Episodes
The Step 2 sides enter the FA Trophy as it hits Round 2. Wearing his @FATrophyFacts hat Phil Annets gives us the insight, the knowledge, and all the things we need to know about the 40 ties taking place this weekend. One of those in the Trophy with an away tie at a club a level higher, are Macclesfield. The in-form team in the non league pyramid with a current 16-game unbeaten run in the league and the now Gaffer Robbie Savage explains he doesn’t see his side going into the game as...
Published 11/15/24
Published 11/08/24
We’re back on the FA Vase trail this week and what a bumper show we have. The Vase hits Round 2 and there are no more exemptions - the winner of this year’s competition will be competing this weekend  Phil Annets is back with his @FaVaseFactfile and helps guide us through the stats, facts, records and the downright bizarre.  Then I get to speak to one of those managers looking to make history with his side in the Vase this weekend. Myles Hook is a bit different from most managers in...
Published 11/08/24
The FA Cup hits the first round proper; no replays but hopes and dreams for 32 Non League clubs this weekend Phil Annets is back with his @FACupFactfile and helps guide us through the stats, facts and records and the chances of a cupset this weekend. One of those managers setting up to try and achieve an FA Cup upset this week, is an old friend of the show and he’s preparing for a trip to one of his old clubs. Micky Mellon takes his Oldham Athletic side to Tranmere Rovers in this weekend’s...
Published 11/01/24
FA Trophy Round 1 this weekend and we speak with Phil Annets wearing his @fatrophyfacts hat, to find out the interesting, the unusual and the downright bizarre facts about the 32 ties and the clubs involved. One of those clubs hoping to make history and match their best-ever Trophy run is Brentwood Town. It's 6 months since we last spoke to Chairman Jez Dickinson and lots has gone on since then as he reveals, ahead of their Trophy tie. Jon Couch is back with us offering insight in The Non...
Published 10/25/24
It is FA Vase First Round time, and Phil Annests has his @favasefactfile hat on, detailing the debutants, the record breakers, and the downright bizarre. He is the man with the stats for every occasion. Those stats make for great stories but my next guest and his club have more stories than most. They are the kind that make me love non league. Real football, run by real football fans. Founded by a D-day veteran who is now 100 and still plays a part in the club he formed 75 years ago, they...
Published 10/18/24
It is FA Cup front and centre this week. The Fourth and final qualifying round. The last full-on celebration of Non League before that other lot gets involved. Of course, we look forward to that First Round draw and all the drama that will create plus Phil Annets is here with his @FACupFactFile hat on to guide us through the stats, facts and records ready to be set and broken this weekend  Old fans of the show will know Rich Luffman is a manager who still under 40, has learnt his trade in...
Published 10/11/24
We are in the Third Qualifying of the FA Trophy this weekend. The Step 3 clubs are the big boys and big scalps to be taken; 88 of those clubs and the 40 clubs from Step 4 have progressed from the last round. Phil Annets is on hand with some thoughts and insight wearing his @FATrophyFacts hat. Our manager this week, is another at a club built on camaraderie and a place people want to be. Ian Rowe has been the gaffer of Sporting Khalsa for 10 years now but the club is more than just the men’s...
Published 10/04/24
It is the FA Cup Third Qualifying round this weekend. 80 clubs, 40 ties in the penultimate qualifying round and the one where victory puts them in the hat potential to face National League clubs. Plenty of stories, an array of stats and some interesting insights from our man in the know Phil Annets @FACupFactfile. Craig Davis last came on the show this time last year before bowing out of the FA Cup in the Third Qualifying Round. Hoping for a different outcome this time around, his side face...
Published 09/27/24
It is FA Vase and FA Trophy Second Qualifying round time. Nearly 400 non league clubs from Steps 2 down to 6 take part this weekend in their respective competitions  this weekend and Phil Annets is on hand to help us understand the most interesting stories behind the ties.  One manager leading his side into the FA Trophy for the first time in a number of years is Chris Ayres. His Flackwell Heath side took the Combined Counties Premier North by storm last term and they have started off well...
Published 09/20/24
We celebrate The FA Cup reaching the Second Qualifying round this weekend. Step 2 clubs enter the fore and @FACupFactfile Phil Annets runs us through some of the most interesting stats and facts as some of the clubs taking part look for their fourth win of the season in the competition One of those is Harefield United. A Step 5 club who have already dumped out the in-form Step 3 club in the previous round, now looking for another scalp from that division. Their boss is certainly no stranger...
Published 09/13/24
The FA trophy takes the limelight this weekend, 160 sides from Step 4 as the FA Trophy reaches the First Qualifying Round. Phil Annets is with us wearing his new @fatrophyfacts hat, giving us the lowdown and the knowledge you need to understand the weekend’s action and of course to impress your friends.  My next guest is a new Chairman, just over a month in the role, it’s one he’s coveted for years but he’s been sprung into it quickly and in stressful times, but it’s clear Spencer Gore is...
