AFC Totton
Veteran striker Brett Williams has left AFC Totton, making a permanent move to Southern League Premier Division South side Gosport Borough.
Since joining the club in August 2020, Brett has graced the AFC Totton turf with some spectacular goals, elegant touches and innovative goal celebrations, making him a firm fans’ favourite with the Snows Stadium faithful.
The 2020/21 season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but Brett weighed in with 13 goals in all competitions last season. Playing under three different managers, he made a total of 17 starts and 26 substitute appearances.
The former Aldershot Town, Forest Green Rovers and Torquay United striker reached the 100 appearances milestone for The Stags in unusual circumstances in May, when he was drafted in to play in goal in the Final of the Southampton Senior Cup at St. Mary’s Stadium, amidst an injury crisis that had three recognised goalkeepers all ruled out at the same time. He managed to keep a clean sheet against Folland Sports to help AFC Totton get their hands on the trophy for the first time in 40 years.
TON UP: Commercial Director Graham Lycett presents Brett Williams with a signed AFC Totton shirt to commemmorate the striker-cum-impromptu-goalkeeper's 100th appearance for The Stags after the Southampton Senior Cup Final against Folland Sports at St. Mary's Stadium in May 2022.
In the 2022/23 season to date, Brett made 7 starts, 7 substitute appearances and he scored 6 goals, 5 of which came in the same game during the 9-2 thrashing of Wincanton Town in the 1st Preliminary Round of the Emirates FA Cup in early-September. He was also on target in the 3-0 Southern League Div.1 South win over Slimbridge AFC in mid-October.
In addition to playing for the AFC Totton first team, Brett – working with fellow former Stag Ade Olumuyiwa – took last season’s inaugural AFC Totton Academy cohort to the Tactics T1 South Championship title, guiding the development of several promising young players who may yet go on to become significant contributors to the club’s future history. He recently resigned that position in order to take up a full-time career opportunity in the recruitment industry.
On the football-playing front, his first team opportunities have been limited due to the goalscoring form of Scott Rendell and the need to partner him with a different profile of striker, and at 35 years-old, Brett made it clear to manager Jimmy Ball that he needed to be playing games.
“There have been quite a few comings and goings over the summer and since the beginning of the season, and in all honesty, this was probably the hardest decision to make out of all of them,” said the AFC Totton boss.
“Brett is a fantastic player and a terrific role model to the other players around him, exactly the sort of man you want to have in your squad. I cannot speak highly enough of him, in that respect. But Scotty Rendell has earned that centre-forward slot with the goals he’s scored since the beginning of the season – I think he’s up to 14 in all competitions, right now – and when we’ve tried to partner Scott and Brett together, it simply hasn’t worked out as we had hoped.
“Conor Whiteley has come in and we can already see that he offers something different and with the other forward options we have, including those players who play further wide then the three players I’ve already mentioned, I’m not able to guarantee Brett the amount of playing time that he feels he needs at this stage of his career. I respect his point-of-view and I can say nothing more than thank you for everything you’ve done and good luck at Gosport – I really hope it goes well for him.”
In addition to those clubs already listed, Brett has also been on the books of Eastleigh, Winchester City, Reading, Rotherham United (on loan), Northampton Town (on loan), Woking (on loan), Stevenage, Bromley, Sutton United and Weymouth. He originally joined The Stags on loan from Eastleigh in October 2009.
Together with defender Ben Jefford, Brett was a National League Play-Off finalist with Forest Green Rovers at the end of the 2015/16 season, and he was also part of the Weymouth side that defeated Dartford in a Play-Off Final to secure promotion to the National League in 2019/20.
Brett now joins a Gosport Borough team who are hovering just above the relegation zone in 18th place in the 22-team Southern League Premier Division South table, with 16 points from 17 matches. The Boro’ face a difficult task on Saturday, when they will entertain third-placed Chesham United at Privett Park.
By Ben Rochey-Adams
Images courtesy of Craig Hobbs Photography
