Black in December 2020 I noticed that the nearest club to my house had reopened at Hall Corner Glapwell and in the following May I was happy to watch a game there. My blog at that time ‘Glapwell have more than other teams to overcome’ said it all, and with the redevelopment of housing and other sports facilities for locals the club had no long term future there. I was surprised to see that there was a Glapwell team entered this season in the Central Midlands League North. Their new playing home though was at Mansfield Hosiery Mills Sports club utilising its facilities that are available because they have not entered a team in this League this season.
The good good news was that after speaking to some of Glapwell’s officials they are close to announcing a new permanent home, with a club house, not too far from Hall corner. I look forward to making a trip there when it is up and running.
In the meantime I had journeyed south on the M1 to reach the game on the western edge of Sutton in Ashfield. You drive into a modern housing estate down Mill Lane and on your left is a turning into the sports club. There is a good car park here but with the cricket club having stated earlier it was full. On the sunny day, with a few billowing white and grey and a temperature of 22 degrees they were playing cricket on a magnificent pitch showing off what some would call the quintessential British summer. My quest was to the right and what was the home of Mansfield Hosiery Mills FC now temporarily Glapwell FC. This is a fantastic stadium for what is the 11th tier of English football and is kept in very smart and clean condition. It boasts floodlights, a seated stand behind one goal, hard standing around the rest and a clubhouse and changing room on one side. The pitch slopes from side to side and from one end to the other with good grass cover, only yellowing in some patches.
I have written about Glapwell’s history before having once reached the Northern Premier League in their history. AFC Bentley were only formed 10 years ago in 2016 and have developed a local community club with teams of all ages. they have successfully continued to maintain a strong showing in the Central Midlands League and this season after one winand one loss have started well. Glapwell’s start has been somewhat of a contrast, losing all three of their opening games but have only a goal difference of minus 4.
Glapwell FC 4 AFC Bentley 0
Central Midlands Alliance League, Premier North. Saturday 22nd August 2026 !5.00 pm kick off.
Mansfield Hosiery Mills, Sports facilities, The Fieldings, Sutton in Ashfield, Notts, NG17 2TF.
The Glappy v No nickname found. 15th v 11th, Attendance 21
Glapwell; Black and white vertical Striped shorts with black shorts, goalkeeper in all pink. AFC Bentley; Navy blue shirts with royal blue shoulders and green shorts, goalkeeper in all grey.
The first 15 minutes were equal with Bentley just having the edge but on 20 minutes Glapwell showed some promise hitting the crossbar from a free kick and a few minutes later their defender throwing his body at the ball prevented the visitors from going ahead.
Glapwell did take the lead on 29 minutes when striker Callum Price took advantage of a spilled ball to slot the ball into the corner of the net. Against the run of play Glapwell scored again with 40 minutes gone when Oliver Parfitt took advantage of Bentley players standing still and smashed the ball into the roof of the net from an acute angle on the right.
Glapwell went in at half time two up slightly against the run of play.
Bentley’s day was made worse only 11 minutes from the restart when Callum Price scored a great goal, taking the ball down outside the goal area he looked up and lobbed the keeper for three nil. with the game almost up it was four nil when the Glapwell number 3 beat two away defenders on the buy lien to cross the ball for Kyle Collins to touch in at the far post.
An emphatic first win for Glapwell and good news that they will in the future have a permanent home.
No chips here so I had a Bovril which was again offered with pepper. This time I tried it and it did seem to change the taste slightly taking away some of the saltiness. I was also told that some people add paprika, a culinary delight for the future?
I attended the match with my daughter who as a Northampton Town season ticket holder watches the matches with her nephew. He is still at junior school and they measure his growth by him laying on the seats. with just a small crowd at the game i was measured.
Needing a football fix after returning from a holiday I was able to go locally to watch Worksop Town v Telford.
With some pitches currently unplayable after such a long period without rain, and some junior football and rugby union leagues delaying their start, I was assured of a game on the all weather pitch.
After street parking, like most others, I strolled across Sandy Lane to notice some changes. A new set of turnstiles have been introduced which I think are for away supporters although even the officials were not sure. Then queuing up there was a problem, the WiFi signal was not reaching the card terminals. Luckily I had some cash, although it was a £50 note. People don’t like accepting these due to past forgeries, but the official was only too pleased to accept and move the building queue along. Why do cash machines issue £50 notes when it can be hard to use them.
Also new was that the stadium is now the KC Sofas stadium, taking over from long term sponsors Windsor Food Services. Windsor Foods had been a long term great supporter of the club but a takeover by a Nottingham firm, Hopwells, has seen ,it end.
The fantasy of sofas as seats in the covered stand soon disappeared when I sat down.
I have written about Worksop Towns history in the past with their recent rise up the leagues following a near extinction a few years ago.
Telford too have a chequered history with historians placing the original starting point in 1872 as Parish Church Institute. They took the name of the area, Wellington, 7 years later. Wellington retained its identity until placed within the New Town area of Telford in 1968. The name Telford United was adopted in 1969. They have played in local, Shropshire, Cheshire and West Midlands Leagues until progressing to the Southern League, North West in 1958 and promoted to the Southern Premier League in 1959.
