Category Archives: Vanarama National League

The MANarama National League

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We at the FWA are pleased to support a ground-breaking charity initiative from Vanarama, sponsors of our Golf Day and regular National League column.

Vanarama are supporting Prostate Cancer UK and for the month of October will rename the National League, which they sponsor, the MANarama National League, as well as pledging to raise £150,000 for the charity.

See full details here:

  • Prostate Cancer UK has been named as the National League’s first ever official charity partner for Season 2018/19.
  • In celebration of this partnership, for the first time in English football history, a league will re-brand its name during the season.
  • Title sponsor of the league Vanarama has changed its name to MANarama throughout the month of September, and to support this initiative the National League will rebrand as the MANarama National League until Non-League Day on 13th October.
  • Vanarama has also pledged to raise £150,000 for the charity ahead of Non-League Day

The National League has chosen leading men’s health charity Prostate Cancer UK as its first ever official charity partner, to unite in the fight against the UK’s most prevalent male cancer.

In a first for English football a national football league will change its branding midseason. Vanarama, the title sponsor of the National League, is changing its name to MANarama throughout the month of September to raise awareness of a deadly cancer that kills one man every 45 minutes.

The rebranding to the MANarama National League features a striking new league logo to highlight their support for Prostate Cancer UK – and Vanarama’s own site has also been completely rebranded to reflect its commitment to a fundraising drive which will see them aim to raise £150,000.

A new captain’s armband, which will be worn by all MANARAMA National League club captains on Non-League Day on Saturday, October 13th, has also been unveiled The 34 matches will see all skippers proudly displaying the unique bright orange band, which includes the iconic Prostate Cancer UK logo, to illustrate their clubs’ united stand against the most common cancer in men.

Vanarama has also pledged to raise £150,000 in just 43 days from a vehicle-leasing incentive that runs across September, as they tell the nation to ‘lease a van, save a man’. Vanarama and its newly-launched car leasing platform, Motorama, will donate £50 for every vehicle leased from the start of September until Non-League Day, when a cheque will be presented on October 13th at FC Halifax Town vs Chesterfield live on BT Sport. From September 1 until Non-League day 688 men will die from prostate cancer, emphasising the need to take action.

On board with Non-League Day for the fifth time, Prostate Cancer UK raised £15,000 last year as more than 50 clubs joined the fight against the deadliest opponent of all, and this year’s day is shaping up to be bigger and better than ever with clubs from across the Non-League pyramid joining forces in a jam-packed day of activity.

The ground-breaking move has been hailed by long-serving television presenter Jeff Stelling, a lifelong Hartlepool United fan. Stelling, who has raised £800,000 for the charity during two March for Men walking events: “This partnership reinforces Prostate Cancer UK’s work in football and how hugely important it is to raise awareness and funds to make a difference to the lives of men and their loved ones.

“One man dies every 45 minutes from this disease, so we need to take action. The passionate fans in the National League – including my lot at Hartlepool United and throughout the non-league pyramid – represent the perfect platform for us to unite against the toughest opponent of all. I know Vanarama have been long-time supporters of the charity so it’s great to see them taking the bold move of rebranding the league to MANarama to help raise even more awareness.

“Although more women now go to matches, it’s still a stronghold of male life. A lot of these supporters at some stage in their life may get prostate cancer. The more they understand that the better, the more we can help beat it. For them, and for their friends and families.”

Andy Alderson CEO and founder of Vanarama said: “We’re ready to help tackle prostate cancer with the National League and Prostate Cancer UK. The charity does great work in football and so we thought we’d do our bit too. The decision to change our name from Vanarama to MANarama was an easy one. The fact that more than 11,000 men die from prostate cancer in the UK each year is staggering and if us changing the league’s name helps raise awareness of the disease for even one man, then that’s a success for us.”

James Beeby, Director of Fundraising at Prostate Cancer UK, said: “It’s terrific to see the National League join us in the fight against the deadliest opponent of all, and, after backing us for a number of years, we once again thank Vanarama for their ongoing support.

