Bromley were holding high hopes for the season ahead after an impressive promotion campaign in which they finished champions by playing some wonderful attacking football at times. Mark Goldberg was determined to keep that style of play intact despite the fresh challenge ahead and the squad was bolstered with some very good signings indeed. Max Porter and Lee Minshull arrived in pack from Newport County to enhance the midfielder resources while Alex Wall was expected to become a big player in attack. The lack of experience at this level told in the first month as Bromley suffered some disappointments after a winning start of the season against Wrexham. They conceded twice in added time at lowly Halifax to let three points slip and then outplayed top side Forest Green, only to suffer a frustrating loss. But the Ravens were taking the harsh lessons well and started to improve massively in September. Indeed, they became the hottest and most entertaining side in the league over the next six weeks as they went on a run of eight wins and 31 goals scored in nine games going to mid-October. A responding 3:0 hammering of high-flying Gateshead was the catalyst for that impressive run and only a top side in Tranmere got points off them during that purple patch. That included putting seven goals past a dire Torquay side away from home and smashing fellow newcomers Barrow 5:0 in front of their own fans. Moses Emmanuel was the main star of the show as the explosive wide forward was playing with drive and determination that was too much for opposition defences. Bromley were dreaming wildly about another promotion at that stage of the season but as impressively as their fire burned during that period, it faded extremely quickly and it all turned sour for the South London side. Having seen their rhythm of constant league games disrupted by various breaks for FA Cup games, and with a few injuries taking their toll, Bromley suddenly could not buy a win and looked very shaky at the back. They did not win another game at home until late February and went on a few rather horrible runs. They conceded an embarrassing 5:3 loss at lowly Southport after a dire defensive showing that bookended a five-game losing streak. Goldberg seemed short of ideas how to stop the rot and confidence began to erode more and more. A rare win at Dover in late December papered over the cracks and indeed a resounding 4:1 loss at Cheltenham a month later proved the last game in charge for the promotion-winning manager. He was sacked due to the lack of progress made in recent months and his assistant Neil Smith took over on caretaker basis. He lost his first two games in the job but then managed to oversee the sort of revival needed to nullify any threat of relegation. He managed to end the long wait for a home win by seeing off Woking at home and then masterminded four more wins and a draw in the next five games. The Ravens only lost to high-flying Eastleigh and Braintree during that strong final third of the season until going off the boil late on and suffering three losses in a row to conclude the season. They did as well as it could be expected for a newcomer and even though the team hinter at some serious attacking potential at times, they just did not have the know-how and necessary consistency to maintain that. Yet they are better for the experience and will be looking for better next season as Smith was confirmed as a permanent manager after the way he stopped the rot.
