Bromley complete amazing journey from inspiring a film as Britain’s worst team to the Football League after Wembley glory, writes MATT BARLOW

Bromley were once so bad they inspired a feature film. It was based on a delightful book by Dave Roberts, called ‘The Bromley Boys: The True Story of Supporting the Worst Team in Britain’.

Published in 2008, the story revolves around the campaign of 1969/70 when they were relegated from the Isthmian League and the simple charms of following a club generally mired in misery, flirting with extinction as crowds dipped under a hundred, while growing up.

Yesterday, Bromley beat Solihull Moors on penalties in front of more than 23,000 at Wembley Stadium to secure promotion from the National League and next season they will compete in the EFL for the first time in their 132-year history.

‘Bromley will bring the freshness of club with a burning desire to kick on,’ said boss Andy Woodman. ‘There’s a stadium taking shape and plans in place. Work will start on the pitch. I think it will be refreshing.

‘You can see the crowd, what it means to them. I’m delighted for everybody connected to the club. It will be a massive lift for the town. We’ve had some tough days and more than anything it’s a relief to get out of this league.’

Bromley is London’s biggest borough in terms of area with a population of 335,000 so there is no reason why they should establish themselves in the top 92 clubs in the country.

They have a fine heritage, winning the first Amateur Cup in 1949 when they beat Romford in front of 90,000 at Wembley.

More pertinently, these days they are well-run and ambitious, making steady improvement during the last decade to become one of the strongest teams in non-league, winning the FA Trophy in 2022 and regularly in the promotion play-offs.

To be the man finally taking them up provides Woodman with a sense of pride.

He has been best mates with Gareth Southgate since their days together as apprentices at Crystal Palace but whereas studious Southgate was always tipped for management not so many expected Woodman to warm so naturally to the role.

As a player and a goalkeeper coach, he had a reputation as a bit of a joker, but he has turned Bromley into serious contenders since his appointment in 2021, and rejected chances to leave for Gillingham and other EFL clubs because he wanted to repay the trust of owner Robin Stanton-Gleaves.

‘I have got a chip on my shoulder because of one or two comments from people I shouldn’t have listened to,’ said Woodman after his victory. ‘Why don’t they think an ex-goalie coach can’t be a good manager? That hurt me but I thank them for that.’

To win the final on penalties is one up on Southgate.

Michael Cheek twice put Bromley ahead. His first, scored just before half time, was controversial as he sent Alex Whitmore tumbling before finding the net.

Referee James Durkin, son of the former Premier League referee Paul, decided there was no foul. Joe Sbarra levelled soon after the interval, Cheek’s second was a penalty, and the second equaliser was scored by Jamey Osborne.

For the fourth successive year, the National League promotion final went into extra-time.

Bromley sub Alex Kirk twice hit the woodwork but it was destined for a shootout, in which keeper Grant Smith made two saves and captain Byron Webster scored the winning penalty.

No longer Britain’s worst team. Far from it, in fact. They are flying high and destined for the EFL next season and Roberts, who died in 2021 at the age of 66, is sure to be looking down on them with a smile.

Managers often not the only victims 

Omer Riza is part of the collateral damage in the latest managerial reset at Watford. Riza devoted six years to developing young players in various age groups in the club’s academy while, for four of those years, also coaching England’s youth teams.

Before that, he was a youth coach at Leyton Orient, stepping up as caretaker manager and preserving what little remained of the club’s dignity as they crashed out of the EFL in crisis.

There was a long playing career before that. He graduated from Arsenal’s academy, moved to West Ham, played in Holland and the EFL before six years in Turkish football and a return to England where he started a coaching career in non-league.

Riza has a wealth of experience at all levels of football. He is fully qualified, passing his UEFA Pro Licence in 2022 in the company of Steven Schumacher, John Mousinho and Richie Wellens, all now managing in the EFL.

At Orient, he worked to develop young players such as Steven Alzate and Josh Koroma. At Watford with Ryan Andrews and James Morris. At England with Kobbie Mainoo and Jamie Bynoe-Gittens.

When he accepted a first-team role as part of Valerien Ismael’s backroom staff last year, it seemed like the opportunity he had been waiting for, but managers have never seemed more disposable at Championship level.

Ismael was sacked in March and his coaches went with him, clearing the decks for Tom Cleverley to step up. It can take years of hard work and dedication to climb the coaching ladder. Overnight, you can be knocked back to the bottom on a whim.

At 44, with more than a decade of solid coaching experience behind him, Riza knows the score waits patiently for the next opportunity.

Ipswich Town’s positive vibes spread far beyond the confines of Suffolk this season. Jim Magilton, a former midfielder and manager at Portman Road, led Cliftonville to their first Irish Cup triumph since 1979 by beating Linfield on Saturday. And Jamie Clapham who, along with Magilton was part of the last Ipswich team promoted to the top-flight in 2000, has led Loughborough Students to promotion via the play-offs in the United Counties North.

Remeao Hutton topped the EFL minutes by outfield players this season after clocking up every minute through 47 league games, which is 90 minutes more than an entire season, a quirk of his January move from Swindon, where he played 27, to Gillingham, where he played 20. Full-back Hutton played 4,230 minutes in League Two. Next in the ranks were Curtis Nelson of Derby and Matt Grimes of Swansea with 4,140 minutes.

Jens Lehmann’s swoop to buy the Invincibles trademark from Arsenal is a transaction with a familiar whiff of Premier League arrogance in a year when Falkirk became the fourth club to complete an unbeaten league campaign in Scotland. The Scottish League One champions came back from two down to draw 2-2 with Alloa in front of more than 7,000 on Saturday, thanks to a late penalty by Brad Spencer, son of former Chelsea and Scotland striker John Spencer. Falkirk join Celtic, Rangers and Kilmarnock as Invincibles north of the border if that’s OK with Lehmann.