“We stand together in our quest to change the game for men and their families and the grassroots game is the perfect platform to do this. The money raised will fund ground-breaking research to help fight this disease and the awareness generated across the length and breadth of the country will be vital in helping stop prostate cancer being a killer.

 “We thank the National League and Vanarama for creating this milestone moment and look forward to our most successful Non-League Day in October.”

National League Chief Executive Michael Tattersall said: “We’re thrilled to announce our first ever official charity partner, Prostate Cancer UK. We couldn’t think of a charity that better reflects our football values. Just like Prostate Cancer UK we want all our men united against the fight of this deadly disease. 

“In celebration of our partnership, and with the support of our title sponsors, Vanarama, we will re-brand the league to the MANarama National League. This temporary change is a first for English football and we’re proud to be a part of this historic moment.”

To find out more information about Prostate Cancer UK’s work in football go to: www.prostatecanceruk.org/football

Vanarama Column – Harrogate Town

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The Vanarama National League column – by Glenn Moore

Harrogate Town

At first sight Harrogate Town’s climb to the summit of the Vanarama National League appears a story to irk non-League folk. Construction millionaire father owns the club, son manages it. Conversations are imagined:

‘Dad, can I have a new 3G pitch?             ‘Yes, son.’

‘Dad, can you pay for the squad to go full-time?’            ‘Yes son.’

You get the drift. It used to be a train set for Christmas, now it is a centre-forward.

The rise of the Sulphurites is not, however, as simple as that. To begin with Simon Weaver was manager for two years before father Irving bought the club. This wasn’t the case of an indulgent Dad buying his son a new plaything, it was more a supportive parent investing in his son’s ability, and enabling him to continue in business. As Irving, owner of Doncaster-based Strata Homes, told The Times this week, “I’ve got another son who’s in my main business. Why shouldn’t [Simon] deserve the same opportunity? He’d earned it. He’d already shown that he could do it.”

Simon Weaver, a former Sheffield Wednesday trainee who had two seasons with Lincoln City, but mostly spent his playing career in non-League, had demonstrated his management abilities during two difficult seasons at Wetherby Road having become player-manager at the age of 32 in 2009.

Harrogate had already flirted with glory. Under owner Bill Fotherby and manager Neil Aspin, respectively former Leeds United chairman and player, they had climbed from Northern Premier League First Division to the Conference North play-offs, and made several appearances in the FA Cup Proper. But then the cash began to run out. Aspin, now manager of League One Port Vale, moved on and Weaver arrived to a shrinking budget. In his first season the club finished bottom but survived due to others’ financial problems. In Weaver’s second season Harrogate were mid-table.

However, Fotherby, by then 80 years old, had had enough. Weaver senior came to the rescue. With a fortune estimated in excess of £150m he could have immediately bankrolled a series of promotions into the league but has been more prudent, investing to increase cashflow rather than simply writing cheques. As at fellow Vanarama clubs Sutton, Maidstone and Bromley the 3G pitch has enabled the club to play host to hundreds of local players, especially youngsters, building links with the town. This, plus success, has helped swell attendances from around 200 in 2011 to 1,709 at the weekend. Planning permission was granted in April to redevelop the ground taking capacity from 2,800 to 5,000.

Now, having 19 points from seven matches a place in The Football League is suddenly coming into view. Given Town were only promoted through the play-offs last May it is a stunning start.

“No-one is getting carried away, we’re trying hard to keep the players grounded because we have to keep raising the bar,” said Weaver junior after the weekend’s 3-2 win over Havant & Waterlooville, “but you have to enjoy the moment.”

Accusations of nepotism, oft-muttered in the early days, are rarely, if ever, heard now.

