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It’s fair to say that we’ve had a tough season. Some would say a disaster of a season.
But compared to one of our old local rivals, it’s been nowhere near as bad.
Skelmersdale United were long our foes, back in the non league days of the 60s and 70s. They were a thriving little club, who got to Wembley twice in the old Amateur Cup, losing in 67, but winning it in 1971. Our own Micky Worswick had played a big role in their successes, and they had also discovered the talents of Steve Heighway, who became a Liverpool legend.
But that was a long time ago. This season, had been an unmitigated disaster for Skem United. Financial difficulties arose, meaning that all the better players were lured away by clubs offering them a better match fee, etc. The already struggling team were being managed by the highly experienced (at that level) Tommy Lawson. For whatever reasons, a couple of months ago the club committee decided to sack him. This saw any remaining half decent players walk away from the club, leaving nothing but kids, literally. Alan Rogers came in as manager, a former Latics loanee, and a former Tranmere and Notts Forest player. But without any money, and gates of roughly 200, it was always going to be a struggle, and in the past week they have lost two home games 10-1 and 6-0. They’d been bottom for a while and yesterday was just official confirmation of their relegation from the Northern Premier League Premier division.
But it gets worse. The ground they play at is not actually owned by the club, they lease it. There’s a big legal wrangle going on now about it, as the landlord wants them to leave this summer, yet the club insists it has 11 years left on the lease. If the club loses, they will be without a home this summer.
There’s a pretty big chance that Skem United will fold. What a crying shame for a local club who were founded in 1882 and one that has such a rich history. There’s nobody going to step in and save the club, you’d be on a financial hiding to nothing and be chucking dead money at it. In a way, I wish Latics could take the club over and use it as a youth team/feeder club for ourselves, to give our youngsters a competitive league environment. But this is probably just a pipe dream from myself.
It just seems a terrible shame to see a club like that go to the wall and a sad indictment on the game of today where money rules, whatever the level.
The sad thing is the premier league teams become more greedy & hence richer. Clubs at the lower end unfortunately become extinct. What angers me even more is the top clubs see lower league clubs as a burden.
Shame that – when I still lived up north I’ve ran the line there a few times & they always got decent crowds & treated you well.
I’d noticed from looking at the tables that they’d gone from a team challenging at the top over the last few seasons to being stuck down the bottom and had wondered about what was going on
Hopefully they’ll pull through
Shame that – when I still lived up north I’ve ran the line there a few times & they always got decent crowds & treated you well.I’d noticed from looking at the tables that they’d gone from a team challenging at the top over the last few seasons to being stuck down the bottom and had wondered about what was going on
Hopefully they’ll pull through
Sounds familiar that! ;)
It’s been confirmed that they look like folding at the end of this season. The current landlords have refused them a new lease on their ground and that leaves with with no choice.
The current team is nothing but kids and I even heard yesterday that their youth set up has decided to fold and resign from their league.
It’s not looking good and I can’t see them being saved.
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