Sussex - You've Never Had It So Good

The Football Front’s Matt Bruce takes a look at Sussex, and the recent growth and development of the Sussex’s clubs.

It's a good time for professional football in Sussex right now, Brighton appear to be going from strength to strength at their new Amex Stadium. While Crawley begin their first season in the Football League and are even favourites for promotion. Both clubs have been through significant and well-publicised difficulties over the years, but the Sussex clubs now appear to be on the up and there is little doubt that all eyes are focused on Sussex this season.

It's been a long journey for Brighton. They were evicted from the Goldstone Ground in 1997. Since then, supporters have had to endure a period of exile in Gillingham and the utterly soul-destroying experience of watching their football from the wrong side of a running track at the Withdean. After enduring 14 years of struggle, it's as if the club is now awakening from a long sleep, with promotion back to the Championship coinciding with the move to the new, £105 million stadium. Brighton's average attendance at the Withdean was below 6000. But for their first season in their shiny new home, the stadium will be full to its 20,000+ capacity every week, with season ticket sales going through the roof.

The man responsible for this south coast renaissance is professional gambler, Tony Bloom. He is the third generation of his family to be involved in the club (both his uncle and grandfather have previously been on the board at Brighton) and the sheer scale of his investment – 'injecting' £80million when he took over – suggests he is less a businessman investor, more a supporter and benefactor. In funding the construction of the Amex he has not simply built another identikit modern stadium, but has created the much-needed new home for the club and its supporters, which for so long the club has lacked.

But it is not simply off the field where Brighton have made great strides. Manager Gus Poyet guided the Seagulls to the League One title at a canter last season, sealing promotion to the championship in mid-April. They begin their first campaign in the Championship as quite highly fancied to follow in the footsteps of Norwich in winning a second consecutive promotion to reach the Premier League. This summer Poyet has added to his title-winning squad by spending some serious money. The club smashed Brighton's previous record transfer fee by paying out £2.5million for Peterborough striker Craig Mackail-Smith and spending a total amount of £4million on transfer fees alone over the summer. For a club who have traditionally been cash-strapped, this is megabucks.

Inevitably, all eyes were on Brighton last weekend. They opened their new stadium on the opening day of the season against Doncaster Rovers –ironically, they were also Albion's final opponents at the Goldstone Ground in 1997. Brighton certainly didn't disappoint. The players arrived on the pitch to a sea of white and blue flags waving from three sides of the ground, but Doncaster came to spoil the party and took advantage of Brighton's nervousness by taking the lead in the 39th minute. Brighton appeared edgy for much of the match and were uncharacteristically uncomfortable in possession, but they did enough to win the game. However, they left it late. The equalising goal came in the 83rd minute as debutant Will Buckley's beautiful strike found its way through the bodies in the area and into the bottom corner. While the winning goal came deep into injury time and it was Buckley again who, with practically the last kick of the game, broke free and slotted past the Doncaster goalkeeper.

Now the club have their first win in their new stadium, everything is surely in place for the club to step up to the next level. With the scale of investment in the club, along with the level of support that has emerged locally, it may not be long before Brighton are playing top-flight football for the first time since 1983.

Moving northwards, Crawley Town are another Sussex club that is making waves at the moment. Like Brighton, they've been through their fair share of trouble off the field and have become quite familiar with winding up orders and points deductions. Even as recently as February 2010 the club found themselves in court to fend off a winding up petition from HMRC. However, following the takeover of the club by millionaire and lifelong fan, Bruce Winfield - backed by some extremely wealthy mystery financiers - the club paid off its sizeable debts over the summer of 2010 and began a spending spree never seen before in non-league football.

Crawley signed Matt Tubbs (£70,000), Sergio Torres (£100,000), Richard Brodie (£150,000) and a host of others as manager Steve Evans set about creating a league-winning side for 'Project Promotion'. Crawley's big-spending ways led them to be dubbed 'the Manchester City of non-league' by their detractors, but their incredible FA Cup run, which culminated in a trip to Old Trafford to play the other Manchester side, more than paid for the previous summer's spending. Crawley's expensively-assembled squad delivered in style as they coasted to the Conference title a week before their Sussex neighbours were confirmed as League One champions.

Crawley money still hasn't dried up. In fact, they have added more quality to their side, bringing in Wes Thomas, Tyrone Barnett and John Akinde. It comes as no surprise that Crawley start the season as favourites once again for the title. Of course, a late Port Vale equaliser denied them an opening day victory. But a point away at Vale is a very solid start to the season and something positive to build on.

