Witham chairman slams FA decision

[FF News]

SEETHING Witham Town chairman Tony Last says his club “have been sold down the river” by the Football Association.The second-placed Essex Senior League club has been refused promotion back to the Ryman League Division One North.

 

Last said his club would be taking legal advice over the shock decision and “will definitely be going to the FA offices at Wembley Stadium to appeal.”

 

He tells This Is Total Essex: “It’s a carve up, stitch up, call it what you want and we shall fight it all the way,” he continued. “Apart from being totally illogical in my reckoning they’ve broken around five of their own rules by this decision.”

 

He added: “If this is allowed to happen it will put this club back 10 years considering the plans we now have in place to improve the ground with new facilities.”

 

What has particularly incensed the Spa Road club officials and team manager Danny Greaves is that the two sides who finished bottom of the Ryman League Division One North – Harlow Town and Leyton – and should be relegated have been given a reprieve by the FA.

 

“The previous season we finished second from bottom and were relegated, which we accepted, but suddenly the rules are changed to allow the bottom two this time around to stay put,” he said.

 

“We will have 14 days to lodge an appeal once we’ve heard officially from the FA but as yet nobody from there offices has had the decency or even bothered to inform us that we’re not being promoted,” he said.

 

“It really makes you feel why you bother to try and run a senior football at our level – you’re treated so badly that you might as well play as a local park side.”

 

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[Leviathan]

So what is the craic? Is it the ground not being up to scratch? Financial? The article doesn't really say.. or I didn't read it right...

[FCFAN]

I don't want to start a row here, and I totally agree with Witham if their argument is that the FA's system is wrong.... but under the current rules this is the correct decision.

 

1. There are twelve promotion spots - all league winners who pass grading get one (unless there is more than 12 league winners that pass grading).

2. However many of those 12 spots are not taken up by the league winners can be taken up by runners up (from leagues where winners can't go up) with best points per games total.

3. Then the FA fill any remaining places at step 4 by giving repreives.

4. Then if there are still step 4 spots available then other runners up (from leagues where winners can't go up) can be promoted, again with those with the best points per game total getting priority.

 

Unfortunately for Witham the 4th step wasn't reached this year. I agree wholeheartedly that the system is wrong and is rewarding failure before success...... but I'd be interested to know which of the FA's rules Mr Last thinks have been broken, because as far as I can see they've applied them to the letter.

[Lightweight]

last you wasn't good enough to go up, and you wasn't good enough to stay up. Fact! So stop bleating and whining about how it's everybody fault but your own. Grow a backbone! How do you expect to assemble a decent squad together when they have you as an example. So gather your toys up put them back in the pram and be a Man!

[officialspokesman]

last you wasn't good enough to go up, and you wasn't good enough to stay up. Fact! So stop bleating and whining about how it's everybody fault but your own. Grow a backbone! How do you expect to assemble a decent squad together when they have you as an example. So gather your toys up put them back in the pram and be a Man!

 

 

If promotion was based on whinging and moaning Mighty Witham would probably be in the premiership now.

Long may they be a credit to the ESL.

[Romboro]

SEETHING Witham Town chairman Tony Last says his club "have been sold down the river" by the Football Association.

 

View the full article

 

Just to put the record straight as far as both Danny Greaves's (1) and Tony Last's (2) claims about Romford and a ground share at Aveley not being within the Ryman rules on promotion are concerned

 

1. Romford had to leave their rented Ford's Stadium ground at the end of season 2007/8 because the whole site had been sold to West Ham United.

Our share at Aveley was, therefore, enforced and not by choice and could not in any way be regarded as 'groundsharing to enable promotion'. We did not in anyway anticipate promotion to be a possiblilty for us at the start of the 2008/9 season and our being in the running and eventually winning the title was as much of a surprise to us as it was to many others.

 

2. Following from the facts stated at the beginning of 1. above we did not ground share at Aveley for half the 2008/9 season as claimed by Tony Last in his NLP article last Sunday.

 

Perhaps now that all the matters concerning Romford's right to promotion have all been clarified Witham Town can now put everything concerning their disappointment about not gaining promotion in the 2009/10 season behind them and concentrate on preparing for winning the ESL title in 2010/11

 

 

Q.E.D.

[Lightweight]

Yet again The ESL has and will produce good teams that will fight for the title of champions. Long may it continue to be so. I think he owes us all a public apology the way he has slandered and rubbished our teams and our leagues.

[Eastside Urchin]

for once i agree with romford fans

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

still think you're all kents though