Testing

Just checking that I can now post from my mobile phone. Life is fast becoming too convenient.

Elmore Eagles History

ELMORE A.F.C. (1947) – ‘THE EAGLES’

Any map of the British Isles will not help you find Elmore in the Southwest of England. They are a club that takes its name from an area of their hometown of Tiverton in Devon.

Formed in 1947 as the Elmore Sports Club, the original aim was to provide sporting and social facilities for the people of Tiverton. In its early years the club was compelled to continually move premises and in 1958 a major decision to purchase land was made. The raising of funds for such a project was an immense undertaking by the membership and resulted in the purchase of a piece of land called Slaughterhouse Field. Now renamed Horsdon Park this remains today the cornerstone of the club and the firm base for their football and social club sections.

Since then the members have continued to improve the facilities at Horsdon Park. Recent undertakings have included the building of a purpose built grandstand incorporating changing facilities fitted to the highest standard in 1983, the refurbishment of clubhouse in 1994 and new floodlights in 2012.

Success on the football field has been achieved over the years including:-

1960/61 – The Devon Junior Cup, the Football Express Cup and Devon and Exeter League One Champions

1971/72 - The East Devon Senior Cup

1975/76 - The Devon Senior Cup

1990/91 - The Western League Les Phillips Cup

1994/95 - The Western League Les Phillips Cup

1997/98 - The Western League Combination Cup

1998/99 - The Western Combination League Champions

In 2007 an Under 18 side was set up which currently play in the Somerset Floodlight Youth League to help bring new players in to the club. In 2010 the Elmore’s youth section was augmented when the club formed a link with local youth football club, Moors Youth. Following this an U16 team playing under the Elmore name was formed in 2011.

A famous Eagle was Adam Stansfield who had two spells with the club in the late 1990’s and between 2000 and 2001 which provided the springboard for his professional career at Yeovil Town, Hereford United and finally at Exeter City. Adam tragically died of cancer in 2010.

The club and its members continue their commitment to playing the highest football possible whilst maintaining and promoting local youth football.

Local Leagues

I could detail all the wonderful and strange sounding names at Local League Level but that is of minority interest so can remain hidden until another time.

My local league for my pyramid is the Devon & Exeter League which contains nine divisions, the Premier Division and eight others.

I have also found the South Devon League that contains seven divisions, the Premier Division and six others.

The only other league researched to date is the Perry Street & District League that I picked up when one of their teams applied to one of the recognised leagues that I have been checking out. This one has five divisions, the Premier Division and four others.

I shall be keeping my eye open for other leagues as this blog is about the football pyramid so I want to find out how many building blocks there are supporting the structure. We know about the pinnacle and Manchester United with Alex Ferguson retiring this summer, but much of the structure that leads to those heights goes completely unnoticed.

One day I hope to make contact with someone who has played football on a park pitch in a lovely little dell called Summerseat in Lancashire. I passed it many times when calling in on relatives and often wondered if anyone went on to fame and fortune.

I think we have enough information now to publicise this blog and try to get others to join in. Send me your links and I promise if I am still breathing to include all those that remain active.

Level 10 and Other Wastelands

As I discovered the Western League Division One has been given the status of Level 10 by virtue of the fact that the Premier Division is a Level 9 League.

The South West Peninsula League has also been designated Level 10 and whilst clubs in the Midlands have a choice of Leagues to apply to, the teams in Cornwall and Devon are really restricted to the Western League but often do not have the funds to travel the distances necessary to meet the other Western League teams.

My chosen team, Elmore Eagles, have elected to transfer to the South West Peninsula League for the 2013-14 season so I am going to watch with interest to see how that goes.

We are still doing promotion and relegation so the situation is as follows:

 Bodmin Town won the Premier Division and remain to try and retain their trophy.

SOUTH WEST PENINSULA LEAGUE
PREMIER DIVISION

OUT
Penzance - Relegated to Division One West
Dartmouth - Resigned (research needed)
Liverton United - Volunteered to drop down to Division One East

IN
Exmouth Town - Promoted from Division One East
Godolphin Atlantic - Promoted from Division One West
Elmore Eagles - Transferred from the Western League First Division


SOUTH WEST PENINSULA LEAGUE
DIVISION ONE EAST

OUT
Exmouth Town - Promoted to the Premier Division

IN
Liverton United - Transferred from the Premier Division


SOUTH WEST PENINSULA LEAGUE
DIVISION ONE WEST

OUT
Godolphin Atlantic - Promoted to the Premier Division

IN
Penzance - Relegated from the Premier Division


That completes the changes for the Leagues in the F.A. recognised structure.

Promotion is NOT automatic

This Football Pyramid is a great idea but it still has a way to go.

I read with interest that the Football Association are trying to reduce the number of leagues at LEVEL 9 from 14 to 12 so that automatic promotion and relegation can be arranged. This is no easy task as I have made an attempt to line up lower leagues with higher leagues. There would need to be almost a complete change of structure with leagues merging and team switching in order to get a sensible structure and even then some regions will be much stronger than others. That is inevitable.

