00:00Hello and welcome along to this Kentonite special.
00:29I'm Bartholomew Hall and in exactly two hours on this Wednesday the 4th of December, a first
00:34for Kent football will be kicking off.
00:36Today the Invicta Sport team have taken over and we're looking ahead to a highly anticipated
00:40League Two fixture as Gillingham travel to Bromley for the first time in the Football
00:45League.
00:46Whilst it's not technically classed as a Kent derby, something we'll be exploring today,
00:50with just 30 miles between the two clubs and 515 away tickets quickly snapped up, it promises
00:56to be one to enjoy.
00:59But we begin by looking back at how both sides' seasons have been progressing, with Gillingham's
01:03long-fought quest to return to League One hitting something of a struggle in recent
01:07weeks.
01:08Meanwhile, in their first Football League season, it's been a great time to be a Bromley
01:12fan as of recent.
01:13As well as holding their own in League Two, Andy Woodman's side have even managed to sprinkle
01:17in some cup magic too.
01:19Let's see how things are shaping up going into tonight's fixture.
01:22Gillingham's season started like a dream.
01:24New manager, new additions to the squad and a great run of results.
01:28Top of the table for much of the first few months, it seemed the prospect of finally
01:32being promoted from League Two was on the cards.
01:35But following a home loss over Grimsby, Mark Bonner's men just haven't been able to pick
01:39up the pace, beginning a run which would see the Gills pick up just one win in 10 games
01:44across all competitions.
01:46With mounting issues such as player injuries and fans beginning to boo the team off the
01:50pitch, it seems the Gills need something of a boost.
01:54Now set to take on Bromley for the first time, Mark Bonner hopes the prospect of a local
01:59derby could be what his players need on their route back to positive results.
02:03I think the location of the game always adds an edge to the game, which is really good.
02:09And having been there before to see games, knowing what the atmosphere will be like,
02:13how tight it will be, I think it will be a real lively atmosphere which will be brilliant.
02:19So hopefully we can have those that are there make a right noise and get right behind the
02:23team and the team can give a performance that gives a real chance of winning the game.
02:28As for Bromley, it's their first season in the Football League, having beaten Solihill
02:31Moores at the National League play-offs to claim the final League Two space.
02:35Since then, despite struggling for wins, Andy Rudman's side have been hard to beat, drawing
02:40half of their 16 games.
02:42More recently, success has continued to flow for Bromley, having reached the FA Cup third
02:46round for the first time, and having been drawn to play Newcastle away, a huge tie for
02:51the lower league club.
02:53But for an ex-non-league team, playing local rivals is something they're used to.
02:58We're used to playing your Dartfords, your Dovers, your Maidstones, Tunbridge, etc. over
03:03the last 10 years or so.
03:05This feels different, but in a different level now because Gillingham are the Manchester United
03:13of Kent.
03:14Let's have it right.
03:15So in terms of their scope as a club, Bromley feel like the noisy neighbours now.
03:22There's a lot of Bromley fans who consider that historically we are a Kent club, but
03:27we just happen to be the London borough of Bromley.
03:29So I definitely see this as a Kent derby.
03:33515 tickets were allocated for Gillingham fans, which were all quickly snapped up.
03:38So with the anticipation building, just what will come of this rivalry in seasons to come?
03:43Bartholomew Hall for KMTV.
03:46Well, we're just 30 miles between these two clubs.
03:49There is one thing for certain, it truly is derby day.
03:52But with the debate over Bromley's status as in or out of Kent still raging on almost
03:5760 years since the forming of the London borough of Bromley, can we really call it a Kent derby?
04:02Well, I thought we'd go out and settle it once and for all.
04:05So later today, hundreds of Gillingham fans will be making the trip down to Bromley for
04:09the match.
04:10But does it really count as a Kent derby?
04:12Is Bromley in Kent?
04:14Well, we're here in the high street to ask exactly that today.
