This is why we love Non-League football
THESE days, football is dominated by the Premier League with celebrities earning the kind of money some of us can only dream about. You can now almost pick which game you want to watch in the comfort of your own home.
But while the big guns represent their countries during the international break, the rest of us will be celebrating Non-League Day – and here’s why we love getting involved as much as we do.
Entrance can be as little as £5, while refreshments won’t set you back as much as they do at professional grounds. The Non-League fan can also pay his entrance fee at the turnstile and not have to book online or be put on hold for 10 minutes at premium rate cost.
The Non-League fan can have a pint in the clubhouse and exchange friendly banter with opposing fans, while any trouble, if any at all, is few and far between, on terracing and without segregation.
Unlike the majority of league clubs, Non-League clubs take the FA Cup seriously and, for some, the road to Wembley begins in August with the dream of reaching the third round proper and drawing a plum tie against a Premier League side.
Away games for the Non-League follower can take them to some towns or villages they would never visit and some wonderful country pubs. There will be no police escort on the way to the ground and you will be able to walk into the ground five minutes before kick off. You don’t need a fancy swipe card to let you through, there will be just a good old fashioned rusty turnstile with the guy operating it who has been following the club for years (and probably played for them) a bit rusty himself. He will then tell you when you ask for a programme that there are none left because they only printed a few.
Night games at Non-League games can be a nightmare with poor floodlights resulting in the players’ numbers on back of shirts being hard to distinguish. Toilet facilities can be poor, the tannoy announcer hard to hear and terracing can be crumbling by your feet. The old roof that’s letting in rain and needs repairing for weeks, still needs repairing!
Think about the many volunteers, retrieving balls kicked into the trees or the poor referee and his assistants who are always to blame when something doesn’t go our way.
No multi-million pound players diving, trying to con the referee, no VAR, TMO or Hawk Eye, or whatever else they want to call it in other sports to help them with decisions.
This is Non-Lague football and this is why we love it. Who knows, next season in the FA Cup your club may have the chance of meeting a Premier League club – or it could even be a trip to AFC Blackpool.