Another hectic week in non league football as play-offs are played, dreams are realised or crushed and the home of English football gets ready for the double cup final that crowns the non league season. Yes it’s Non League Finals day on Saturday and we talk to some of those getting ready for the big day and take a look at the four clubs who will be enjoying their day in the sun. 

First up is the man with more knowledge than the taxi rank by Wembley Way. The statto for every great cup competition. Mr Phil Annets joins me to chat facts behind the FA Vase, FA Trophy and the FA Cup as we also pick up on the winners of this season’s ninth FA Cup Team Awards, the FACTAs.

My next guest has been on my radar for a while and I hope you will agree it’s been worth the wait. He’s possibly the non league legend you weren’t yet aware of but for sure you will want to know more about him, and his little village club whether they win in the FA Vase Final on Saturday or not. Dave Patient has been involved in Non League for over 4 decades before getting his chance at Wembley, and with a serious health scare forcing him to miss their first semi final, he’s more than lived up to that Patient name. Now, the Chair and Director of Football at Great Wakering Rovers is just aiming for Saturday to be a great day for all involved.

Giving as a trip on a busy week of non league news Matt Badcock of The Non League Paper. We’ve had Play-offs, Crowd issues, an England C win, administrative confusion and plenty of manager movements all to be reported on

First up, a community club making the national headlines but you may not have seen it, but you do need to know. Balham FC play in the Combined Counties Premier South but it’s the 20 sides from U8s upwards and ladies team that make this football club so successful. Bringing on young talent and young people, which as my guest Finance Director Dereck Fordham explains is something they are very proud of and want to continue to do despite the issues they’ve made the headlines with for doing everything right in my eyes.

Then we talk football. Old friend of the show Andy Whing is in his first season as a full-time boss, his first season at Solihull Moors and he’s made Wembley twice… in a week. First up it’s Sunday’s prize game, against Bromley for a place in the English Football League, not that you’d be able to tell from one of the game’s calmest and nicest managers around.

Rounding up the week’s non league news - and there is plenty of it, including breaking news as we recorded - is Jon Couch of The Non League Paper. Play-offs play a big part along with admin and managerial moves

Two Non League Show debutants in a very busy week for non league.

First up an assistant manager at a club competing in the biggest game in English football this weekend. Barnet's number two Connor Smith, has seen success as a player and also in his first player coach role at Boreham Wood. Now in his second season with Barnet and his first as number to Dean Brennan, their second-place finish in the National League sees them just one win away from that glittering Wembley final.

Just one game away from promotion is Danny Payne. In his first season as boss at Biggleswade Town he knows it’s in his hands on Saturday but with a second place play-off berth the worst-case scenario, this busy entrepreneur seems to let little worry him.

Rounding up the week’s bizarre non league news is Matt Badcock of The Non League Paper. FA Cup fall-out, play-off hiccups, and more managerial shifts are the order of the day.

This week  bumper show and one all about the people and not necessarily the lifting of trophies, despite the time of the season. 

First up a fan who has had a week he will surely always remember but perhaps not for the best of reasons. Dean Knight this time last week was a typical fan helping organise a supporters bus to a play-off chasing match at the weekend. On Saturday evening he was being rushed to hospital 120 miles from home after a bus crash left him and another 15 or so South Shields fans injured and shaken up. Thankfully, everybody survived and are on the mend, but it was the reaction from fellow fans, fans from all clubs even rivals that captured my attention and captured the heart of Dean as the non league football family pulled together. 

Talking about the non league family pulling together. My next guest is a Chairman who has been the focus of some ridicule since coming into the game. However, back to back promotions for his Real Bedford side and new investment from American Billionaires, suggest Peter McCormack might just be onto to something with his non traditional approach.

Rounding it all up is The Non League Paper’s Jon Couch, previewing the National League’s final set of normal fixtures, managerial changes and the scrapping of FA Cup Replays in the proper rounds.

First up an experienced manager in possibly the tightest promotion battle across the pyramid. Ware’s Paul Halsey is no stranger to play-off pressures but in a season of some clubs with 5 games per week, he’s got just 3 games on three separate Saturdays left to play in a division when any club from 6 could still pip the title.

Talking about experience, following our love of highlighting the great work done by so many off the field and the many jobs that can entail, we speak again to an old friend of the show Adam Etheridge. From volunteer to full-time administrator he’s now overseeing the off-the-field work at Quorn FC and has a multitude of hats and a multitude of stories about the wonders and magic of non league to tell

Rounding it all up in a bumper week of news too, is The Non League Paper’s Jon Couch, that FA Vase semi-final second leg, final movers and shakers in the National League, fairness for fans, and some managerial moves all in the mix.

The beautiful game, the world of Non League football is magical for the people within it. A few years ago the pandemic did its best to impact and tear it apart, but IT came back stronger, we came back stronger.

