Dear AFC Cubo Supporters,

We hope you’re all enjoying a wonderful Christmas break! The boys have been celebrating the festive season in classic Cubo style, enjoying a ‘few’ beers at their beloved second home, the Jolly Gardners. A massive thanks to Adam for always welcoming us, and to Dan Barcroft and Alex Whitton for their efforts in organizing the gathering.

As we look back on the season so far, here’s a quick wrap-up of both teams’ performances so far:

Cubo’s off-season was marked by a flurry of activity from the newly-appointed “Recruitment Director” Sam Harrison, including targeted Instagram campaigns and (to my knowledge) Cubo’s inaugural trial day. Along with the tried and tested method of friend-based recruitment, this has led to 23 Cubo debuts this season already.

With 1s manager Tim De la Haye enjoying the sights of Peru at the beginning of the season, Mitch Seymour stepped up to the management plate for the first two fixtures and delivered exactly what you’d hope from the old-school defender: 2 clean sheets and 6 points against Battersea Ironsides and Hersham. (Congrats to Mitch, and also Rory on their recent engagements).

It’s safe to say that the Reserves (Cowboys) did not enjoy the same defensive solidarity in their first game of the season, losing 7-0 to Imperial Old Boys (who they finished above in the league last year) and ruining manager Jack Hayman’s day out at T20 Finals Day.

The 1s season hit some speed bumps in September and October, with losses to top of the league Dial Square FC, Banstead, Frenches, and then Jolof Sports in the London Senior Cup. A special mention to new recruit Callum Orris for scoring in 5 of the first 6 games of the year (and 10 in 11 in the league overall).

An uptick in performances for the Reserves gave them their first two wins of the season versus Royal Wells and newly promoted RPFC, again helped in large part by the fresh faces of Piranavan Selvamanoharan (4 in 6 from the wing) and Lathim Grieg (6 in 7 from CF). That being said, the Cowboys have continually managed to come off second best in games where they could undoubtedly have had more. A double sending off when 1-0 up against the league leaders AFC Battersea perhaps epitomising this best, with Alex Whitton and Andy ‘Mudge’ Mudge on the FA’s naughty list this year (and certainly not the example we’d hope to be setting for the newest addition to the Cubo academy, Maximillian Mudge.)

The notable exceptions to this have been the dual victories against title contenders Claremont Gorillas by a combined 6 goals, including a comfortable 3-0 victory in the League Cup, with a certain Cuban claiming a ‘Ruud van Barcroft’ bounce in Hayman’s absence. The Reserves sit second bottom in the Harry Alderton Premiership, with every game now a massive fixture in 2025. Hayman will be hoping for a shorter injury list in the new year, after 6 hamstring strains, two keeper injuries in as many games, one broken rib, a fractured wrist, and Frosty’s ongoing absence after his preseason injury. (In injury news more generally, a special mention to Brooksy for maybe breaking his wrist after falling off a Lime bike on a Friday night).

The 1s, by contrast, went from strength to strength as availability improved. This included 5 wins on the bounce, including a late Paul Maas winner against Bagshot, and a wondergoal from Sam Rees to avenge the previous loss against Banstead. Two defeats in the cups proved a frustrating way to end 2024, but Cubo are well-positioned for a strong league position in 5th place with games in hand on all teams above them in the league.

An excellent Xmas social at our sponsor’s The Jolly Gardeners Earlsfield left many undoubtedly haunted by four Cubans being forced to sing Walking in the Air a cappella. Our ongoing thanks to Adam for his support, including a new kit this season which we will publish if the 1s can ever remember to take a pre-match photo.

Looking forward, this year marks Cubo’s 25th year and we hope to have a proper do to celebrate this milestone in the summer. There is also the ongoing promise of a Cubo tour from Joe Virk and Ben Makepeace … perhaps to Canada to visit everybody’s favourite Canadian Jeremy MacIsaac who sadly returned back to the Great North at the end of 2024. Things restart with an inter-club friendly on the 4th January which is always a spectacle.

Yours in baby blue, 

Jonny Hall

AFC Cubo Chairman