Time Out magazine

[Horace]

Originally Posted By: Gavin

Originally Posted By: Horace

Originally Posted By: Gavin

No, the article was about FAMOUS London non league clubs, of which Edgware are one

About famous London Clubs whose futures are in doubt?

..
No as I said, FAMOUS London non league club who are having their best season in years

Must be tough being stuck at in the sticks, almost makes you inbreeds LOL

Most of the inhabitants of Hertford are migrants from further north, who came to work in London, but didn't want to live amongst all the cr*p!

[GRS67]

Dont blame them, Hertford looked quite nice when I went though it to come to the game last season.

 

London is full of imagrants, and in under five years, it will be hard to find a born and bred Londoner, thats NOT a racist comment, its just a fact of life in the 21st century!

[Spidermanor]

The article was ok, but rather superficial. It starts with a line about Arsenal building their ground then talks about Hendon, Wealdstones problems for the last 15 years and then says Edgeware are likely to be evicted, ironically when they are having their best season for years. Thats it really it doesn't really go in to any depth about any of the issues effecting the clubs, and just has a sort of 'oh well what a shame' sort of feel to the article. I'll scan it in later tonight if you want.

[GRS67]

Yes if you can scan it that would be good

 

I agree the article comes up a bit short, and gets its info wrong re Edgware and the last season remark. Still as they say any press is good press

 

What did you think of my photo, it came out very well, you would NEVER have known that came from a mobile phone, it looks like it comes from a top end camera

[Spidermanor]

The article:

 

Bob Stanley on how some of London's most famous non-league clubs are struggling to build for the future.

 

If Arsenal thought that Ashburton Grove gave them a few headaches, imagine if they had attempted to move from Highbury with an annual turnover of less than £200,000. This is the situation facing a bunch of the capital's non-league outfits. For every Tooting & Mitcham, who sold their Sandy Lane ground to move to the brand new Imperial Fields, there are a dozen clubs with councils desperate to sell their prized green space for development.

 

A clutch of them are grouped tightly in the north. Wealdstone left their Lower Mead ground 15 years ago to make way for a Tesco supermarket, with the promised £4 million going up in smoke when the company handling the sale went into liquidation.' Fifteen years without a home-it gets a bit grating,' sighs club secretary Roger Slater. When the Prince Edward Playing Fields in Canons Park began to be developed for the club a few years ago the situation seemed to be resolved. Then the builders went bust. 'It was derelict land when we found it,' explains Slater. 'Now it's half-built, owned by Harrow Council, and they chose a proposal from Barnet FC and First Sport to complete it which we were happy to support. We've had a number of discussions with the Barnet guys about how it will fit together. There's a long way to go. The documents between Barnet and Harrow Council are about to be signed and sealed.' All being well, the project will restart in February and take around 16 weeks to complete. Next season should see Barnet Ladies, as well as Wealdstone, playing at the Prince Edward Academy Grounds.

 

The outlook is gloomier for Wealdstone's landlords of 12 years, Edgware Town. On a short lease for years, their White Lion ground off the High Street has just been earmarked for housing - even though the pitch acts as a sink, draining into the local Silk Stream. A proposal by Edgeware (sic) Developments was initially thrown out by the council in April, partly over flood¬ing concerns. Ironically, Town's best season in years - they currently top the Spartan South Midlands League-could be their last.

 

Though several farewells have been hailed, Hendon are still at their Claremont Road ground, and still run by the Arbiter Group. However, this season will almost certainly see the end of the arrangement: a covenant has been overturned which means Arbiter can sell the lease on the ground to Barnet Council, who will in turn sell it to a developer. The council's record with League Two Barnet FC doesn't suggest they will push the boat out to secure a new venue for Hendon. But in terms of planning ahead, the Supporters Trust's Simon Lawrence is optimistic: 'The trust was formed in March and membership is approaching 300. Plans are in place for the Trust to take ownership of the football club when the Arbiter Group relinquishes it.' A groundshare is likely for 2007/8 - Hendon's centenary season - possibly at Wembley FC's Vale Farm ground.

 

Enfield chairman Steve Whittington claims their current ground-share at Ware is 'absolutely fantastic, no complaints. But we need to be back in the borough. You get no help. It's as simple as that' Since they lost their Southbury Road ground, the club has fragmented with fans forming the first breakaway club of its kind, Enfield Town, in 2001. A couple of years ago, Whittington and a handful of other fans took over the original club, meaning that two rival supporter-run clubs now exist. Weirder still, they are now in the same league Ryman Division One North. 'We're not big-time Charlies,' says Whittington, 'but we do have the finances in place to move back. We just can't find the bit of ground.' But the logical move - an amalgamation with Enfield Town who play at Brimsdown Rovers' ground, inside Enfield borough - isn't likely to happen any time soon.

 

The finances for all these clubs are tortuous. Only 20 years ago Wealdstone were Conference champions and on the threshold of the Football League. In contrast, 'Last season we went everywhere by car,' says Roger Slater,' with a director and three players in each. Imagine if we got promoted. You can't do that if you're playing in Merthyr Tydfil on a Tuesday night.'

 

Making a new ground viable with crowds of 300 is the bottom line. In a city that constantly changes, it isn't just shops and housing that these clubs are in competition with. 'We'd looked at a few different sites before we found Prince Edward. Two of them are now mosques.'

Wealdstone FC Supporters Club: www.wfcsc.co.uk. Hendon FC Supporters Trust: www.hfetrust.co.uk. Edgware Town FC: www.edgwaretownfe.com.

Enfield FC: www.efcfans.com.

For information on clubs in crisis at every level of the game: www.clubsincrisis.com

 

[GRS67]

Nice one