The Non-League Football thread Season 2010/11 (Page 1 of 9)

A couple of players at my cricket club have given up playing when Eastbourne Borough are at home    Some people have got their priorities all wrong.

On Saturday we entertain AFC Wimbledon. Last season there was a crowd of over 3,000 for the first home game of the season which was midweek. There won't be that many on the 28th, might get 2,000 as we're in 3rd place in the league at present.

This is the link to the excellent Ryman League website . . .

http://rymanleague.goalrun.com/

Do go into the video section and look at the "Rocky Baptiste - miss of the century" footage - it is truly amazing.

My main team maybe Ajax but once the cricket season finishes I do tend to go and watch Worthing in the ryman south . I should say that is Worthing YMCA as most of their players came with the manager from Horsham YMCA. Worthing have nil money and they have debts .They are now run by Mr Burns(well the old boy reminds me of Mr Burns from the Simpson)plus daughter and son in law.
The last 3 seasons they have reached the playoffs but no money means all their players from last season have gone and they are left with Horsham YMCA rejects and County League players. Someone from Horsham told me last week that if Worthing get knocked out the FA Cup straight away their budget will be halved and most of their ex YMCA players will probably leave.

All very sad for a lovely little club with loyal supporters and a nice ground 5 mins walk away for me.

Well Hastings are top of the League this year. If they ever agree a move to a new ground in exchange for the council taking over the Pilot Field for housing then they do have a lot of potential. Hastings is bigger than Wigan and look where they are.

I went to my first Carshalton match of the season on Bank Holiday Monday and we were beaten 2-1 in an entertaining match. Croydon Athletic just about deserved their win but it seems they may not have much more to celebrate as their main financial backer is one of those arrested over the alleged Pakistani cricket scam. Croydon got their winner right at the end of the game and the scorer went running towards their dug out and did a passable impression of someone bowling a no-ball!

Edit: Oh and there's this . . .

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/8963587.stm

The good news from Carshalton is that we are running a reserve team again this year afer a bit of a break so that should help our academy system bring new players through.

Last edited by South London Pete (03-09-2010 15:15:25)

Ebne Boro played Darlington today on non league day and drew 1-1 and we scored our equalising goal when we were down to nine men and held on for a draw!

I didn't go as I was playing cricket, our last league game, but the football match was graced by the presence of John Terry who's brother plays for Darlington. JT arrived a good 45 mins before ko and was a real gent by the sounds of things joking with fans and signing autographs etc. Respect where it's due.

That's much appreciated. If you're offering to drive you won't have a problem filling the mini-bus with the Green & White Army.

After two successive relegations and having the clubhouse burnt down, Bognor now appear to have steadied the ship. We've a lot of young local lads in the side playing an entertaining passing game.
Although Hastings are sitting pretty in 4th place in the division above Bognor, you may well be surprised by the quality of football from The Rocks.
If you're coming over to Nyewood Lane you will also be pleasantly surprised by the facilities.

Let me know if you're planning to visit, it would be good to meet up.

Green Army!

Latest about Croydon Athletic whose main financial backer may be implicated in the Pakistan spot betting affair . . .

Ryman League Press Release re. Croydon Athletic
Today, Sunday 5th September, the Ryman League issued the following statement:

CROYDON ATHLETIC FOOTBALL CLUB

The Ryman League has been contacted by Croydon Athletic FC as a result of internal problems following allegations made in a national newspaper regarding the person widely regarded as the owner of the Club.

The Club has been unable to pay the August wages for the players and are faced with a number of other financial claims.  At the end of the Club’s home match with Concord Rangers yesterday the management team indicated that the side would be unlikely to play together again.

The League has been working closely with the Club during the past week and attended a meeting at the Club last Wednesday with the Chairman and 3 other senior members of the Club.

Croydon Athletic FC is doing all it can to stay in business and are hoping that by publicising their plight they may find someone willing to take over the Club.  The League has agreed to a request from the Club to postpone its next 2 League fixtures – away to Tooting & Mitcham United on Tuesday, 7th September and home to Sutton United on 18th September – in order to give the Club time to see if it can survive the difficult position in which it finds itself.

The League and the Club will then reconsider the position to ascertain whether or not the Club can meet its commitments to the League for the remainder of the season.

League Chairman Alan Turvey commented “The League is very sorry that the Club has suffered such a blow.  We are concerned to act in the best interests of all parties in this matter and to make sure that every avenue is explored to see if the Club can continue. We do not want players to play in matches which may not count nor do we want spectators to pay to see matches whose results are then erased from the records.”

SLP  Thanks for asking about Worthing . I haven't been this season but they have got 4 points from 4 games with Burgess Hill and PB's Bognor right up at the top. Worthing's debts appear as secured on the club and are over £100000. There was some fund raising at the end of last season but not sure what is happeneing at present .Robski may know as he has been to watch them already .
I do not tend to go until the end of Sept, when Sussex have finished.

There I was, happily reading the thread, thinking this is nothing to do with me, and then I realised: oh god, I am a fan of a non-league club.

Let's hope the nightmare doesn't continue beyond this season for Luton.

No disrespect to the non-league of course: I have happy youthful memories of trips down to Nyewood Lane with my Unc, doing a spot of impromptu coaching of 8 year olds, treasuring the Rocks No.8 shirt I was given. I have slightly less happy memories of the away trip to Barking to watch the worst nil-nil of all time.

I vividly remember my first trip to watch Bognor as an impressionable youth. We took a circuitous route to the ground in order to pick one of PB's mates up, which meant I didn't realise that PB himself lived only a stone's throw away. At the end, when I expressed my surprise that we were walking home for what I thought was going to be a long distance, PB replied merrily, "What do you think we're going to do, catch a f*cking bus?"

It is FA Cup day today. Carshalton Athletic are at home to Tunbridge Wells - and our opponents have already played three games in this years competition.

Anyone else going to a game?