assistant manager. Both Nicky and

Glen played alongside each other at Reading. Glen Little has also played

alongside Sean Cronin and Lewis Putman at Wealdstone, where they won

the Isthmian League, and also together when Cronin was loaned out at

Grays Athletic.

Glen Little playing for Reading.

Glen Little, who is also a former Premier League player, also has non-league

experience. He has played for Wrexham, Wealdstone, Heybridge Swifts,

Grays and Welling. We wish the best of luck to both Glen and Nicky for their

time at Wingate and also their future managerial career!

Awaydays Guide

Saturday 3rd November- Potters Bar Town F.C 3pm

Potters Bar is one of the closer teams to Finchley. They’ve just been promoted

from the Bostik North by finishing as runners up. Their stadium is called

Parkfield and it fits 2,000 and 150 of which are seated. This is the first A100

derby that has been played for some time.

Road Directions: The postcode is EN6 1QB and it’s located on Watkins Rise.

From Finchley, it is a simple drive up the A1000. Turn left at The Walk (The first

left after the Mutton Lane traffic lights). Turn down the first right and the

ground will be there. From the M25, get off at J24 and drive on the

A111(towards Potters Bar) and turn right at the traffic lights. Turn the first left

and then the first right.

By Public Transport: Take the 263 bus from Granville Rd High Rd bust stop N.

Get off at Underhill and take the 84 bus (which Oyster Cards are NOT valid

for) until Cask and Stillage PH. Walk towards The Walk. Turn left and then turn

the first right. Alternatively, you can get a train to Potters Bar train station, walk

down The Walk and then turn left to Watkins Rise.

*We advise that you check Google Maps and / or your Sat-Nav for directions.

Admission: £12 Adults, £8 concession and £1 U16

Tuesday 13th November- Brightlingsea Regent FC

7:45pm

Brightlingsea Regent is the furthest trip up north this season. They finished 20th last

season and also have the smallest ground capacity (1,000) in the league. Their

stadium is called North Road.

Club Coach: We do not have a definite answer if there is a coach running to

Brightlingsea but we think it’s quite probable. Email paul@wingatefinchley.com to

book a space on the coach. The coach would most likely leave at about 3pm –

4pm but email for more accurate details.

Road Directions: We recommend you to either take the coach or drive because

Public Transport will be a bit of a pain. Drive on the A12. Get of the junction with the

A120. Turn off at the junction with the A133. Take the 2nd exit at the roundabout and

turn left at Frating. In Brightlingsea, turn left down Ladysmith Ave and turn left down

North Road.

Public Transport: Take the Underground to Liverpool Street Station. Get the 5:08pm

train to Clacton and get off at Alresford. Walk to The Pointer bus stop and get the 62

bus to Brightlingsea. Get off at Victoria Place and walk to the stadium.

Saturday 17th November- Bognor Regis 3pm

Bognor Regis is an idyllic place to watch football. It is a coastal resort of the

English South Coast and also the football team was relegated from the

National League South last season. Last time we played at Nyewood Lane,

we were knocked out by a last minute goal in the playoffs semi-final. The

stadium fits 4,500 and 350 of which is seated.

Club Coach: We do not have a definite answer if there is a coach running to

Bognor Regis but it’s extremely likely that it is. Email

paul@wingatefinchley.com to book a space on the coach. The coach would

most likely leave at about 9.30 – 11:00am but email for more accurate details.

Road Directions: Take the M25 to J10. Take the A3 then A3(M) to the last exit

where you turn to the A27 eastbound. At the 3rd roundabout take the third

exit (B2145) and then take the 1st exit at the next roundabout (B2166). Turn left

onto Lower Bognor Rd. At the 2nd roundabout take the first exit and after you

pass Bognor Cricket club turn right down Nyewood Lane.

Public Transport: Take the Underground to Victoria Station. Get the train to

Bognor Regis station and then walk (*Check on Google Maps) to the stadium

which will take 14 minutes.

Admission: £12 Adults, £10 O65, £5 U18. It is £1 extra to get a seated ticket.

Wingate Quiz 1. What team does Nicky Shorey support?

