3G Pitches are not a panacea

3G Pitches are not a panacea

A fortnight ago, I wrote about the unusually high number of non-League clubs which have already withdrawn from the Trident Leagues. Rather cheekily, I tagged Kieran Maguire when tweeting about the piece and the UK’s leading football finance expert told his 110,000...
The quicksand threatens City of Liverpool

The quicksand threatens City of Liverpool

The dispute between City of Liverpool FC and their landlords, Bootle FC, which I discussed last week, escalated significantly on Monday and Tuesday. On Monday evening, Bootle issued a short statement confirming that “Following a material breach of the ground-share...
A pyramid built on qucksand?

A pyramid built on qucksand?

As someone with a lifelong passion for non-League football, I’m increasingly worried about how financially viable the sport is below the elite level. Semi-professional football clubs have always led a hand-to-mouth existence and barely a season goes by without at...
Reading the Game: A Love Letter to Football by Mark Davies

Reading the Game: A Love Letter to Football by Mark Davies

Every so often, a book just connects with me on multiple levels. A Love Letter to Football by Mark Davies was a Christmas gift which was just such a title and could turn out to be one of the best things I read in 2024. Yes, I know it’s only January. A Love Letter to...
Plan? There ain’t no plan!

Plan? There ain’t no plan!

At the back end of last week, an email arrived from our Tutor with some advice as we head into a new phase of the MA in Creative Writing I’m doing with the Open University. It had a link to a writer’s planner to “encourage you to do some New Year reflecting on your...
My 2023 in Books

My 2023 in Books

Happy New Year! Have you made any resolutions? In 2023, one of mine was ‘to read more’, partly because I’d started an MA in Creative Writing with the Open University and our Tutor was fiercely passionate about reading as widely and deeply as possible. It would make us...