Fields of Dreams and Broken Fences , livre ebook

Pitch Publishing Ltd - Aaron Moore

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128 pages

English

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Fields of Dreams and Broken Fences lifts the lid on the little-known world of non-league football. From being hours away from folding in the Essex Senior League and turning semi-professional because of YouTube to dropping out of the Football League and trying to find a way back, this book shines a vital spotlight on clubs from various levels of the National League System and shares their stories. The tales include the dramatic null-and-void decision of the 2019/20 season, Chichester City making history in the FA Cup, Leyton Orient and Notts County battling to get back into the Football League, Hashtag United turning semi-professional and Steve Castle, the former professional player, returning to the lower levels to pursue a career in management. Filled with compelling stories from multiple sides of the game, Fields of Dreams and Broken Fences brings non-league football to life as it delves beneath the surface of the lower levels of the English game. This book is written for the love of football.

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Publié par	Pitch Publishing Ltd
Date de parution	14 février 2022
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9781801502214
Langue	English
Poids de l'ouvrage	1 Mo

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0500€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

Extrait

First published by Pitch Publishing, 2022
Pitch Publishing
A2 Yeoman Gate
Yeoman Way
Durrington
BN13 3QZ
www.pitchpublishing.co.uk
Aaron Moore, 2022
Every effort has been made to trace the copyright.
Any oversight will be rectified in future editions at the earliest opportunity by the publisher.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the Publisher.
A CIP catalogue record is available for this book from the British Library
Print ISBN 9781801501002
eBook ISBN 9781801502214
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eBook Conversion by www.eBookPartnership.com
Contents
Acknowledgements
Foreword by Bill Badger
1. Null and Void
2. Dark Times
3. Keeping a Foot In
4. Up for the Cup
5. The Fifth Tier
6. True Blue
7. Mind the Gap
8. The Changing Face
9. Counting Clean Sheets
10. Community
11. Playing the Field
12. The Rise of the Wanderers
13. Building for the Future
Photos
Acknowledgements
THIS BOOK was a sheer joy to work on.
I owe thanks to many people who gave up their time to talk to me and share their stories: Mike McGraa (Vauxhall Motors), Adam Jackson-Nocher (Waltham Rabble), Andrzej Perkins (Walthamstow), Steve Castle (Royston Town), Jobi McAnuff (Leyton Orient), Joe Perrett (Harlow Town Ladies), Joe Sheehan (Ipswich Town Women), Jason Alex Hill (District Line Railway), Neil Smythe (Hashtag United), Daniel Potter (Chichester City), Adam Connelly (Harlow Town Reserves), Phil Annets (FA Cup Factfile), Cem Toygar (Piccadilly FC), Darren Fielding (South Western Railway), Becky Shephard (Stevenage Women), Marc White (Dorking Wanderers), Nick Robinson and Les Bradd (plus others at Notts County), Daniel Merrix (Upton Park Ladies), James Bransgrove (Enfield FC), Charlie Mann (Hadley FC), Paul Halsey (Ware FC), Gary Cohen (Dunmow Town), Joe Cassidy, Gary Price and Sophia Axelsson (plus others at Clapton CFC).
A huge thanks to Bill Badger for agreeing to write the foreword and sharing his own story of why he loves non-league, for giving the book a once-over and for sharing his ideas (without which the book would not be the same!).
Thanks to Jane Camillin at Pitch Publishing for helping make this book a reality.
Thanks to Ollie Bayliss of the Non-League Show for providing an insight into covering the FA s decisions and sharing his thoughts.
Thanks to Ross Halls, Max Reeves, Garry Strutt, and Andrzej Perkins for the use of their images.
Foreword by Bill Badger, Walthamstow FC s Inclusion and Equality Officer
I WAS attracted back to non-league football out of a sense of community. I grew up in Walthamstow and, even though we d moved away, I still felt an attachment to E17. In 2018, Waltham Forest FC changed their name to Walthamstow FC, and the name change pulled me in. It was a chance to maintain a link with where I had grown up. It was also a break from tribal, win at any cost, professional football.
I hadn t intended to start following non-league football. If anything, I was apprehensive when I found out just how far down the non-league pyramid they were. I imagined they were a division or two below what we used to call the Conference. A couple of good seasons and you could be at the top of the non-league game. What was worth playing for when you are four leagues below the Conference? So, I didn t bother with any league games and went to an FA Cup tie instead, a serious competition with glamour and potential glory.
There was to be no glory. Stow were knocked out of the competition by Beaconsfield from two leagues above them. They still had a decent enough afternoon. I enjoyed being able to chat to the linesman during the game and hearing every word said by the players and the referee. My enjoyment wasn t consumed by the result or embroiled in petty rivalries. It wasn t enough to make me want to follow the team every week, but it could provide a welcome breath of fresh air away from the heavy industry of professional football if I went every now and again.