Published 09/06/24
The FA Cup reaches the First Qualifying Round. The Step 3 sides are in and there are 112 ties to look forward to. Phil Annets @FACupFactfile is the man in the know and the man at the top of the show to give us insight, knowledge and the magic of the FA Cup. 55 Step 5 clubs have made it through to this stage from the Extra Preliminary Round. One of those is AFC Stoneham and we speak to Chair Mark Stupple about his club and the 1500-plus players, registered with them this season across a...
Published 08/30/24
The FA Trophy and FA Vase begin this weekend. The Trophy has a rare Preliminary Round and the FA Vase the First Round Qualifying Round. Phil Annets is on hand to offer some stats and insight into the ties coming up this weekend, which is a busy weekend for him and Non League football. Not as busy for my next guest as while his team is back in the FA Vase after a 10-year hiatus they’ve been drawn away. No less exciting and still likely to be very well supported for a Step 6 side. Oliver...
Published 08/23/24
It is the FA Cup Preliminary Round. 134 Clubs from Step 4 and 138 Clubs from Step 5 in action across the weekend, hoping to secure the £1444 winning prize-money but also a place in the First Qualifying Round when the 88 Step 3 clubs join the competition. Phil Annets returns to the fold to offer a review of the Extra Preliminary Round and a preview of this weekend’s games too. One club through to this round is Boro Rangers. A club younger than any of the players that will even feature in the...
Published 08/16/24
Back with another season and this weekly look at the world of non league football. As many clubs up and down the country kick off their competitive season, it is often only possible thanks to the often-overlooked hard work of one or a handful of people at the club. The ground staff make football possible for all of us. Our first guest is at the heart of the revolution that has seen important changes and improvements of grass pitches up and down the country. Geoff Webb is the CEO of the...
Published 08/09/24
A final weekly look for the season as we head into hibernation to plan for next season but still plenty to round -up this week before we go. All with the help of Matt Badcock, of the Non League Paper. There’s more managerial movement, club allocation debates and awards galore.
Published 05/24/24
A big week for non league football as we celebrate Non League FInals Day from last weekend.  We've got post-match interviews with each of the managers.  and then a round-up of the week’s news including the Vase and Trophy finals, football still to be played and a host of managerial changes we welcome back to the show Executive Editor of the Non League Paper, Jon Couch
Published 05/17/24
Another hectic week in non league football as play-offs are played, dreams are realised or crushed and the home of English football gets ready for the double cup final that crowns the non league season. Yes it’s Non League Finals day on Saturday and we talk to some of those getting ready for the big day and take a look at the four clubs who will be enjoying their day in the sun.  First up is the man with more knowledge than the taxi rank by Wembley Way. The statto for every great cup...
Published 05/10/24
First up, a community club making the national headlines but you may not have seen it, but you do need to know. Balham FC play in the Combined Counties Premier South but it’s the 20 sides from U8s upwards and ladies team that make this football club so successful. Bringing on young talent and young people, which as my guest Finance Director Dereck Fordham explains is something they are very proud of and want to continue to do despite the issues they’ve made the headlines with for doing...
Published 05/03/24
Two Non League Show debutants in a very busy week for non league. First up an assistant manager at a club competing in the biggest game in English football this weekend. Barnet's number two Connor Smith, has seen success as a player and also in his first player coach role at Boreham Wood. Now in his second season with Barnet and his first as number to Dean Brennan, their second-place finish in the National League sees them just one win away from that glittering Wembley final. Just one game...
Published 04/26/24
This week  bumper show and one all about the people and not necessarily the lifting of trophies, despite the time of the season.  First up a fan who has had a week he will surely always remember but perhaps not for the best of reasons. Dean Knight this time last week was a typical fan helping organise a supporters bus to a play-off chasing match at the weekend. On Saturday evening he was being rushed to hospital 120 miles from home after a bus crash left him and another 15 or so South...
Published 04/19/24
First up an experienced manager in possibly the tightest promotion battle across the pyramid. Ware’s Paul Halsey is no stranger to play-off pressures but in a season of some clubs with 5 games per week, he’s got just 3 games on three separate Saturdays left to play in a division when any club from 6 could still pip the title. Talking about experience, following our love of highlighting the great work done by so many off the field and the many jobs that can entail, we speak again to an old...
Published 04/12/24
The beautiful game, the world of Non League football is magical for the people within it. A few years ago the pandemic did its best to impact and tear it apart, but IT came back stronger, we came back stronger. This season a new force threatens to rip apart our world. A natural force that surely can't be controlled. The weather across the country has played havoc with the playing season. Games postponed, games abandoned, and a fixture pile-up with an FA hardline backstop that leaves many...
Published 04/05/24
It is FA Vase semi final time. We open the show with Phil Annets with his @FAVaseFactfile hat on, giving us insight into this season’s competition and the four sides remaining. Then we head north to one of the clubs involved. This week also has a creative arts feel, so we speak to the media guy putting in the hours to ensure Lincoln United is a club people are talking about up and down the land and across the world. Charlie Fytche is still in his early 20s but already doing great stuff for...
Published 03/29/24