04:26We're just asking if you think Bromley is in Kent or not.
04:37Hello there, we're asking do you think Bromley is in Kent or not in Kent?
04:44We're just asking if you think Bromley is in Kent or not in Kent?
04:47I know it's in Kent.
04:49It's definitely in Kent, what do you think?
04:51That's good.
04:52Not in Kent.
04:53So we got one for and one against, thank you very much.
04:55It's a very, very divided opinion here in Bromley today, thank you very much.
05:04We're just asking if you think Bromley is in Kent or not in Kent, what do you think?
05:09It is in Kent.
05:10It is in Kent.
05:12I don't think it's in Kent.
05:13I don't think it's in Kent.
05:16Bromley's in Kent, but it's a longer bath.
05:20If you think it's in Kent, we're saying Kent.
05:24So let's take a look at the results now.
05:25What started off with not Kent being firmly in the lead has changed dramatically.
05:29In fact, most people that we've spoken to have told us that Bromley is in fact in Kent.
05:35So maybe we really can call it the Kent derby.
05:38And with the countdown on till tonight's kick-off and the heat rising for Mark Bonner,
05:42just what do the Gilles fans make of the season so far?
05:45Well, David Garth and Paul Jocelyn joins me in the Fan Zone,
05:48as well as Chris Dillow from the View from the Medway podcast to discuss all that and plenty more.
05:53So guys, thank you for being here.
05:54Welcome to the Fan Zone.
05:55Really good to have you on the programme.
05:57Let's start with Bromley.
05:58Mark Bonner has called it a real derby.
06:00Of course, when you have an away game that is in such close proximity to the home stadium,
06:06it always does give a bit more excitement.
06:08It's not necessarily a big rivalry.
06:10I think it's been a very long time since the two sides have played against each other.
06:14Do you think this is something that could maybe be a rivalry in the future?
06:17We'll start with yourself, David.
06:18I guess it could be.
06:20I mean, given the proximity of the two grounds, it's not that far to get to either of them.
06:25And this could grow over the years.
06:27Obviously, it depends if both sides stay in the same division.
06:30And I'm hoping that we won't.
06:31We'll go up.
06:32So that's how I feel about it anyway.
06:34That's true.
06:35And Bromley have definitely made a name for themselves this season, getting into the Football League,
06:39having great results so far.
06:41Of course, as early as this week, getting into the third round of the FA Cup.
06:44Paul, what do you think?
06:45Do you think Bromley-Gillingham is something that we could be looking at for years to come?
06:49No, not really.
06:50I think Bromley used to be in Kent, historically.
06:53And in the old days, when we used to play them, of course,
06:56I think it was 18-something when we played them in the league last.
06:59It's exciting.
07:01It's a bit like going to Wrexham, isn't it?
07:03It's a new ground to go to.
07:05And a lot of people go around to different grounds.
07:08I don't know.
07:09I'm not sure.
07:10But there's been such a demand for this game tonight.
07:15And I just find it amazing.
07:17I'll be watching it on Sky, by the way.
07:20Yeah, I think a lot of fans will be.
07:21Chris, we'll come to you now.
07:22Those tickets did snap up very quickly.
07:25Do you think this is a fixture that lots of fans will be looking forward to?
07:29Yeah, yeah.
07:30I mean, I got tickets last minute via a friend
07:34because they were unfortunately able to go tonight.
07:36So, yeah, I will be there.
07:39I will be supporting the boys.
07:41And we only got a certain allocation,
07:43so we couldn't really tell as much as I think we probably could have done.
07:50Right, let's talk about how the season's gone so far
07:53because things did start so positively this year.
07:56Very optimistic start to the season for Mark Bonner.
07:59But, safe to say, it's been a bit of a drop-off in the past few fixtures.
08:03How do you think the season's gone as a whole?
08:07Because we see this with clubs up and down the Football League.
08:10You have a good run of form.
