26 clubs exempted until this second round join the 102 other teams that have earned their place in the round, including last year’s finalists and 2022 Vase winners Newport Pagnell Town.
For quite a while now, I have been keeping an eye open for fixtures on my route down to Cornwall on Friday September 22. There’s usually something in the Western League or the South West Peninsula League. This time, there’s nothing.
The story of Southend United’s demise bears many familiar hallmarks. Unpaid bills. Late wages. Transfer embargoes. Winding-up petitions. Protesting fans. A spiral through the leagues.
This week my phone has been going crazy again with calls and messages after I was announced as Darlington’s new manager. I’m really proud. Everyone has made me feel so welcome already.
There are certain grounds I’ve wanted to visit for a while but all my travelling companions have been there. One such venue is FC Clacton on the Essex coast.
80 clubs are competing for the opportunity to reach the fourth qualifying round of the FA Cup and potentially be drawn to face a Step 1 National League side.
“Without going out of your door, you can know all things on earth.”
George Harrison may have had more transcendental matters in mind, but in many ways the meditative moptop could have been singing about the advent of National League TV.
There’s a touch of intrigue about today’s proceedings. I quite fancy ticking off Hullbridge Sports in the FA Cup but am convinced The Fox has been there, so decide to wait until he’s away. It turns out The Fox hasn’t been either!
Hello, it’s good to be back. I don’t mean me – although it has been a while – but the football season and hence the welcome resumption of normal service. Despite decades of practice, football’s close season is a tricky beast to negotiate.
Peter McCormack’s bold announcement about plans to take Real Bedford into the Premier League was dismissed with the same “Oh no, here we go again” reaction that all other big money men receive when taking over a club and making similar bold claims.
Football fans can so often be relied on to do good things and it’s no different when it comes to the Hereford United Supporters’ Trust and their new Community Social Inclusion project in partnership with Hereford FC.
Luton Town playing their first ever game in the Premier League brought to mind that great John Still quote having watched them lose 2-0 to Braintree Town just hours after he’d left Dagenham & Redbridge to take over as Hatters boss.