Farnham Town can confirm the unfortunate news that striker Shamal Edwards will be leaving the Club this summer.
Edwards will be remembered as one of the Club’s most important figures in our turnaround in the last 18 months, having played a key role in our success over that time.
‘Shamz’ was one of the early recruits of Paul Johnson when he took charge of the Club in the middle of the 2022/23 season, joining the Club from Tooting & Mitcham United before making his debut in the 1-0 home league defeat to Frimley Green – the last league game that the Town lost.
The following week in front of a bumper crowd of over 1,100 for the visit of title-chasing Badshot Lea, Edwards bagged a first-half brace as Farnham Town ran out 2-1 winners over their local rivals, derailing their title hopes in the process.
Those two goals would be the first of 14 strikes by Edwards in the final 15 games of the season, all of which he started, as the Town would only lose once in those fixtures, an Aldershot Senior Cup tie against Westfield.
In the trip to Ashford Town (Middlesex) in the Southern Combination Cup quarter-final, Shamz would net a goal and an assist in the 3-0 win against our Step 4 opposition, helping Farnham Town on their way to winning the competition in May 2023.
His 14 goals and eight assists in his 16 appearances in 2022/23 was enough to win Edwards the Golden Boot that season, and he had firmly cemented himself as a fan favourite. His blistering pace and finishing prowess in the box would be a mainstay during his time with the Club.
Despite considerable interest from Clubs at higher levels, Shamz committed to Farnham Town last summer by agreeing to remain with the Club for the 2023/24 season as we went in pursuit of promotion.
Shamz started this season how he finished last, by scoring goals and lots of them. He scored in our season opener away at Harefield United in the FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round, as well as our first league goal of the season in the 4-0 away win at Balham. He scored 10 goals in the first 12 games of the season as the Town got off to a hot start to the campaign.
Continuing to be a prolific scorer at the level, Edwards netted a number of key goals throughout the campaign: the opener in the 2-1 FA Vase victory against AFC Stoneham, the opener in the 3-1 away win at Fleet Town, the second goal in the 2-1 FA Cup triumph over Flackwell Heath and the opener in our 1-1 draw with Cobham which helped preserve our unbeaten status in the league.
Playing a key part in our 2023/24 success which saw Farnham Town enjoy record-equalling runs in the FA Cup and FA Vase, as well as securing promotion to Step 4 for the first time in Club history while going unbeaten all season, Shamz was our joint-top scorer across all competitions with 22 goals, while also providing 10 assists for his teammates.
In total, Shamz made 63 appearances for Farnham Town, scoring 36 goals and providing 18 assists.
Manager Paul Johnson said: “Shamz will always be remembered as a huge part of the Club’s journey, history and success. He made the step down to join us when we first arrived and believed in what we wanted to build here. He made an immediate impact scoring goals for fun and winning the Golden Boot despite playing only 16 games.
“This past season, he’s stepped it up again, being the joint-top scorer in the team and coming up with important goals time and time again. He’s a unique player and a great person to be around. The fans took to him well and will remember him fondly. We’re all incredibly thankful for Shamz’s efforts with us over the last 18 months and wish him all the best as he moves on this summer.”
Everyone at Farnham Town would like to thank Shamal for his unforgettable contributions to the Club across the last two seasons and wish him all the best as he continues his football journey elsewhere. We look forward to welcoming you back to The Memorial Ground again in the future!