FREEDOM TO PLAY

After yesterday's excitement of the election and VE Day, today the Channel Islands celebrate their liberation from the German occupation in 1945. The archipelago, located closer to France than England, was the only place in the British Isles to be occupied by the German troops.

Guernsey FC also exsits and played in the Combined Counties League (Level 10 in the pyramid), travelling to the mainland every other week and hosting teams at their St P eter Port ground, Footes Lane, which holds 5,000. The club pays for the travel of both their own and their opponents.

In 2012-13, with games postponed due to weather and after a long run in the FA Vase, the club was scheduled to play 23 games in 43 days at the end of the season, including the last 4 games in 4 days. They finished this, coming second in the league and the club won promotion to the Isthmian League Division One South. The next season, they nearly won promotion to the Premier Division, but failed in the play offs. Matt Le Tissier signed for the club but only played once and his brother is club secretary.

In 2010 the association won the FA National League system cup and qualified to play in the UEFA Regions Cup, a competition for regions without national status; eg North Wales Coast!

Jersey has so far resisted running a “club”, preferring to run its own football competition for the local island clubs, giving more people a chance to play. Don't see why they cannot do both?

The two major islands, Jersey and Guernsey, have FAs representing them, providing sport for all ages. The Muratti (a cigarette maker!!) Cup, first competed for in 1905, allows both these two larger islands and Alderney (regularly comes third!) to play inter-island matches, including ladies and youths competitions.