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Non-league football: UCL clubs in battle to save their league
Sports news from The Peterborough Evening Telegraph - peterboroughtoday.co.uk/sport
UNITED Counties League chiefs have vowed to fight tooth and nail to save their league.
The league’s Premier Division, which is home to six local clubs, has been earmarked for the axe as part of a Football Association review of Step Five of the National League System.
The objective of the review is to reduce the current number of 14 Step Five leagues around the country down to 12 to feed six leagues at Step Four level - and it’s the UCL and the Sussex County League that have been recommended to be abolished.
That would mean increased travelling and higher costs for UCL teams who will be placed in either Eastern, Midland or North Eastern divisions on a re-drawn footballing landscape.
Unsurprisingly the majority of clubs have reacted with outrage - something that is music to the ears of league registration secretary and press officer Jeremy Biggs.
Biggs said: “The early indications are that the majority of our member clubs are against these proposals.
“That is exactly what we expected given the bulk of them will face increased journeys and higher costs if the recommendations are pushed through.
“We have produced figures to highlight the effects on the 21 clubs currently in our Premier Division and 17 of them will be worse off under the plans. Twelve clubs will face a 50 per-cent increase in their mileage during the course of a season.
“Clubs are telling us they like playing their football in the UCL and don’t want that to change so we will do everything in our power to fight on their behalf.”
UCL chiefs are holding a meeting with member clubs at Raunds Town FC tomorrow night (Thursday) from 7.30pm. That comes ahead of a regional consulation meeting for all clubs affected by the proposals in Leicester on January 29.
Biggs added: “We obviously hope that all Premier Division clubs in particular will be represented at our meeting tomorrow so as we can continue to gauge opinion.
“We are then looking for them to go on mass to the regional meeting at Leicester and speak their minds. It is vitally important that the people behind these proposals are made aware of the opposition to them.”
Peterborough Northern Star, Yaxley, Deeping Rangers, Blackstones, Spalding and Holbeach are all affected by the Step Five review.
Two other local clubs, Huntingdon and Bourne, currently play in UCL Division One which is at Step Six on the ladder but the former are on course to win promotion this season.
It is unclear whether the current Division One would remain as the Step 6 system is not due to be looked at for another couple of years.
What scrapping the UCL could mean for local clubs
BLACKSTONES
Recommended league: Eastern Division
Current UCL mileage per season: 1302
Proposed mileage per season: 1707
Increase: 1414.6
DEEPING
Recommended league: Eastern Division
Current UCL mileage per season: 1392
Proposed mileage per season: 2630.5
Increase: 1238.5
HOLBEACH Recommended league: North-East Division
Current UCL mileage per season: 1752
Proposed mileage per season: 3660.1
Increase: 1908.1
NORTHERN STAR
Recommended league: Eastern Division
Current UCL mileage per season: 1356
Proposed mileage per season: 2365
Increase: 1009
SPALDING Recommended league: North-East Division
Current UCL mileage per season: 1616
Proposed mileage per season: 3645.5
Increase: 2029.5
YAXLEY
Recommended league: Eastern Division
Current UCL mileage per season: 1318
Proposed mileage per season: 2369
Increase: 1051
Wisbech Town, who currently play in the Ridgeons League, have also been included in the Eastern Division.
AND WHERE THEY COULD END UP
EASTERN DIVISION
Blackstones, CRC, Deeping, Dereham, Diss, Ely, Gorleston, Great Yarmouth, Haverhill, Irchester, King’s Lynn, Kirkley, Mildenhall, Newmarket, Norwich Utd, Northern Star, S & L Corby, St Ives, Thrapston, Walsham-le-Willows, Wellingborough, Wisbech, Wroxham, Yaxley.
NORTH-EAST DIVISION
Armsthorpe, Arnold, Barton, Boston Town, Bridlington, Brighouse, Dunkirk, Hall Road, Holbeach, Lincoln Moorlands, Liversedge, Long Eaton, Maltby, Nostell, Parkgate, Retford, Scarborough, Selby, Sleaford, Spalding, Staveley, Tadcaster, Thackley, Winterton.
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