After a weekend filled will football action, we have a much clearer picture on what the English football pyramid will look like next season. Let’s take a a look in the latest Lower Leagues roundup:
League One
Going up: Birmingham, Wrexham, Charlton
Going down: Crawley Town, Brisol Rovers, Cambridge United, Shrewsbury Town
Playoff winners: Charlton
A gutting loss for Leyton Orient in the playoff final, but they didn’t really even show up to Wembley. In a battle of two London clubs, it was the South London outfit Charlton who came out on top.
The winning goal came off a free kick, and Spurs loanee Josh Keeley probably could have done better to save it.
It’s exciting to see Charlton back in the EFL Championship after a few seasons away. For Leyton Orient, next season will bring about a large degree of uncertainty. They’ll be losing Keeley and Jamie Donley, two Spurs loanees who were key to their success this season.
League Two
Going up: Doncaster Rovers, Port Vale, Bradford City, Wimbledon
Going down: Carlisle United, Morecambe
Playoff winners: Wimbledon
This season will be remembered as one of the biggest collapses in the league’s history. Walsall were 12 points clear at the top in January. Once Stoke City recalled Nathan Lowe from loan, the Saddlers fell off the top of their perch. Tragic, really.
But we’re happy to see Wimbledon climb back up.
National League
Going up: Barnet, TBD
Going down: Dag and Red, Maidenhead, Fylde, Ebbsfleet
Playoff final: Southend United vs Oldham
This is the last big football match of the year - Southend United versus Oldham Athletic. The teams finished seventh and fifth in the league this year, respectively.
Every season the question arises if there should be two automatic places for the National League. The answer is yes. The gap between League 2 and the National League is very small, and I suspect the winner of this playoff final will be pretty competitive in the fourth tier of English football next year.
The final is this sunday - GET HYPED!
Fitzie’s track of the day: Cissy Strut, by The Meters
And now for your links:
Alasdair Gold: “Remarkable Lucas Bergvall development will cost Tottenham extra cash right now”
The Athletic ($$): “Tottenham Hotspur squad audit: How the team is set ahead of the transfer window”
BBC: Ella Toone: “‘I don’t think I grieved, I don’t think I thought it was real’”