This season a new force threatens to rip apart our world. A natural force that surely can't be controlled. The weather across the country has played havoc with the playing season. Games postponed, games abandoned, and a fixture pile-up with an FA hardline backstop that leaves many clubs with back-to-back days to play matches to complete the season. We speak to one man who has tried to rally the troops for change. Colne FC is one of those who face a multitude of matches in a matter of days with burdens not only on pitches and players but also on volunteers and fans. Media Man Ben Metcalfe admits he has no answer but knows it is time for change. 

Rounding up the week’s news is The Non League Paper’s Matt Badcock as we hit Semi-Finals fo the FA Vase and FA Trophy and see a multitude of managerial rejigs.

It is FA Vase semi final time. We open the show with Phil Annets with his @FAVaseFactfile hat on, giving us insight into this season’s competition and the four sides remaining.
Then we head north to one of the clubs involved. This week also has a creative arts feel, so we speak to the media guy putting in the hours to ensure Lincoln United is a club people are talking about up and down the land and across the world. Charlie Fytche is still in his early 20s but already doing great stuff for the world of non league.

Talking about the world of non league, my next guest is a filmmaker but at heart a non league fan too. Jack Spring has made a documentary series about his beloved Grimsby Town’s last magical season back in non league out now on Amazon Prime. It’s driven by the kind of human interest people-led stories that make us love non league and well worth a watch.

Rounding up the week’s news is Jon Couch of The Non League Paper in another bumper show, ahead of an Easter weekend hopefully just as packed with non league action.

It’s Non League Day this weekend so we celebrate Non league. I’ve tried to find something for everybody, celebrate the quirkiness, enjoy the camaraderie, and applaud the success in adversity. This is the Non League Football Show and this is Non League.

First up a returnee with 15 games still to play until the end of the season that can’t be extended. By the time you listen to this, that will be 14, because with their own ground not in use due to the International break, the local pro club have offered up use of their stadium to my first guest to help his Step 3 club get through their fixture backlog. Lee Hobbs is very thankful for the support and practical about the job facing Plymouth Parkway in the coming weeks to avoid relegation.

Also returning to the show another statistician, of the like, only Non League creates. It began over a decade ago as a way of providing answers to his own questions as to whether his club could get promoted, now it’s this non leaguer’s and many more’s, go-to resource, as the season draws to a close. A big hat-tip to Peter Miller and his Google Sheets.

Our Chairman this week, could easily have become a clubs in crisis feature when his club lost its long-term financial supporter. However, a strong team of volunteers, a string of community based projects and a desire to improve within realistic budgets means whilst relegation looms from Step 4, other elements of the club are thriving and the long term sustainability of the club is now well within reach at Stowmarket Town thanks to Kevin Blundell and his team.

Helping us round off the show and round-up the week's news, Matt Badcock of The Non League Paper. Titles won and not quite won, managerial moves and plenty more we can read in this week’s paper.

We start this week with one of this show’s longest-serving guests, not only as a guest of this show but also as manager of the England C side. Paul Fairclough has over two decades on the job and admits he is as enthusiastic as ever in the role. A game on Tuesday night in Wales is followed in May by a home game v Nepal at Aldershot Town and as Paul explains the non league international setup has been the stepping stone for so many successful footballers. 

Next, a debutant to the show. Chairman at Brentwood Town Jez Dickinson has big plans for this club that have helped him partner up with one of sport’s business masters and set in place plans for a 3G pitch to be laid as soon as the season ends. It’s clear he’s enjoying the ride but that he’s also very appreciative of the team he has around him - on and off the field.

Rounding up the show and the news, Matt Badcock of The Non League Paper. Covering the stories and talking points of the week he also gives an insight into what we can read in this week’s paper.

A bumper full length programme this week as we hit the Quarter finals of the FA Trophy and FA Vase, four ties, eight clubs in each compettion.

First up an old friend of the show in a new job. His record speaks for itself but it's not often a manager moves into a new dugout in the back end of the season, at a club bigger than he’s ever taken on before, in sight of a play-off place and in the quarter-finals of a national cup competition. Michael Clegg has achieved just that at Macclesfield although in an open and honest interview, he admits he’s only played one won one in the role so far.
Phil Annets is on hand with his @favasefactfile hat on to introduce us to the 8 clubs in the VAse quarter-finals, and to remind us of THAT fact about FA Vase finals.
Then we speak to a man who is CHairman and joint manager at North Greenford United as they are two rounds from Wembley. Paul Mills admits it's a real family affair just a stone’s throw from the national stadium but wouldn’t change a thing about his club’s big day on Saturday.
Rounding it all off, Jon Couch returns from The Non League Paper to help us cover weather and postponements, club finances, moving managers, and fanatical fans.

A full-length programme this week but just the two in-depth guests. As we roll into March we discuss ground grading or rather Stadium Assessment the new system of baselining and auditing the stadia in operation across the National League System. Mark Harris Chairman of the Northern Premier League offers an expert view into why the new system was needed, what it is, and how it will impact clubs this year and in years to come. In insightful discussion including how fans can play a part in ensuring football stadiums of the future meet their needs and the necessities of health and safety.
Matt Badcock is back from The Non League Paper.  This week there’s a discussion on the season unravelling, managers moving and crisis clubs converging.