Calling all football fans, support your local side on National Non-League Day
Football fans across England, fear not, just because your club is not playing this weekend due to the international break, it doesn’t mean you have to go without.
Instead of sitting at home, crying in a corner and shaking with fear at the thought of spending the day shopping for carpets with the missus, use this get-out clause: “but love, it’s national Non-League Day”.
That’s right, a day dedicated to clubs who lack the glitz and glamour of their Premier League counterparts but still play a huge part in the make-up of English football.
With England playing on the Friday night and top-flight football making way for international matches, James Doe, a lifelong QPR and Harrow Borough fan, decided this was a perfect opportunity to launch the initiative that has snow-balled over the past couple of weeks.
What started as a social networking group has now become an overnight sensation, with support coming from a variety of national newspapers, BBC Radio London, the Football Supporters Federation and various leading sports websites.
The scheme has been backed by the Premier League and Football League, and if you are a season ticket holder at one of the 92 league clubs you will gain free entry to any non-league side ranging from the Blue Square Premier to the Zammertto League.
Unfortunately for the beautiful game, the more the Premier League grows, the more the non-league suffers. With every passing season, interest is seemingly dissolving in lower-league football, which unsurprisingly is having a detrimental effect on the finances and future of many non-league clubs. This fantastic scheme will hopefully start to breathe life back into what is a huge part of English football and an even bigger part of local communities.
So whether it’s a trip to big-hitters Cambridge United or a flying visit to Concord Rangers, make sure you get yourself to a non-league game and do your bit for the future of lower league football, even if it is just to spend the day away from high streets and constant nagging.
Tags: