By Freddie Jennings
NEW Bromley boss Karl Robinson has a big job ahead of him.
After a 3-2 defeat away to fellow strugglers Wigan Athletic on Saturday, Bromley fell to the bottom of League One.
The three games since Andy Woodman’s departure have yielded just one point, at home to Peterborough United, with their defeat to the Latics following a 4-1 loss to Milton Keynes.
Kamarl Grant gave the South Londoners the advantage at The Brick Community Stadium before Wigan hit back with two goals in five minutes from Christian Saydee then K’Marni Miller.
George Saville scored an impressive equaliser just before half-time but Bradley Burrowes’ strike in the 58th minute proved enough for three points for the home side.
It leaves the Ravens rock bottom of the table, three points behind 20th-place Doncaster Rovers.
The statistics now look grim for the team playing their first-ever season in the third tier. After a meteoric rise masterminded by the legendary Woodman, it appears Bromley have hit a ceiling in the club’s upward trajectory.
Bromley are in the bottom three with Wigan, Peterborough and Barnsley. The major concern will be that all three of those teams have much bigger budgets and more League One experience compared to the smallest club in the division.
With 33 goals conceded they have the worst defensive record in the division with Peterborough and Wycombe Wanderers being the closest to them with ten fewer goals conceded, a very worrying statistic for the Ravens, who have only won two of their thirteen league games this.
Hence why Bromley have opted for a manager with experience and nous at this level, someone who has already proven their ability to win points by any means, even if it means tightly locking up the defence.
Byron Webster is staying as part of Robinson’s coaching staff. Webster, like Woodman, is a club legend. He made 173 appearances for the club between 2020 and 2026 having previously represented Millwall 109 times over a five-year period.
Webster captained Bromley to victory in the 2024 National League play-off final and scored the winning penalty at Wembley to send the Ravens into the Football League for the first time in their history. He took on the role of interim manager after Woodman’s departure and was linked with the permanent job.
Former Arsenal, Chelsea and England defender Ashley Cole would perhaps have been a similarly risky appointment. Despite having coached throughout the different age groups with the England national team and worked under the likes of Wayne Rooney at Derby County then Frank Lampard at Everton, his only previous role as head coach was last season at Serie B club Cesena.
Bromley have gone in a different direction instead of giving a young manager their first major managerial role in English football under such pressurised circumstances.
Other names linked with the job included Mike Dodds, who is working as assistant manager at Blackburn Rovers, and current Barnet manager Dean Brennan, before Robinson, who left Salford City in the summer, was appointed.
“Karl brings an elite level of experience, tactical acumen, and a proven track record of competing at the sharp end of League One,” chairman Robin Stanton-Gleaves said on Bromley’s website.
“His relentless energy matches our ambition perfectly, and we are unified in our vision to drive this football club forward into an exciting new era.
“I led a full recruitment process, which began the day after our previous manager’s departure. From the outset, my intention was to find someone who had worked at this level and had the experience and qualities to take Bromley Football Club on the next stage of its journey.
“It was important to take the time to work through that process thoroughly, and I am delighted that it has brought us to Karl.”
Saturday’s fixture at home to Rotherham United in the first round of the FA Cup will act as a welcome reprieve from league troubles for fans.
Then it will be the first taste of the real business for Robinson as he attempts to arrest their league slide, starting at Reading on November 21.
