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06/3/2023 6:32 pm  #1


Tooting in the Combined Counties

If the worse happens, and I sincerely hope it doesn’t, and Tooting do get relegated; what will it mean for first team football at Imperial Field’s?

What players will we field? 

How many fans will turn up to watch? 

What will the admission cost be keeping in mind that our ground is way over what is needed for step 5 football.  The ground is a White Elephant now. 

Will it be more cost effective to play on the plastic pitch?

I’ve been thinking about this and wondered what the supporters think.

 

06/3/2023 7:13 pm  #2


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

evthedog wrote:

If the worse happens, and I sincerely hope it doesn’t, and Tooting do get relegated; what will it mean for first team football at Imperial Field’s?

What players will we field? 

How many fans will turn up to watch? 

What will the admission cost be keeping in mind that our ground is way over what is needed for step 5 football.  The ground is a White Elephant now. 

Will it be more cost effective to play on the plastic pitch?

I’ve been thinking about this and wondered what the supporters think.

Me too, I’ve been thinking about this too and this morning woke up feeling desperately sad - the first thing I thought of was the days at IF behind the goal with good people and days to look forward to.

The ground is a concern - step 5 has a lesser ground grading (as everyone knows) and there’s no way we would make use of the facility we have now, with the cost and time used for upkeep too.  I’m aware that a band of volunteers have been helping for years but would step 5 keep many people there? 

I reckon T&M being moved to a different area of IF or groundsharing is a very real possibility.  The thing with that is many teams would appreciate the extra income so could happen easily.  Plus the plastic pitch being easier for upkeep.

Mind you, Molesey are playing in quite a substantial ground and they’re at step 6 - but don’t know if this is a good comparison as I don’t know that clubs circumstances.

As for ticket prices, the CCL Premier South seems to range between £6-£8 which is a fair chunk from £10.  Season tickets seem to be around £90-£100.  That would be a real problem for the club with a double whammy of smaller gates.  The only decent sized gates we would get would be Jersey Bulls and maybe Alton.  Clubs like Balham and Banstead Athletic with home averages of sub-30 probably wouldn’t bring many visitors, ditto a few of the suburban teams in Surrey towns. 

I know some things like league fees and administration isn’t as costly in step 5 but it wouldn’t make up for the loss.  Plus would sponsorship take a nosedive at step 5 with lesser amounts being forthcoming due to a reduction in league?  Reduced income from advertising would be an issue as well. 

When you look more into the different angles this could take it’s very, very depressing.


These Fokkers were Messerschmitts
 

06/3/2023 7:32 pm  #3


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

Ev and Bernie there is an upside to us getting relegated to the ccl and that is that our NON OWNER STEVE ADKINS would maybe lose so much money he would take his fat carcass and his millions and disappear up his big fat **** well one can only hope !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

06/3/2023 8:15 pm  #4


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

daniel collins wrote:

Ev and Bernie there is an upside to us getting relegated to the ccl and that is that our NON OWNER STEVE ADKINS would maybe lose so much money he would take his fat carcass and his millions and disappear up his big fat **** well one can only hope !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I don’t know Daniel, I think the game plan is to use that site to get more out of Merton Council than you’d ever get out of the football team, both in property building and funded sporting schemes/apprentice & training schemes (like that bit of railway line).  Us on a plastic pitch which they’re already using for youth stuff or a groundshare at a fraction of the outlay for running IF would suit the management down to the ground I reckon.

Last edited by BernieTheBolt (06/3/2023 8:20 pm)


These Fokkers were Messerschmitts
 

07/3/2023 6:03 am  #5


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

Didn't we read last week that the lights on the back pitch aren't good enough and need an upgrade?

 

07/3/2023 6:45 am  #6


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

Think your right Andy A few others have told me that also that in the combined counties acadamies are not allowed and as adkins receives money for each kid that i would have thought would dent his cashflow .

 

07/3/2023 10:35 am  #7


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

Andy Mc wrote:

Didn't we read last week that the lights on the back pitch aren't good enough and need an upgrade?

Just seen that on the T&M Twitter - £25000 to replace with LEDs and the lights on the front 3G pitch are really done in.  Interesting to note the back pitch has the ground grading which was ok for the U23 team - does anyone know if that’s equivalent to step 5?  Just curious, as Andy says the lighting issue stops that at the minute.


These Fokkers were Messerschmitts
 

08/3/2023 1:44 pm  #8


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

Dan, on the subject of Academy football being banned from the Combined Counties League, I think this only applies to senior teams playing in the league under the sub title academy team, IE: The Dulwokes entering their academy team in the CCL league which is a fair enough restriction. . Tooting’s academy set up is a separate business, and if the club wants to field a team of academy players when they eventually join the league, they will not impact their application and their prerogative to do so.
Digging deeper, I am sure there are numerous ways this can be circumvented with some dodgy deals between a senior club and a junior / grassroots club like Tooting!!!!!!
 