2. How many years does Reece Beckles’ new contract last for?

3. What team’s resignation reprived Wingate of relegation? 4. What Conference team tried to buy Claudiu Vilcu but the transfer fell

through due to work-permit complications?

5. Where do the white seats on our main stand come from?

Guess the player

Credit to Martin Addison for the photo

Why we support

Wingate!

Supporting a local non-league club requires a special-breed of people.

People who are dedicated to supporting their club rather than someone who

sits at home, watches the TV and changes who they support twice a year.

We support our local club because it represents where you live. It is also

affordable for many compared to £75 Premier League tickets. Also it doesn’t

have that cleansed feel compared to the Premier League and some

Championship games and there is a real tight-knit close community spirit. You

can stand up all game and support your club. Also every stadium is unique

and some are completely different than others. You know everyone in the

stadium, the fans, the players and the volunteers.

Interview with

Brandon McKenna

In this edition of Out of the Blue, we interview the young attacking midfielder

Brandon McKenna. He broke into Wingate’s 1st team earlier this season after

playing well for Enfield Borough. He made his debut in the 2-1 win in the

Velocity Trophy (League Cup) over Mildenhall Town back in September. He

scored two goals and assisted two more against Cockfosters this season.

Brandon during a 1 on 1 with Cockfoster’s keeper (Credit to Martin Addison for the photo)

We first asked him what it feels like to play for Wingate especially with the

new management. He told us “It’s an honour to play for Wingate, to be given

an opportunity at my young age is a testament to what the club is about and

how they promote the youth. I thank Keith & Ritchie for what they’ve done

for me and I’m sure Wingate will be eternally grateful to what they have

done for the club. The new management have come in, given us

confidence, and told us to play football which we’re all comfortable doing.

Having won 4 and lost 1, I’d say it’s been a great start to their managerial

careers.”

We then asked Brandon about the differences between the quality and

professionalism of Wingate and Enfield Borough, which he told us “I think

wherever you go and play men’s football, it’s going to be tough and is going

to throw obstacles your way. The most noticeable difference is probably how

much more tactical it is and how teams manage games. For example, in

Enfield Borough’s league if a team goes 1-0 down it can all fall apart but you

don’t really see that at this level. The quality speaks for itself, you’ve got

former pros all across the league, current loanees that are with professional

clubs & players that are undoubtedly on their way up, so as I said to be 18

playing in this league is massive for me and I hope to get many more minutes

and learn as I continue to play.”

We asked Brandon about what hard obstacles he has overcame so far in his

career. He told us “Mentally, it’s been tough for me to stay positive. I haven’t

always been the best or had talent but have had to work hard when people

are telling me I can’t do things. As an u16 I was at AFC Wimbledon & never

got offered a scholar right before GCSEs so that was definitely a tough period

and took me a while to overcome, last season was when I picked it up

properly again but midway through tore my ligaments on my foot & was out

for around 2 and a half months. But I don’t believe obstacles can stop you, if

you work harder & harder there’s no reason why you can’t use a setback to

make you a better player and most importantly a better person.”

We finally asked him if he thinks being surrounded with experienced players

has helped you become a better footballer. Brandon told us “Yeah definitely,

there’s always things to learn and pick up off the more experienced lads. If

you come across something in your career, chances are they’ve been there

and done that. The boys are a class bunch and are always there for you to

speak to.”

We thank Brandon for the interview with us and wish him the best of luck for

him and his career.

The Brotherhood

Mytilene, Greece

Aiolikos are from the Greek island of Lesbos. They play in the Mytilene

Municipal stadium and compete in Group 7 of the Γ΄ Εθνική (Gamma Ethniki)

where they were 5th last season, which is the third division of Greece.

History: They were founded in 1975 after the merger of Atlantis and Apollon

Mytiline and the name Aiolikos was inspired by the Aeolians who were a

Greek tribe in ancient Greece. In 1976 they started to compete in the Lesbos

group of the Δ΄ Εθνική (Delta Ethniki), which is the 4th division. They won

promotion to the Γ΄ Εθνική in 1978.

