Hello
There has been exciting progress in the development of the new North Ferriby FC and I think, therefore, this will be my final update. I will give it a few weeks and then close it down. There are a few final things, however, that I wanted to mention as we look forward to the future.
Establishment of North Ferriby FC
Following the end of North Ferriby United, former chairman, Les Hare, who led the club for 20 years up until 2015, has joined forces with a few like-minded individuals to establish North Ferriby FC as a non-profit community club. North Ferriby FC is the name of the original village club established in 1919, so this year marks the centenary of football in North Ferriby. Whilst not fan-owned it will be developed as a non-profit Community Interest Company (CIC) which will maximise public good and ensure benefit to the local community. The new club has been approved by the FA and will play in the Northern Counties East Football League (NCEL). It is yet to be determined if this will be the Premier Division (Step 5) or Division One (Step 6). As fans, we are just grateful to have a club.
The club has this evening launched its sparkling new website. On this there is information about sponsorship opportunities, including the revitalised Patrons’ Club. Please do have a look.
Work on Grange Lane ground
Whilst we were overwhelmed that our Save North Ferriby petition drew signatories from across the country, a significant number were local. If you are in and around the Ferriby area on Saturday 4th May from 10am then any help down the Grange Lane ground would be most welcome. We will be focusing on weeding and preparing woodwork for painting. We expect there will be lots of other dates too. Please keep an eye on the club’s website and Twitter.
Crowdfunding
Volunteer help is essential in getting the ground ready but there are a number of jobs that require professional contractors. Les has identified £42k of necessary remedial works requiring professional contractors. We are so grateful to the many local businesses have committed their time and expertise to cover off £24.5k of this. There is, therefore, £17.5k still to raise. The club has launched a crowdfunder webpage to help bridge this gap. If you are able to contribute then this would be hugely welcome. Thank you.
View from the Allotment End fanzine projects
We are currently working on two publications. Issue 12 of VFTAE will be out later in May. You can pre-order here. We are also working on a publication to celebrate 85 years of North Ferriby United. As part of this, we’re inviting football fans to send us photographs that illustrate a personal Ferriby moment. We’d welcome contributions from non-Ferriby fans too. More details here.
We will also be at the London Festival of Football Writing 2019 bookfair on the 25th May. We’ll be selling VFTAE and our sister publication VIEW. If you’re in and around central London (Conway Hall, Holborn) please pop by and say hello. It’s FREE entry. In the close-season we will review the future of VFTAE. I hope that it still has a role as a critical friend to the club and we can still produce a quality ‘zine.
East Hull FC
Just by way of minor interest, as we'd rather not mention former ruinous owners, but you may be interested to learn that Mr Waltham has notified the NCEL that East Yorkshire Carnegie, which plays on his Dunswell ground, will be called East Hull FC next season. (It seems no consultation is required at Step 5 and below). It's hardly surprising that he has taken these steps but it is astounding how someone, who has caused such resentment and brought ruin on a club, can be operating again in the lower leagues of our national game. And it's not as if Ferriby is a one off. There are many examples of clubs with unfit owners. In an interesting twist, depending on how the NCEL place us in the league, we could be looking at North Ferriby FC vs East Hull FC next season.
Final huge thank you to you
As I’ve said before, the Save North Ferriby campaign would not have had such a high-profile if it was not for you petitioners. I’m still amazed that we nearly reached 10,000 signatories. You helped ensure that the Northern Premier League and FA listened to fans’ concerns. Technically, we may not have been able to save North Ferriby United but we learnt a lot about our community and the importance of our club. I hope we are stronger as a result. And now, at last, we can look to the future with hope and confidence – or, to quote the new North Ferriby FC website, with “pride, passion and belief”.
If you are ever near North Ferriby, please look us up and catch a match. We’d love to welcome you to Grange Lane and our North Ferriby FC.
All best wishes to you and your football club – Matthew Kempson
VFTAE2016@gmail.com
@VFTAE