For more on Harrogate Town, visit https://www.harrogatetownafc.com/

For more on the Vanarama National League see: http://www.thenationalleague.org.uk/

For great deals on cars and vans visit: http://www.vanarama.co.uk/

 

Vanarama National League Column – Tim Flowers

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Tim Flowers going against tradition and succeeding in management as a goalkeeper, by Glenn Moore

The most eye-catching result in the Bank Holiday Vanarama National League programme was at Damson Park where Solihull Moors became the first team to defeat early-season front-runners Wrexham.
In front of a bumper 2,412 gate, three times last season’s average, the West Midlands club won with Alex Gudger’s late goal. That delighted Tim Flowers whose first season at the Moors helm has begun promisingly.
Goalkeepers have traditionally not become managers. While there are some notable historic exceptions such as Raymond Goethals, Dino Zoff and Tony Waiters those that did – even outstanding players such as Ray Clemence, Peter Shilton and Neville Southall – were rarely successful. Perhaps the most celebrated ex-English keeper with a management role was Brian Clough’s assistant, Peter Taylor. Goalkeepers, it seemed, were regarded by chairmen, media, fans, and maybe themselves, as too detached from the outfield players, too individualistic, to be managers.
That view, though, may be changing. The current Real Madrid boss Julen Lopetegui was a ‘keeper along with Wolves’ Nuno Espirito Santos, Nigel Adkins of Hull, former Hull and Russia manager Leonid Slutsky, now at Vitesse Arnhem, and David James, currently of Kerala Blasters.
Flowers, like Shilton, Clemence, Waiters and James, is a former England No.1. The 51-year-old was the most expensive goalkeeper in Britain when Blackburn paid Southampton £2.4m in 1993, a move that paid off when Rovers won the Premier League title. Flowers won 11 caps and made 500 league appearances before moving into coaching. Initially, like so many former keepers, he was a specialist teaching his old role, but he became assistant to Iain Dowie at Coventry, QPR and Hull.
He took his first crack at management in October 2010, at Stafford Rangers, then of the Conference North, but resigned after nine matches. He returning to coaching and pitched up at Moors last November as assistant to Mark Yates.
At the time Moors looked doomed having taken 11 points from 19 matches after a rapid turnover of managers. As late as Boxing Day Moors were bottom, 12 points adrift of safety. However, the pair oversaw a revival that garnered 37 points from the last 20 matches enabling Solihull to stay up in comfort.
This revival prompted Macclesfield to hire Yates for their return to the Football League, John Askey having moved onto Shrewsbury Town after leading the Silkmen to the Vanarama National League title. Flowers, who had been interviewed for the post separately from Yates, before the board suggested they work as a pair, stayed at Damson Park. 
“The great escape ranks as one of my biggest achievements in football, and now to have the opportunity to build on everything we achieved last season is the icing on the cake,” said Flowers. “This club’s got ambition, make no mistake.”
These are heady times for Moors. Formed by a merger of Moor Green and Solihull Borough in 2007 neither the club nor its predecessors have never finished above 16th in the fifth tier. With Moors currently in the play-off places history beckons
 
ends

Vanarama National League Column – Gateshead

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Gateshead’s miraculous start following a summer of upheaval

By Glenn Moore

 

Four matches into the new Vanarama National League season the table has a surprising look. Pre-season favourites Salford City are lower mid-table, having not won until their fourth match. Last season’s play-off finalists Boreham Wood are only a point higher. Three other fancied clubs, Leyton Orient, play-off regulars Aldershot, and newly relegated Barnet, have also been slow to settle.

Meanwhile, in second, level on points with early leaders Wrexham, are Gateshead, which is remarkable considering the Heed nearly folded in the summer and were without a contracted player two months ago. When a takeover failed to materialise chairman and then-owner Richard Bennett considered closing down the football club, already the third such incarnation in the Tyneside town.

Instead the budget was slashed and the club reverted to part-time with an emphasis on building a squad of young, local players. Steve Watson, the former Newcastle United defender who had returned to the area to manage the Heed, agreed to sign on for another year. However, at best it looked as if it would be a season of fighting relegation, with a view to buying the club time.

