It’s straight back to York Road action as we welcome Billericay Town this Saturday afternoon. 

 

It has been more than 13 years since Saturday’s sides last met, and the last time that The Blues were at Step 2 level. That game finished 1-0 to Billericay as Jay May’s 17th minute goal secured all three points on the final day of the 2012/13 Blue Square Bet South season. A season which ultimately culminated in Ricay being relegated and United finished just one spot and one point above the drop zone. The York Road fixture that season ended with far more action as United won 3-2 late on. Alex Wall’s opener early on was initially cancelled out by Rob Swaine before Wall responded with another with 15 to go. Jay May thought he had secured Billericay a point with an 85th minute equaliser, but Reece Tilson-Lascaris had different ideas – scoring with just moments left on the clock. 

 

Following their promotion Ricay were quick to retain a large bulk of their squad, announcing 10 players signing on in the space of two days in early June. Exciting signings at this level joined them with Louis Lomas arriving from Hemel Hempstead, along with Taylor Clark from Chelmsford City and George Wind from Southend United. Clark, arrived from The Clarets but already in his youthful career he has earned valuable National League South minutes with Farnborough, Slough, Hampton & Richmond and City - accumulating over 60 appearances at this level at just 21 years old. 

 

Plenty of players have swapped between Berkshire and Billericay, the most recent of which is Ricay’s summer arrival Siju Odelusi. Having joined United just over six months ago, Odelusi made 13 appearances in the closing stages of last campaign. He had spent the a few of the months prior with last Saturday’s opponents, playing 11 times for The Whites. Following his departure from Maidenhead, and release from Sutton United, Odelusi has linked back up with Danny Scopes – his former boss at Aveley. Under Scopes, Odelusi scored 17 goals in the 2023/24 season in what is a career best return rate for him. Already this season he has made six appearances for Billericay; mainly cameos off the bench with a start against Salisbury his only 90 minutes. 

 

The man likely to lead the line, and the player to watch, is former EFL striker Macauley Bonne. A graduate of Colchester United’s academy, the 30-year-old forward enjoyed his real ‘breakout’ season at Leyton Orient in the National League in 2017 scoring 49 in 103 games. Moves to Charlton Athletic and QPR followed as he amassed 75 Championship appearances and 14 goals. Billericay became his sixth club since his departure from The R’s when he arrived in February this year. To close out last season, he appeared 11 times in the Isthmian League Premier Division, scoring three as The Blues were promoted. He has started this season in strong from, with three in his opening seven taking him joint-top of the scoring charts alongside Charlie Ruff. 

 

Billericay’s famous face is TV presenter and best-selling author Richard Osman OBE was born in Billericay. Probably most well-known for his role as creator and former co-presenter of BBC One quiz show ‘Pointless’, alongside university friend Alexander Armstrong. He has also featured on ‘Would I Lie to You?’, ‘Have I Got News for You’ and ‘Taskmaster’, along with his obvious inclusion on ‘Richard Osman’s House of Games’. Away from the screens, Osman is the author of popular murder mystery series, The Thursday Murder Club. A series of five books released between 2020 and 2025 sold over 17 million copies worldwide, with Steven Spielberg securing the book’s film right and subsequently releasing his rendition to Netflix in August last year. 

 

A footballing famous face from Billericay is former Arsenal, West Ham and Coventry midfielder Stewart Robson. He made 276 appearances across the three clubs in a 15-year career, earning Player of the Season at each of the three as well. Since retirement, Robson has ventured into commentary and has been a well-recognised voice across ESPN, BT Sport and even EA Sports’ FIFA/FC game series. 

 

Billericay Town 1-0 Maidenhead United (2013) 

Maidenhead United 3-2 Billericay Town (2013) 

 

Please follow the link below for directions to York Road.  

This fixture WILL NOT be segregated. Tickets are available online and on-the-gate (price indicated in brackets). 

 

 

Adult: £18 (£20) 

Concession (Over 65s, Registered Disabled): £13.50 (£15) 

Next Generation (16-22): £9 (£10) 

Juniors (U16): £4 (£5)