To some people, England C’s Bank Holiday Monday meeting with Nepal at Aldershot Town’s EBB Stadium might seem like just another random end-of-season fixture in search of a home.
Scott Doe believed his only chance of heading to Wembley this season would be as a TV pundit – but he now reckons his experience under the arch will be invaluable in next month’s Isuzu FA Vase final.
Chris Bush thought he’d missed his chance to play for England C – but, aged 31, not only did he finally pull on the Three Lions Jersey, he also wore the captain’s armband.
On Tuesday night, Paul Fairclough will deliver his 74th team talk as the boss of Non-League’s Three Lions – known as the National Game XI in his early days before being renamed England C in 2007 – when they take on Cymru C at Llanelli Town.
The Football Association sat down recently with The NLP for a Non-League update – and in the second part of this series, we talk the off season and the club allocation process.