Then, ten days before the season started, Dr Ranjan Varghese, a Hong Kong-based businessman with a background in ship-building design, bought the club. He has since installed a locally-based operations director, Michael Williams, and a London-based sporting director, former agent Chris Hawes. Watson retains control of playing matters and, in a major coup, has signed former Newcastle centre-half Mike Williamson, a veteran of more than 400 senior appearances, 134 of them in the Premier League.

Like Watson, who quit promotion-bound Macclesfield to join Gateshead last season, Williamson wanted to move back to the north-east. With the rest of the squad an average age 24 the 34-year-old brings valuable experience. Williamson made his debut in the 2-1 win over Dover Athletic that completed an impressive opening trio of victories with successes at Maidstone United then at home to Salford City. Gateshead then took home a point from them 500-mile midweek round-trip to Boreham Wood with a late equaliser from Steven Rigg.

The new owner, Williams told supporters, has a five-year plan to establish Gateshead as ‘an established, self-sustaining League Two club rooted in the community’ and maintaining the focus on recruiting young players from an area with a notable football heritage.

The 2,264 that turned out for last season’s FA Trophy semi-final home leg with Bromley indicated there is some potential on the east bank of the Tyne, but it will not be easy to realise. That was an unusually big match with the crowd boosted by neither Newcastle nor Sunderland playing that weekend. Gateshead International Stadium, built for athletics rather than football, with a running track and rarely fans behind the goals, is usually less atmospheric. Attendances averaged just 853 last season, less than ten per cent of capacity.

Nevertheless, at a time when so many of the area’s passionate football fans are feeling frustrated by their clubs Watson’s young team could offer a refreshing alternative.

For more on Gateshead, visit: https://www.gateshead-fc.com/

For more on the Vanarama National League, visit: http://www.thenationalleague.org.uk/

For great deals on car and van hire, visit: http://www.vanarama.co.uk/

Vanarama National League Column – Salford City

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Salford City’s rapid rise –  by Glenn Moore

It is not often a promoted club goes straight in as 2-1 favourites to win a league, but Salford City are not a typical club. Co-owned by former Manchester United players Gary and Phil Neville, Ryan Giggs, Nicky Butt and Paul Scholes, and Singaporean billionaire Peter Lim, the Vanarama National League club have a profile and funding that has become the envy of many Football League teams.

Their progress from Northern Premier League North to Vanarama National League, with three promotions in four seasons, has been chronicled in a series of fly-on-the-wall TV documentaries, and there is every chance the cameras will have another lively tale this season. Rumbustious joint managers Anthony Johnson and Bernard Morley, who masterminded those promotions, have moved on to relegated Chester FC, citing differences in contract proposals. In their place is former Scotland international Graham Alexander, who previously managed Fleetwood and Scunthorpe United in League One.

Alexander returned to that division to sign four players including Danny Lloyd from Peterborough for a reputed six-figure salary and Adam Rooney from SPL runners-up Aberdeen, an eye-catching deal given his goal record. Inevitably this has sparked jealously and accusations of trying to buy promotion – or ‘steal’ it in the words of Accrington owner Andy Holt.

That prompted a twitter spat with Gary Neville who pointed out Salford’s approach was hardly unique. Indeed it isn’t. Salford are aiming to follow Fleetwood, Crawley and Forest Green, each of whom have been bankrolled from obscurity to the Football League in recent years. Nor are they alone, several other Vanarama National League clubs, such as Fylde, Ebbsfleet, Eastleigh and fellow newcomers Harrogate have benefited from the largesse of ambitious owners. Salford may be spending more than others have, but they face stiffer competition with all but four of the 22 clubs now full-time.

The presence of so many well-funded aspirants makes it challenging for any club dropping out of the Football League to bounce back. Leyton Orient and Hartlepool never even threatened to reach the play-offs last season but Barnet, managed by the experienced John Still, and Chesterfield, under former Barnet boss Martin Allen, will hope to adjust quicker.

With only one automatic promotion place available, and another via the play-offs, competition at the top will be fierce. It will be equally tense at the other end with four going down. Woking, Torquay, Chester and Guiseley departed last season, to be replaced by Salford, Harrogate, Havant & Waterlooville and Braintree.

