Match Preview: The Bridge v Sawbridgeworth Town
As November begins, it’s back to League action as we host 19th-placed Sawbridgeworth Town. Sawbo are having a tough season back in the ESL, winning just two of their 14 matches. As we know, The Bridge are struggling a bit too so it’s a good opportunity for one of these sides to grab a much-needed three points and, after Tuesday night, The Bridge confidence should be high.

Sawbo have 8 points from those 14 matches, 2 wins, 2 draws, and 10 defeats, scoring 21 and conceding 44 for a massive -23 GD. From their 6 away matches, they have won 1, drawn 1, and lost 4 with 8 for and 19 against for a -11 GD.

Sawbridgeworth Town – season 24/25 – The Last Six
(most recent results first)
Sawbridgeworth Town 2 Halstead Town 5
A devastating home defeat for The Robins as Halstead were just above them in the ESL table. Sawbo got off to a good start with a Keiran David goal after 3 minutes before going 2-1 down and then drawing level through Jehovany Kinzonzi right on half-time. The visitors had the better of the second half and ran out 5-2 winners.

Buckhurst Hill 3 Sawbridgeworth Town 3
A very decent point at Myrak Park for The Robins who were 2-0 down before Kieran David found the net on 50 minutes, only to go 3-1 down in the 85th minute. That looked like it was it but Elijah Mambombe scored on 93 and then David scored his second on 98 to rescue the point.

Benfleet 2 Sawbridgeworth Town 3
Sawbo upset the odds at Benfleet with this away victory as Benfleet are not helped by an 85th-minute red card for goalkeeper Florent Gislette. Daniel Sayer put The Robins ahead early on before Benfleet drew level. Two goals in two minutes from Austen Garrod and Kieran David (68 & 69) put the visitors 3-1 up and Benfleet got one back in the 71st minute but couldn’t save the game.

Sawbridgeworth Town 2 Athletic Newham 4
Newham take the points in a high-scoring encounter with three goals just before and after half-time. Alex Kozak from the spot put them ahead and Hassan Saleh Togba and Victor Ferrini got the other two before Elijah Mambombe got one back for Sawbo. Leonardo Luis De Carvalho Pedro then made it 4-1 before Joshua Fox got a 76th-minute consolation.

Saffron Walden Town 4 Sawbridgeworth Town 1
SWT win the local derby with ex-Bridge players on the scoresheet. Charlie Morris gives SWT the lead before Jaydon Charles makes it one each. Charlie gets his and SWT’s second and Solomon Ofori bags the fourth. In between Tom Head who is not previously Hullbridge (at least, not that I know of!) gets the 3rd SWT goal.

Sawbridgeworth Town 1 Great Wakering Rovers 2
Bradleigh Rowland gives GWR the lead before that man Kieran David equalises in the 64th minute. Stephen Smith is red-carded for Sawbo in the 76th minute and Raheem Gray gets the GWR winner with four minutes of the 90 left.

Goalscorers:
The Robins’ most prolific scorer is Kieran David, who has 8 so far this season. Jaydon Charles has 3, and Elijah Mambombe has 2.

First Team Squad:
Player Appearances
1 Austen Garrod 13
2 George Spillane 12
3 Kieran David 11
4 Stephen Smith 11
5 Shane Bambridge 10
6 Jaydon Charles 10
7 William Kiers 10
8 Joshua Fox 9
9 Thomas Lawrence 9
10 Danny Palmer 9
11 Elijah Mambombe 8
12 Daniel Sayer 8
13 Mason Cook 7
14 Owen Braddick 6
15 Jeremy Ebelebe 6
16 Charles Opoku 5
17 Martel Reid-Yethman 5
18 Reece Barnett 4
19 Freddie Griffiths 4
20 Isaac Stevens 4
21 Jeffrey Agyeman 3
22 Cian Aldridge 3
23 Jude Collins 3
24 George Hamill 3
25 Nabil Musah 3
26 Miraldie Ndunzi 3
27 Mike Appiah 2
28 Inrahim Barrie 2
29 Charlie Burns 2
30 Jason Carttini 2
31 Roman Chapps 2
32 Joe Cloake 2
33 Marcus Dowdeswell 2
34 Rory Harding 2
35 Jehovany Kinzonzi 2
36 Ahkenaton Oguoko 2
37 Kenny Oguoko 2
38 Samuel Owusu 2
39 Jason Brown 1
40 Daniel Calin 1
41 Kamarni Collington 1
42 Kyle Finlayter-Lynch 1
43 Samuel Hick 1
44 Cameron Pike 1

