THE chairman of Step 5 club Walsall Wood has banned unaccompanied under-16s from its matches insists a cluster of troublesome youngsters left them with no choice.
In just the last three years he has overseen the club’s rise from the Step 7 Cheshire League to, next season, Step 4 in the Northern Premier League West by virtue of the recent restructure.
The Stoke-on-Trent based side had been in the North West Counties League since 2013 when they joined the Non- League Pyramid. So next season will represent a new adventure for the club.
Goals in both halves from Kane Drummond and an Elliott Nevitt penalty put the North West Counties League side in dreamland, although Tom Tonks’ superb stoppage-time reply made for a nervy final few minutes.
Nevitt’s fine 62nd-minute strike was enough to end the five-day defence of the 2019-20 title which the Hornets clinched in a dramtic finale against Consett at Wembley on Monday.
Wren pulled off a superb save from Harry Bestwick in a sudden-death penalty shootout with Michael Nelson converting the winner to see Wood through 5-4 after a dour 0-0 draw.