Non-League and Academy football writer

Simon Peddie is a vastly experienced player in non-League football. The captain of step 6 side Tower Hamlets FC, the 42 year old central-defender has played for a number of non-League clubs during his time in the game. Simon has played for clubs such as East Thurrock United, Hashtag United and also Enfield FC, during his long and impressive time in the game. I recently had the pleasure of speaking to Simon about his time in football, so far.

What are some of your earliest footballing memories?

Simon: The first team that I played for was called Clerkenwell, who I played for after I’d started secondary school. I left them to join McD Rangers, as the person who ran them, their son was someone who was in the same year as me at school, and so I played for them until I was 16, just after I’d finished school, but those were my earliest days of playing football.

Could you talk me through a bit of your footballing background, up to joining Tower Hamlets?

Simon: I stopped playing football for McD Rangers and I then went to college. It was there that someone who I’d went to school with asked me to go and play for the youth team at Harlow Town. So I went there and played for them, but then another guy who I knew from college was playing for the now redundant Enfield team who played at Southbury Road, and so he asked me to play for their youth team, as they played their games during the week, and Harlow played their games on a Sunday. So that allowed me to play for both clubs for a little while, but then I started to get interest from both first team’s managers. I went with Enfield because it was a lot closer, and also because I knew a bit about them, as at that time I didn’t really know a lot about non-League football. So I went there and I got my first opportunity with their first team in a Middlesex Cup game against Hayes. I came off the bench and did quite well, before then being around the first team for the rest of the season, and I was 18 then. I got offered a contract at the end of that season, I’d then gone on holiday, and at that time I didn’t understand how non-League worked, and so by the time that I’d come back, pre-season had already finished, and obviously there was now no contract.

After that contract offer I was no longer in the first team mix, and so I was with the reserves. After the Enfield manager (Jim Chandler) had been sacked, Tom Loizou came in as manager. So I got another chance, and I think that I played about 200 games for Enfield, in the then Ryman Premier League, which would be the equivalent to the Conference South nowadays. Tom Loizou would later leave to go to Leyton, and I followed him there. But after Tom and the chairman of Leyton had basically fell out, he basically got rid of (including myself) all of the players that Tom had brought to the club, apart from maybe two players. However, Frank, who was Tom’s assistant, he liked me as a player and so he managed to get me back to Leyton FC. At that time I was mainly in their reserve team, but I was there at the club for maybe six or seven years, all together. The reason why I left Leyton was because I’d kind of had a falling out with the chairman, and so I went to Cheshunt, where Tom Loizou was now the manager. We played in the Southern League, which was a league which included teams who were based far away, such as Merthyr Tydfil and Tiverton. I did that for maybe two or three seasons, before there were financial problems at the club, and so I then left the club.

I would fall out of love with football after leaving Cheshunt, and I didn’t play for the rest of that season. I was actually going to stop playing football, but then Leli Bajada (I’d played with Leli at Leyton) had signed for Redbridge, who were managed by Jay Devereux. I played for Redbridge for about a season, until Dave Ross came in after Jay had left the club as manager. I stayed with Dave Ross, but then Jay got a move to East Thurrock United as an assistant manager, and so once Dave Ross had left Redbridge, I moved to East Thurrock United. I was there for about seven or eight years, and in that time I had one year out, at Tilbury. I’d left after the club had been promoted into the Conference South, as the travelling was too much with my work commitments having now changed. But I returned to East Thurrock, and I was there for over another season, before leaving the club to go back to Tilbury with manager Joe Keith. Joe had then been sacked and that was me definitely going to retire, but then Jay Devereux had joined Hashtag United as their manager, with them in the Thurlow Nunn League at that time. He asked me if I’d help them out by going there, and he thought that I’d enjoy playing for them.