Last Season:
The Robins were in the Spartan South Midlands Football League Premier Division last season and finished 19th out of 20 with just 14 points from 36 matches. They won just two games. As the two teams were in different divisions, they didn’t meet last season. Sawbo rejoined the Essex Senior League for 24/25 and will resume battles with The Bridge who they have previously met in ESL action in previous years.

Club Facts:
Founded: 1897
Ground: Crofters End, Sawbridgeworth
Chairman: Steve Day
First Team Manager: Ben Taylor
Assistant Manager: Shane Bambridge
Head Coach: Mark Mezan
First Team Physio: Sureyya Kephalas

Club History
Formed in 1897 by members of Sawbridgeworth Cricket Club, Sawbridgeworth Town Football Club played their first friendly match on Pishiobury Park, a large tract of common land to the south of the Town. At the turn of the century, they joined the East Herts League and later relocated to Great Hyde Hall. At this time, they were playing in the Stortford League and had their headquarters in the White Lion Hotel in the centre of town. Just after the First World War they moved to their next ground - a field next to the Hand & Crown Public House. This venue became very popular at the time and staged many local cup finals.

They moved to their present ground in 1930. At the time the facility was known as Cambridge Road but following the construction of a housing estate and the provision of a new entrance, it was rechristened Crofters End. Following the Second World War Sawbridgeworth Town FC joined the Spartan League for their first taste of senior football, however, this proved not to be successful and they rejoined the Stortford League.
With the building of a new clubhouse in 1975, the club reapplied for Senior status and joined the Essex Senior League. After a few years and steady improvements to the ground, floodlights were erected which enabled the Robins to participate in further cup competitions and evening games.

Sawbridgeworth joined the Essex Olympian League, becoming founder members, in 1966 and were crowned champions in 1971–72. They joined the Essex Senior League in 1976 and changed their name to Sawbridgeworth Town. They achieved their best FA Vase performance in 1980–81 when they reached a third-round replay. Sawbridgeworth finished runners-up in the league in 1992–93 and 1994–95. They achieved their best performance in the FA Cup, the first qualifying round, in 2016–17. In 2023, they transferred to the Spartan South Midland League.

This season, 2024/25 has seen The Robins move back to the Essex Senior League.

Honours
East Herts League
Champions 1923–24
Essex Olympian League
Champions 1971–72
Herts Junior Cup
Champions 1926–27
Herts Senior Centenary Trophy
Champions 1990–91, 1993–94

Records
Best FA Cup performance: First qualifying round, 2016–17
Best FA Vase performance: Third round replay, 1980–81
Attendance: 610 vs Bishop's Stortford

16th plays 19th at The T.J.Cottis Stadium on Saturday and it’s a massive battle for the ESL points. The fantastic Bridge fightback on Tuesday night has filled everyone connected to Hullbridge with hope and, I guess, expectation. Yes, we can do it as we showed but football is football and bites you where you’d rather not be bitten sometimes. However, we’ve started a run of one and now need to make it two, and then who knows?

The form guide below does not make happy reading for either team but what's gone is gone and we look forward to changing the reds to greens and moving up the ESL table.

A big, big fixture and, dare I say it, a must-win game for The Bridge. It was great to see Hullbridge smiling faces on Tuesday and it would be great to see it again as we get behind the boys in Blue and White and as ever…