A VISIT FROM TUNDE
Sunday 21 February 2010
By Jerry Dowlen

Cray legend Tunde Utsaja - scorer of 49 goals for the Wands - made a very welcome return to the club for the monthly 100 Club draw at half-time during the Kingstonian game on 20 February.

Tunde signed for Cray in 1996-97 when Glen Cooper was manager, and he was a Cray player again in 1998-99 when the ground-share at Hayes Lane began. Ian Jenkins signed him that season, and he played for part of the following season too.

I think that Tunde was genuinely pleased and maybe even surprised to find on Saturday that he was so well remembered by the Cray committee and fans. He was always a popular figure at Cray, and in his own words: "Maybe outside the box, I wasn't so great, but put the ball in the box and I would do the business, man, know what I mean?"

Tunde certainly did have a voracious appetite for putting the ball in the net , and when I reminded him that one of his "tap-ins" from six yards almost uprooted the goalposts from their mountings, he replied: "I never did tap-ins! I liked to hit the ball, wham! Every time!"

Tunde was paired with Phil Collins up front for the Wands, for a few games during the 1996-97 season, and I'm not sure that you could think of a more powerful combination of strikers in the club's recent history.

Tunde is now 37 and he lives in Gravesend . He was accompanied to the Kingstonian game by his daughter, and explained that she had inherited his footballing talent and had played for Charlton when she was younger, although she doesn't play now.

Tunde told us: "I stopped playing about five years ago. It had become too much pain! An ingrowing toenail , and dodgy knees."

It sounded as though Tunde enjoyed watching the game - a splendid 2-1 win for the Wands against second-placed Kingstonian. "Their 'keeper made a fantastic save (from George Porter) - how did he
keep that one out? Mind you, I would have buried it!" Then, laughing, Tunde admitted that the game was much faster now, in comparison to the Kent League days when he played for Cray. "I think I have pulled a hamstring just watching the game this afternoon!"

It was great to see Tunde again and it is nice to know that he has good memories of his time as a Wands player. He can be assured that Cray fans have given him the status of legend in the club's recent history.