Kevin James and Julian Charles left with immediate effect on 31 August after six league defeats. A Bromley goalkeeper has joined on loan for Saturday's home game.
Walton and Hersham FC have parted company with their first-team management. The club confirmed on 31 August that Kevin James and Julian Charles have been relieved of their first-team duties with immediate effect.
The statement went up hours after a 5-1 defeat at Tonbridge Angels on bank holiday Monday. That was the club’s sixth league game of its first season in National League South, and its sixth defeat.
The club thanked both men “for their commitment, hard work and efforts during their time with the first team” and said it would “take the necessary time to consider the next steps”. No further update on the management structure had been published by this morning.
Six games, three goals scored, 21 conceded
Walton and Hersham went up to the sixth tier for 2026/27. The step up has been steep. The club’s own results for the league season so far read:
| Date | Match | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Sat 8 August | Folkestone Invicta (a) | Lost 5-1 |
| Sat 15 August | Maidstone United (h) | Lost 3-0 |
| Tue 18 August | Dagenham and Redbridge (h) | Lost 2-0 |
| Sat 22 August | Chesham United (a) | Lost 2-0 |
| Sat 29 August | Dorking Wanderers (h) | Lost 4-1 |
| Mon 31 August | Tonbridge Angels (a) | Lost 5-1 |
That is three goals scored and 21 conceded in a month.
A loan goalkeeper arrives for Saturday
The club moved quickly on the squad. On 3 September it announced the one-month loan signing of goalkeeper Dillon Addai from League One Bromley.
Addai is 21 and 6ft 3in. He came through the academies at Southampton, Leicester City and Millwall. He made 16 National League South appearances on loan at Chesham United in 2024/25, then signed for Bromley in July 2025 after a trial. He has since had loan spells at Chelmsford City and Ramsgate.
“I’m really happy to be here and I can’t wait to get started,” he said in the club’s announcement. “I’m very excited to meet the fans this Saturday.”
Walton and Hersham are at home to Ebbsfleet United at 3pm on Saturday 5 September at Elmbridge Xcel Sports Hub, Waterside Drive, Walton-on-Thames KT12 2JP.
Off the pitch: the council closed the bars for the last home game
The row between Walton and Hersham and Elmbridge Borough Council over their home ground escalated in the last week of August. The club has not linked the two.
The council closed the Xcel Sports Hub bars for the home game against Dorking Wanderers on Saturday 29 August. It said the club had been sent a letter “following recent allegations of intimidating and abusive behaviour by a small number of their supporters towards Places Leisure staff”. That is from a statement dated 27 August. The pitchside catering vans stayed open.
These are allegations by the council, and no individual has been named or charged. The council said “the vast majority of fans attend matches responsibly and contribute positively to the matchday atmosphere”.
A council spokesperson said: “The safety and wellbeing of staff must always come first. Everyone using council facilities should be treated with respect.”
The statement also put numbers on the council’s side of the argument:
- the council spent £300,000 this year replacing the 3G pitch so the club could take its place in National League South
- Places Leisure, the social enterprise that runs the Sports Hub for the council, has invested over £82,000 in a new bar and other improvements
- the club uses the Sports Hub “at a reduced rate” for training and matchdays
- Places Leisure funds and operates the bars, meets the staffing, utilities, cleaning and maintenance costs, and says they generate “a modest income each month”
We reported the underlying dispute in August. The council’s position, set out on 13 August, is that the club is refusing to re-sign its hire agreement and is trying to pass matchday costs, including stewarding, to the council. The club’s open letter put its own case and offered to run the bars itself. Neither the hire agreement nor the bar arrangement has been publicly resolved.
The club had published no response to the 27 August statement when we checked this morning.
What it means for you
If you are going on Saturday, the game is on and kick-off is 3pm at the Xcel Sports Hub. Whether the bars are open is a matter for Places Leisure and the council rather than the club, and neither has said publicly whether the 29 August closure was for that game only. If it matters to your plans, check with the venue before you travel.
If you are watching the wider argument, the thing to follow is the hire agreement. Both sides have said talks continue, and the council appends dated updates to one page rather than posting new items, so that URL is the one to bookmark.
The Sports Hub is a council leisure facility, so the money involved is public money. That is why the pitch and bar figures matter beyond the football.
Sources
- Walton and Hersham FC, Club Statement: First Team Management, 31 August 2026, for the departure of Kevin James and Julian Charles and the club’s thanks to both.
- Walton and Hersham FC, Dillon Addai joins the Swans on loan, 3 September 2026, for the loan, his career to date and his quote.
- Walton and Hersham FC, first team results and fixtures, for the six league results and the Ebbsfleet United fixture on 5 September.
- Elmbridge Borough Council, Xcel Sports Hub, Walton and Hersham FC, statements of 27 August, 13 August and 4 August 2026, for the bar closure, the allegations, the £300,000 pitch, the £82,000 Places Leisure investment and the hire agreement dispute.
More Elmbridge news: the Xcel Sports Hub dispute in August, Hurst Pool’s refurbishment closure and roadworks and travel.
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