Anyway, in MY pyramid the Western League got nobody promoted up the rankings.

Bishop Sutton finished top of the Western League Premier Division and remain in the Western League so they can try and retain their trophy.

WESTERN LEAGUE
PREMIER DIVISION

OUT
Wells City - Relegated to the First Division
Barnstaple Town - Relegated to the First Division

IN
Sherborne Town - Promoted from the First Division
Hengrove Athletic - Promoted from the First Division
and
Slimbridge - Transferred from the Hellenic League


WESTERN LEAGUE
FIRST DIVISION

OUT
Sherborne Town - Promoted to the Premier Division
Hengrove Athletic - Promoted to the Premier Division
and
Elmore Eagles - Transferred to the South West Peninsula League Premier Division
Shrewton United - Transferred to the Wiltshire League


IN
Wells City - Relegated from the Premier Division
Barnstaple Town - Relegated from the Premier Division
Ashton & Backwell United - Applied from Somerset County League
Chippenham Park - Applied from the Wiltshire League
Wincanton Town - Applied from the Dorset Premier League

We are now moving down the pyramid and it seems that at this level the number of teams in each division of the league varies each season.

Bottom of the Southern League = Interesting

From now on I am only going to concentrate on MY part of the pyramid. I would be interested in reading about your part so if you start anything like this please link to me and I will link to you.


SOUTHERN LEAGUE
DIVISION ONE SOUTH AND WEST

OUT
Poole Town - Promoted to the Southern League Premier Division
Hungerford Town - Promoted to the Southern League Premier Division
Winchester City - Relegated to Wessex League Premier Division
with adjustments
Sholing - Transferred to Wessex League Premier Division
Abingdon United - Transferred to Hellenic League Premier Division

IN
Stratford Town - Promoted from the Midland Football Alliance
and adjustments
Godalming Town - Transferred from Division One Central
Guildford City - Transferred from Division One Central
Thatcham Town - Transferred from Division One Central
Fleet Town - Transferred from Division One Central


SOUTHERN LEAGUE
DIVISION ONE CENTRAL

OUT
Burnham - Promoted to the Southern League Premier Division
Biggleswade Town - Promoted to the Southern League Premier Division
Woodford United - Relegated to United Counties League

RESEARCH: Woodford United lost all games last season and finished on ZERO points.

Adjustments
Goldalming Town - Transferred to Division One South & West
Guildford City - Transferred to Division One South & West
Thatcham Town - Transferred to Division One South & West
Fleet Town - Transferred to Division One South & West

IN
Kettering Town - Relegated from the Premier Division
Marlow - Promoted from the Hellenic League
St Ives Town - Promoted from the United Counties League
Egham Town - Promoted from the Combined Counties League
Dunstable Town - Promoted from the Spartan South Midlands League
Aylesbury United - Promoted from the Spartan South Midlands League
and
Potters Bar Town - Transferred from Isthmian League Division One North


So there you have it. A lot more leagues get  a mention and there is plenty of adjustment.

N.B. We seem to have lost Bedworth United from my list of teams to appear here. Going away to find out what happened to them ........ They went off to the Northern Premier League Division One South. As you do!

Lower League Promotion and Relegation

When we left the Promotion and Relegation discussion Bishop's Stortford had to transfer from the Conference North to the Conference South to even up the two leagues.

Does it get any more complicated? Read on .......

There are three feeder leagues to the Football Conference and I have done some research about how the regions have changed to try and create a national structure. The Northern Premier League has had little change but the Isthmian League has stretched north into Norfolk and the Southern league has retracted out of Norfolk. Details are online in other websites.

The leagues have changed as follows:


NORTHERN PREMIER LEAGUE

OUT
North Ferriby United - Promoted to Conference North
Hednesford Town - Promoted to Conference North
Kendal Town - Relegated to NPL Division One North
Eastwood Town - Relegated to NPL Division One South

Simple so far.
Joining the NPL are ...

IN
Droylesden - Relegated from the Conference North
Skelmersdale United - Promoted from Division One North
Trafford - Promoted from Division One North
Kings Lynn Town - Promoted from Division One South
Stamford - Promoted from Division One South
and an adjustment
Barwell - Transferred from the Southern League Premier Division.

Note that 4 teams are leaving and 6 teams are joining. This is because there has been a decision to raise the number of teams in the league from 22 to 24.


ISTHMIAN PREMIER LEAGUE

OUT
Whitehawk / Brighton City - Promoted to Conference South
Concord Rangers - Promoted to Conference South
Carshalton Athletic - Relegated to IPL Division One South
Hastings United - Relegated to IPL Division One South

Nobody went to Division One North so more adjustment will be needed lower down.

IN
AFC Hornchurch - Relegated from the Conference South
Billericay Town - Relegated from the Conference South
Grays Athletic - Promoted from IPL Division One North
Thamesmead Town - Promoted from IPL Division One North
Dulwich Hamlet - Promoted from IPL Division One South
Maidstone United - Promoted from IPL Division One South

Once again this league is increasing in size from 22 team to 24 teams.


