Paper planes, cup dreams: Cray Valley Paper Mills at Charlton in the cup

Words: Tom Reed

Images: Tom Stanworth

The FA Cup is a beautifully funny old competition. Round 1 proper sees a host of non-League sides takes on League opposition but the geographical spread of the draw means that there are almost no local derbies.

Fate would have it, however, that this time, Cray Valley Paper Mills of the Isthmian League South East would face League 1 Charlton Athletic, with only four miles separating the two teams.

Of course, there are five leagues and 117 places between the two clubs but in the true tradition of the cup, the Millers, named after an erstwhile paper mill, went at their loftier opponents.

There are plenty of links between the two clubs naturally, with Cray Valley being a destination for various players with Charlton links, sometimes when they are winding down their careers, others on the way up.

©Tom Stanworth/ Terrace Edition. Charlton Athletic vs Cray Valley Paper Mills.

Charlton cult hero Kevin Lisbie played for both the Addicks and then the Millers and it was his son Kyrell who forced the equaliser at The Valley to earn a precious and lucrative replay for the non-League side.

More than ten times the number of Cray Valley Paper Mills’ average attendance of 150 swelled the away end, with fans of all ages cheering on the “Green Army”.

The Charlton supporters were subdued as Cray Valley were happy to ride their luck and play out from the back. A 1-1 draw was no less than they deserved.

This Cray Valley paper plane had hit a thermal and the fans won’t come down for a while.

A replay at the Millers’ Artic Stadium, capacity 1000, awaits on Tuesday, November 14.