They established themselves as a very competitive side, losing in the FA Trophy final in 1970 and winning it the following season. Their rise continued when in 1979 they were founder members of the Alliance Premier League.
During the next decade they were known for their giant killing exploits in the FA Cup and made three more FA Trophy appearances winning twice. Further cup exploits were achieved but in 2004 they folded with heavy debts. The fans rallied to form a new team playing in the Northern Premier League from where the club have been as high as the National League and back as low as the Southern League and now back in the National League North.
It was a cooler day 24/25 degrees which was welcome after the recent heat while we waited for the game to be delayed due to the backlog at the entrance.
Worksop Town 2 AFC Telford United 1
Saturday 15th August 2026. !5.00 pm kick off
National League North, 7th v 15th, Tigers v The Bucks
Worksop Town FC, Babbage Way, off Sandy Lane, Worksop, Nottinghamshire, S80 1UJ.
Worksop, yellow shirts with black diaganol stripes, black shorts, goalkeeper in all purple.
Telford. Pink shirts, white shorts, goalkeeper in all green.
Both teams started with speed and passion but it was the tigers who went ahead when on 18 minutes some fast tricky play on the left meant a perfect ball was delivered to Kian Barrett’s head who glanced it over the telford keeper into the far left hand corner of the net. The whole team rushed to celebrate and took some time to restart. Worksop kept up the pace yet only had one other shot on goal before half time whereas Telford looked dangerous in the quarter of an hour before the break, orchestrated by the skilful Jamie Meddows.
Telford kept up the pressure at the restart and with it only 4 minutes old they equalised. Charlie Williams controlled a pass, shrugged of a defender and hit a 20 yard screamer into the top right hand corner of the goal.
The home team did manage to regain the momentum and advantage with a string of corners, but regained the lead when on 67 minutes Aleks Starcenko unleashed his own 20 yard bullet which grazed the post and the goalkeeper.
An injury to the influential Meddows interrupted Telfords style with neither team able to get clear chances. Worksop’s Ryan Viggers was sent off near the end for putting his arm across a defenders face after a foul. Despite 7 minutes of added time neither team were able to add to their score and the Tigers had won a tough battle. They certainly needed their claws out in this tough battle.
I have always been surprised that the chips at worksop were not great considering that they were sponsored by a food service company. Has there been a change because the chips were golden, tasty, not greasy and enjoyable, a score of 54.
The heat doesn’t seem to end, with 27.5 degrees registering on the car display as I turn off the M18 at 19.00 hrs to go to Armthorpe to see an evening game.
Armthorpe is a village north east of Doncaster, which is slowly encroaching on its borders. An agricultural village that was tubo charged by coal mining at the Markham Main coal pit now closed for 30 years. The old pit area is now a large expanding new housing area.
The ground is in the centre of the village behind a Morrisons and Aldi and close to other retail shops.Google tells you that there is a car park, don’t believe it, so I found a space on a local road.
Armthorpe Welfare FC are celebrating their centenary and played their football in Doncaster and Sheffield Leagues, mostly Doncaster, until 1983 when they joined the Northern Counties East League. After just 4 seasons they gained promotion to the Premier Division where they stayed for 32 seasons only to be relegated in 2017. The club have stayed at that level since, and now share their ground with Doncaster City FC who are trying to find a place to develop there.
On entering you are immediately faced with two pictures of Kevin Keegan, lost to us only recently, who was born in Armthorpe and started his professional career just up the road at Scunthorpe United.
Their opponents on the evening were Athersley Recreation, from just north of Barnsley. Relative newcomers to Armthorpe tracing their history back to only 1979. They played local Barnsley and Sheffield football until 2012 when they were promoted to the Northern Counties East League Division One. A further immediate promoting to the Premier Division lasted until 2022, since when they have been playing in Division One.
There is a small clubhouse on the right of the ground entrance, serving drinks and food. A covered seated stand stretches down half of one side and there are two wooden shelters on either side in case of rain. A small corrugated tiered stand area behind one goal was out of bounds on the night. A concrete walkway goes round the pitch which is dominated by four old style floodlights stanchions. These could be removed shortly with six new modern sets of lights have recently been installed. One of the old stanchions may well be kept as it also houses local mobile phone masts.
The pitch was flat with some undulating areas but the hot summer has taken its toll on the grass which is yellowing in patches. It was also baked hard causing an unusual bounce and a surface I wouldn’t have liked to play on. Although most of the sky was light blue with large fluffy clouds, some darker ones were forming in the distance and the wind was getting up.
Armthorpe Welfare FC 2 Athersley Recreation FC 0
Northern Counties East League Division One, Tuesday 4th August 2026, 19.45 kick off.
9th v 8th, The Wellie v The Penguins. Attendance 210
Armthorpe, Navy blue shirts and shorts with yellow stripes down side, goalkeeper in all pink. Athersley, all orange with black shoulder yolk, goalkeeper in all yellow.
The first 10 minutes were frantic, and even with the home sides speed looking menacing. That speed created a goal when Regan Fish outpaced the Athersley defence forcing their goal keeper to block the shot with his knee. The ball spun up and back towards the goal and a desperate attempt by a defender to keeping out failed.