While several key performers have moved to Football League clubs, new faces include the prolific Aaron Williams, signed from Brackley by Harrogate, veteran defender Paul Robinson, acquired by Havant from Wimbledon, and the experienced Stuart Beavon, loaned to Wrexham from Coventry. A new face in the dug-out is ex-England keeper Tim Flowers, at Solihull Moors, while a more familiar one, former England caretaker manager Peter Taylor, is in charge at Dagenham & Redbridge.

In an indication of their allure Salford start the season off with a lunchtime kick-off at home to Orient in front of the BT cameras. It is the first meeting between clubs which, four seasons ago, were five divisions apart. Things can change quickly in football.

For more on Salford, visit: https://salfordcityfc.co.uk/

For more on the Vanarama National League, visit: http://www.thenationalleague.org.uk/

For great deals on car and van hire, visit: http://www.vanarama.co.uk/

 

Vanarama Column May 9 – Brackley Town

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Brackley Town – racing to the top, by Glenn Moore.

Football puts places on the map. Blackburn businessmen noted that, after Rovers won the Premier League in 1995, clients in far-away places were more familiar with the town. Talking football provided them with an opening gambit.

The Northamptonshire town of Brackley is the base of Mercedes-AMG Petronas, the F1 team of Lewis Hamilton, Britain’s four-time world champion. Its proximity to Silverstone means it has long had close links to globally recognised names. However, motorsport’s focus on drivers, cars and sponsors, rather than production locations, means few people outside the immediate environs will know of a town whose population is less than 15,000 and has no railway station.

Awareness, however, is growing, thanks to the local football team. Until recently Brackley Town had an unremarkable history. Founded in 1890 they played in county leagues until 1977, using a local pub as a dressing room as late as 1968. Until 2007 they had not played beyond the eighth tier or reached the FA Cup proper. However, in the last decade the Saints have begun to make headlines. In the FA Cup they have twice beaten a Football League club – Gillingham on both occasions. In the league they began to make a mark, winning promotion to the Conference North and establishing themselves there.

This season Brackley have forced people to take notice. On Saturday they meet Harrogate Town in the final of the Vanarama National League North promotion play-offs. The following Sunday they make their first trip to Wembley, to face Bromley, of the Vanarama National League, in the FA Trophy final.

Harrogate, who pushed champions Salford City, the club revived by a quintet of Manchester United legends, all the way, will start favourites in the play-off final. They are full-time and at home. Bromley, making their first appearance at this stage since winning its precursor, the FA Amateur Cup, in 1949, will also be favourites. Former Gillingham and Fulham midfielder Neil Smith has fashioned a good side that just missed out on the play-offs for a Football League place.

But Brackley are growing used to upsetting the odds. They attract average crowds of little over 500 to St James Park but finished well ahead of such relative giants as Stockport County, York City and Darlington. In the FA Trophy Kevin Wilkin’s team have already defeated two Vanarama National League clubs, Sutton United and Barrow.

Wilkin took Wrexham to the FA Trophy final three years ago, only to be unexpectedly beaten by North Ferriby United on penalties. A former Northampton Town player he has been at Brackley since September 2015 finishing 19th (after inheriting a poor start), seventh, and now third. Making the difference this season has been Aaron Williams whose 36th goal of the campaign saw off Bradford Park Avenue in Sunday’s play-off semi-final. Williams is only 24 but has already played for ten clubs at six different levels of the pyramid from Walsall and Peterborough in League One to Romulus of the Northern Premier League Division One South, picking up an England C cap on the way. Young enough to have a third stab at full-time football he, like his club, now has two finals to put his name in the public eye.

For more on Brackley Town, visit: https://en.brackleytownfc.com/

For more on the Vanarama League visit: http://www.thenationalleague.org.uk/

For great deals on car and van leasing, visit: http://www.vanarama.co.uk/

Play-offs, Sudden-Death and Beery Breath

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Luke Coulson gives a first-hand account of the high drama of the playoffs

Our season at Ebbsfleet United began 10 months ago, and 46 games later we have achieved what we set out to do – securing a place in the Vanarama National League playoffs.

