With the first International break ruining the start of the real football – it is also time for Non League Day in UK Football.
What is Non League Day? The idea started in 2010 by one man, and has grown from there. It encourages fans and members of the big EPL and Championship clubs to lower themselves for one Saturday a year and watch some of the lower reaches of the English Football pyramid. A club whose ground they may have walked past and never thought of.
Non League Day has it’s own website. Why not visit their website and get the story from the horse’s mouth.
Two questions though. Do we really need to start the World Cup campaign so early and ruin the big comps so early into the campaigns? And could a similar thing work in Australia with Non NRL and AFL teams?
Rugby League has international round, but halts the Qld Cup / NSW Cup and doesn’t even try to promote the grass roots. Ok it does take City v Country to the bush, but how long will that fixture last.
There’s no better time to encourage others to head down to their local ground and enjoy a day out with the locals and their football. Few would know how many grades and teams are at your disposal just under the Queensland Cup.
So we say why not get a movement for every league fan to go to Dayboro Cowboys game, or visit the Swifts in Ipswich, or any one of the 100’s of Brothers clubs scattered around the country on International week next year. Getting home in time for the Pacific Test double header of course.
Entry would be cheap, and no doubt the beer cold and food reasonable. And if you could convince every second NRL member to do so it would mean at least another 100,000 people attending those matches. Talk about a boost for grassroots.
AFL too could do this as well. They have a week off before finals. What better time to have all the local Grand Finals on in each state and their regional cities. With the governing body encouraging the fans to go.
Governing bodies talk a lot about grassroots, but very few actually do anything about getting people to go to their games. Best they could do is usually a slightly condescending ad showing a few kids running around a regional ground.
They care more about the moolah, so maybe it’s time for a similar movement to Non League Day to kick off in Australia.
So get talking to your siblings, kids, Grandparents, work colleagues, vending machine fillers, and the person you usually avoid sitting near on train due to putrid BO, and get them talking about a grassroots day during the international break. Don’t hold your breath though, many people want Standalone origin.
Onto the UK Football version of Non League again.
Sure none of these teams are household names, but who knows down the track if a big Non League day doesn’t provide a club with an extra bump to achieve. Before you know it, teams like Truro City, Weston Super Mare and Forest Green Rovers will be household names. All teams must start from somewhere low (except for Milton Keynes of course) and who knows if one of these teams could be a squad full of Jamie Vardys.
So we’ve got into the spirit by going through all the Non League divisions that were available for gambling on, and have ourHigh five multis for the fifth tier National League Premier (one just below Football League Two) and the two feeder divisions North and South.
Sure we’ve got a mix of names we know from the weekly glance at the table, and have picked some teams because of their great name. Isn’t that what Non League day is all about, having a go at something new.
Why not have one yourself.
Odds courtesy of Sportsbet.
NATIONAL LEAGUE PREMIER
WREXHAM to beat Maidstone
SOLIHULL MOORS to beat York City
FOREST GREEN ROVERS to beat Chester
SUTTON UTD to beat GATESHEAD
BOREHAM WOOD to beat Dagenham & Redbridge
$1 for $165
NATIONAL LEAGUE NORTH
HARROGATE TOWN to beat Curzon Ashton
TAMWORTH to beat Chorley
ALTRINCHAM to beat Stockport
NUNEATON to beat Stalybridge
SALFORD CITY to beat Alfreton
$1 for $31
NATIONAL LEAGUE SOUTH
TRURO CITY to beat East Thurrock United
WESTON-SUPER-MARE to beat Chelmsford City
HEMEL HEMPSTEAD to beat Bishop Stortford
CONCORD RANGERS to beat Welling Utd
BATH to beat Whitehawk
$1 for $95