Armthorpe were then on top, but ‘The Penguins’ should have equalised 6 minutes later when an unposed header went over the bar. Armthorpe had their big miss on 38 minutes when a forward blasted well over with an open goal awaiting.
Armthorpe ahead at the break but Athersley had their spell of pressure in 15 mins before end and were not out of it
With all the players out on the pitch we had to wait a further 3 minutes before the three officials were out and ready to start.
The second half was a different matter with the ‘Wellies’ putting pressure on their opponents from the start. The conditions changed with very dark black clouds all around and the wind turning more blustery. This didn’t deter Ryan Elison whose mazy run left the Atherstone defence flat footed and allowed him to place the ball to the right of the goalkeeper to double the lead. Armthorpe dominated the game after this goal on 71 minutes and were in the end comfortable winners.
The black clouds did eventually burst, giving a 5 minute downpour, scatering the crowd to any cover they could find.
An impressive start to the season, two wins from two, for the home team.
There were some chips, which were served quickly, were hot, not greasy, golden, crispy (too much) but a bit dry. A score of 54.The coffee though was one of the best I have ever had at a football match.
At the match I met Acker Shaw, dressed as a pirate, who tirelessly visits local football clubs, shaking his bucket for donations to Weston Park Hospital. He has been doing this since 2000 to show gratitude for the care they gave to his wife, Brenda, in her battle against breast cancer. Sadly Brenda lost her battle but Acker has honoured her with raising £176 000 he told me. He said he was approaching 3000 matches and raised £64 on the night as he presses on to hopefully reach £ 250 000. What an amazing achievement and a heartfelt thank you.
They say that ‘Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the mid-day sun’. That seems to have changed with our hottest time of the day now seeming to have moved to mid or late afternoon.
I set off for Walsall, near to 4pm, with the temperature at 27 degrees, to drive south to Walsall. The quest was to meet my son and one of my grandsons to go and watch Aston Villa. Not the best of timing with an estimate of journey time rising from 80 minutes to 100 with people making theirvway home from work.
We met in the official Walsall FC car park, behind the retail park and walked to a nearby Mc Donald’s for a snack. It was packed with Villa fans, queuing out of the door, chatting and relaxed in the warmth and sun.
Villa and Walsall have a long history of collaboration and always start the pre-season with a game against each other. However this time they were playing Real Sociedad having played Walsall the previous week. Villa Park is not available with the rebuild of the North Stand and other infill areas to increase the capacity to over 50000.
Real Sociedad beat Wolves 2.1 a few days earlier all part of their pre season preparations with games in Toulouse and two in Koln to follow before returning home to San Sebastian in Northern Spain.
Walsall’s Bescot Stadium was built at the end of the 1980’s all part of a redevelopment that included the adjacent retail park. It has seated covered areas on all 4 sides. Three of which are the same height and the fourth, at one end, is three tiers heigh. We sat in the third tier of the stand which gave us a good view of the stadium but not of the goal below us. It also gave a prominent view of the elevated M5, where a continuous stream of traffic whizzed by. During the game it was a bit disconcerting focusing on the game with the traffic as well.
The pitch looked a magnificent green and was being watered before the game, no shortage of water here. it was set off against a hazy blue sky with very few white clouds to be seen.
9269 settled down to watch the game.
Aston Villa 2 Real Sociedad 4
Tuesday 28th July 2026, 19.30 pm kick off.
Bescot Stadium, Bescot Crescent, Walsall, West Midlands, WS1 4SA
Premier League – England (fourth 25/26) v La Liga (tenth 25/26)
Villains v Erreala
Aston Villa, Claret shirts, light blue shorts, goalkeeper in all yellow. Real Sociedad, Black and white vertical striped shirts with white shorts, goalkeeper in black.
The game started at walking pace and a lot of tip tapping at the back from both sides with the game feeling very much like the practice it was.
Villa did start to exert some pressure and were rewarded on 14 minutes when hemmings found space on the left hand corner of the goal area and expertly curled the ball inside the far post for the lead. This only lasted 8 minutes before Real levelled when Soler gifted the ball by the home team defence scored at the second attempt after Bizot had saved.
With the restart it was the spanish team who took the lead when a free in from the left was deflected by a Villa player into the path of Oskarsson who just tapped in at the far post. Almost immediately Villa levelled after Buendia eluded 3 players to pass the ball to the 17 year old, Madgo, who showed considerable strength in holding of a defender and slotting the ball under the goalkeeper into the middle of the net.
This heralded changes by both sides with what looked like 8 or 9 for Sociedad. These changes also changed the game and the visitors took control. It was though good to see Pau Torres back on the pitch and looking his imperious self.
Sociedad went further ahead on 66 minutes when Carrera surged into the goal area and struck the ball along the ground past Bizot. They made it 4 right at the end when a cross was knocked up in the air by Bizot to fall to Ruperez to bundle home.
Madgo impressed with his physicality, speed and ball control, Cisse reminded me of a very young Ugo Ehiog and Pau was calm.
Villa are now off to the Far East with most of their more senior players and new recruits.
There were chips but having just had some in Mcdonalds I couldn’t face any more.
