Chairman hails 'pleasing progress' as in-form Royalists eye Tunbridge Wells test

Jabir Laraba was on target for Windsor & Eton in Saturday’s 5-0 win. Photo: Richard Milam

--

Windsor & Eton are unbeaten in their last 12 matches and have won seven of their last eight games heading into Saturday’s intriguing looking FA Vase clash at Tunbridge Wells.

Rob Webb’s Royalists will be anticipating a tough third round encounter on the road at a Tunbridge Wells side that is doing relatively well in their Southern Counties East Premier Division table. however, they couldn’t be in much better form going into it.

“Given that we’ve had two promotions in two years, the question was always can we compete for a third year in a row at the right end of the table,” said chairman Mark Cooper.

“So far, we’ve been able to do that. The aim at the start of the season was a play-off place, given our recent success but also understanding it’s another level to get used to. But we’re really well placed and have a good run going in the FA Vase as well.

“Overall, it’s really pleasing.”

He added: “Ardley have kicked on recently, and the main contenders are the ones who have played a similar number of games to us. There are teams around us who have played a lot more games and we hope to overcome those.

“But I wouldn’t discount Reading City, Ashford, Burnham and obviously Ardley who are the frontrunners. They’ve been the form team although they lost at the weekend. We just want to be up and around it and keep something to play for in both the cup and the league.”

A big thanks to Zane Holmes from @TWBS for this excellent selection of photos from Saturday’s win over @NGUfootballclub pic.twitter.com/HzUZRx3Ijd

— Windsor & Eton FC (@WindsorEtonFC) December 1, 2025

On Saturday, they swept aside North Greenford United 5-0 at Stag Meadow to move back into the play-off places in the Combined Counties Premier Division North.

The match turned in the final seconds of the first half when the Royalists were awarded a spot kick which Leo Decabo dispatched after Ethan Kitching was pulled down in the area by Rahim Jude-Boyd.

The goal seemed to relax the home side who played with far more freedom after the interval.

Toby Bridges turned home Decabo’s corner to make it 2-0 in the 53rd minute, Enzo Pashaj smashed in a third on the hour mark, Ethan Darcy grabbed a fourth with five minutes to play and Jabir Laraba turned in Kieran Jordan’s cross in the final minute to put the icing on the cake.

And for those of you who weren’t there on Saturday, here’s all the goals

⚽️⚽️⚽️⚽️⚽️ pic.twitter.com/2WEbN4IK0c

— Windsor & Eton FC (@WindsorEtonFC) December 2, 2025

“We were missing three or four key players on Saturday but convincingly beat a decent North Greenford side who are always pretty good going forward,” added Cooper. “Credit to the management team. Rob Webb has taken the reins, and I think we’ve lost one in 12 matches. So, it’s all going well but we’re not going to get carried away because normally when that happens something comes along to trip you up.

“Matt’s (former manager Matt Angell) family who moved to the States, so he needed to be over there a lot more and that obviously doesn’t work for managing a football team, so that was the reason for the change. We never thought for a second about looking further afield than Rob Webb, his assistant. He’s been with us since day dot and he’s always been so impressive in everything he does.

“He’s been able to take us on again.”

The result lifts the Royalists to fifth, just six points behind leaders Ardley United with two games in hand over them. They also find themselves behind Hilltop, Broadfields United and Wallingford & Crowmarsh but have at least four matches in hand on all those sides, and seven in hand on Hilltop who they trail by just a point.

It all means they’re in a very good place heading into Saturday’s clash at the Culverden Stadium. The club has put on a couple of supporters’ coaches for the tie and are desperate for it to go ahead, with Tunbridge Wells having postponed their league game at home last weekend due to a waterlogged pitch.

Tunbridge Wells are eighth in their equivalent step 5 level league, three points off the play-off places and recent results show they’re capable of some big wins.

“There are five teams from the three leagues in the Combined Counties still left in it,” said Cooper. “Us, Burnham, Reading City, Fleet and Berks County from Division 1.

“Tunbridge Wells are eighth in step 5 in their regional league. I don’t know too much more. In truth I don’t know how they’ll play, but the pitch is difficult. Conditions could be quite tricky.

“They were called off on Saturday at home, and we have two supporters coaches going over there. We very much hope that it is on.”

Also, in FA Vase action this Saturday are Burnham, who host Punjab United from Gravesend in the third round.

The Blues weren’t at their best in a goalless draw with Virginia Water on Tuesday and missed the chance to move back into the play-off places.

Punjab are in the same Southern Counties Premier Division East division as Tunbridge Wells and sit just above them in the table in seventh place. They warmed up for this weekend’s clash with a 3-1 win over Chislehurst Glebe on Saturday.