Two weeks ago, our win against my former club, Eastleigh FC, extended our unbeaten run to eleven games and edged us ever closer to securing a chance to play off for a place in the Football League. However, our next match against Sutton United saw our opposition also desperately in need of a win – and they succeeded.

The atmosphere was electric at Stonebridge Road, with 3,000 passionate fans packed into the stadium watching every kick of the ball. Unfortunately for our fantastic supporters, the away side grabbed all three points with a 1-0 victory in our final home game. Although the loss was deflating, we knew that four points from our final two games would cement a playoff spot and therefore our fate was in our own hands.

Firstly, we made the dreaded journey to Gateshead for our Tuesday night fixture. Whilst Liverpool dominated Roma to win 5-2 in the Champions League, we similarly wore red and won convincingly with the same scoreline, except it was in the Vanarama National League.

Gateshead FC is 300 miles from Stonebridge Road and I can assure you that at 11pm after a football match, the journey home is not what your body needs. It would have been made easier if our final game of the season had been a local away match; sadly it was at Torquay.

Preparing for the match, we knew that one point would be enough to extend our season and give us a chance of playing at Wembley. The match was a scrappy affair against the already relegated side and it was evident that tiredness began to creep in towards the end of the game. In the second half, Jack Connors gave us the lead with an arching finish from a tight angle and although Torquay equalised two minutes later, the 1-1 score line gave us the result we needed.

The point in our last game of the season meant that we finished 6th in the table, setting up an exciting playoff game against Aldershot. What an evening it was, on the same Wednesday night as Liverpool’s triumphant semi-final second leg in Rome.

The days leading up to the game seemed to drag. I had never been involved in a playoff match before and I was excited by the prospect. When we arrived at Aldershot’s Electrical Services Stadium, we were confident of winning despite the fact that we were underdogs.

From kick off, we allowed Aldershot to control possession, trusting that they wouldn’t be able to break us down because of our shape and work ethic off the ball. Our tactics worked and the biggest chance of the game fell to Danny Kedwell from the penalty spot. Our number nine uncharacteristically missed, however, and the score was 0-0 after 90 minutes.

I was taken off just before extra time began and it was agonising to watch from the bench, especially when the home side took the lead with a glancing header from their striker, Nicke Kabamba. With two minutes left on the clock, I thought the season was over until our captain, Dave Winfield, equalised with a powerful header at the back post. I jumped off the bench to celebrate, a moment my swollen knee didn’t appreciate.

Penalties ensued and it was tense, gripping and a rollercoaster of emotions. After three penalties, we were losing 3-1 and the game was all but over. However, Aldershot failed to score their last two penalties which allowed Norman Wabo and Danny Kedwell to keep our playoff dream alive. In sudden death, Lewis Ward, the Aldershot keeper stepped up and missed but Dean Rance did not make the same mistake as he coolly slotted home and sent us through to the Vanarama National League Playoff Semi Final.

The celebrations were brilliant in front of our faithful supporters, yet I didn’t exactly appreciate the kiss from a fan with the strongest beer breath I have ever smelt. Having said that, the celebrations are now over as we prepare for the semi final on Saturday against Tranmere, live on BT Sport.

For more on Luke Coulson’s amazing adventure visit: http://ebbsfleetunited.co.uk

For more on the Vanarama National League visit: http://www.thenationalleague.org.uk/

For great deals on van and car leasing visit:  http://www.vanarama.co.uk/

Vanarama Column – Macclesfield’s silky skills

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Macclesfield – The Silkmen’s success .  By Glenn Moore

A happy ending did not seem likely in February when the players of Macclesfield Town confronted the club chairman at a local country club after their wages went unpaid, but by last weekend the Silkmen were celebrating the most joyous of finales.