Then the fun started The game finished at 21.15 and we were back in our cars in two minutes but didn’t leave the stadium until 58 minutes later, even behind the two Villa team coaches and the two Spanish registered ones taking them of on their journey towards Toulouse. What must it be like on a Saturday when the Retail Park is closing too? Added to that the A38 was closed for resurfacing, good to see, and with that detour was home 3 minutes before midnight.
It was however great to see my son and grandson, see the Villa and enjoy the continuing start to this seasons journey.
I made my way to South Elmsall for what the announcer on the sound system called the earliest start to a league season he could remember.
The game I went to see was Frickley Athletic against Keighley Town. Just an ordinary Northern Counties East League opening match. Maybe not because this was the first competitive match for the new Keighley Town FC.
Keighley Town FC have come about through Ryan O’Neil and Kaue Garcia, the owners of Keighley Cougars rugby league club, taking over Eccleshill United FC last year and moving the club to Cougar Park, changing the name but maintaining Eccleshill’s standing in the non-league pyramid structure. Their next aim is to get local planning approval to install a 3G pitch for men’s and women’s Rugby League and football.
This is an interesting development because at the same level, Sheffield FC the oldest club in the world, we’re linked, under the same common ownership as Sheffield Eagles who are now sharing the football clubs stadium. Both clubs continue to look to relocate to a modern, joint, stadium in the city of Sheffield.
Wigan Athletic and Wigan Warriors share the same ground and ownership, there maybe more.
Is multi ownership of sports clubs a fast growing trend in the UK as per other countries. The multi use stadium benefit, especially 3G, and all its other junior football and rental opportunities looks compelling.
Back to my first league game of the season. The journey north on the motorways was quiet, considering it being the first weekend of the school holidays for many. Cooler at 24.5 degrees, the blue sky had some fluffy clouds.
The very small Frickley village is just south of South Elmsall where Frickley Athletic have played since 1910, having been founded in 1908. This has always been a multi use sports complex and you still drive past the cricket ground to get to the very huge car park for the football ground.
Inside the stadium you soon noticed the very large covered seated stand, dating back almost 100 years. The grounds development was majorly supported by the local miners welfare. The demise of the South Elmsall and Frickley colliery coming in November 1993. Frickley had already changed their name from Frickley Colliery to Frickley Athletic in 1974. Today as you drive into the town from the A1M you drive past the gigantic shed complex of a Next Distribution Centre which is now most probably the major employer in the area.
Either side of the large stand are a ‘Big Fellas’ tea bar, the entrance, and a bar for refreshments, with seating and a large television. Down the far side is a long tiered covered standing area, with both ends of the ground open but with hard standing. A modern building in one corner houses the changing rooms and a posh area for hospitality. The size of the ground and facilities reflect the fact that Frickley graced the old Alliance and Conference Leagues, equivalent today of the National League, once for seven seasons in the 1980’s, with a second place finish one year.
The pitch looked very dry with large patches of yellowing grass. The surface here sopes from one corner to the other and from end to end. What made this more pronounced was a strong wing blowing in the same direction as the slope.
The teams made their way onto the pitch with the backdrop of Frickley Country Park, fashioned out of the old flag heaps with a lone kite flyer taking advantage of the wind at the highest point.
Frickley Athletic FC 1 Keighley Town FC 1
Saturday 25th July 2026, 15.00 pm kick off
Northern Counties East League, Premier Division.
The Blues v TBA
Westfield Lane, South Elmsall, Pontefract, South Yorkshire, WF9 2EQ.
Frickley in all royal blue shirt and shorts, goalkeeper in pink jersey black shorts Keighley all white shirts and shorts with two red and one black thin stripes down the side of shirts and shorts, goalkeeper in all orange.
Keighley took advantage of the slope and wind straight away with the ball hanging and swirling, making it difficult for defenders to clear. Keighley kept on top with some skilful footwork, but some dour defence by home team kept them at bay. They couldn’t hold out though when after 27 minutes some tricky skills enabled him to coss along the ground for Zane Newman Richards to steer in.
Keighley kept up their pressure with Frickley only occasionally mounting attacks, but failing to get a shot on goal.
At Half Time you wandered of the conditions would change the fortunes of the home team and would Keighley rue the fact that they were only one ahead after dominating. The Keighley manager and some of his team had sat on the same row as me in the stand getting a good overview of his charges.
With in two minutes of the restart we had our answer to the conditions advantage when the Blues had a header on goal go just wide. Frickley levelled 7 minutes later when Sam Cable touched in a curling cross from the right.
It was now one way traffic as the ball bounced back off of the crossbar from a free kick.
The home team continued to press forward, however the strength of the away teams players kept pushing them back and they posed a threat to the end of the game which ended all square.
The game ending rain! Only a light drizzle but something we have not seen for weeks. It had been coming with the strengthening wind blowing grey clouds in from the east.
A good workout and start for both teams in the conditions, very hard pitch, wind and slope. Keighley to me looked the strongest with a long season ahead.
I had a portion of chips and a coffee for just £4. Not a bad start to the season. The chips were golden and crispy but not hot and a bit story inside. A score of 55 to set a benchmark for my chip league this season. Ths food in general looked good with the meat pie chips and gravy of the person in front of me looking delicious.