Similar to the Brighton scenario, Winfield's interest in the club was not concerned with monetary gain, he just wanted to see his local club play in the Football League. Tragically, Bruce Winfield did not live to see Crawley kick off for the first time in the Football League last weekend. Just weeks before Crawley sealed their promotion Winfield succumbed to cancer. Without him, Crawley would not have made it into the Football League and their incredible rise from the depths is his legacy to his hometown club.

The legacy left by Winfield is far more than just a team that has had a year of success. Crawley's success has led to a major rise in attendances, with last season's average being more than double that of the previous year and season ticket sales have more than quadrupled for this season. As well as a solid local backing, the club is improving facilities and infrastructure enables Crawley to sustain their Football League status in the long long-term. The club are even creating a new seating stand bringing the seated capacity up to the 2000 seats. This is something which is required for League One.

In little over a year Crawley Town have been transformed from a poorly-supported non-league team, who were constantly beset by financial problems to favourites for promotion to League One – a position which, if achieved, would have been unthinkable to Crawley supporters not so long ago. Despite lacking the fairytale magic of Brighton's rise to prominence, Crawley's ascent is no less remarkable and with the financial backing they have, along with the incredible momentum from their Conference-winning season, Crawley look a very good bet to win another promotion in their debut Football League season.

A special mention should also go to Lewes FC of the Conference South, who are yet another Sussex club with a chequered past. Having spent years struggling just to stay in existence, they have made the unique decision to opt for community ownership. Under this model, the club is wholly owned by its members and with annual membership costing just £30, club ownership is essentially open to all. Those responsible for instituting this unique community share scheme should be applauded for literally giving the club back to the local people of Lewes. In the year that has followed since the scheme was announced, the club has made significant moves towards engaging with the community, through various events and offers. Many non-league clubs are facing a real struggle in these uncertain times to bring in the fans and stay solvent, a move to community ownership, has raised more than £100,000 at Lewes and increased attendances. It could possibly be the way forward.

Whether reaching for the heights of the Premier League, or beginning their new life as a Football League club, or even creating a new, community-focused blueprint for running a non-league club. Football in Sussex is healthier than it has been for a very long time. The county's football clubs have suffered an unusual amount of hardship.

But now Sussex clubs at all levels of the ladder are leading the way as some of the most progressive and forward-thinking Football clubs in English football at the moment.

This piece was written by Matt Bruce, you can follow him on his Twitter - @tbfuth, You can find Matt’s blog here too: theboysfromupthehill

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Matt Bruce’s npower League Two 2011/12 Preview - Part One

In his debut article for The Football Front, Matt Bruce in a two part feature assesses the Npower League Two teams ahead of the big kick off this Saturday.

With the new season almost upon us, this is the time when bloggers and journalists start to publish their season previews. Not wanting to feel left out, I have jumped on the bandwagon and, as a supporter of Oxford United, it seems right that I should preview League Two ahead of the season opener on Saturday.

Within the flurry of transfer activity around over the past weeks some clubs have been spending big whilst others are cutting back. Some are looking to make minor improvements while others rebuild from scratch and while some clubs grab headlines others go about their business quietly.

So who looks set to challenge and who is in for a season of struggle?

A few clubs have made serious moves in the transfer market and it is with those that I begin with. What better place to start with the league new boys Crawley Town. Last year's controversial Conference champions, who having assembled something of a non-league Galacticos last season, appear to have continued their expensive revolution by getting their hands dirty in the transfer market. After releasing a host of solid Conference players, they have shrewdly strengthened their squad with the acquisition of numerous proven league talents. They have brought in players from the higher leagues (Bristol City's John Akinde) as well as poaching some of last year's better performers in League Two (Cheltenham's Wes Thomas and Macclesfield's Tyrone Barnett). They have again assembled a strong squad capable of challenging, but much will depend on how quickly they can adjust to life in the Football League.

Other big movers include Northampton and Bristol Rovers, both of whom have seen huge player turnover as their new managers attempt to assert their identity on the squad. Northampton fans are overjoyed with the return of cult hero Adebayo Akinfenwa, as well as strengthening their midfield with Stockport's Paul Turnbull and Peterborough's Arron Davies. New Bristol Rovers boss, Paul Buckle, has been given a large budget to play around with and has used it wisely, bringing Chris Zebroski and Scott Bevan with him from Torquay. He has also brought in Matt Harrold from Shrewsbury, Adam Virgo from Yeovil and Lincoln's Mustapha Carayol. With the backing they have had, fans of both clubs will expect to challenge for promotion this year, but success will depend on how quickly the new arrivals will settle.