08:11You maybe dip into a bit of a drop-off period.
08:14Do you think things can come back, David?
08:16Yeah, definitely.
08:17I mean, yeah, results-wise it was a fantastic start.
08:20I think it exceeded all expectations.
08:22And the drop-off was alarming, to be honest.
08:26The good thing was that we then seemed to come out of it
08:28with the Port Vale result, which was a well-deserved performance.
08:31But, of course, the last result against Harrogate
08:34left an awful lot of people very disappointed.
08:38But I think that when you look at the sides that we've got there to play tonight,
08:44I'm sure that we can do well.
08:45Yeah, and Chris, there's obviously been lots of different things
08:48that Mark Bonner has had to deal with this season,
08:50injuries being one of them.
08:51Do you think there's been a particular moment
08:53where things have kind of turned sour?
08:57I think it was probably after the Barrow game.
09:00I think a few comments that Mark made
09:03weren't necessarily praising of the players.
09:07And then that was our last game in September.
09:10And then you look at October, we lost pretty much all games
09:13apart from the last one against Swindon, which was a draw.
09:16But, again, that felt like a defeat in itself.
09:20There's quite a few things that could be mitigating circumstances, I guess.
09:26So, a mixture of injuries and not enough competition in key areas of the pitch.
09:32And yourself, Paul, do you think things could turn around from here?
09:35Oh, of course they will.
09:36We've got some good players.
09:37They just need to find the goal a bit more.
09:40That's what fans want.
09:41We want to cheer.
09:42When we actually score, the cheering is fantastic.
09:45You can hear it all over Kent.
09:47But Mark is very well tuned, isn't he, David?
09:50Yeah, I think the issue here, of course, is that he's got to come back now
09:54having had such a bad run.
09:55And I think this is going to be the making of the man.
09:58Yeah, it's a test.
09:59I think he needs the backing of the players.
10:02I'd like to think that he's got that.
10:04There's been a lot of people saying that maybe he hasn't.
10:07But I do feel that he has got the backing in the right areas.
10:10And I think that if he comes through this test,
10:13then he's going to be all the better for it.
10:15I think he deserves a few more games at least, I would say.
10:19But then, you know, Rome wasn't built in a day.
10:22I think sometimes as Gilles fans, we do expect a level instantly.
10:27I mean, if you look at Bromley's manager, Andy Woodman,
10:29he's been with the club for quite a while now.
10:31And he's actually had time to implement his ideas and to actually grow a culture.
10:35So I think we should give him some time.
10:38I appreciate that the fan base is impatient because of recent results.
10:42But he should get some time, yeah.
10:44All right, let's talk about this match then.
10:46It's the so-called Kent derby, if you want to look at it that way.
10:48Maybe the derby of the A2.
10:50Let's get some predictions in.
10:52We'll start with yourself, Paul.
10:533-1 to us.
10:55Slightly more cautious, but I feel that we can nick this 2-1.
11:00Brilliant. And yourself, Chris.
11:02I'm going to go for a draw.
11:05I'd like to see a win because tonight's going to be cold.
11:08It's going to be cold sat there.
11:11So I'd like to say a win, but I'm going to go for a draw.
11:14So 1-1.
11:161-1, OK.
11:17And it might be cold as well on Boxing Day as well when they come to Priestfield as well.
11:22Thank you all for joining us today.
11:23Thank you very much.
11:24Nice to see you.
11:25No worries. Thank you very much.
11:27Well, whichever side of the pitch you're on, we wish your team the best of luck this evening.
11:32And Kent Online will have all the updates throughout this evening.
11:34If you want more from us here at KMTV, you can head over to our website, kmtv.co.uk,
11:38where all of our special shows are available to watch back on demand.
11:42And don't forget to follow us on social media, too.
11:44KMTV, Kent, for all the latest from us here at KMTV.
11:47But for now, good night.
12:08KMTV.
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