No program but a team sheet for 50P. With their X account having been recently hacked and a new one started I wonder in years to come if there will be any way to view the social history of a football club the way it was possible through local papers, programs and fanzines. That sounds like a blog for the future.
With the publication of the lower league fixtures I decided to start my 2026/27 season with a trip to Goldthorpe.
With the heatwave continuing it was a pleasant evening drive, 22.5 degrees, to the Dearne Valley to watch a Friday night friendly. The dry warm weather meant farmers were out with combine harvesters getting in the wheat. It seems a few weeks earlier this year.
I had watched Dearne and District FC for some time with my first visit back in October 2022 when they were playing on a pitch used by their many junior teams, as they awaited the completion of their current grounds upgrade. They were promoted from the Central Midlands League to the Northern Counties East League Division One, and I visited them again at their current location. They had made great strides to get the ground ready for their new level and having been runaway winners of that league last season I was interested to see how they had progressed.
The concrete walkway round almost three sides is completed, and one seated stand and one standing covered area, made from containers have been fitted out. The transit van that had served as a drinks and food outlet had gone replaced by another converted container. Progress definitely but with costs doubling each level you gain, and ground regulations increasing there will be more to do both on and off the pitch.
The playing surface has suffered from the very prolonged dry spell and although basically flat does have some undulating areas and dry, yellowing patches.
Brigg Town, I watched early last season when they had a disastrous start, later recovering to finish 6th in the NECL Division One. I sat in the covered seated stand behind some of their supporters who were not happy. They had seen their team lose all of their pre-season friendlies by at least 3 goals and were fearful of their line up in this fixture. They also were bemoaning the fact that not everyone had turned up.
Dearne and District FC 6 Brigg Town FC 2
Friday 17th July 2026, 19.30 pm kick off.
Dearne and District FC, The Century Cladding Community Welfare Ground, Furlong Road, Goldthorpe, S63 9EH.
Northern Counties East League Premier Division team v Eastern Counties League Division One team.
Dearne, in all red shirts with some thin white stripes down the front wit red shorts. The goalkeeper in all fluorescent green. Brigg, all royal blue shirts with some cross fading and blue shorts. The goalkeeper in all yellow.
A good crowd was present, briefly increased by regular passing trains on the banking behind one goal.
The Brigg fans were adding up the pre season goals against after just 4 minutes when a ball through to Jordan Kershaw, I thought he was very offside, allowed him to stroll forward and roll the ball to right of Brigg’s young goalkeeper, into the net.
With 16 minutes gone it was Jordan Kershaw again who found space to shoot but this time hit the post. However he was not denied 12 minutes later when he took advantage of the goalkeeper hesitation and chipped over his grounded body into the open net.
It was not all one-way traffic though and Brigg grabbed one back when a low hit corner was steered into the Dearne goal by Josh Batty with 33 minutes gone. Dearne, a big team, in comparison, scored again, 4 minutes later, when Justin Circuit collected the ball on right, shaped to shoot and curled it out of reach of the goalkeeper into the top left hand corner.
A Dearne player now shouted loudly that the young Brigg keeper couldn’t kick far so move up. The keeper then struck the goal kick so that the ball landed just in front of Dearne’s 18 yard line and the Brigg keeper shouted “Can’t kick, fuck off”. This drew loud laughs from the players and crowd.
The teams left the pitch at half time with the home side leading 3.1 but with Brigg not crumbling.
D&D pressed hard again at the start.of the second half with their number 2 launching throw ins from the side to beyond the penalty area which were proving effective with their height superiority.
Justin Circuit made it four on 56 minutes when from the right corner of the goal area he curled the ball just inside the far post.
Brigg kept trying and with a penalty awarded to them, for a trip, Josh Batty despatched it for his second goal.
Thirteen minutes from the end one of the amazing long throws was met by Owen Fieldsend, whose bullet header screamed into the net for a 5.2. lead.
Just 2 minutes later a headed clearance was headed back to goal by a trialist and it looped over everyone increasing Dearne’s goal tally to 6.
Dearne and District were happy with their win although the two goals against could have been defended better. For Brigg, back to the drawing board, although they never gave up and have a base to build on.
No chips to start the season, instead a great cup of Bovril but a very dry sausage roll of which I only ate a third. Not a good start to the season.
A couple of weeks ago I visited The Church of St Columba in Crosspool, Sheffield.
Crossool is a neighbourhood to the West of Sheffield City centre just before you reach countryside and the edge of the Peak District. It is an area of residential houses whih those living there having a strong attachment to their community.
It is also the home of Hallam FC, recognised by FIFA as the second oldest football club in the world playing at the oldest ground. The Football Club share the ground with the local cricket club.
The community rooted Church of St Columba had given up their church for an open meeting for local people, fans and supporters of the club to discuss their future. Ideas and options were presented by the Football Supporters Association with regards working towards Hallam becoming a fan owned community club. Hallam is currently ‘Unincorporated’ which puts an incredible onus and strain on those running the club and its future.
