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Nuneaton Town FC A new Beginning
Following the sad news that Nuneaton Borough FC were to be no more at the end of the 2023 season with the club falling into financial difficulty which led to their removal from the Southern League at Step 3 it was heart breaking to think that the town would no longer have a club ending 130 years of its proud footballing heritage. So, we was overjoyed to hear a new phoenix club was going to be set up and Nuneaton Town FC were formed! Nuneaton Town FC is now an officially regis
danslawson
Dec 16, 20241 min read


The Beautiful Grounds 2: By Ray Margetson
The main ethos behind us starting Proper Football was to shine a spotlight on the game outside of the Premier League and give a platform to champion all that is great about non-league and grassroots football and the wonderful pyramid that is the foundation for our beautiful game. There are many other individuals on social media who share their love of non-league football and Ray Margetson's excellent content that details his travels around the country visiting many grounds, g
danslawson
Dec 5, 20243 min read


Hidden gems of non league
One of the topics that I have covered quite regularly on our Podcast is that of homegrown players in the modern-day game not getting the same opportunity as what may well have been afforded to players of yesteryear, the reason for this, and this is only my opinion is the mass influx of foreign players into every level of the English football pyramid with many of the top sides having more foreign players than homegrown, this quite obviously means there are far less openings an
gharris66
Nov 24, 20242 min read


Girls Go Groundhopping
Whilst scrolling through social media we came across a new page on Facebook called 'Girls Go Groundhopping' and watched one of their short Vlogs on a recent ground hop to a non-league game, we thought it was a great concept and was wonderful to see a dad taking his two daughters to the football. We got in touch with Tony the father of Freya and Scarlett and asked him all about Girls Go Groundhopping. What inspired you to start up your Facebook page with you and your two daugh
danslawson
May 3, 20244 min read


Chichester City FC
We had a very pleasant day out down in West Sussex to watch Chichester City on Saturday for their home game against Sevenoaks Football...
danslawson
Feb 27, 20243 min read


Wessex Derby Day
We recently got in touch with the man behind FootyWatch, Andy Stone aka Stoner who is a ground hopper and grassroots reviewer who is also an ambassador for The Cystic Fibrosis Comfort Fund charity after reading his fantastic thread on social media of the recent Wessex derby between Westbury United and Frome Town. Stoner has kindly shared his videos, pictures and match thread with us of the enthralling encounter in a derby game that had everything which you can see further dow
danslawson
Feb 25, 20248 min read


fan makes 1,000 mile journey to watch Step 8 Side Dial Square FC
Many fans make long journeys up and down the country following their teams or on a ground hopping adventure to tick off another football stadium, well, one such football fan made a 1,000 mile + trek from the outreaches of the Arctic Circle in Scandinavia Via Stockholm to watch Dial Square FC who play in Chertsey, Surrey at Step 8 of Non- League on a Tuesday night! The fans name is Harald Kristiansen and he has been following Dial Square FC for about 3 years and is part of the
danslawson
Feb 14, 20243 min read


The dawn of the Lobster mascot at Redhill FC
I'm a season ticket holder for tier 9 team Redhill FC who play in the Combined Counties League Premier Division South at Step 5 of the non-league pyramid and play their home games at Kiln Brow. Although I wasn't at the game this week away to the Jersey Bulls, I was their last week at the home game to bottom of the table but much improved Colliers Wood where Redhill won 1-0. This game will always be remembered as it was the first game I turned up dressed as a Lobster! 🦞 Yes,
Tim Cooper
Jan 22, 20242 min read


Ramsgate FC Road to Wembley
Ramsgate Football Club are the lowest-ranked team left in this year's FA Cup. They are one step away from reaching the 3rd round for the first time in their history but in their way are one of the most famous giant killers in the history of the competition, AFC Wimbledon, who under their previous guise beat Liverpool 1-0 in the Cup final back in 1988 against all the odds. Ramsgate have sold out their allocation of 1500 tickets and 20 coach loads of Rams will be packing out th
danslawson
Dec 4, 20232 min read


Momentous occasion for Cray Wanderers at new stadium
Cray Wanderers London's oldest football club celebrated a landmark moment on Friday night in South East London when the floodlights were switched on for the first time at their new ground at Flamingo Park. Cray Wanderers FC was formed in 1860 when migrant workers, building the Cray Valley railway viaduct, teamed up with villagers from St. Mary Cray for a “lunchtime kick about”. Little did these early footballing pioneers realise that what started out as a bit of fun would st
danslawson
Dec 2, 20231 min read


Oxford City promoted to the National League
Oxford City have won the National League South playoff final with an emphatic 4-0 victory over St Albans City. The game was over as a contest in the first half as the Hoops raced into a 4-goal lead in front of a record attendance of 3,100 at their Marsh Lane ground. Oxford City who finished 3rd in the National League South this season beat Worthing at home 2-0 in the playoff semi final and now with this playoff final success, they will be plying their trade at their highest-e
danslawson
May 14, 20231 min read


