Plenty going on in the lower leagues
While Premier League and Championship clubs take advantage of the international break with trips to Dubai and Spain for “warm weather camps”, the lesser mortals in League One and Two are left to battle it out on England’s frozen pitches. Although they don’t normally make the limelight, there are some terrific scraps going on in the lower leagues, with clubs going for glory or simply praying for survival in the final run-in.
The fight for automatic promotion to the Championship appears to be a three-way scrap between current leaders Blackburn Rovers, Shrewsbury Town one point behind, and Wigan Athletic, another point back. An impressive mid-week win at Walsall has put Wigan in a strong position with two games in hand owing to their FA Cup exploits.
Since their relegation from the Premier League in 2012, Blackburn have experienced a wretched time under the Venky’s ownership and last season suffered the indignity of being relegated from the Championship. However they seem to have steadied the ship under manager Tony Mowbray who recently admitted that when he got the job at Rovers he received messages from fellow managers inferring he was “a glutton for punishment”.
But times have changed. Mowbray is very confident and recently tweeted: “I wish Wigan the very best in their battle with Shrewsbury to finish second… behind us.”
Shrewsbury are the surprise team in the league having only narrowly escaped relegation the past two seasons. Promotion would be a huge success for this small club near the Welsh border. In the mix for play-off spots are Rotherham, Scunthorpe, Plymouth Argyle and Peterborough.
At the foot of the table are Bury who, 10 points from safety, look almost certain to go down. Despite an impressive FA Cup run, Rochdale are in deep trouble and a mid-week home defeat to Fleetwood did not help their cause. MK Dons, Oldham Athletic and Northampton Town are the other main contenders fighting the drop.
Northampton manager, former Chelsea star Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, will be desperately disappointed if he cannot keep the Cobblers in League One. Northampton’s main claim to fame is their curious record of being the team that took the shortest time to be promoted from the bottom tier to the top tier and then relegated to the bottom again. It took just nine years — 1961-70. They spent one year in the top flight in 1965-66.
The big story from the lower divisions is Accrington Stanley perched at the top of League Two. The original club went defunct in 1966 but reformed in 1968 and began the long path back to redemption in the Football League which they eventually achieved in 2006.
It is fair to say they have not set League Two alight, although they did make the play-offs in 2010-11, one of the most successful seasons in the club’s history. Until this season Stanley’s main aim was simply survival, so to find themselves front-runners is truly remarkable.
Their lack of success actually brought them fame, partly through a milk advertisement out of which emerged an expression much beloved by football fans, “Accrington Stanley, who are they?’’
In second place are Luton Town, who for most of the season looked like they would run away with the league and were banging in goals for fun. But recently their form has dipped, having won just one of their last six games and suffering a vital 1-2 home defeat to Accrington earlier this month.
Despite this, the Hatters should be okay for automatic promotion while Wycombe Wanderers have moved into the third automatic spot.
Among the teams battling for play-off places are Notts County, the oldest football club in the world, being founded in 1862. Mansfield Town, Exeter City and Coventry are also in the running, the latter desperate to start the long trek back to their former glory days in the Premier League which they last experienced in 2001.
At the wrong end of League Two, Barnet look just about doomed, with Chesterfield most likely to join them in the National League. But there are eight matches left, enough time for Grimsby Town, Forest Green Rovers and Port Vale to be dragged into the mire.
In a last-gasp bid to save themselves, Barnet sacked manager Graham Westley earlier this week after just 63 days, and replaced him with Martin Allen for whom it will be an amazing fifth time at the helm of the Bees, having first taken charge in 2003. Barnet have now made 20 managerial changes since 2010. Unfortunately for Allen his first match today is away to Luton, who could well drive in the final nail.
It would be a great achievement if Forest Green survive in their first season in League Two. This small rural Gloucestershire club is based in Nailsworth with a population of just 5,800, the smallest town to host a Football League club. They are also the first vegan football club, promoted by ambitious chairman Dale Vince.
An unexpected face in League Two is former Leeds United, Liverpool and Australia star Harry Kewell who is currently in charge of Crawley Town. After a poor start to the season when they were seldom out of the bottom four, Crawley enjoyed a decent run and are now mid-table.
Kewell, who says he is enjoying his coaching role, is learning to be patient at this unfashionable club. “It’s going to take time,” he said, “but the fans and owners can see the improvement.’’
So there’s all to play for this weekend in the lower divisions. Let’s just hope the fickle English weather warms up a bit for them.