The congregation were told that there are currently 42 cubs operating on a fan owned basis under the guidance of the Football Supporters Association of which Wimbledon and Exeter are the highest ranked clubs in the league system. There are two more just coming on line. The two people presenting were fan members of Bury F.C. and Lewes F.C.
There are different models and constitutions and these have been circulated by the Hallam team. The journey was said to have 5 stages which could take as long as it takes with Hallams journey likely to be about 6 months to a year.
What was interesting was that in discussion it was pointed out that there was considerable interest from abroad, particularly the USA, to take over Non League clubs with the Wrexham rise being the catalyst. The Supporters Association pointed out that this is not sustainable for all with costs doubling each time promotion is gained due to e.g. rises in wages, ground grading, travelling. These costs are not covered by a doubling in the gate or total income. A club could end up with owners soon reaching their willingness to financially support it and not be part of the community who had enjoyed and supported it for many years.
Those attending unanimously voted to move forwards to make Hallam community led, fan owned, and that this action was the first step in five steps to achieve the goal. One poignant message was that Hallam like all clubs should address a plan that looked to the future and realistically set the level that was sustainable to achieve and compete in.
With no football matches I looked for another football fix, and at the nearby Renishaw and Spinkhill Community Centre a Subbuteo fair was advertised. Just off the M1 at junction 30 it was a well placed venue. Parking outside I noticed two men chatting and exchanging boxes in the car park. Elicit Subbuteo trading?
I walked in to the Community Hall and was amazed at the number of people there, and the stalls that packed out the venue. Two of the stalls were from Italy and a man with a quiet accent from the South of Ireland was buying in font of me. He must have been out of the Eire plated car I had parked next to.
This little local hub had been turned into Subbuteo heaven. There were boxes of teams of clubs from all over Europe, women’s teams, boxes of individual players for you to find the one you needed to complete a set, floodlights, stands, supporters, officials and more, all in miniature. It was mainly men 40 plus in age and a chat with one revealed that he had recently found a friend who still had his old set and they had set up meetings to compete with each other.
This is not just a culture for collectors, I find out there are leagues and even International matches.
One stall was empty boxes for you to buy to keep you team pristine or on display. People will take orders for them to paint you a team in the colours you want and of the era you require. They turn out as miniature works of art. On one stall was a Subbuteo sticker book, who knew, and Subbuteo cricket and rugby.
It was totally fascinating to see theses roughly one inch figures are still so keenly traded, collected and played with. My next Subbuteo education will be to attend one of their competitions.
Unfortunately I did wonder how long the game will continue to draw such support with the attendees all being of a certain age. Their children and grandchildren will have been at home playing on a smart device.
I did buy a referee set and corner flags for my grandchildren to go with their fathers set. Let’s hope they get used.
In the Autumn of 2016 I met up with some old school friends and I asked one who was already retired what he did. “I empty the dishwasher” was his reply. My mouth dropped and I quizzed him to give me the real answer, but he didn’t change his words. My heart sank, not just for him but for my impending retirement in the following February. I had to find another answer and a purpose to move forward in a new chapter of my life.
If you are looking for a career move people often advise you to turn a hobby into a business. I wasn’t skilled enough in pottery, painting, woodwork etc to turn to one of those, yet one thing I have done all of my life is to enjoy watching football. I have a vague recollection of attending matches when I was five at St Albans City, then like now members of the Isthmian League, and in my first season finishing bottom. I remember that the terrace behind the York Road goal was of wooden sleepers, filled in with ash and at that time frequented by many fans who were smokers. It was fun to get some discarded cigarette ends on to which I piled some litter and managed to get some smoke. My fun was ended by a clip round the ear and I never did that again.
I had previously thought about writing a blog and Non- League football seemed a good place to start, but I lacked the computer knowledge and was fearful to get started. At school and in life my English, especially spelling, had always been an achilles heel, however spell check was now there to remedy this. If you knew me you would not be surprised how many times there are words underlined in red when I write each post. In depth computer knowledge was also not a strong point, however research soon led me to ‘WordPress’ which seemed to be the leader as a blogging tool and I found that it was not so daunting to set one up.
Wow, here I go I thought, but I needed a name and I spent days thinking of the most catchy name in the world, that didn’t materialise, and I couldn’t get ‘notonthepools’ out of my head. I finally managed to ditch that and landed with ‘payonthegate’. payonthegate to me is something that you do at Non-league games although even here pre-booked tickets are creeping in.
Fear was now my biggest obstacle and those first few blogs were daunting. Very few read what I had published at first which luckily didn’t kill my determination to continue, or reduce the number of games I was going to. What now took over was the enjoyment of the endless research, planning and watching matches. Obsesion, some close to me would call it, however it gave me purpose, a need to use my brain, travel to new horizons and a sense of community. Its not just the football, but, the history, the future, the place and the people. To go to football matches in the lower echelons of our national game you soon realise there would be no matches without the dedication of small groups who keep clubs alive. The lady who seemed to run the whole show at LLangollen, the groundsman at Baslow who found time to stop cutting the grass to explain who played there, the lady at Lancaster who facilitated me to get in the ground with no cash, and many more.