SOUTHERN PREMIER LEAGUE

Given the map of England the Northern and Isthmian leagues are clearly in the North and in the East respectively. It is the Southern League that sits in the middle and has to make most of the adjustments and compromises. That makes it, for me, the most valuable.

OUT
Leamington - Promoted to Conference North
Gosport Borough - Promoted to Conference South
Kettering Town - Relegated to SPL Division One Central
Bedworth United - Relegated to NPL Division One South (Transfer of League)
and the adjustment
Barwell - Transferred to the Northern Premier League

IN
Corby Town - Relegated from the Conference North
Hinckley United - Relegated from the Conference North
Truro City - Relegated from the Conference South
Burnham - Promoted from Division One Central
Biggleswade Town - Promoted from Division One Central
Poole Town - Promoted from Division One South & West
Hungerford Town - Promoted from Division One South & West

So, with 5 out and 7 in this league is also increasing from 22 teams to 24.


Please note that I am aware of some challenges about clubs who played ineligible players and no doubt there will be other machinations so the above information is merely what I expect to happen, and not necessarily what will happen come the start of the season.

That covers level 7.

More later.

Competition: Join In

Pick a team from every level of football and follow their progress.

This should be from your own personal pyramid once you have worked it out.

My choices:

1. Premiership = Arsenal
2. Championship = Yeovil
3. League One = Bristol City
4. League Two = Exeter
5. Conference Premier = Tamworth
6. Conference South = Chelmsford
7. Southern League Premier = Weymouth
8. Southern League South & West = Tiverton Town
9. Western League Premier = Buckland Athletic
10. South West Peninsula Premier = "Elmore Eagles"
11. South West Peninsula East = Exwick Villa (new start)
12. Devon & Exeter Premier = Topsham Town
13. Devon & Exeter One = Exmouth Amateurs (till they go pro)
14. Devon & Exeter Two = Exwick Villa Reserves
15. Devon & Exeter Three = Exmouth Amateurs Reserves
16. Devon & Exeter Four = Topsham Town Third Team
17. Devon & Exeter Five = Countess Wear Dynamoes
18. Devon & Exeter Six = Exwick Village
19. Devon & Exeter Seven = Met Office
20. Devon & Exeter Eight = Folly Gate & Inwardleigh

That last choice is a special one as division eight is mostly second and third teams but here at the very bottom of the pyramid is a first team that is in all probability a merger of two other village teams to form a side worthy of recognition. I must research the history of this lowly club. Could I get them to the Premiership in 20 straight seasons?

Live that dream but expect nothing!

The competition is that you add up all the league positions and the lowest total tops the league. For example, if all teams top their league then a total of 20 x 1 is 20 and you are unbeatable.

I look forward to competing with any of you that have a pyramid size of 20 or greater. If you have a short pyramid then I will allow a score of 10 for any missing teams.

Get involved!

Promotion and Relegation ...... and adjustments.

So what changes are happening between seasons?

Who got promoted, who got relegated, who simply switched leagues?

At the very top of the tree it is simple and we all understand it:

PREMIERSHIP
The Premiership lost three teams -
Wigan
Reading
Queens Park Rangers

It gained three teams as replacements -
Cardiff
Hull
Crystal Palace (play off winners)

CHAMPIONSHIP
The Championship lost the three teams above and -
Peterborough
Wolverhampton Wanderers (how well have they done sacking Mick McCarthy?)
Bristol City

It gained the teams relegated from the Premiership and those promoted from League One -
Doncaster
Bournemouth
Yeovil (play off winners)

LEAGUE ONE
League One lost the three teams above as well as -
Scunthorpe
Bury
Hartlepool
Portsmouth

It gained the teams relegated from the Championship and -
Gillingham
Rotherham
Port Vale
Bradford (play off winners)

LEAGUE TWO
League two lost the four teams above as well as -
Barnet
Aldershot

FOOTBALL CONFERENCE PREMIER DIVISION
Barnet and Aldershot will now play in the Football Conference Premier League.

Mansfield were promoted to League Two
Newport County were also promoted to the Football league via the playoffs.

The teams relegated are -
Stockport
Barrow
Ebbsfleet
Telford

Here is where the first complication kicks in. Relegation is not straightforward.

Stockport, Barrow and Telford all head for the Conference North
Ebbsfleet head for the Conference South

Some adjustment is therefore needed.

CONFERENCE NORTH

Chester and Halifax are promoted to the Conference Premier.

Stockport, Barrow and Telford join from the Conference Premier.

Corby, Droylesden and Hinchley United are relegated.

North Ferriby United and Hednesford Town join from the Northern Premier League.

Leamington join from the Southern League.

CONFERENCE SOUTH

Welling United and Salisbury City are promoted to the Conference Premier.

Ebbsfleet join from the Conference Premier.

Hornchurch, Billericay and Truro City are relegated.

Brighton City and Concord Rangers join from the Isthmian League.

Gosport Borough join from the Southern League

ADJUSTMENT: To make the leagues even Bishops Stortford switch from the Conference North to the Conference South.

It gets even more complicated lower down the pyramid.