Swindon are another club who have undergone major surgery this summer, following their relegation from League One, and they have been the subject of much publicity after the controversial appointment of Paolo Di Canio as manager. A host of exotic names have since signed up to the Swindon cause giving the squad a rather international feel, however Di Canio appears to have put together a team designed to play physical, English football. With their high-profile manager and the high expectations of the fans the pressure will really be on for Swindon’s gamble to work immediately.

Other clubs have opted for evolution instead of revolution. Clubs such as Oxford, Gillingham and Southend have built on the foundations of last season's solid but unspectacular showings. Oxford have added experience and strength to last year's young and inconsistent side, bringing in Michael Duberry in defence and Peter Leven in midfield. Gillingham lost two important players in Cody McDonald and Adebayo Akinfenwa but have replaced those with local boy (and Gills fan) Danny Kedwell and with Dover Athletic's 45-goal Adam Birchall, but this places quite a burden of pressure onto the shoulders of two strikers with little Football League experience to spearhead a promotion charge. Southend boss Paul Sturrock knows what is required to get out of this league and has made some canny acquisitions to add to the firm base he established last season. However, most notable of these signings is Millwall legend Neil Harris, a gamble at the age of 33 (especially as he's been given a three year contract) but if it pays off he could emulate Bury's Ryan Lowe, who scored 22 League Two goals last year at the tender age of 32. Aldershot manager Dean Holdsworth has kept the core of last season's squad together and supplemented it with solid signings from non-league clubs, such as York City's creative striker Michael Rankine and Bradley Bubb from neighbours Farnborough. Bubb scored 22 goals in the Conference South last season. Holdsworth clearly feels he can get more out of these players and if he shows traces of the brilliance he hinted at while at Newport then Aldershot could be dark horses for the playoffs.

Meanwhile, the likes of Shrewsbury, Port Vale and Rotherham have been left licking their wounds this summer. After challenging closely for promotion for most of last season only to see late downturns in form cost them at the death. Shrewsbury can feel especially aggrieved at still being in the division. They were denied an automatic promotion place by a truly awful refereeing decision after Wycombe earned a point at the New Meadow when they were awarded a goal that clearly never crossed the line. Despite this, they were strong last year and are clearly of the opinion that a few tweaks here and they should be strong enough to go one better this time. Shrewsbury have signed Reuben Hazell. The midfielder will provide some much needed leadership into to the team.

Port Vale's preparations have been hampered by boardroom conflicts which left them unable to sign any new players for several weeks. Returning manager Mickey Adams has not made many additions to the side, instead placing much faith in the players that were challenging for automatic promotion when he left to take over at Sheffield United last season. But his buys, such as Ryan Burge and Ben Williamson from the Glenn Hoddle Academy are prospects for the future.

Rotherham's preseason has been much more stable, though they have lost two important players in Nicky Law and Ryan Taylor. They have, however, kept hold of goal machine Adam Le Fondre (so far), while the signings of Chris Holroyd and particularly Danny Schofield are impressive.

Plymouth, meanwhile, have had little time to concentrate on footballing matters at all, with the club still blighted by financial difficulties, and their inability to pay their players, it doesn't make the club a particularly attractive prospect for new signings. Both Liam Dickinson and Anthony Elding have signed for the Pilgrims over the summer, before making a quick exit when the full horror of the situation became apparent. Plymouth fans will be desperately hoping for some stability this season and, rather than dreaming of glories on the pitch, they will just be happy to still have a team to support this time next year.

Last season's playoff finalists Torquay have lost some of their more important players, as well as their manager, to Bristol Rovers. New manager Martin Ling is left to try and repeat last season's success on a tight budget, bringing in a mix of strong Conference players and young cast-offs from higher leagues. However, without their stronger performers from last season, one should expect them to be considerably weaker this time around. Crewe have been rocked by the not-unexpected departure of last season's top scorer Clayton Donaldson and have been unable to replace him, turning once again to their much-vaunted youth system for replacements. After falling short last year, Alex fans will be disappointed to see that this looks set to be a rebuilding season, but the style of football they play means that they create a lot of chances, so they are not likely to go without goals this season. However, goals alone do not make a successful season.

Another club who seem to be making youth a priority is Bradford. The club’s well-publicised financial problems have severely hampered their ability to compete for big names in the transfer market and so, instead of buying stars, they've chosen to grow their own and have begun assembling a separate developmental squad for the future. But back in the present, they're still struggling to bring in the quality signings they desperately need, especially in the striker department. They have, however, brought in Guy Branston, who will be sure to get them organised at the back, which should be enough to prevent them from struggling too much this season.

Part Two will be available on Friday 5th August

This piece was written by Matt Bruce, you can follow him on his Twitter - @tbfuth, You can find Matt’s blog here too: theboysfromupthehill

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