What has also been an eye opener are the friendly people I have met, ‘Miserable Les’, his stage name, at Esh Winning, who I chatted to for the whole game, shared a cup of tea at halftime, and I think I can remember the score was 1-1, it didn’t matter. In the away seats at Hereford two guys of a similar age sat with me and talked me through a whole history of Kings Lynn FC, the current team and why the club needed a shake up. We were then kept in the ground , with about 20 others, by the local police for our own safety? I was ambushed by a group of mature fans at CD National FC on Madeira, where I found that although there were no allocated seats they always sat where I was. How we managed to communicate this, with them not speaking any English, and me not speaking any Portuguese, was amazing. They decided to adopt me into their clan and at very goal they scored we hugged, high fived and laughed.
I always feel at home in the clubhouse of Staveley Miners Welfare FC, on a cold day its warm, the food ids good and most importantly there is real sense of community something you find in many clubhouses or on the terraces even when the crowd is only small. Travel is also one of the rewards, watching football next to the ruins of Berwick Castle with the sea as a backdrop, seeing the FIFA recognised pitch on the Isle of Eriksay, covered in sheep droppings, watching Clachnacuddin in Inverness and seeing if the support at Verona was as Tim Parks described in his book ‘My Year With Verona’, it was.
I have also, always enjoyed watching the trends of teams rising and falling within the pyramid system and how new teams are formed. Guernseys emergence in the Non – League pyramid has led to teams from the Isle of Mann and Jersey to follow suit, Loughborough Students have paved the way for more University teams to climb the ladder and the recent rise of teams based on Academies or Academy Colleges. Its also great to see some of the older clubs that have drifted down regroup and succeed such as Oldham, Rochdale, York and Bury. Some clubs have grown based on the income that they can make on hiring their artificial pitch and others through community. Clapton FC are well embedded in their locality, St Albans City, Dulwich Hamlet and Hallam, as examples, have made their games and grounds destinations to meet up with friends and family along with the match.
As you continue writing and presenting your blog you make changes to style and layout which is often driven by the research you do. One inspiration has been ‘The Scottish Football Quarterly’, Nutmeg. This is a fantastic read if you want to know what is going on in all aspects of their game, it is not centred on the top teams as you would expect but everyone. It is also so well written and edited that it inspires and gives me confidence to continue. Talking of continuing, I set a goal of 500 blogs or ten years to finish and now reaching the first of those, and with just over a year to go to ten years, I have decided to hang on in there. It’s much more rewarding than emptying the dishwasher.
At the end of each of my match posts I report on the chips, if they are available. People in football talk about the pies, so I decided to review chips. This may not have helped my waist line or health but often they were enjoyable, except for those left on an EFL grounds terrace after just 3 chips, sorry about leaving them on the terrace but there were no bins.
So finally I have to thank my dishwasher emptying friend who spurred me on to gain so much enjoyment as documented by my 500 posts.
My start to the season was in England to see Berwick Rangers play in the Scottish Lowland League. They were playing Cowdenbeath (the blue Brazil), like Berwick a team not long relegated from the senior Scottish League system. A great start at such a friendly club with good facilities. The day was made better by the fact that I went from there to outside the ramparts of the Elizabethan castle to see the final of “The Stanks’, The Berwick Charities Cup.
With an Extra Preliminary Round of the FA Cup in between, I was in Llangollen for a Welsh League game where I witnessed what is so fantastic about lower league football, where a lady was definitely in charge, went round the crowd collecting donations towards the evenings game, very few didn’t contribute.
A few games later an evening trip to Crowle in the Isle of Axholme in Lincolnshire where a young club were coping with a higher league on and off the pitch.
September found a culinary delight at Melton Mowbray, it had to be a pork pie, in their 5 star club house. Following on was a trip to Barnard Castle a team I had been watching climb the leagues, it didn’t disappoint.
Yorkshire football at Harrogate and Ossett was followed by a trip to see Clachnacuddin in Inverness. Scottish football always surprises me with its skill, energy and commitment, why does the National side never seem to match this. Perhaps this forthcoming World Cup will finally be their time.
Into October and after a 70 year wait I was at Partick Thistle. The game didn’t really get going and it was surprising that only three sides of the ground are developed. The intriguing thing here were the group of young ‘Ultras’ all dressed in black behind the goal creating an atmosphere.
I had battled storm Amy from Inverness to Partick and the continual rain and grey days seemed to last into the New Year, disrupting life and football.
My usual trip to Market Harborough each season, again saw some dull football but a vociferous crowd of their Spanish supporters, flow in for the game, kept up a continual noise. Harborough went on to gain another promotion.
November started in a trough with St Albans being thumped 6 nil in the FA Cup at Burton Albion After their management team left prior to the game to take up similar positions in a higher league. A new management team were installed who I have confidence in getting them instead top 5 of their league next season. The next day i took in another FA Cup game at Gainsborough, who took their EFL opponents, Accrington Stanley, all the way but lost out in the end.
Of the seven games watched in November FC Grace Dieu v Clipstone was the stand out. Three goals each and torrential rain before and during the match that was kept alive by the ground staff sweeping and the water off the all weather pitch before and at half time. Interesting venue, Grace Dieu houses a private football academy. All the facilities here were not finished and will be worth a revisit on a dry day in the future.
