FA Non League Finals Day

FA NON LEAGUE FINALS DAY

Sunday 22nd May 2022

at Wembley Stadium

FA Vase Final:

Littlehampton Town v Newport Pagnell Town 12.15PM

FA Trophy Final:

Bromley FC v Wrexham AFC 16.15PM

Overall Attendance: 46,111

Admission: £25 inc. both games

Programme: £5 covers both games

£25 to watch two finals from the padded luxury seats of the Club Wembley tier of the National Stadium represents excellent value for money... and in the event both of todays games were of a particularly good standard too.

But as with most things at these showpiece occasions staged at this particular venue, what you might gain on the swings, you are leaving yourself wide open to losing (at quite a considerable cost) on the roundabouts. The food and drink options once you're inside are, putting it very politely: a complete feckin' rip off and a means of putting the screws on a captive audience.

Of course, we were all here to watch the football, not to attend a slap up feast, but when you consider that you're going to be here for six hours (at least) if you want to watch both games in their entirety, most people are going to need some kind of sustenance during their visit. 

Readmittance, if you should choose to leave the stadium after the first game but wish to return for the second isn't allowed (unless you have paid for two separate tickets), nor is taking your own fodder in with you. When you're considering whether to attend one of these Wembley all-dayers, it's worth taking into consideration that there are over two hours to fill between the first scheduled game finishing and the second one kicking-off. 

Obviously there needs to be some time factored in, to allow for any extra-time, penalties, injury time and the presentation of the FA Vase trophy, but surely two hours is excessive.

I hear told that the gap between the games is so lengthy because the playing surface needs maintaining. But one can't imagine that the world famous green, green grass of Wembley Stadium needs anything more than a minor amount of fettling between games, or that anybody seriously believes that a pitch that is used so frequently during the merry month of May, isn't up to accommodating two games on the same afternoon do they? It's not as if they stage the 'Horse of the Year' show here anymore.

FA Vase Final

12.15PM Kick-Off

Littlehampton Town (0) 0

Newport Pagnell Town (1) 3

Kieran Barnes 19, 

Ben Shepherd 55, 63

Littlehampton Town: 

James Binfield, Shay Wiggans,.Jordan Clarke (C), Jordan Layton (Zac Harris 57), Lucas Pattenden, Tom Bigg, Joe Benn, George Gaskin (Aaron Capon 45), Dion Jarvis, Liam Humphreys (Dave Herbert 57), Lewis Jenkins

Unused Subs - Alex Duncan, Lee Garnham, Ryan Peake, Scott Packer

Newport Pagnell Town: Martin Conway, James Sage, Christian Smail, Jordan Wright (C) (Adam Pryke 73), Alfie Powell, Kieran Barnes (Ben Ford 68), Ben Shepherd, Jake Watkinson (Jim Burnside 68), Mo Ahmed, Danny Webb, Lewis Markey

Unused Subs - Robbie Goodman, Jake Newman, Jake Strong, Michael Lyon

Despite losing this afternoon, West Sussex based Littlehampton, the Marigolds (or Golds as most people seem to call them) have had a highly successful campaign, the climax of which saw them winning the Southern Combination League and gaining promotion to the Isthmian League for the first time in their history which stretches back as far as 1896. 

They've also won the Peter Bentley Southern Combination Challenge Cup this season... and on Wednesday night they travel to Lancing FC where they'll compete in the RUR Charity Cup final against Saltdean United.

Newport Pagnell Town ply their trade in the United Counties League, Premier Division South, where they were placed during an FA  reorganisation from the Spartan South Midlands League, after having only spent two years there since being transferred in the opposite direction from the UCL at the end of the 2018-19 season.

Compared to their long established opponents, the Swans, born in 1963  (just like all of the best people were) are mere whipper-snappers. The final score suggests that they ran out as comfortable winners today, in the balmy midday sun, in spite of the way that this end to end and highly competitive game actually shaped up from the outset; with both teams demonstrating a desire to get forward and provide some great entertainment for us early-birds, who'd got into the Stadium before the main bulk of the crowd turned up for the second game.

Although saying that, the sections of the ground set aside for Littlehampton and Newport Pagnell supporters were well populated with approximately 7,000 fans apiece turning out and generating plenty of noise. It was going to take something a bit special to separate these two sides going on the evidence of the early exchanges and, in a nutshell, that is precisely what Kieran Barnes provided in the nineteenth minute, when he struck a sublime arcing shot into the top corner of the Golds net, after Ben Shepherd's corner had been cleared, after a fashion, to where the Swans number 7 was loitering with menace a couple of yards outside the area.

Littlehampton were further knocked out of their stride, when Mo Ahmed and George Gaskin both suffered an accidental clash of heads, from which the latter stayed down, needing lengthy treatment before being taken to hospital.

Gaskin is the Golds joint-manager and he's weighed in with forty-five goals for them thus far this season... it wouldn't be exaggerating to say, that his unfortunate early exit from the field of play, marked a significant turning point in what had until then, been a fairly evenly matched first half.

Ten minutes after the interval a mix up between the Littlehampton defence and their keeper James Binfield, left Ben Shepherd with a simple chance to double the Swans lead, which he gratefully accepted.

