Chris Dunlavy
Chris Dunlavy: Andy’s found an ideal home
It almost feels as if the Non-League game is his natural habitat and if Dagenham and Redbridge get even the slightest vestige of the old Andy...
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Columnists
/ 1 week agoFrancis Duku: We’re all big NLD winners
As the CEO of Non-League Day, it’s great to see it get bigger every year – and we’re confident that 2026 won’t be any different.
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Chris Dunlavy
/ 2 weeks agoChris Dunlavy: Be careful what Roo wish for
Macclesfield have a Rooney in the dugout, but was it the one they truly desired?
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Columnists
/ 2 weeks agoTony Incenzo: We’ve got our green for go!
I’ve always believed that the most important mantra for any Non-League club is long-term stability.
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Chris Dunlavy
/ 2 weeks agoChris Dunlavy: Alex Scott grew away from the glare
As kids, aspiring footballers are often told that success depends on sacrifice, graft and living like a monk while your mates enjoy their teenage excesses. But sometimes the opposite is true.
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Columnists
/ 2 weeks agoMark Carruthers: Summer breather? I’m ready for the new season of hope to kick-off
Surely it was only last week when we left Wembley after the National League promotion final and reflected on Oldham Athletic’s dramatic win against Southend United?
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Columnists
/ 3 weeks agoSpencer Day: Deep pockets of the South!
By my reckoning, this season will be my eighth managing in National League South – and it’s the most exciting it’s ever been.
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Columnists
/ 3 weeks agoGregor Robertson: Now I miss the agony of old!
“Do you miss it?” Nine years have passed since my last game, for the Grimsby Town team that won the 2016 National League play-off final.
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Chris Dunlavy
/ 3 weeks agoChris Dunlavy: Stepping up is a tall order!
Nick Woltemade – the two-metre Messi – is the talk of Europe after starring for Germany at the Under-21 European Championships.
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Columnists
/ 3 weeks agoMark Carruthers: Paying tribute to the late Curtis Coppen
How can you describe Curtis Coppen when so many fitting words have been spoken in recent days? A stalwart of the North East Non-League scene, the North Shields defender passed away at the age of...
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Chris Dunlavy
/ 4 weeks agoChris Dunlavy: Mark Hughes rounds up the troops
Carlisle United have got a lot wrong in recent years, and question marks remain over Mark Hughes’ capacity to manage in the National League - but credit where it’s due.
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Columnists
/ 4 weeks agoMark Harris: Data is a whole new ball game!
Henry Ford once said, “if you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got.” This could easily be applied to how Non-League football clubs go about generating commercial income.
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Chris Dunlavy
/ 4 weeks agoChris Dunlavy: Age is no longer just a number
Ollie Pearce couldn’t have done much more to earn a shot at the EFL, but even a 30-goal season won’t do the trick these days. Not if you’re 29, anyway.
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Columnists
/ 4 weeks agoSteve Hill: Don’t be sad, be grateful!
“Burke’s gone”. Two words on my phone that transformed a normal Thursday evening into a JFK moment.
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Blyth Spartans
/ 1 month agoMark Carruthers: Blyth Spartans’ decline, and how they can get back on their feet
Reporting on the North East non-league scene for over a decade has provided me with so many lifelong memories. From FA Vase and FA Trophy final wins at Wembley to promotion wins and FA Cup...
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Chris Dunlavy
/ 1 month agoChris Dunlavy: Simon Grayson’s got his work cut out!
Hartlepool United fans can be forgiven for affording Simon Grayson the sort of welcome reserved for cold-callers and travelling salesmen.
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Columnists
/ 1 month agoTony Incenzo: John Dennett’s tribute is just Ton-derful
One of my highlights during the past season was visiting Ashville FC on the day of their 75th anniversary celebrations where 100-year-old club founder John Dennett delivered an emotional speech.
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Chris Dunlavy
/ 1 month agoChris Dunlavy: Is this play-off system fair? Stats certainly stack it up!
How fair are the National League play-offs? Not very according to York City, who last week published an open letter criticising the current system and calling for “immediate reform”.
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Chris Dunlavy
/ 1 month agoWRITE TRURO OFF AT YOUR PERIL
Chris DUNLAVY A FRESH TAKE ON FOOTBALL TRURO City will begin their first ever season in the National League as one of the hot favourites for relegation. After all, they started last season as one...
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Columnists
/ 1 month agoMark Carruthers: South Shields’ appointment of Ian Watson is great news for Mariners
Timing is everything in football – so they say. That is why Ian Watson’s appointment as the new manager of National League North club South Shields should be viewed as a major positive for Mariners...
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Chris Dunlavy
/ 1 month agoChris Dunlavy: Perilous Heed heading south
Gateshead lost a manager this week, but so much else has been squandered since the end of a deeply dispiriting season.
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Columnists
/ 1 month agoFrancis Duku: Staying in shape is key now
It's fair to say that the way players look after themselves in the close season has changed a lot since my playing days.
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Chris Dunlavy
/ 1 month agoChris Dunlavy: EFL clubs scared of cash cost
Julie-Anne Uggla, the co-owner of York City, should probably have dug into the history books before she published an open letter railing against the iniquity of the play-offs.
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Adam Virgo
/ 2 months agoAdam Virgo: Take a bow, Kevin Maher and Micky Mellon
What an occasion today’s promotion final is set to be – two huge clubs with incredible history and tradition, backed by large support in front of what is set to be a record-breaking crowd.
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Columnists
/ 2 months agoTony Incenzo: My top ten from the second half
I’ve travelled far and wide watching almost 70 Non-League matches throughout the past season. From deepest Cornwall to the far North-East, it has all been very enjoyable due to the fact our wonderful clubs continually...