There was standing room only at Butler’s Bar at a packed members’ meeting on Thursday night as we looked ahead to our first ever season at Step 2 starting on Aug 10 with a tasty trip to Torquay.

Chairman Paul Reed opened proceedings with a look back at last season, an overview of board decisions and our financial position, followed by a lengthy discussion regarding ground improvement

Paul was followed by Gavin Macpherson who discussed our new signings and hopes for the season, thanking the fans for their support and urging patience as the management team continues to strengthen the squad for the challenge ahead.

Paul revealed that sponsorship levels were already considerably greater than last season, in large part down to the two new board members, Graham Dodd and Neil Lutwyche, with Powerday again our headline shirt sponsor.

Membership has increased to a record 425 and season tickets are currently standing at a healthy 116 several weeks before the start of the season.

There was a round of applause when Paul confirmed that the stadium will continue to be named after Dave Bryant while in terms of finances, Paul revealed that gate receipts last season were 70 percent higher than we budgeted for, putting us in a healthy position  moving forward.

Financial scrutiny will be far greater in the National League than Isthmian league but the position we are in will allow us to increase the playing budget for the new season by 30 percent, Paul revealed, pointing out that it is nevertheless far more expensive now to attract players.

“The average cost of bringing in a good quality Step 2 player is almost double that of a good quality Step 3 player,” said Paul. “We are having to be cute to work around that.”

Whilst we will undoubtedly be in the bottom half of the table in terms of what we can offer compared with other National League South clubs, “budgets themselves are not necessarily an indicator of where you sit at the end of the season”, added Paul, proving the point by giving several examples.

Much of the discussion focussed on our ground improvement plans and after various options were debated, the vote was virtually unanimous for us to construct a new 400-seater stand opposite the main stand for approximately £120,000 plus VAT, much of it funded by grants and at a prospective cost to the club of £36,000 plus VAT

There will also be three new turnstiles – two at the far end of the ground and one where the existing turnstiles are. All the ground development work must be completed by March 31, pending planning permission.

Finally, another plea also went out for a badly needed safety  officer so if there is anyone out there who would like to offer his or her services please get in touch asap providing your CV and ideally a covering letter detailing your suitability for the role and prior experience to chairman@etfc.london

Then it was Gavin’s turn to address members with his thoughts about the season completed and the one ahead.

“Without the support throughout the season I’m not sure we’d be where we are today,” Gavin began, gaining a round of applause in the process before thanking the board and his whole management team for a “collective” success.

“Dulwich away was probably the pinnacle for me until, of course, the playoffs.”

Touching briefly on the Fenix trophy Final Four in Italy Gavin joked that the players were “still in promotion mode” before turning to the serious matters ahead.

“I said straight after Chatham that the hard work would start immediately and so it has” said Gav. “We’ve put ourselves in a different bracket of football and with that comes tests all over the place. But it’s where we want to be and we have to embrace it.”

Whilst happy with our five new signings so far, Gavin said he hadn’t finished yet. “It’s a bit of a slower burner if I’m honest. The biggest hurdle in terms of recruitment  is that we’re the new kid on the block, an untested, untried entity at this level. That comes with needing patience and smart thinking.”

Gavin wished those who have left the club well. “Some of those who have left were my choice, that’s the sad part of this job because of all of them played a big part in what we did last season. But some were their choice.”

Asked specifically about James Richmond, Gavin  explained Jimbo was still coming off the back of “a fairly difficult injury to navigate” and had himself opted to join Hayes and Yeading.

“I would have wanted to bring him back but we have to respect Jimbo’s decision. We need to focus now on those who have come in, some of whom have Step 2 pedigree and one or two of whom have even played at Step 1.”

Whilst Billy Leonard, one of the newcomers, has not played above Step 3 in non-league, he was Hendon’s player of the year last season. “I tried to bring in Billy a year ago but it didn’t work out,” Gavin revealed. “I think you’ll love him. He has massive ability.”

In what was clearly a comment about rumours of a possible Mo Faal return, Gavin understandably gave little away. “I keep getting asked about players who have previously been here.  We’ll have to wait and see on several fronts. There’s going to have to be some patience all round but hopefully I’m not done yet.”

Andrew  Warshaw