Non-League and Academy football writer

Lymore Gardens were founded in 2016, by their founder Lee Benjamin, who is also the current first team manager, and chairman of the club. Lee Benjamin’s background is in graphic design and in youth/community work. He was part of a youth work project which helped youngsters in east London, to access sport as a means for good. Lymore Gardens were founded in 2016 as a community football team, and Lee, along with his business partners, helped to set up a girls football team, as well. There are currently eight of those football teams at Lymore Gardens. Furthermore, the club have since set-up a men’s Sunday football team, an Under 23 side, and of course their men’s Saturday football team, who play in the Essex Alliance League Senior Division (step 7 of the non-League system).

 Lymore Gardens eventually saw their men’s Saturday side get the opportunity to play step 7 non-League football, but this community football club also use the sport as a way of getting young people into employment/education. The club also offer mentoring around the borough of Waltham Forest, and as a club which was initially set-up as a youth project, the club is now a real sporting hub in the local community, using sport as a real opportunity for young people. That is thanks largely to Lee Benjamin’s vision of creating a club that really uses the beautiful game to create real good in the local community. Lymore Gardens started off with just one Saturday side to begin with, which included friends of Lee’s and local people in the borough, representing the club on the pitch (Lee Benjamin also used to play for their Saturday side). Lymore Gardens’ men’s Saturday side has helped a lot of former academy footballers who had fallen out of love with football, with a way of getting back into the game, and to enjoy the sport once again. The youth worker in Lee, wanted to help those former youth players who had been at top academy set-ups in the past.

Lymore Gardens have of course transitioned from grassroots football, into non-League football, with that happening over two years ago. And since then they have had people supporting the club as fans, such as buying club merchandise (Lee told me that people as far away as mainland Europe, have been buying replica club shirts), and just showing support to the club, whether that be in person or on social media. I have watched Lymore Gardens’ senior Saturday side on three occasions this year, and the club who currently sit in fifth place in The Essex Alliance League Senior Division, they play a really exciting and effective brand of football. They have quite a lot of young players in their team, and in a recent cup match (The Essex Alliance Football League Senior Division Cup) against Aveley Under 23’s, they played some brilliant football. They had to play much of that quarter-final tie with ten men, following an early sending off. However, the team spirit and the togetherness that Lee has helped to instil in his players, saw them get level in the game, having been 2-0 down. And they were very unlucky to lose the game very late on.

Lymore Gardens are an ambitious step 7 side, who can and I’m sure will go far in non-League football, with coaches like Lee Benjamin and Javel Green helping the Lymore Gardens men’s senior Saturday side to fulfil their footballing potential on the pitch. However, the club wouldn’t be what it is today, without the work of Lee Howard and April McGrath, who do great work on the secretarial side of the club. And the Lymore Gardens’ men’s Under 23 side, are also an important part of the club, with Roy Croome and Errol Dinnal doing some great work with the Under 23 side. Lymore Gardens are yet another club in step 7 football, who are making a real difference off the pitch, in people’s lives in the community, as they are on it as well. A lot of the credit must go the founder of the club, Lee Benjamin, for playing such a big part in helping to create this community club from scratch.

What have you made of the current 2023/24 season, for Lymore Gardens in the Essex Alliance League Senior Division?

Lee: To be honest, we were hoping to win the league this season and get promoted to step 6. However, due to the circumstances of injuries and the transition of where we play our matches, it’s just been really challenging this season. To be fair, we’ve got to remember that we’re running this club, and we are engaging over 350 people a week with the club, which is fabulous. As much as the results mean everything, the club’s philosophy of delivering purpose means more than anything that we can ever desire for on the pitch, and we just have to go again next season.

For those who haven’t seen Lymore Gardens play, could you describe to me what style of football they like to play?

Lee: To sum it up, I would say very risk taking attacking football. That’s the best way that I can put it.

Could you talk me through a bit about the current first team group of players at Lymore Gardens?

Lee: Most of the players in the first team are on average 24/25. We also have some younger players in the squad, who are 17. But everybody in that squad either work at places such as youth centres, or they give back to satellite projects in the boroughs. A lot of our players obviously want to take the next step to higher football, but they also want to represent and give back to the club. Javel Green is our assistant first team manager at the club, who has played for the England Disability team, and won over 30 caps for them. He brings that level of professionalism into the coaching staff. We also have two scouts, who work for other clubs; Ben Suma and Ryo Brown. As for the players, we have players like Dylan Roberts, who has been with us since the very beginning, and he’s our top goalscorer and a club legend. Also, there’s Tyrique Peters, who is an outstanding player, that many teams want to sign. However, he refuses to go to them, because he wants to stay with us and help to take the club higher.

In defence there’s Ben Suma (he is also a Crystal Palace scout) who is an outstanding defender, who has the potential to go up the leagues, but again, he is another player who wants to stay at the club. Then there’s Ben Greig, who is our goalkeeper. And he joined us after we beat his old team (Chigwell Rovers) 8-0 in the final of a cup, and he’s known to say “ if you can’t beat them, join them. ” And he’s been with us ever since, which is amazing. We have engaged with a community of people who have come to England from Ukraine, and we have a player who plays for our first team called Artem Lukash. He is an amazing player!

What are some of your personal aims/the clubs hopes for the future, for Lymore Gardens?

Lee: The club’s aims is about building more youth teams and that is a big thing for us as a club. We also run a netball league for female netball players, in addition to our eight female football teams. Our main goal as a club, is to go up to step 4/5, and even step 3. We also want to build a legacy in Waltham Forest and build a stadium for the club, as somewhere that we can call our home. We want to build a football club in the Leytonstone area, that is eventually of the same scale as Leyton Orient. That’s the dream!

What have been some of Lymore Gardens’ highlights (in your opinion), since the club moved into non-League football?

Lee: Some of the highlights would be things like how teams want to face us. And in the league they want to play their best football against us, and that’s to the point where we’ve drawn other clubs in, by putting our highlights out on social media as well, which helps you progress into step 6. Teams like Cannons Wood and Brimsdown have done that, who are now in step 6. I think that our biggest highlight as a club was a cup final that we played against Cannons Wood, and we lost that match 3-2. I was a bit disappointed with that result, but we had a young team then, and it was great to give them an opportunity to play that cup final. So giving the young players opportunities to play non-League football, and also how we have built up the club and the culture of the club, those are also highlights to me.

Who has been in your opinion, the toughest team that Lymore Gardens have faced, since you’ve been the manager/chairman of the club?

Lee: In all honesty I would say Cannons Wood, or DT FC as they were then. We were the closest to beating them that season that they won the league before it was called off, and if they hadn’t have won the league that season, then we would’ve won it.

What are your hopes/aims for the remainder of this season for Lymore Gardens?

Lee: I think that we’ve just got to finish the league strongly. Obviously as one of the favourites to win the league at the start of the season, to be sitting mid-table at the time of writing, is a bit disappointing. To finish fifth in the league this season would be great, if the numbers make sense. It’s been a good league this season, and a lot of teams have really stepped up, compared to the last couple of years.