Haughmond boss is keen to taste some local action

The non-league season from steps three to six was curtailed this week after the government unveiled their roadmap out of lockdown.

While outdoor sports can resume from the end of March, Williams believes it would be possible to get back out on the pitch in April and May.

“We are still in our county cup and were due to play Bridgnorth prior to the lockdown,” said Williams, whose side ply their trade in the Midland Football League. “What the plan is with that I don’t know. But if there is a chance to get some competitive games in and there is still a trophy to play for at the end of the day, then I don’t see why they can’t look into it.

“Or maybe we could look at an extension of that? Why couldn’t Shropshire think outside the box and maybe create a tournament for local clubs, especially when fans are allowed back?

“A lot of the Shropshire teams don’t get to play each other very often.

“There is us, Shifnal, Ellesmere, St Martins, Whitchurch, Drayton, Bridgnorth, Shawbury and others. You could get eight teams together.

“If the weather was decent I wouldn’t look at playing Saturdays, I would look at getting a couple of midweek games under the lights in when you might get more fans watching.

“You could get that done through April and May. It would be good to get together again.

“We found the social side was awful this season because you couldn’t stay for a beer or travel together and there were only so many people allowed in changing rooms at a certain time. It made it difficult to build relationships and any team spirit.”

And while Williams waits to see if his Haughmond troops will take to the field any time soon, he is also waiting to see if the planned non-league restructure across steps four and five goes ahead this summer.

Haughmond are keen for it to happen as it will lead to a more regionalised division and less travelling.

“I don’t think anyone is surprised by the decision,” said Williams. “The FA had the information six weeks ago following the surveys that were sent out to clubs.

“When they said they were going to hang on for the government’s roadmap, it probably sparked a bit of interest and people maybe got exited.

“But it was pretty clear that it was going to be April at the earliest before football could be played and you had clubs insisting they wouldn’t play without hospitality, which is a large income stream.

“You have teams in our league who it probably costs three to five grand to stage a home game with some of the budgets. If you are not getting anyone through the gate you are going to be in trouble pretty quickly.

“For someone like ourselves it was viable. We could have easily played because are outgoings are minimal.

“But it was interesting to see the FA say they are curtailing it rather than null and void. They are still looking to get the restructure in place that they have planned for a couple of years.

“We wanted the restructure to take place last year.

“The year before we would have stayed up on points per game but this year is more questionable.

“We are desperate for the restructure. Because of our location the travelling is a bit of a joke.

“With the restructure, we would stay in the same league but it would be a lot more regionalised and from the plan I have seen would take out travelling to Leicestershire, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.”