{"id":34873,"date":"2019-11-30T14:01:05","date_gmt":"2019-11-30T14:01:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thevoiceoflondon.co.uk\/?p=34873"},"modified":"2019-11-30T14:01:05","modified_gmt":"2019-11-30T14:01:05","slug":"life-in-the-local-leagues","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/life-in-the-local-leagues\/","title":{"rendered":"&#8220;Sometimes the worst teams can beat the best teams&#8221; &#8211; the unpredictability of local league football"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>The Premier League may be the most talked about football league in the UK, but the local leagues can be just as exciting.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>There are 20 local leagues in London alone, with the teams playing weekly between August and May during the football season.<\/p>\n<p><em><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-33163 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/local-leagues-graphic-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"2314\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/local-leagues-graphic-1.jpg 800w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/local-leagues-graphic-1-104x300.jpg 104w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/local-leagues-graphic-1-354x1024.jpg 354w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/local-leagues-graphic-1-768x2221.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/local-leagues-graphic-1-531x1536.jpg 531w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/local-leagues-graphic-1-708x2048.jpg 708w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/em><\/p>\n<p>Terry Carr, 32, has played for the club Reigatians in Surrey for 13 years, and is a member of their sixth team, Reigatians VI, currently placed third in the Amateur Football Combination\u2019s (AFC) Division 7 South league table.<\/p>\n<p><em><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-34874 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/AFC-League-Table-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1080\" height=\"1920\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/AFC-League-Table-1.jpg 1080w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/AFC-League-Table-1-169x300.jpg 169w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/AFC-League-Table-1-576x1024.jpg 576w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/AFC-League-Table-1-768x1365.jpg 768w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/AFC-League-Table-1-864x1536.jpg 864w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1080px) 100vw, 1080px\" \/><\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u201cI guess just that you could be the worst team and still beat the best team some days, that\u2019s the unpredictability of it,\u201d Terry says about what makes the league enjoyable, aside from the socials, of course.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s quite fun to go to the pub afterwards and spend the day watching football\u201d.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_34875\" style=\"width: 970px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-34875\" class=\"size-full wp-image-34875\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/image0-1.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/image0-1.jpeg 960w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/image0-1-300x225.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/image0-1-768x576.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-34875\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Terry has played the position of goalkeeper since he was 17 years old<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Terry plays matches every Saturday, which can take place anywhere between his team\u2019s home venue at Reigate Priory, and Fulham for away games. And during his time with the team, he has always played in the position of goalkeeper.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI can play out of pitch but I just prefer goalkeeper. It\u2019s the best position.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Editor&#8217;s Picks:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/thevoiceoflondon.co.uk\/london-bridge-shut-down-after-gunfire\/\">London Bridge shut down &#8220;after gunfire&#8221;\u00a0<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/thevoiceoflondon.co.uk\/the-brothers-of-grime\/\">The Brothers of Grime<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/thevoiceoflondon.co.uk\/greta-thunberg-whats-the-big-deal\/\">Greta Thunberg \u2013 the 16-year-old activist, now author of the year<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/thevoiceoflondon.co.uk\/how-historically-accurate-is-the-crown\/\">How historically accurate is The Crown?<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>And it\u2019s also an important one, proving vital during the last match of the 2017\/18 season, which saw Reigatians VI win the Division South 8 league, something Terry says should never have happened.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe were the bottom of all [the Reigatians] teams, so we should never win the league\u201d.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_34876\" style=\"width: 730px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-34876\" class=\"wp-image-34876 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/image4-1.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"960\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/image4-1.jpeg 720w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/image4-1-225x300.jpeg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 720px) 100vw, 720px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-34876\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Terry (bottom right) celebrating his team finishing top of the league in May 2018<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The 3-0 victory from Terry\u2019s team meant they received a celebration dinner at The Oval cricket ground alongside other winning teams from the AFC leagues, as well as a speech from a guest speaker.<\/p>\n<p>But Reigatians VI\u2019s victory in 2018 isn\u2019t the only trophy for the club, who have been named champions a total of <a href=\"https:\/\/reigatiansafc.co.uk\/?page_id=14116\">12 times since the 1992\/93 season<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_34877\" style=\"width: 970px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-34877\" class=\"size-full wp-image-34877\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/image1-1.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"960\" height=\"720\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/image1-1.jpeg 960w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/image1-1-300x225.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/image1-1-768x576.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-34877\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Terry (ninth from right) with his team, Reigatians VI<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The teams are <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amateurfootballcombination.com\/league-structure.html\">promoted or relegated to another division league<\/a> within the AFC depending on their success throughout the season. And as the Amateur Football Combination is <a href=\"http:\/\/www.amateurfootballcombination.com\/\">one of the largest leagues in Europe<\/a>, it means there is a chance for teams to compete against a variety of clubs based on their performance.<strong><br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-34878\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/AFC-Gif-1.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"720\" height=\"450\" \/><\/em><\/p>\n<p>Yet as the AFC is, at its heart, grass-roots football, funding for the clubs is essential for good quality matches.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLeague\u2019s down by us are ok, but the leagues played in London are a lot better organised,\u201d Terry explains. The AFC requires all matches to have a referee, whilst the home team must provide a meal for their opponents after the match, since the journey to the venue can take two hours for some clubs.