A note for supporters of a couple of new signings ahead of Sunday’s league game with Potters Bar Town midfielder, Tariq Turay and defender/midfielder Bailey Akehurst on a work experience loan from League One Gillingham.
Firstly, the club announce the signing of attacking midfielder Tariq Turay to the club. 24 year old Tariq came through the Arsenal Development system and was with Billericay Town and Leatherhead at the start of his career. In recent years Tariq has played in Europe particularly in Gibraltar from 2018-19 with Bruno’s Magpies and Boca Juniors Gibraltar. Tariq then moved on to Watra Bialka Tatrzanska in Poland for a season before playing in Croatia for NK Nasice in the Croatian National League last season.
We welcome Tariq to Cray Wanderers and hope he enjoys his time with the club.
Cray Wanderers can also announce the signing on a month’s work experience loan, of versatile defender/midfielder Bailey Akehurst to the club from Gillingham FC. 18 year old Bailey has come through the Gillingham youth/U18s system and made two first team appearances for the Gills last season against Crawley Town and Cheltenham Town in the EFL League Cup. Bailey will be with the Wands through September into October and we hope enjoys his time with Cray Wanderers.
For those that may have missed it as he was signed the day before the FA Cup tie, experienced midfielder Nicky Bailey has joined the club. Nicky has considerable Football League and non-league experience and over the last couple of years has been playing for Hampshire clubs, Havant & Waterlooville and signed for Gosport Borough for the 2020-21 season but never played a game for them.
Nicky came through the Fulham and Sutton United youth systems and made his first team debut at Sutton United in 2001 when the Surrey club were in the Isthmian Premier and made 85 appearances scoring 27 goals. He moved onto Barnet in 2004 and was virtually an ever present over three seasons helping the Bees to promotion to the Football League in 2004-05 and after making 125 appearances and scoring 17 goals signed for Southend United in July 2007 and won the Shrimpers player of the year award in 2007-08. However, in the summer of 2008 he joined Charlton Athletic and won their player of the year in 2008-09 although the South East London club were relegated from the Championship to League One. Nicky helped Charlton reach the League One playoffs in 2009-10 where they lost to Swindon Town.
Nicky joined Middlesbrough in the summer of 2010 and made 99 appearances over three seasons in the Championship before joining Millwall in the summer of 2013 but injury limited his progress with the Lions. After a brief spell back at Barnet he returned to Sutton United in 2016 and after four seasons in the National South and National League and helping Sutton to a 5th Round FA Cup tie with Arsenal in 2018 followed Paul Doswell to Havant & Waterlooville for the 2019-20 season where he made 34 appearances. In all he is just shy of 700 first team appearances and scored 104 goals.
Also midfielder Archie Burnett signed for Cray Wanderers on a month loan from Bromley. Archie will be with the Wands for the month of September and made his debut playing 70 minutes of last weekend’s FA Cup tie. Archie joined Bromley in the summer from Margate where he made a handful of first team appearances after coming through their youth system. He also had a spell on dual registration with Tonbridge Angels. Archie is a first year pro at National League Bromley and the month with Cray will give him some useful match time.
Nicky and Archie are pictured in the background as Cameron Brodie wins the ball versus Sutton Common Rovers. Pic. Jon Hilliger
BROMLEY, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 04: Cray Wanderers’s Cameron Brodie plays a high ball out to the wing under pressure from Sutton Common Rovers’s Ryan Dacres-Smith during the Emirates FA Cup – 1st Qualifying Round match between Cray Wanderers and Sutton Common Rovers at Hayes Lane on September 04, 2021 in Bromley, England . (Photo: © Jon Hilliger / HilligerPix)
