AFC Whyteleafe, lingerie & a greedy Bulldog
Whyteleafe by name, leafy by nature. A drive down a long, wooded road in the pitch black of an early winter evening, passing horses and cottages made me question Google maps at least once. Until, through the trees, that most welcoming and warming sight, floodlights.
AFC Whyteleafe 2 - 3 Tooting Bec
27th September 2022
Church Road
Southern Counties East League Division One
Sometimes you just visit somewhere, and it feels right. This is one of those rare places. A wonderful little clubhouse straight from a bygone era, frequented by people who have seen it all in Non-league. The future of Whyteleafe, being nurtured on the 4G pitch adjacent. A warm welcome happily received, and into this historic, and strange ground. The peculiar and brutalist, Tony Lidbury Stand greets you first, with an imposing terrace high above a goal to one side, and a DIY stand behind the over, proudly adorned by LEAFE.
One for the ever popular Non League Dogs account, the most popular boy on the terraces this evening, was a very large bulldog. His handler tells me he is not allowed cheese or onions, but he happily waited for, and then devoured patiently, his burger, a quarter pounder no less! It seems he has been here before. As the players walk out, my rotund friend is finishing off his dinner to Welcome to the Jungle blaring out of the PA, seems apt.
AFC Whyteleafe rose from the ashes of Whytleleafe FC, who dissolved due to controversy over the lease of the stadium, which murkily involves Irama, Ian Rush and property practices that are far too litigious for this page. Having already formed a team, guided by the hand of chairman and manager Kelly Walters, the club were initially placed in a lower division, but for the start of 2022/23, they earned a place at Step 6, where they find the opponents tonight, Tooting Bec.
A relatively tentative opening salvo, with the exception of the Tooting Saint-Maximin getting nutmegged by the AFC left back, allowed the mind to wander. One of the joys of football at this level, is the connection to the community, and independent companies sponsoring the hoardings around the ground. In amongst local tradespeople and concrete firms, are the ubiquitous pants peddlers, Ann Summers! Just how did a lingerie giant end up sponsoring AFC Whyteleafe? As the pondering goes on, Whyteleafe score, a well worked tap in and its the 5th goal of the season for Temi Alaka. As half time arrives, it's been a counter attacking masterclass from the home side, there is more esoteric music choices as the pilgrimage to the clubhouse commences.
The second half, and temperatures fall, but not the spirits of the 236 devoted fans. The game twists and turns, Tooting equalise with a carbon copy of the Leafe goal. Game on. What a wonderful reply as the number 14, Gus Ward, did some incredible work with a Bale esque run down the left, cut across for a calm finish, from Nile Waite, clinical. The least deserved for the scintillating football.
Before you can even catch your breath, it's 2-2, against the run of play, and the home fans are urging Leafe to grab the winner, and I actually found myself swept up, even as a complete neutral. Chance after chance comes and goes, until heartbreak for Leafe, a glorious counter attack cuts through their backline and Tooting grab the winner. Glorious failure.
As the PA announcer said before kickoff, "Welcome to Church Road, proper football isn't it?" I will be back to find out what makes this club so special. A genuine feeling of joy being here, cannot quite put my finger on it. A club reborn? Phoenix spirit? It's AFC Whyteleafe.
