The 2015-2016 new season preview from guest blogger, Roger Butcher

The messing about is over. The pre-season, with its usual mixed set of results is behind us. The manager’s preparations are complete. Hopefully. The football season is about to start!

For a lot of football fans, August 8th can’t come quick enough. With no World Cup or European Championships, it’s been a long summer. Plenty of time for the expectations to build up to unrealistic levels. Optimism is through the roof. After all, if you can’t be optimistic about your team on day 1, when can you be?

In Tooting’s case, we start the new season with a brand new management team – Frank Wilson and Mark Hams. Wilson will be the manager, while Hams takes the role of assistant manager/head coach, although I get the impression that, in reality, it might be more of an equal partnership. For Frank Wilson, this is his first managerial post at this level. He has enjoyed coaching success at university level, and had a short spell a manager of our reserve team a couple of seasons ago.
 

Mark Hams on the other hand, has more Ryman League experience, having held a variety of managerial roles of the last decade or so. He has also played for a number of local clubs including a short spell at Tooting & Mitcham about 10 years ago.

Expectations for the new season? Well, I’m sure that the new management team will be targeting promotion, but it is very difficult for a brand new manager to come in and make an impact straight away. We won’t start as favourites with the bookies, but if we get off to a good start, then who knows!

In their favour is that they have managed to retain a number of players from last season, which is not always the case when a new man comes in. Along with last season’s top scorer, Dan Summers, they have kept fellow striker Sol Pinnock and midfield workhorse Billy Marshall. Also returning is Harry Knock, who was skipper of the side as we picked up a pre season trophy at a tournament at Corinthian Casuals.
 

We kick off the league programme on 8th August with a visit to East Grinstead, who only just avoided relegation last season, so we will be hopeful of getting off to a good start and bringing home the 3 points!

Upcoming Games:

• Corinthian Casuals, Tue 11th August, 7:45pm kick off
• Walton Casuals, Sat 15th August, 3pm kick off
• Carshalton Athletic, Tue 25th August, 7:45pm kick off

Come along – the 280 bus stops just outside the ground!

Keep up to date with the goings on at www.tmu-fc.co.uk.