League reorganisation

[Poll]

Maps been released for next year’s reorganisation - a good article here: https://www.thenonleaguefootballpaper.c ... 19-season/

Looks like “Midland” League for us (assuming that what it’ll be called), or Southern Midland if the worst happens and we go down.

No surprise really, and it’s all a long way from Northumberland for me

[yeltz85]

Another good one for me has always been on Tony Kempster from Wazza...

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/ ... edit#gid=0

https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mi ... 368142&z=7

:-) - Subject to us remaining in the league.

Central Football League Premier - Current predicted lineup.

1 A.F.C. Rushden & Diamonds SLE
2 Alvechurch NPS
3 Banbury United SLP
4 Barwell NPP
5 Biggleswade Town SLP
6 Chasetown NPS
7 Coalville Town NPP
8 Halesowen Town NPP
9 Hednesford Town NPP
10 Hitchin Town SLP
11 Kettering Town SLP
12 Leiston ILP
13 Lowestoft Town ILP
14 Needham Market ILP
15 Redditch United SLP
16 Royston Town SLP
17 Rushall Olympic NPP
18 St. Ives Town SLP
19 St. Neots Town SLP
20 Stafford Rangers NPP
21 Stourbr*dge NPP
22 Stratford Town SLP

[YeltzDoc]

No surprise really, and it’s all a long way from Northumberland for me

There's nothing to really set the heart racing is there? Oooh, Biggleswade away...
I know that it'll reduce travelling costs, but if everybody's decrease, won't the playing field still be even?
I suppose fewer clubs will go bust, but it's hardly been a plague at this level, everybody seems to scratch through somehow, and any extra splosh will just be spent by everyone on the playing budget, not really moving anyone on.
A few more away trips that would be easier to get to, but the appeal of the extra hour saved in going to Barwell rather than Barnsley is hardly worth the ignominy of going to Barwell.
And will the crowds really be bigger? A bumper Boxing Day special at home to Redditch anyone?

We need a grumpy Northerner emoji.

[andy]

You've just about said everything I was going to. When I was a regular away traveller the distant trips used to be the most enjoyable. Weekends at the the coast, the New Forest etc made for good times. That league just looks boring. The division below looks even worse though.....

[YeltzDoc]

Yep, the odd Margate / Bashley / Weymouth / Dorch always stood out as something to look forward to.
I've a sort of jumbled amalgam of seaside trips in my brain - Nuns On The Piss, seeing Buster Merryfield somewhere, running bollock naked into the sea shouting, "Look at me, I'm enormous", The Vulgar Bulgar and a load of other stuff.
I can remember when this were all fields...

[piearce9]

Agree that this is a pretty bleak league in terms of destinations. We'll be losing a lot of the "classic" NPL grounds and retaining the dire ones (Coalville, Barwell, Rushall- looking at you). We may even be gaining a return to Banbury - probably the smoggiest ground in non-league and a place we always seem to lose at.

On the optimistic flip-side though, I'd say well over half of these are "do-able" without consuming your whole Saturday, so likely to be much better for away support (both for us travelling, and people travelling to us). And possibly a very open league as well- I think you'd struggle to pick a winner from that list below?

I daren't even look at the league below yet.

[juanillo]

Agree that this is a pretty bleak league in terms of destinations. We'll be losing a lot of the "classic" NPL grounds and retaining the dire ones (Coalville, Barwell, Rushall- looking at you). We may even be gaining a return to Banbury - probably the smoggiest ground in non-league and a place we always seem to lose at.

Barwell and Coalville may not be the most interesting of places but their grounds are not really 'dire'. Remember that the facilities at The Grove are nothing special at this level.

The Cambridgeshire towns are pleasant and the ones in Suffolk are close to some really nice countryside and coastline and as you say, there would be a good helping of relatively local ones like Stratford. So not convinced about the prospective bleakness. I'll be more than happy if we manage to actually get into this league and it would bleak to be the only team to go down when only one team goes down.

Also I think overall we have a reasonable record at Banbury.

[andy]

Not really even sure what the benefit of it all is. Lower standard of football as there are multiple promotions from below to make up the fourth division at this level and we STILL have long distances to travel.
Lowestoft 201 miles
Leiston 181 miles
Needham 156 miles
Probably 4 hour each way journeys.

[andy]

Just found another 4 that come in at 100 miles +. Not exactly that much of a local league.

[Westyeltz]

Not really even sure what the benefit of it all is. Lower standard of football as there are multiple promotions from below to make up the fourth division at this level and we STILL have long distances to travel.
Lowestoft 201 miles
Leiston 181 miles
Needham 156 miles
Probably 4 hour each way journeys.

Lower standard of football? You mean there are teams worse than us?