In the second part of his in-depth look back over the year in the top four tiers of the women’s football pyramid in England, Connor Wroe focuses in on the four National League Division One regional divisions.
Starting off in the National League Division One North, where games played range from three to six, Chester-le-Street Town, who have played six, currently sit top and undefeated. But all bar one result (6-1 vs Durham Cestria) has seen them scrape away with all three points and in two cases one point. They will be enjoying their time at the top. It is a hard one looking at this division to say who will finish top as it is a division where anyone can beat anyone, with the level of football across the league consistent and entertaining. Chorley are presently third from bottom, but having played just three games and only having lost one of them, it won’t be long before they move up. It is unfair to review Bolton Wanderers, who are currently bottom at this moment in time having only played three games.
In the National League Division One Midlands, most teams have played around six or seven games making it a bit more reflective of the team’s abilities as they have faced most teams within the league. Wolverhampton Wanderers currently have a perfect 6/6 record and sit top, much of this can be credited to their defence having only conceded three goals. The fight across the team to win is evident and on their current form playing two games less than Doncaster Rovers Belles in second, Wolves could run off with the league. Towards the bottom of the table, it is a different story with a relegation battle looking likely, Wem Town sit three points above bottom side Leafield Athletic but they will not be worrying about that yet as they have three games in hand over their fellow strugglers. Burton Albion might be worrying as we head into the New Year despite having two points more than Leafield, they have conceded twenty-one more goals. With them conceding forty-seven goals so far this season – the most goals any side has let in across the divisions – it does not bode well for them as their defensive problems might be what sees them finish bottom.
It is exceedingly rare when you look at a table that the top two have equal amounts of points and so does the bottom two. In the National League Division One South West this is the case with Southampton F.C and Chesham United level on twelve points at the top, whilst Poole Town and Brislington are yet to get off the mark, however it is important to point out Brislington have three games in hand and have only played three games. Despite how the top and bottom looks, the chasing pack in mid table is interesting with only five points separating first and sixth and teams across the league conceding goals. Southampton F.C have the best defence in the league, only conceding two goals. It is another hard division to judge due to the huge variation of games played across the division meaning there is still more to happen before the league can truly be judged.
National League Division One South-East in particular received some major media attention at the beginning of April when Spencer Owen and Hashtag United announced on Twitter the merger with AFC Basildon Ladies which saw the Essex side come under the Hashtag United banner. The men’s side of the club were formed in March 2016 by YouTuber Spencer Owen. When the club started it featured his friends and family as the club played exhibition style matches against other YouTuber football teams and playing club staff teams across the country and even some clubs over in America. Every game is filmed, and highlights uploaded to YouTube for his fans to watch the games. Their following quickly grew, and their online fans asked if they would go into the non-league pyramid. In 2017, Owen began talks with the FA about registering to play in the league system. They started in the Eastern Counties League in the 2018/19 season and won it the first time around.
The merger meant that the ladies’ team got exposure from games being posted online. With the Hashtag YouTube channel having 490,000 subscribers, this exposes them to a large following, which in turn can allow for more money to be available for the ladies.
Focusing more widely on the division now, bottom of the table Stevenage have played seven games whilst high flying Ipswich Town have only played four but sit top despite this. Hashtag United are sitting second level on points with Town with their only defeat to the Tractor girls early in the season. The New Year will bring an exciting title challenge as both sides have games in hand over the teams below and both are looking to be crowned champions. A surprise team in the division is Norwich City who are sitting in fifth with only four games played. Last season they struggled to get a win and leaked an alarming number of goals. They seem to have sorted out their defence issues and are now turning their eyes on joining the title challenge. The South East division is one to really keep an eye on with five teams in with a chance of being crowned champions. But with games in hand across the board it is hard to get a proper judgment on who could win it.
Let us hope fans will be allowed back soon to watch the quality football which is on offer throughout all of the leagues in the New Year.
Missed the first part of Connor’s review of the year? Click https://impetus885775742.wordpress.com/2020/12/28/connor-wroe-reviews-2020/ to read it!
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