Victory at Eastleigh ensured Macclesfield would return to the Football League after a six-year absence with a Vanarama National League match to spare. John Askew’s team pulled away from the pack in recent weeks then kept their nerve to hold off a late run from Tranmere Rovers.

Askew, who played for the club for nearly two decades, winning three titles plus promotion to League One, said this was his ‘biggest achievement’ at Moss Rose. This is hardly surprising given the fiscal backdrop.

Funds have long been tight at the club and after January’s wages went unpaid a group of first team players gate-crashed a meeting at the Tytherington Club to ask chairman Mark Blower what was going on. The players then issued a statement saying neither majority shareholder Amar Alkadhi nor the chairman had told them what the reason was for this ‘alarming’ situation. Four days after the country club showdown the wages were paid with Alkadhi blaming ‘a technical issue with my bank’ adding, “put simply, I didn’t do my job properly”.

Wages banked, the players got back to doing their job. The Silkmen were second then, behind Wrexham on goal difference and with six clubs within two wins of them. Losing one of 14 subsequent matches, while all around them faltered, they ultimately cruised to the Vanarama National League title winning at rivals Tranmere, Aldershot and Boreham Wood on the way.

It has been a team effort with no player scoring more than a dozen goals. Housemates Scott Wilson (12 goals) and Tyrone Marsh (nine) have led the way, both having been among the raft of players signed in the summer after the bulk of the team that reached last year’s FA Trophy final departed.

That exodus – only three players were left – meant many thought Macclesfield more likely to exit the Vanarama National League through relegation rather than promotion. Askew had to wait to see who was left looking for a contract before filling up his squad. His contacts and experience proved invaluable but Askew still had to take a few gambles on players whose potential had not previously been realised, such as Wilson and Marsh, both of whom are having their most prolific season at this level.

“There will always be talent out there,” said Askew earlier this season. “it is just a case of getting them in the right environment and feeling comfortable to play. You need to have the confidence to have a bit of faith in them.”

With a good start boosting belief the squad gelled quickly. Luck with injuries and good discipline limiting suspensions helped. Team spirit proved strong enough to withstand the financial worries and Tranmere’s surge. Now the Football League beckons again. No one is under illusions, making the jump will be difficult, but the Silkmen have grown used to defying the odds.

For more on Macclesfield Town, visit https://www.mtfc.co.uk/

For more on the Vanarama National League: http://www.thenationalleague.org.uk/

Vanarama National League column – April 18

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The National League run-in by Luke Coulson, Ebbsfleet United and FWA member

Crystal, blue sea accompanied by soft, white sand and blanketed by a clear, blue sky. That will no doubt be the thought on many players’ minds with only ten days of the season remaining. However, in our minds, the thought of sand doesn’t compare with the grass of Wembley.

Two weeks ago, we were unbeaten in seven games and moving up the Vanarama National League table. Yet, our fine form nearly came to an end at the hands of Macclesfield, live on BT Sport. Despite a commanding first 30 minutes, a scrappy away goal for the league leaders killed our momentum and early in the second half, their lead was doubled through a well executed training ground corner. It was hard to see a way back against such an organised team, however, a Danny Kedwell penalty restored our hope and two minutes later a straight red card for Macclesfield’s striker, Nathan Blisset, gave us the advantage. With ten minutes to go, the comeback was complete thanks to a curling Dean Rance strike. Although, it looked as though we may go on to find the winner, Macclesfield defended well with ten men and we had to settle for a share of the points.

On the following Tuesday night, when Roma scored three goals to knockout Barcelona from the Champions League, we scored three goals against Wrexham to close the gap in the National League. Yet, the only difference was that our result was expected. We exploded into the game from kick off, creating countless opportunities. However, we only capitalised on our superior display in the 50th minute when Corey Whitely scored a low strike at the near post. The opening goal seemed to ease our nerves and our relentless pressure allowed us to score two late goals. With ten minutes to go, Kedwell found the bottom corner with a low strike and I found the top corner in stoppage time to claim an emphatic win and a huge three points against another playoff rival.