The rain continued to cause havoc with my football plans in December yet I was able to watch a competitive festive West Nottingham Derby between Stapleford and Sandiacre. This was at the recently redeveloped ground where facilities for everyone are first class. Stapleford’s 4-2 victory was impressive.
Into a New Year where I saw Mansfield make a smash and grab raid at Sheffield United in the FA Cup with a well deserved 3-4 victory. Two visits to Sandy Lane to watch Worksop Town, the second to claim my winnings for second place in their previous games 50/50 draw. The first time I have won anything after many years of entering competitions at ground around the country.
With the league positions now taking shape a February visit saw Dinnington keep up pressure to move up a tier. Unfortunately yet again by the end of the season they failed again. The organisation and facilities are all there. they will keep trying.
After watching my grandson play I went with them to watch Northampton Town. A good crowd, despite the Cobblers recent form, and their flirt with the relegation places. The stadium here now looks great after completion and the team looked good in their win over Stevenage. At that point no one knew that this heralded a disastrous run that would see them end up bottom of the League, relegation and an impending take over.
After many years I finally made it to Ashbourne for their annual Shrovetide football match, a must for football enthusiasts to see what some feel was a forerunner to the modern game. Great to have been there but is it really anything to do with our modern game? The speech to start the proceedings saying outsiders were not welcome didn’t endear me to go back even to look round the town.
With games being cancelled all over I watched my football wherever was available. My abortive trip to Baslow led me to near Derby and Graham Street Prims. A very strong side but the facilities seem to have fallen on hard times.
By late march I spent a Sunday afternoon watching a Women’s League game in the fifth tier. What a friendly bunch of people and I was pleasantly surprised at the skill level, speed and commitment of the game. I noted to make sure I watch another women’s game next season.
Still in March a trip to Baslow resulted in watching a game in the Sheffield Friendly League. Not in the FA structure and played on Saturday mornings I saw an absolute worldie scored in the last minute to win the game and to go past the young goalkeeper who was my , ‘one to watch’ for the future, player of the season.
Despite moaning about the weather a visit to Ashby Ivanhoe was finally achieved after postponements over the last few seasons.
With final league positions being decided the local derby between Retford United and Retford FC looked a must. An exciting game that ended all square and meant Retford FC were promoted and gained local bragging rites. United were also promoted via the play offs and then both Nottinghamshire teams were put into the Northern Counties East Premier League when everyone expected them to be in the United Counties League. The NCEL next season looks exceptionally strong and these two will compete strongly.
A Play Off game at Sheffield FC saw Tadcaster triumph after a penalty shoot out. Again here an unexpected lateral movement of Sheffield to the United Counties League for next season, although perhaps not so because they play their games in Derbyshire. Their new owners certainly have the star quality to move the club forward.
Looking to squeeze in games before the season ended, Sheffield’s Steel City Stadium threw up a game not to be forgotten.Dinnington won away 2-3, with almost the last kick of the game, to Burngreave. But it was not the frantic all action football that caught the eye but the ill discipline of Burngreaves players and officials. There were more sending off for the home team in this game than I had seen all season elsewhere. I commented that if they could control this they would be a team to watch. Indeed they did, and went on a run of wins when finishing up their backlog of fixtures. If they keep this squad together then they will be strong promotion challengers next season.
Like the end of last season i took in a final game in the English Football league Two and visited Tranmere Rovers, a great ground and friendly people. The draw meant that the home side avoided relegation and Grimsby reached the playoffs.Not the same excitement as at the last game of the season last year at Bradford.
One last game was sneaked in on a very cold May gloomy evening in Worksop. Not that it was a gloomy game with 6 goals and it certainly hadn’t been a gloomy season. The abiding reflection on the season was the weather
The highlights of the season were the almost three games in Scotland, Berwick Rangers (honorary Scottish), Clachnacuddin and Partick Thistle a very relaxed sunny autumn evening at Llangollen, finding football in a picturesque park in Baslow, and seeing how grounds can be redeveloped well with artificial surfaces at Melton Mowbray and Stapleford.
At the end of the season it was great to see the two Retford teams gain promotion, the rivalry continues.
An interesting season for some community clubs I watch out for. When I lived near Market Harborough it was a Rugby town with little football activity, after this years promotion they will next year be in The National League North, what a transformation. Clapton Community FC have not only brought the club back but also ‘The Old Spotted Dog’ ground, they too gained promotion and next year will play in a league with rivals Ilford and Romford who were in the top Isthmian League when I first watched St Albans City in the 1950’s. Finally Hallam FC, where the fans fought off a take over and have a meeting in June on how to change their constitution to be fan lead. Fans count and it is great to see.
But I have waited for the day after Aston Villa’s triumph in the Europa Cup in Istanbul. If you follow my blog you will have seen four posts that say ‘You have to deal with disappointments to follow the Villa’, well not now, although even at 3 nil up I was still cautious to believe in victory until the final ten minutes. What delightful football they played to win this European Trophy and what a fitting recognition for the owners, players, fans and the incredible Unai Emery. Up the Villa.
P.S. sorry to all the matches I have not mentioned in this review.
payonthegate 