The news is being dominated by the ongoing fuel crisis which is having a devastating impact on a variety of areas within British society. One area particularly struggling due to the shortage of fuel is non-league football, with dozens of non-league fixtures feeling the effects of what is a national crisis.
What exactly is to blame for the UK fuel crisis remains unclear, but its impact on businesses up and down the country – including non-league football clubs – cannot be disputed. In fact, in terms of football, we have seen countless fixtures postponed, although we’re yet to see an abandoned match. For example, recent Isthmian League and Southern League fixtures had to be called off at short notice as fans couldn’t get to stadiums and players were trapped in huge traffic queues.
A total of 23 matches were called off due to players and staff being unable to travel to specific venues in time for kick-off. With large queues forming outside petrol stations and traffic jams stretching for miles, surrounding locations were hit massively. With the crisis expected to rumble on for a while longer yet, Isthmian League officials advised the 82 clubs in their divisions that future matches could also be under threat.
Bognor Regis Town were devastated to have their fixture against Leatherhead postponed, with the away side struggling to get to Bognor’s Nyewood Lane stadium in time for kick-off. Bognor’s general manager Simon Cook said: “It’s incredibly frustrating because it’s not the longest drive at around an hour and 20 minutes but once the league gave clubs the option to call off games then I suppose we could have predicted that some would do exactly that.”
This all comes in the midst of a global pandemic which has left football clubs in the mire, particularly those operating at lower and non-league levels. Without the barriers to entry which are now in place, many of the smaller football clubs in the country were struggling anyway. Now, with the pandemic previously cutting short league campaigns and some fans wanting to stay at home, this latest crisis surrounding the fuel shortage is now impacting clubs which have been around for centuries.
Non-league football clubs are the lifeblood of local communities and form an integral part of the English football landscape. With many clubs facing financial uncertainty after a testing couple of years or so, there is real concern that this latest issue could see even more clubs going out of business. Whether or not the UK fuel crisis is the final nail in the coffin for some clubs up and down the country remains to be seen, but there is no denying that it is already having dramatic repercussions on the state of the non-league game.
This latest crisis is yet another blow for lower league football in the country. Football fans everywhere will surely be hoping that all of the clubs suffering can come out the other side.
