By working together we can learn & move forward
MARK IVES vows to work closely with all clubs to unite the National League members again after his appointment as permanent General Manager was confirmed.
Ives initially joined on an interim basis in January following the mid-season departure of chief executive Michael Tattersall.
It has been a bruising 12 months for the whole of Non-League football since the Covid-19 pandemic with Step 1 of the Pyramid the only division set to complete a full season, albeit behind closed doors.
And Ives knows the challenges that lie ahead as the game tries to get on an even keel again.
“I’ve got things I have in my own mind I think will enhance things,” Ives told The NLP. “But you can only do that working closely with everyone around you. I’ve only been here three months but already I’ve seen the importance of being close to the clubs.
“I vowed from the outset that communication would be better. That’s certainly the case, but is there more work to be done? Yes, there’s lots more work to be done. We’ll work together to galvanise people back together again from the strains of the last 14 months.
“People are, understandably, feeling the strain. There are some people who are really frustrated. There will be others who have a differing view. I am not going to be critical of people who operated before me because I haven’t seen everything they were faced with at the time.
“No one person knows all the answers. In order to be able to get the most ideal solutions, you’ve got to take the vast amount of experience of football at this level from within the league and outside the league.”
Vastly experienced himself from more than
25 years in football administrafices, tion, including 19 at the FA where he was Head of Judicial Services, Ives dropped into the middle of a firestorm. The 2020-21 season start had only been confirmed days before kick-off after the government stepped in to broker a £10m funding deal through the National Lottery.
The understanding of further support should crowds not return not materialising has been the source of much frustration and ultimately led to the majority of Step 2 clubs voting to terminate their season.
Eyes open
Some who opted to stop before then have since been handed fines for non-fulfilment of fixtures and despite some of the upset, Ives has maintained the National League had to follow their framework.
Ives, inset, says his new task doesn’t faze him and he came in eyes open.
“It’s not been easy,” Ives said. “It’s the only level of Non-League football that is playing and it was a struggle and a challenge. We’ve got the National League Step 1 division playing in an exciting competition that is fighting right until the end. So, on that side, it was absolutely the right decision to carry on playing.
“The clubs, collectively, at Step 2 decided the struggle was too much and we listened to that. It’s interesting because that in itself was always going to be a tight decision. You’ve got voices who are unhappy they’ve stopped playing and voices who are happy they have. It’s a little bit like a referee, you can’t please everyone.
“All you can do is try and be consistent across the board and do the right thing for the majority. There will always be people with different opinions. I respect that. More importantly I respect how it is
voiced. Differopinions are how we build and make things better.”
A major point of discussion has been the definition of elite and non-elite football in England, a status that has allowed the National League to continue – and complete play-offs last season – but Ives says the National League’s place at the pinnacle of Non-League remains.
“I don’t think it is separated off,” Ives said. “We’ve had the ability to be able to play this year in the national division and I hoped Step 2 would have been able to continue.
“It’s very easy to draw a conclusion on what is right and what is wrong in the middle of a pandemic.
“If we were to go back to ‘normal times’ there wasn’t the same level of concern during the midst of the problems we have with the pandemic.
“The National League System is a fantastic set-up and fantastic level of the game. I have had a fantastic career in the Non-League game.
“I look forward to working with my friends at the Trident Leagues, who I get on well with and respect.”
Ives jokes, as a referee, he is used to copping some flak. His working life started with 12 years in the Army as a driver, radio operator and morse code signaller. He also refereed and played tennis in the forces before having to leave when diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.
Transform
From there he became the first full-time chief operating officer at the Hertfordshire FA before moving to the FA to look after the development of County FAs.
That led to heading up the FA’s judicial department overseeing the game from the Premier League down and where he helped transform the approach at dealing with discrimination in grassroots. He has refereed throughout Non-League – he still does so at the weekend – and ran the line in the Football League.
Communication, especially with the media, has improved hugely since Ives’ arrival and he even phoned a disgruntled supporter, who emailed into the National League ofent to explain his viewpoint.
While acknowledging the pandemic is still on-going, Ives is looking forward positively. With Wembley off the table for this season’s promotion final in June because of the Euros, hard work is ongoing to securing an appropriate venue.
The National League North and South will kick-off on August 14, with Step 1 a week later.
Ives thinks some of the criticism of the league and its board has been unfair but he is determined to lead the competition forward.
“It’s funny,” Ives said. “As a referee – many, many years ago – once I stopped worrying about what my marks were I got on better because you referee naturally.
“I can only look forward. I can’t change the past. Can I influence what we do moving forward, yes I can – life is all about learning.
“We’re in this unprecedented time, in our lifetimes, and we need to learn from that journey. I am genuinely in it simply because I love doing it. I am committed to what I do.”