The Marigolds were stung into action and Joe Benn let fly with a sweetly struck half-volley from eighteen yards out that crashed against the post. Had it have gone in, that would've been the prolific striker's sixtieth goal of the season.

The final tipping point (tripping point?) came in the sixty-third minute, when Jake Watkinson was felled inside the area by Lewis Jenkins... and Shepherd scored Newport Pagnell's third goal from the resulting penalty (below).

Aaron Capon skimmed the top of the crossbar as Littlehampton refused to chuck the towel in and continued to make headway into the Swans half of the pitch, but on the day, it just wasn't to be for the Golds despite them continuing to create a string of chances.

Word filtered through that George Gaskin had regained consciousness and was going to be alright, which was great news for all concerned, while his team would just have to console themselves with the fact that they've already got a decent haul of silverware this season and the chance to add another trophy to their collection in a few days time.

FT: Littlehampton Town 0 Newport Pagnell Town 3

FA Trophy Final

4.15PM Kick-Off

Bromley (0) 1

Michael Cheek 64

Wrexham (0 0

Bromley FC: 

Ellery Balcombe. Billy Bingham (Liam Trottor 75). Chris Bush. Omar Sowunmi (Joe Partington 45), Luke Coulson, Michael Cheek (Mason Bloomfield 79). Byron Webster (C), Corey Whitley, Harry Forster, James Vennings, Ali Al-Hamadi

Unused Subs - Mark Cousins, James Alabi, Louis Dennis, Jack Cawley

Wrexham AFC: 

Christian Dibble, Callum Mcfadzean, Ben Tozer, Jordan Davies, Luke Young (C) (Jake Hyde 85), Paul Mullin, Liam Mcalinden (Reece Hall-Johnson 74), Tom O’Connor (Dan Jarvis 74), James Jones, Max Cleworth, Ollie Palmer

Unused subs - Lee Camp. Tyler French, David Jones, Jordan Ponticelli

Before the Trophy final kicked off the Wrexham fans booed long and hard throughout the playing of the English national anthem, which was quite ironic given the fact that all but two of their playing squad and Phil Parkinson, their manager, are from England. 

And then, while they sang the Welsh anthem with gusto, the Bromley contingent responded in kind and barracked Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau (Land of My Fathers) too. 

Personally I neither sing along to, nor make a disparaging racket during, anybody's national anthem. But, each to their own, innit? 

Bromley finished their National League season in a steady but unspectacular tenth place, while Wrexham came second, behind champions Stockport County and will now have to successfully negotiate the play-offs if they are to reach the dizzy heights of the English Football League once again. 

The Red Dragons spent eighty-seven years as a Football League club before being relegated into the fifth tier in 2008, along with Mansfield Town, who themselves went back up at the end of the 2012-13 season, when they pipped Wrexham at the post and beat them on the final day of the season at Field Mill.

Both sides have featured in FA Trophy finals before today: Bromley lost against Brackley Town on penalties (AET) following a 1-1 draw four years ago, while Wrexham were winners in 2013, when they beat Grimsby Town on penalties after drawing 1-1 (AET)... and they were also runners up against North Ferriby United in 2015, another game that was decided by a penalty shoot-out, having finished 2-2 after ninety minutes and 3-3 after extra time.

Clear cut chances were at a premium during a closely contested first half, although Corey Whitley went close for the Ravens and Ollie Palmer missed a decent chance to put Wrexham ahead.

This second contest of the day, became an intriguing battle between two sides trying to unpick each others tactical strategies, as opposed to the kind of end to end attacking and open game that had unfolded between Littlehampton and Newport Pagnell earlier in the afternoon.

But there was still plenty of quality on display, amidst the patient tempo and measured approach of these two teams from the top-flight of non league football.

In the 63rd minute, Bromley's Joe Partington (a veteran of eight Welsh U21 appearances), who had been introduced as a substitute in place of the injured Omar Sowunmi just before half-time, pushed a long pass forward to Whitley, who had been causing Wrexham problems all afternoon, none more so than when he delivered a measured square ball across the face of Wrexham's goal to Michael Cheek, who smashed a close range shot into the roof of Christian Dibble's net, after the Red Dragons keeper had advanced from his line towards Whitley, it proved to be the only goal of the game.

The Welsh side fought valiantly and laid siege to the Bromley area using any means necessary, including a string of long throw ins by Ben Tozer. As the game ran deep into stoppage time, it looked as though Jake Hyde, who'd only entered the fray four minutes earlier, had thrown his side a lifeline with a last ditch goal, but his strike was ruled out for being offside.

FT: Bromley 1 v Wrexham 0

I left straight away, the moment that the most honourable Mr. Thomas Bramall, the match referee, sounded the final whistle; because I wanted to beat the queues that were bound to be forming at Wembley Park station any soon.

Fortunately there was a limited stop service direct to King's Cross sitting on platform five ready to go... and twenty five minutes later I hopped on a northbound train out of that there London. 

Mind you, after such a mad dash, we'd reached Peterborough before my heart rate had returned to normal and I'd started to get my breath back. Next time I'll get a later service home or book a hotel.

And talking of the 'next time', I'll be here again in six days time, when Mansfield Town play against Port Vale, with the prize of promotion to League One at stake.