Two back to back relegations. Multiple fanbases mocking the quality of the ground and stadium. Players leaving and a shocking overall low morale on the pitch. These was just some of the traits that Concord Rangers carried last season before their relegation.
Many fans alike believed The Beach Boys was destined to either be liquidated or merged with rivals, Canvey Island FC, but Sammy Collins has stuck through thick and thin and is slowly turning around the ship.
Not all that long ago would Canvey Island residents flock to The Aspect Arena and watch Concord in the Vanarama National South.. but the past few seasons have been hard to swallow for any rangers fan after a relegation from not only the Vanarama South but also the Isthmian Premier saw the beachside club wound up in the Isthmian North Division.
Despite relegation, Concord Rangers did get off to an extremely well start in their new league back in the 2024/2025 season, staying in the upper half of the league for 5 matchdays (Saturday 21st September 2024 – Saturday 19th October 2024).
Unfortunately the club would pivot down the league table and after 41 consecutive league games would finish in the bottom half of the table, finishing 16th out of 22 different teams in the league, only 3 positions away from relegation though sitting calmly at 6 points above safety)
It seems the main reasoning behind the clubs sudden fall in the league would be from departure’s of key players who would dominate the field such as Amine Sassi (Maldon And Tiptree), Anisius Lewis (Maldon And Tiptree) and Lewis Jaggs (Canvey Island).
There was also the departure of Harrison Day and Mason Terry (West Ham United Loan) which would ultimately shape the mishaps of their 2024/2025 Isthmian North season.
The 2025/2026 Isthmian North Season
With a full season in the Isthmian North under their belt and a clear understanding of what improvement’s the squad needed, Sammy Collins and his management team got to work in order to not only change the results the club was getting after each matchday but to also reinforce a squad that wanted to find themselves back in the Premier again.
Many old faces would find their way back into the squad including key player Harrison Day who at the time came in from loan at Dagenham And Redbridge after a wide variety of smaller loans which didn’t quite work out.
Even despite giving their key players away to the likes of Maldon And Tiptree (who find themselves top of the league as of writing) still proved to not matter to the club after just barely missing out on a draw, only losing 3-2 away at the Drewitt-Barlow stadium.
The club now seems to be soaring quite high in the Isthmian North thanks to the likes of Harrison Day and club loanee Bobby Leonard John Kelman (Billericay Town). Concord Rangers currently find themselves 8th in the Isthmian North compared to last seasons 14th positioning as of writing.
Concord Rangers are predicted to finish 13th this season according to Football Web Pages, only 3 spots higher than their initial finish last season with a suspected 15 wins, 9 draws and 19 losses.
The Football Journal 
Leave a comment