In the 1980s, Aiolikos were becoming a stronger side and were climbing up

the table. In 1982 they were promoted to the B΄ Εθνική (Beta Ethniki, now

called Football League Greece), the 2nd division and by 1985 were close to

promotion to the A΄ Εθνική (Alfa Ethniki, now called Super League), the top

division in Greece. From there, the team started to drop back down to the 3rd

Division. In 13/14 the club went back up to the Γ΄ Εθνική.

The team started to have economic issues and in 2000 the team dropped

down to the D΄ Εθνική again. In 2005 they got promoted again but this was

short-lived as in December 2008, the club had unsolvable economic issues so

pulled out of the league and had to play the next season in the 4th Division.

Honours: Γ΄ Εθνική x1

D΄ Εθνική / Lesbos FCA Championship x8

Greek Amateur Cup x2

Lesbos FCA Cup x17

Other information: Their stadium is called “Mytilene Municipal Stadium” and it

fits 3,000. They get around 300 fans a game. They have a decent academy

and have made top division footballers like Praxitelis Vouros (APOEL and

former Olympiakos) and Georgios Manousos (Atromitos)

Praxitelis Vouros playing for APOEL vs Real Madrid in the UCL

Their biggest rival was AEL Kalloni, who used to groundshare with Aiolikos.

They were a smaller team than Aiolikos before their 2011/12 appearance in

Football League Greece and then from 2013-2016 were playing in the Greek

Superleague. They were relegated and then the next season in Football

League Greece finished 16th out of 18th and had a 2-point reduction. They

were bankrupted at the end of the 16/17 season. Aiolikos now don’t have a

single rival but every season, the Lesbos FCA Championship winner gets

promoted to the 3rd Division.

The Ultras and their Brotherhood with us: Their ultras group is called Gate 3.

We first started communications with them in June 2018 and Aiolikos

recognised our brotherhood with Gate 3 in July 2018.

Aiolikos fans away at AO Loutraki in the 2016/17 season

All of their away trips are overseas. They are on the mainland except for two

in Santorini. They always take a hardy, passionate group of fans to every

away game.

Gate 3 at home to Aittitos Spata in the 2017/18 season

We hope to do an article in every fanzine about Aiolikos and their latest

news. Also a number of their games are streamed on YouTube and they play

mainly on Sundays.

Match Report:

Dorking Wanderers

On Saturday 20th November we faced Dorking Wanderers away. Dorking is

situated in the Mole Valley area of Sussex. The journey to the ground took

about 1 hours and 45 minutes and was going through South-West London.

The stadium was a nice stadium. It had an average main-stand, a modern

set of offices and a restaurant, two terraces and also an electronic

scoreboard.

The scoreboard and dugouts. Also Box Hill towers over the stadium

I had a cheeseburger (£3.50) and fries (£2.00). The cheeseburger was just your

average football cheeseburger and was 6/10. The fries had a good portion

and also had a nice crisp to it and I rated it 8/10.

The game ended 3-0 to Dorking who showed their superiority over Wingate in

the 2nd half. The 1st half went well in Wingate’s perspective as we had many

chances on target. Defensively, we were strong and Shane Gore only needed

to save the ball once in the 1st half. We also should’ve had a penalty when

Slavomir Huk uncleanly collided into Rob Laney.

The 2nd half went poorly. We lacked passion on the pitch and conceded 2

goals in about 40 seconds. There were barely any Wingate shocks on target

and many failed attempts. Jason Prior scored Dorking’s 3rd goal which

everyone in the Wingate end was confused about as it looked like the ball

went over the top corner of the net but a Dorking fan later told is it went under

the bottom of the goal and then went up.

The game had a poor atmosphere. The attendance was 429 and even though

it did sound like that when everyone was clapping, there was no chants and

the atmosphere was one of the worst atmospheres in the division. There were

also some children who were screaming and riding on a trolley all match. I did

have to respect Dorking Wanderers for getting that fanbase in a town of 11,000

As a whole it was a decent day out but nowhere as good as others but also

far from being the worst.

Thank you for reading the 1st edition of Out of the Blue. It would be heavily

appreciated if you give feedback and also more ideas for future editions. We

would upload each edition at the end of the month before or the start of the

month.