11th Tier Dawley Town FC Celebrate invincible season in style!
Dawley Town Football Club a team based just South of Telford in Shropshire have had a remarkable season in the Salop Leisure Football League Premier Division which is the 11th tier of the English football pyramid. They not only won the League but also went the whole campaign unbeaten winning 26 of 27 matches with only one draw. The Invincibles decided to celebrate in style through the town, but the mode of transport was the back of a scaffolding truck instead of an open-top b
danslawson
May 9, 20231 min read


Bury FC and Bury AFC vote to merge and bring football back to Gigg Lane
Bury FC Supporters' Society and Bury AFC have both voted overwhelmingly in favour of a merger. They will come together under the name Bury and be back playing at Gigg Lane next season! Members of both clubs failed to reach a two-thirds majority in the first merger vote in October. This time 90.1% of the Bury FC Supporters' Society and 97% of Bury AFC members voted to form one club to play at Gigg Lane from next season. Having a unified club in Bury means it also now qualifies
danslawson
May 5, 20232 min read


Non-League Step 3 playoff finals roundup
In the Isthmian Premier League playoff final it was Aveley who were victorious after beating Hornchurch 0-1 in front of 2,040 fans. Aveley will be joined in the National League South next season by Truro City who won the Southern Premier Division South playoff final defeating Bracknell Town 2-3 away with a 94th-minute winner! In front of 1,554 fans. In the Northern League Premier Division Warrington Town beat Bamber Bridge 1-0 with a goal in the 90th minute having been down t
danslawson
May 1, 20231 min read


National League North and South Round-up
NATIONAL LEAGUE NORTH Congratulations to AFC Fylde who won the National League North after winning 2-0 at Bradford PA, a result that sadly sent the home side down, Kings Lynn in second place also won but it just wasn't enough to overhaul the new champions AFC Fylde. Kings Lynn Town will now go into the playoffs along with Chester FC, Brackley Town, Alfreton Town, Kidderminster Harriers and Gloucester City. Here's a great little Vlog from the Brackley Town v Alfreton Town matc
danslawson
Apr 30, 20232 min read


Non-League playoff final dates for Steps 3, 4 & 5
Here are all the upcoming fixtures for the Non-League Playoff finals and Inter-Step Playoffs for relegation and promotion for Steps 3, 4, and 5 in the Non-League pyramid. Badshot Lea, Bemerton Heath Harlequins and Rugby Town have been automatically promoted from Step 5 on Points Per Game to fill the vacancies left by Harlow Town and demoted duo North Shields and Skelmersdale, who have both failed ground grading requirements and had their appeals rejected. Bideford, Carlton To
danslawson
Apr 27, 20231 min read


Non-League day 2023.
It's that time of the season again when the Premier League and Championship take a week off for the international break but more importantly it's when Non-League football takes centre stage with the annual Non-League Day which celebrates semi-professional and grassroots football in the UK. The concept of Non-League Day was set up by James Doe in 2010 as a social media experiment, after being inspired by a pre-season trip to Devon to watch Queens Park Rangers play at Tavistock
danslawson
Mar 24, 20232 min read


Dial Square FC ‘Under The Floodlight’ with Proper Football Live.
Join Proper Footballs' Gary Harris & Dan Slawson tonight Thursday 2nd March @ 7 pm with Dave Nathan & Marc Brewer 2 of the inaugural fan owners at Dial Square FC on our live Proper Football show ‘Under The Floodlight'. The diehard disgruntled Arsenal fans will be discussing why the club was formed in 2020 & their reasonings for their distaste of modern-day football owners and how fans are treated. It's the money. It's the greed. It's the way fans are treated as customers. We'
danslawson
Mar 2, 20231 min read


Southend United pay tax bill ahead of high court appearance
Southend United have confirmed their tax bill of close to 2 million pounds has now been settled. The Shrimpers were due back in the high court on Wednesday due to a winding-up petition issued by the HMRC but a club statement has revealed the outstanding money has now been paid. The statement said: "Ahead of the HMRC hearing on March 1, the club can confirm the monies owed to HMRC, under the petition, have been paid in full. The statement added: "Funds as working capital have
danslawson
Feb 28, 20231 min read


Huge day looms for Southend United with 1.4m winding up order
Tomorrow (March 1st) Southend United the Essex club founded in 1906 faces one of the biggest days in its 117-year existence. The club who owes £1.4 million to HMRC will be in court to face the winding-up petition. Under the ownership of Ron Martin, the club has suffered various winding-up orders for unpaid tax bills, numerous transfer embargos and staff and players going unpaid. The Shrimpers players have now been paid their January salaries albeit 28 days late and remarkably
danslawson
Feb 28, 20231 min read
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