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<h2><em><strong>&#8220;When you win, you win as a team&#8221;<\/strong><br \/>\n<\/em><\/h2>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>\u201cIn the London matches you always get a changing room, you\u2019re not getting changed on the side of a pitch when it\u2019s pouring down with rain, as you would down in the Sussex leagues,\u201d something that Terry has experienced during his time with Reigatians.<\/p>\n<p>But arguably the most important part of a football match is the pitch, which Terry believes London has the upper hand on.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/thevoiceoflondon.co.uk\/racism-in-football-it-affects-everyone-at-every-level\/\">Racism in football: if affects everyone at every level<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u201cThey\u2019re not going to be ankle breakers that are just mud-patches from where rugby players have run across,\u201d but for some lower divisions in London leagues, this is still an issue.<\/p>\n<p>Occasionally, matches in division four of the <a href=\"http:\/\/barnetsundayleague.co.uk\/division-four\/\">Barnet Sunday Football League<\/a> are played at Oakhill Park.<\/p>\n<div id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-34873 gallery-columns-3 gallery-size-thumbnail'><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/life-in-the-local-leagues\/img_7506\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/IMG_7506-1-150x150.png\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-34880\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-34880'>\n\t\t\t\tOne of the pitches at Oakhill Park\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/life-in-the-local-leagues\/img_7502\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/IMG_7502-1-150x150.png\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-34879\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-34879'>\n\t\t\t\tMultiple matches can be played at a time\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/life-in-the-local-leagues\/img_7511\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/IMG_7511-1-150x150.png\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-34881\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-34881'>\n\t\t\t\tMarkings have been painted onto the grass to outline the pitch\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><br style=\"clear: both\" \/><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/life-in-the-local-leagues\/img_7520-1\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/IMG_7520-1-1-150x150.png\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-34890\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-34890'>\n\t\t\t\tThe goals do not have nets, and become muddy in the rain\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/life-in-the-local-leagues\/img_7522\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/IMG_7522-1-150x150.png\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-34883\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-34883'>\n\t\t\t\tWhere the grass has worn in front of the goal, and rain has collected in the mud\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/life-in-the-local-leagues\/img_7533\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/IMG_7533-1-150x150.png\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-34885\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-34885'>\n\t\t\t\tThe ladies&#8217; toilets by the pitches\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><br style=\"clear: both\" \/><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/life-in-the-local-leagues\/img_7532\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/IMG_7532-1-150x150.png\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-34884\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-34884'>\n\t\t\t\tThe building is used as a changing area for football teams\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl><dl class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<dt class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a href='https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/life-in-the-local-leagues\/img_7536\/'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/64\/2019\/11\/IMG_7536-1-150x150.png\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail\" alt=\"\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-34887\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/dt>\n\t\t\t\t<dd class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-34887'>\n\t\t\t\tThe men&#8217;s toilets and changing area are at the opposite end of the building\n\t\t\t\t<\/dd><\/dl>\n\t\t\t<br style='clear: both' \/>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n<p>Terry explains similar conditions for matches played at Purley Way Playing Fields. \u201cIt\u2019s this massive open field, and they have a changing room area but no one ever opens it. So it\u2019s the massive field outside that people get changed on. It\u2019s that bad.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This is not necessarily something that has to come with playing for local teams. And Terry has seen a noticeable difference since his club started using <a href=\"https:\/\/slateapp.co.uk\/\">Slate<\/a>, an app that makes sure players pay their fee so the club receives enough money to make improvements.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve used it for the past three years and people are actually paying up. And you can prove who\u2019s not paying, so then they can\u2019t play until they\u2019ve paid,\u201d says Terry, who added that this year all the teams in Reigatians received brand new kits and training tops, as well as new footballs and nets, because players are paying their share.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou do see the improvement when people pay the money.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\">[youtube https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=8nnfiNoROFE]<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left\">With clubs being able to stay on top of match fees thanks to apps like Slate, long-term improvements can be made that will benefit local league football, and hopefully see more football fans join a local team.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s just the enjoyment, the banter you can get,\u201d Terry explains. \u201cWhen you win, you win as a team, but when you lose, you have a joke but no one\u2019s mean about it, you just have to laugh about why you lost.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Regardless of the pitch, price or weather, it\u2019s the bond between the teammates that\u2019s at the heart of grass-roots football, and with a bit of luck, that can take a team all the way to the top.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Words: Alysia Georgiades | <\/strong><strong>Featured images: Courtesy of Terry Carr and Alysia Georgiades | Video: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.slateapp.co.uk\">Slate<\/a> | Graphics: Alysia Georgiades<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Premier League may be the most talked about football league in the UK, but the local leagues can be just as exciting. There are 20 local leagues in London alone, with the teams playing&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":476,"featured_media":34897,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57,116],"tags":[442,2470,2546,3762,3769,5206],"class_list":["post-34873","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-football","category-sport","tag-amateur-football-combination","tag-football","tag-funding","tag-local-leagues","tag-london","tag-reigatians"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34873","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/476"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34873"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34873\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34897"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34873"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34873"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34873"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}