The air became intoxicating. I quickly realised you don t follow non-league football, you join it and become a part of it. The faces around you quickly become familiar, as does your own to the people around you and the players themselves. Fans are important to professional clubs on a collective basis. Clubs have to bring in the volume of fans they need through the turnstiles to keep their business afloat. Everyone involved in non-league is valued because of the contribution they make as individuals to the clubs, the players and each other.
Non-league teams are dependent on players who commit to maintaining their abilities and fitness levels that enable them to perform to a good standard. They fit their training and matches around their education and daily working lives. That commitment is matched off of the pitch by armies of volunteers who keep the clubs running. Any time and any skill that a fan can offer to a club is gratefully received by officials. I should know - when I was ten years old I first went to watch Leyton Wingate and on the following Bank Holiday Monday I was back at the ground responding to their plea for fans to come and help them paint the fences. Club officials spend hours completing administration and undertaking a multitude of tasks to ensure that teams have somewhere to play and train, have kit to play in and have fans there to watch them.
Coaches also give up their time to support players in their football careers and in their lives, taking responsibility for the development and wellbeing of the young men and women they send out to play football. And whether they number two dozen or 200, the teams are supported by groups of hardcore fans who unfailingly back their clubs financially and emotionally. They will be there in all weathers, in joy and in sorrow, willing their teams on to success, whatever success looks like for them. For some that will be promotion, for others it s avoiding relegation, and for some it will simply be getting a team out on the pitch for another season.
Whatever league your team is in you are all part of a fantastic experience, whether you are giving your support, selling raffle tickets, running the gate, putting posters up in local pubs, painting fences, stewarding, playing, coaching, or paying the bills. No one is in it for the money or glory because there is little of either to go around. All of us are there because, through all of the highs and lows, we just love the game.
1
Null and Void
THE DECISION by the Football Association to null and void the 2019/20 season hurt many clubs. The coronavirus outbreak was declared a global pandemic weeks before football was suspended, but once it was, the FA took the rash decision in voiding the season while also wiping any trace from their records. This meant that the campaign was ended with immediate effect, but there was no conclusion to it, putting promotion, relegation, and the domestic cups up in the air. While many teams were close to achieving promotion, two had mathematically secured it - Vauxhall Motors and Jersey Bulls. These clubs were hit the hardest.
It made the FA look more out of touch with the lower leagues than they already were. Originally, a decision had been made for the Premier League, English Football League and National League, but the lower tiers were left to their own accord. A decision on how the elite leagues should end wasn t reached straight away, with the prospect of promotion, relegation and play-offs being done on points-per-game, but non-league was kicked to the kerb without regard. The hard-working part-timers were not classed on the same level as the elite players, and it made the decision even tougher to take. The leagues were sensible. Many, when left to make their own decisions, postponed fixtures until further notice, while the National League continued to play their games. The Football Association s decision to allow individual leagues to decide their own fate was an incredibly risky move, although many complied with the Government s advice. There was no immediate decision to ban sporting events, so for the safety of all involved, leagues implemented guidelines and began to postpone leagues.
Vauxhall had played out one of the small amount of games on 14 March, just before all fixtures were postponed, and it was an important win. The celebrations echoed around as the club celebrated one of the first promotions of the season. The vital three points against West Didsbury Chorlton meant that, even if they lost their remaining seven games, they would still finish fourth and in a promotion spot, but they didn t have that on their mind.
It was a difficult decision to take. I think it was a rash decision and one that needed more time. I am actually angry. The boys did incredibly well this season, but it has been taken from them. A decision out of our hands, said Vauxhall manager Mike McGraa.
Not much was known about the virus in the early stages, so it was difficult to know what the best solution was going forward. Mike knew that a decision had to be made, but he questioned why decisions were made quicker on the lower leagues compared to the National League and above. What was the harm in waiting?
I think they could have delayed everything. The decision to expunge the results means the season was never in existence. I think they could have waited another two or three weeks and gone down any number of different routes rather than null and voiding the season.
There was a lot of talk about decisions being made on an av