Next season

After being a dedicated forum follower, but non-contributor, for the last three or four years, I felt I had to break my duck after a most amazing Easter weekend at Penydarren Park. Thirteen goals, two clean sheets, promotion as champion - life doesn't get much better for someone who has followed MTFC since the Bill Hullett era.
    Merthyr-born and a sports journalist for my entire working life, I was privileged to write a chapter in David Watkins' excellent book, Memories of Penydarren Park, chronicling my career from the Merthyr Express to Fleet Street newspapers and how I managed to follow the team from near and far in the intervening years. While it is difficult to compare sides from different eras and at different levels, I have rarely seen such fluent football from a Merthyr team - a joy to watch.
    Congratulations must be showered on the club - from the players and manager Steve Jenkins and his staff to the hard-working officials and die-hard supporters who have helped Merthyr Town  rise like the proverbial Phoenix from the Ashes. I cannot make the 440-mile round trip from rural Essex to Merthyr as much as I would like, so I am always amazed how much progress is being made at the ground on each of my visits. It was great to see so many familiar faces at the Candac Suite after the game especially Phil Howells and Allan 'Salty' Jones who were also contributors the Penydarren Park book.
    I cannot wait for next season because Merthyr will be coming my way with possible games in Cambridgeshire, Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire all within range. I say possible because teams relegated from both the Conference North and South could be in the Southern League meaning some other clubs - I am told possibly two from Cambridge - will have to switch to the Ryman League.
   Meanwhile, it will back to the computer on Saturday to follow the game at Yate and I must say a big thank you to those who keep us exiles in touch with the action.

Gareth - nice to meet you on Monday and try not to heckle my brother when he gives his talk.

Here is a link to an unofficial spreadsheet based on the leagues situation as it is now -

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/163rQigkU0WPSVnsENhnFbiBiH54sRi_QY3PLOtz0MuQ/edit?pli=1#gid=0

As I say it is unofficial as it's up to the FA how the various leagues are made up next season but I've seen something like this before in previous seasons and it's normally pretty close.

Thanks for that link. It will be good to be back amongst some of those familiar names.

Interesting to see on a forum that according to a groundhopper who went to Fleet Town's game on Monday it said in their programme notes they had been promised a move back to Division One Central 'to reduce their crippling travel bills.'

But they do at least have fairly local opposition in Sholing, Totton and according to that list, soon to be Petersfield also - not to mention Camberley. It seems hard luck on the latter to be placed in that division, although no worse than Godalming and Guildford were before. It's difficult to see who Fleet could be swapped with to move into another division.