Following the dismantling of Wrexham, we travelled the dreaded 325 mile trip to face Barrow, a team trying to climb out of the relegation zone. At this stage of the season, a team at the bottom of the league can be the worst team to play as they desperately need the points, however, we stood up to the challenge. The match wasn’t filled with quality, yet it was abundant with resolute defending and a determination to claim all three points. In the 32nd minute, Dean Rance scored his third goal in ten games and the only goal of the game with a brilliant reactive finish into the top corner. A late onslaught was inevitable from the home side but the dedicated 76 Ebbsfleet fans who made the tedious trip, witnessed a strong and professional defensive performance to keep our clean sheet.

If the journey to Barrow wasn’t enough, last night we travelled to Eastleigh to play our fourth game in eleven days. The result and performance was symmetrical to the weekend, a narrow 1-0 win backed up with an impressive and unyielding defensive display. In the second half, Nathan Ashmore saved a penalty to keep the score level and in the 82nd minute, Kenny Clark rose highest to meet a Jack Powell corner and score the winning goal. However, although the goal has been awarded to Clark, apparently Harry Kane may be contesting the decision.

The victory last night has not only extended our unbeaten run to eleven games but has moved us into the playoffs with a game in hand. If our unbelievable form continues throughout our remaining three fixtures, the palm trees and cocktails will just have to wait a little longer.

Vanarama column April 11 – National League North

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Vanarama column – the National League North 

By Glenn Moore

Size is always relative: by the standards of non-league football the Vanarama National League North is the graveyard of giants. It is a curiosity that while Vanarama National League South does not contain a single club that has previously played in the Football League the northern section has eight (albeit some have reformed after the original club went bankrupt).

There are many reasons for this disparity, and to an extent it is just a snapshot in time, but the gradual southwards economic shift of the English economy is clearly a factor. There are many upwardly mobile clubs in the south. The likes of Crawley and AFC Wimbledon have climbed into the Football League in recent years, Eastleigh and Ebbsfleet are pushing to join them. Often it is northern clubs that have made way.

Even taking into account that Boston United and Kidderminster Harriers only had four seasons apiece in the Football League in the early years of this century, and Gainsborough Trinity last played League football in 1912, that leaves five once well-established Football League clubs now in the sixth tier of the game.

Of that quintet York City, the FA Trophy holders and a Football League club only two years ago, and Stockport County, a Championship-level club as recently as 2002, look best-placed to secure a spot in the play-offs. Southport, now managed by former Bolton and England striker Kevin Davies, Bradford Park Avenue and Darlington are hoping to join them, but will each need a strong finish. None will win automatic promotion, that seems certain to be claimed by either Salford City, the club bankrolled by the Lancastrian heart of Alex Ferguson’s golden generation, or Harrogate Town, who went full-time at the start of the season.

In a tier in which attendances can dip below 200, and more than half the clubs in the northern section, and all those in the southern, average crowds of less than 1,000, Stockport and York are giants. Only four Vanarama National League clubs have averaged more than their gates, approaching 3,500 for County, in excess of 2,500 for York.  For County this support is especially impressive given this is their fourth season in the sixth tier and they have been sitting in mid-table for most of it.

However, the support and facilities at Edgeley Park can inspire opponents too. “Players do like to come to our place and play in front of 3,000-4,000 fans, but they also come here with a mentality to defend and not concede and that makes it difficult for us,” said manager Jim Gannon earlier this season. County are also part-time, in a league with an increasing number of full-time clubs, including the top two.

York City are full-time, but may not be for much longer. A dispute between owner Jason McGill and the supporters trust ahead of a move to a new stadium in 2019 has clouded matters, with speculation the club may go part-time. That increases the need to go up this May. Jon Parkin, now 36 and the scorer of more than 200 career goals, including 141 in the Football League, is spearheading the Minstermen’s promotion push but with FA Trophy finalists Brackley Town all-but tying up third the chase for the remaining four play-off places is tight.

For more on the Vanarama National League North visit: http://www.thenationalleague.org.uk/

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