At the time they (Hashtag United) were playing at Coles Park, which was close to me, and so I thought that I had nothing to lose, and I was also helping out a friend. I was there at Hashtag for about four seasons. In the first season we won the Thurlow Nunn League, and then there were the two Covid seasons, before we won promotion from the Essex Senior League into the Isthmian League North Division. I went to Frenford last season (2022/23) and we won the Thurlow Nunn League during that season. And since the beginning of this season I’ve been with Tower Hamlets.

Have you had any great footballing influences, such as coaches for examples?

Simon: Yes, I’ve had quite a lot in non-League football, with the first ones being Tom Loizou and John Sitton. Also Covo, Devs, Classford Sterling, Peter Shrieves and Joe Keith were real influences on me, as well.

As a youngster, were there any players who you used to look up to/try and model your game on?

Simon: When I first started playing football I was more of a midfielder, and so my favourite footballer then was John Barnes. But the first sort of defensive player who I looked up to was Paolo Maldini. I listened to some of the things that he said, such as having a good positional sense, rather than relying on your slide tackles and things like that.

What have been some of the standout moments from your non-League footballing journey, so far?

Simon: The promotions with Leyton and East Thurrock, they are good memories. Also, getting to the FA Cup first round (twice) with East Thurrock, is another good memory, but we also got quite far in the FA Trophy as well, and I think that we made the quarter-finals of that competition. But the other promotions with Hashtag and Frenford, they are also really good memories.

What has been the overall highlight of your non-League footballing journey, so far?

Simon: If I had to pick one, then I’d probably have to say that it was reaching the first round proper of the FA Cup, with East Thurrock, as not everyone gets to experience something like that. We played Macclesfield the first time, and then Hartlepool United, the second time (both then League Two sides). The first time against Macclesfield, that was a real oh my gosh moment. We had the press covering it, and we also had our pictures in The Sun. Those things don’t happen very often.

Could you talk me through your memories so far, of playing for Tower Hamlets? And could you talk me through the current season with them?

Simon: I went there because of my mate Kiers (Kiernan Hughes-Mason) who is the manager of Tower Hamlets, as we had played together at Hashtag United. This season has been a very up and down season, and I think that we didn’t win our first seven games of this season. Then we kind of picked up form a little bit, and then it got to a point where we had a very outside chance of reaching the play-offs, before going on another seven to nine game winless streak, which put us near to the relegation zone, which we’ve only just got out of. So it’s definitely been an up and down season, and unlike most teams in our league, we’ve been unable to train. We’ve got no budget which is the case for a lot of teams at this level, but I think that the majority of teams at this level have somewhere where they can train, so that hasn’t helped us. Also, not having your own ground isn’t helpful. But considering the tools that Kiernan has to hand, I don’t think that it’s been a bad season.

What have you made of the current Thurlow Nunn Eastern Counties League Division One South season?

Simon: I don’t get to play all of the games because of my work commitments, but obviously the league champions Benfleet have been very good this season. I played in the second league game against them, and they were a very good and well organised team, with players who did the right thing at the right time. I think that everyone can say that they have deserved to win the league this season. I also played against Wormley Rovers, and I think that footballing wise that they are the best team that I’ve played against this season. It’s been quite a competitive league this season.

Who would you say has been the toughest/most difficult team that Tower Hamlets have faced so far this season?

Simon: For me personally, I would say Wormley Rovers. They came and played us at The Mile End Stadium, and they played very good football on a difficult surface.

For those who haven’t seen you play, how would you describe yourself as a central-defender? 

Simon: So earlier on I would’ve said that it was my pace and reading of the game, but now that I’m not as quick as I once was, I’d say that my reading of the game is my best attribute, and something which I base my game around. I also like to help my teammates around me on the pitch.

Is coaching something that you’d be interested in going into in the future?

Simon: Maybe not when I first stop playing football, but it’s not something that I’m going to rule out. I’m definitely not one of those players that says that they’re going to be a coach as soon as they stop playing football, and with my current job it’s difficult to commit as a coach/manager and it would be difficult to commit to that. But if my work commitments were to change, then I’d have to say yes to staying involved in football as a coach.