There it is, the joy and despair of the play offs, this time in the Vanarama National League where Jack Muldoon scored his 15th goal in 41 appearances for Harrogate Town on their artificial pitch. This pitch will have to be ripped up if Harrogate find themselves in the Football League, should they get past Notts County in the Promotional Final at Wembley, next Sunday.
It was the only goal of the game against Boreham Wood and the win ensured Harrogate take one step nearer big boys' football next season.
Of course, County were in the Football League only a season ago, having been Founder Members of the Football League in 1888. Boreham Wood have never been at such dizzy heights.
Harrogate has a population of 160,000 and sports locals such as Gareth Southgate, David O'Leary, George Graham and Danny Mills. It is of course better known as a SPA! probably why these old blokes have retired to the Yorkshire town... for their rejuvenation. The club went full professional in 2017, backed financially by the father of Town's manager, Simon Weaver.
Town were bottom of the Conference North in Weaver's first season, 2009, but were saved by Northwich Victoria's implosion. Weaver is the longest serving professional manager in England, taking his first coaching job at the age of 31.
County played in Division One of the Football League from its founding until the 1892-3 season, when they were relegated to the two year old Second Division. They then came 3rd in the next season, then runners up in 1894-5, but were not promoted for administrative reasons.
In 1896-7, County won the Second Division, were promoted and came bottom in Division One in 1904-5, by 6 points, but stayed up as the division was enlarged from 18 to 20 clubs.
In 1912-13 they were relegated coming 19th/20 just above Woolwich Arsenal!! and bounced back again the following season ahead of the newly named, Arsenal, who came third in Division Two.
War intervened.
Another old soldier, the ever green, Matt Rhead, led from the front for Boreham Wood yesterday, but sadly he could not match his past achievement when he scored a winning goal in Lincoln City's play off at Wembley, The Imps gaining promotion in 2016-17.
I saw Matt Rhead play a couple of seasons ago at Lincoln City, in the shadow of the Cathedral. He looked deceptively old but a clear leader. He played for them for four seasons until 2019, making 163 apps, scoring 43 goals.
The National League looked like this at the end of the "un-Covid" part of the 2019-20 season:
Top: Barrow 70 points who go straight to League Two, then Harrogate Town on 66 and Notts County 63 who went through to the play off semis. Yeovil achieved 60 pts, Boreham Wood 60, Halifax 58 and Stockport 58 and Boreham Wood made progress.
At the other end of the divsion are Ebbsfleet 42 pts, Maidenhead Utd 41 pts (referred to recently in a previous blog), Fylde 39 pts and Chorley 24 pts.
Other ex-Football League clubs in the National League (basically Division 5) include: Hartlepool, Aldershot, Barnet, Dagenham and R, Torquay, Chesterfield and Wrexham.
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