 

08/3/2023 2:00 pm  #9


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

Mike you are probably right you can count on DelBoy ADkins finding ways round anything i just hopeevery thing goes pear shaped for this shyster a worst owner would be hard to find

 

08/3/2023 4:09 pm  #10


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

A big worry is that we end up not in the CCL but in some Sussex / Kent league.
The crowds would fall enough with CCL level football but at least there could be some local interest with games against near by clubs they may temp people to come along to games...

Can't imagine too many of the clubs in the Sussex / Kent leagues having big crowd or away support. It's been bad enough playing in this division with no real historical or local rivals to speak of until Leatherhead dropped down. 

 

08/3/2023 8:50 pm  #11


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

Cheers Steve.  You've really cheered me up!

     Thread Starter
 

12/3/2023 11:57 am  #12


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

Here's a thought.

IF (we might just stay up by the skin of our teeth) we go down next year to a step 5 league, do you think that the owner and his board will cut first team funding further to match our league status?  And if this is the case could we sink down further?

     Thread Starter
 

12/3/2023 12:39 pm  #13


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

Ev If its relegation this season or next season wont make any difference adkins the fat t***** will use any excuse to cut funding

 

12/3/2023 1:48 pm  #14


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

Regarding Hackbridge Harry's post about clubs having smaller crowds at Step 5, I think being placed in the SCEFL (Kent League in old money) would provide the biggest crowds, if you use home average as a guide.  Bigger crowds than the CoCo or Sussex. 
Probable teams in the SCEFL top division next year will be Deal (427), Whitstable (410), Tunbridge Wells (326), Rusthall (265) and very likely Faversham (251).   
I appreciate this is not much to cling to, at a time when TMUFC home support is down to 100.  Also the travel mileage to away grounds goes up.

 

12/3/2023 2:11 pm  #15


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

And in the SCEFL TM United would play Punjab United who have Paul Vines playing for them.

 

01/5/2023 7:39 am  #16


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

 

02/5/2023 5:44 am  #17


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

( Dave Irons ) just been to watch what might be 2 of our opponents next season in the combined counties  croydon vs Alton and if anyone thinks we are going to get an easy ride well think again.
Both teams going for it with some of the players putting our lot to shame.
Free admission for over 250 to show their gratitude for following the "Rams "all season.
A packed warm bar at ht and ft with a vast array of ales reasonably priced in a very clean and tidy bar,proper football food ,burgers,hot dogs,chips,pies,psaties etcalso sensibly priced. only downside is the trek to get into the car park.Game finished 2-3 and the icing on the cake was a friend winning £75 in the 50/50 half time draw. Compare this with tooting ground falling to bits,dirty,crap bar, no buckets under the urinals that are leaking and paper towels scattered over the floor.
Are you listening mr adkins????  ( Dave Irons )

 

02/5/2023 12:26 pm  #18


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

Even from my remote location in deepest darkest Ashford I can understand where Dave is coming from.  As you're probably aware I've spent a lot of this last season down at Homelands watching both Ashford United and Kennington FC (a division below Ashford).

The ground is a proper old school non-league ground, albeit with a past its sell by date plastic pitch (due to be ripped up in a major ground re-vamp duringthe summer break), a really good and welcoming bar, great friendly stewards and officials, a superb paper programme (by both clubs) and as Dave mentioned, proper football food, none of this jerk this and spiced that nonsense, and the toilets are always clean and fit for use before the match.

I wonder, do TripAdvisor have a section for football grounds? Perhaps a few critiques on there might jog someone's conscience? ...... but then again, probably not.

Without Andy Harrup going round the loos pre-match to check there was actually toilet rolls in the loos nobody else from the staff would've bothered !


I started out with nothing and I've still got most of it left !
 

02/5/2023 1:28 pm  #19


Re: Tooting in the Combined Counties

daniel collins wrote:

A packed warm bar at ht and ft with a vast array of ales reasonably priced in a very clean and tidy bar,proper football food ,burgers,hot dogs,chips,pies,psaties etcalso sensibly priced.

DeePee wrote:

a really good and welcoming bar, great friendly stewards and officials, a superb paper programme (by both clubs) and as Dave mentioned, proper football food, none of this jerk this and spiced that nonsense

That sounds really encouraging actually, some good days out hopefully to be had.  Agree on the T&M situation, my go to food was a hot pie or sausage roll (with a cup of tea) out of Bill & Geoff’s tea bar, was pretty disappointed when I found out that had gone. 

I like the idea of these old school friendly clubs, when we know for definite what league we’re in I’ll have a proper look into it : )


These Fokkers were Messerschmitts
 

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