Shepherd Neame Performance of the Month, February 2026

Our congratulations for some superb performances go to the following clubs:

Pitching In Isthmian Premier

It was Valentine’s Day when Aveley travelled to Lewes, but the Millers didn’t come armed with wine and roses. Instead, they delivered a St Valentine’s Day massacre.

Aveley had seven wins from their previous eight and were full of confidence, but that might have taken a bit of a bump when the Rooks took the lead on sixteen minutes, Devonte West the scorer. As it turned out, that was the footballing equivalent of poking a wild animal with a stick. 

Aveley weren’t behind for long, Ryan Charles levelling six minutes later, and on twenty seven minutes went ahead, George Saunders making it two-one. The second half was only three minutes old when Ollie Peters added a third for the visitors, and two minutes later Harry Haysom made it four. Another two minutes went by and Aveley added a fifth, Matt Johnson surely leaving the home fans watching from between their fingers. We suspect a fair number of those fans had left before Toby Aromolaran got a sixth in added time, but the travelling faithful were most certainly still present, and still celebrating.

Many congratulations to the Millers, who will now have a shiny trophy with which to remember a fabulous afternoon in Sussex. 

Pitching In Isthmian North

Valentine’s Day, and it was rather too early to talk about Maldon and Tiptree v Felixstowe and Walton United as a title decider- but it certainly looked crucial. The Seasiders travelled to face their closest rivals with a four point lead at the top; but with the Jammers holding two games in hand they were very keen to head home with at least a point- or perhaps three. Sadly for the travelling fans, things didn’t quite work out the way they might have hoped.

The hosts went ahead just after the half hour, Terrell Egbri the scorer, and just before half time Freddie Sears made it two- before surely sealing victory by adding a third seven minutes after the break. Egbri made it four on fifty seven minutes, and the scoring stopped there- but it was quite enough, and it delighted most of the one thousand, three hundred and ninety four watching on. 

Not only was the Jammers victory comprehensive, it came against a side who had been far and away our best performers on the road, which made it all the more impressive. 

Many congrats to the Jammers, on a richly deserved award.

Pitching In Isthmian South Central

AFC Portchester are having a fantastic first Isthmian season- and they had a particularly magnificent February, to the extent that they had two contenders on the shortlist for our Shepherd Neame Performance of the Month Award. Their two entries were their five-nil hammering of Hayes and Yeading United, and their five-one walloping of Egham Town- and we went for the former.

The Royals were in good form- indeed, they had just picked up our Manager of the Month and Golden Gloves Awards, and had moved into the top five after a run of four wins in a row. Some clubs worry that such things come with a curse, but it was only the visitors who seemed cursed. 

Zak Willett put Portchester ahead just before the quarter hour mark, and within four minutes they had another, Josh Clack making it two-nil. Just before half time they got a third, Alfie Stanley with that one, and early in the second half Willett put them out of sight, making it four. Willett completed his hat trick with their fifth goal just after the hour, and the scoring - and the pain for Hayes- stopped there.

Hayes were only one place and two points behind their hosts, and had defeated them at the Skyex earlier in the campaign- which makes this particular victory even more notable. It will now come with a trophy to commemorate it- congrats to all at the club.

Pitching In Isthmian South East Division

Croydon Athletic, in second place in Pitching In Isthmian South East, had only two defeats from ten, and hoped that they could reduce the gap between themselves and leaders Three Bridges as they travelled to face Jersey Bulls- but it most certainly didn’t work out like that. 

Bulls were in fine form, had picked up our Manager of the Month Award for January, and proved quite conclusively that the trophy came curse-free! 

They went ahead seven minutes before half time, Adam Trotter the scorer. Kadell Daniel drew the visitors level early in the second half, and the match looked finally poised- so what happened next would have come as something of a surprise; a nice surprise for the home fans, but not so much for those who had flown in from South London.

On fifty four minutes Rai Dos Santos restored Bulls lead, and with twenty two minutes to go it was three-one, Toby Ritzema giving the hosts some comfort. Only a minute later Miguel Carvalho added a fourth, eight minutes after that Ritzema made it five, and five minutes from time the Rams conceded a spot kick and James Queree added number six. Finally the torture stopped, six-one the final score- and Bulls climbed into the top five. If there were any doubt that they were promotion contenders, this result proved conclusively that they were a force to be reckoned with- and it now comes with an award for a job well done. Many congratulations. 

Many thanks to our sponsors, Shepherd Neame, the oldest brewers in Britain. With pubs and hotels across the country, Shepherd Neame should be your first choice for accommodation after a long away trip, or just for a refreshing drink or a nice meal before or after the game. You can find out more about what they have to offer by heading to their website- here.