St Albans City 2 Tonbridge Angels 3

Match 136/21/2000 - Saturday, 7th May 2022 - National League South

St Albans City (2) 2 Clark 13 Goddard 19
Tonbridge Angels (2) 3 Bender (o.g.) 3 Coombes 42 Turner (pen) 72
Attendance: 1,457
Admission: Pass
Programme: Not Purchased
Mileage: 152/8,144

That Was The Week That Was! A tumultuous week in the history of Tonbridge Angels that was dramatic, but sometimes bordered on farcical, ended on Saturday with a win under the stewardship of Academy manager, Tommy Parkinson, that brought tears and happy faces as the club embarks on a new era.

A week that saw the departure of Steve McKimm as manager after eight years at the helm with a resultant outpouring onto the various social media platforms that was at times abusive, certainly angry but hidden in the vitriol were voices of reason that welcomed a new beginning. All of which left an uncertainty of the reaction of supporters that were going to pitch up for this final game of the season at St Albans. But, they came in their numbers and were truly magnificent, to a man, woman and child they focused on giving their support to their club and at the end of the day, managers and players come and go; directors are mere custodians but supporters are forever, they are the lifeblood that gives the club its soul.

All this in a week that in relative calm, the diggers arrived at Longmead and another new beginning was heralded.

It was a pleasantly warm afternoon in Hertfordshire with that joyous end of season atmosphere that always comes with the final game. Tommy Parkinson, with Craig Braham-Barrett alongside him on the bench, brought his Academy skipper Joe Tyrie into the team to partner Sonny Miles in central defence.

The afternoon could not have had a better start with Tonbridge in front after just three minutes when Tom Bender could only divert the ball into his own goal after a Adam Coombes cross from the right brushed the head of Jamie Fielding but did enough to distract the attention of the St Albans defender.

St Albans were level on 13 minutes when a cross from the right from John Goddard found Michael Clark at the far post via a couple of deflections for a straightforward finish.

Six minutes later the home side were in front and a long afternoon was feared. Two simple passes across the 18 yards box left Goddard with a clip over Jonny Henly.

But the Angels stayed in the game and after Aaron Smith-Joseph fired over the bar they found an equaliser on 42 minutes. A free kick awarded after a bad tackle on Joe Turner that brought a yellow card for Kyron Wiltshire. Henly launched the free kick forward and Smith-Joseph was on the end of it to fire in a shot that St Albans goalkeeper, Michael Johnson, did well to parry but from the half-clearance Turner lofted the ball back in for Coombes to score with a diving header.

It had been a thoroughly entertaining first half, one that you hope for on the last day of the season, two teams with little to play for, playing a bit more expansive football than they were able whilst the threat of relegation or striving for a play-off place hanged over them.

The second half started in the same vein with Turner firing wide and Smith-Joseph missing a great chance before St Albans struck the post on 56 minutes. But Tonbridge held the larger share of the possession and deserved their lead on 72 minutes when Turner drove into the box and was unceremoniously brought down by Huw Dawson. Turner dusted himself down and fairly leathered the ball home from the spot.

From a right wing corner, Henly made an instinctive save but, in fairness, Tonbridge saw out the game in relative comfort.

The end of the Week That Was was a great away day, a superb win that with results elsewhere lifted Tonbridge to 16th place, away from the bottom four, ironically one of Steve McKimm’s stated objectives. Parkinson departs the manager’s chair with a 100% record and the Tonbridge supporters were the star turn of the afternoon, and now, with bated breath, we await The Week That Will Be.