It's 1,000 Up For White As Dorking Journey Continues

As the Dorking Wanderers supremo marks 1,000 matches in charge of the club he created with a couple of mates back in 2001, the memories have come flooding back.

We all know about that club formed from the ashes when Wimbledon FC up-sticks and landed in Milton Keynes.

But there was another one born out of that bitter divorce as well. Refusing to mope after the robbery from south London, heartbroken Dons fans White got his club off the ground roughly the same time as AFC Wimbledon did.

His sweet release from the capture of his favourite football team started a similar elevation, and 24 years and 999 matches on, National League South Dorking are now not just a weekend thing.

“I’m a football nut - I was Wimbledon home and away every week, hardly missed a game,” White said.

“Then Milton Keynes was happening and I just thought ‘why not put all your energy into something else’. Of course I follow AFC Wimbledon’s results, I’m a Wimbledon fan, but it just gave me the kick I needed to really get Dorking Wanderers off the ground.

“I just wanted to build a club and see where we could take it. I wanted to put a team together myself and see if we could get a promotion or two and wins a few cups.”

What a ride it has been, and two years ago they sat proudly at Non-League’s top table.

There’s not been many low points, so it’s fair to say he was due one. Dorking went down in April after a season where everything that could go wrong did go wrong.

He promised they would have a go at getting back and as good as his work, yet another promotion push is underway.

They have gone up 12 times inside a quarter of a century. Not bad for a club who kicked off life in the Crawley & District League and were playing in Division Four of the Sussex County League, putting up their own posts and collecting subs.

He added: “We started on grotty council pitches paying £50 a game and dragging nets for miles just to play a match. It really wasn’t very long ago - the rise is insane.”

Fittingly, he marks the big moment at the ground he helped build.

It’s Weston-super-Mare at home on Saturday, and he’s giving away his “lucky” coat to a fan after the game.

As he heads into match 1,000, White’s clearly not ready to jacket it in any time soon.

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