The unofficial AFC Rushden & Diamonds messageboard

I can confirm that we have applied for promotion.

You never know what can happen between now and April 8-)

I and the rest of the board believe it's what the fans would expect and shows the ambition we have for the club 8-)

All the work we have being doing st the Woof & Quack has been to comply with step 4 ground grading requirements, hence why I have been asking for help over the last couple of months.............there is method in our madness :lol:

Yeah only 3 clubs have applied from the NL, not Shildon fighting for the top spot who I assume its for the derbies and big gates they can get in the NL, because they're in a small area with quite a few other big clubs like Spennymoor who I'm sure will provide big crowds. Though Spennymoor have applied which is interesting, cause they've won that league a few times and not gone up, along with Bishop Auckland and Celtic Nation, who I believe are another Spalding with money being thrown at them and I also recall reading in the NLP or somewhere that they plan on becoming professional next year

Duke of Wimbourne wrote:I can confirm that we have applied for promotion.

You never know what can happen between now and April 8-)

I and the rest of the board believe it's what the fans would expect and shows the ambition we have for the club 8-)

All the work we have being doing st the Woof & Quack has been to comply with step 4 ground grading requirements, hence why I have been asking for help over the last couple of months.............there is method in our madness :lol:

Absolutely right, I'm sure we are all agreed that it's right to apply. We also now know that if Spalding did not wish to, or could not go up, 3rd place would see us promoted.

Sid wrote:

Duke of Wimbourne wrote:I can confirm that we have applied for promotion.

You never know what can happen between now and April 8-)

I and the rest of the board believe it's what the fans would expect and shows the ambition we have for the club 8-)

All the work we have being doing st the Woof & Quack has been to comply with step 4 ground grading requirements, hence why I have been asking for help over the last couple of months.............there is method in our madness :lol:

Absolutely right, I'm sure we are all agreed that it's right to apply. We also now know that if Spalding did not wish to, or could not go up, 3rd place would see us promoted.

Yep, its certainly not a case of all games being dead rubbers from now on, its definitely worth fighting to try and be 2nd or 3rd, Spalding have been at the level above before, so I assume their ground will be good enough, but like Formic says, if Spalding do a Wisbech and decide they want to stay at this level maybe for the Vase again, then we'd be going up, provided we're in the top 3.

Celtic Nation, who I believe are another Spalding with money being thrown at them and I also recall reading in the NLP or somewhere that they plan on becoming professional next year

Interesting stories and rumours about Celtic Nation being a Trojan Horse for another team plying their trade in Scotland who would rather be playing in the English League.

Getting back to us I too would have been very surprised if we had not applied for promotion and I agree with others that anything could happen between now and the end of the season.

Formic..according to todays NLP Pat Payment thinks the FA "stink" and he is glad his team will not be playing in the Vase next season.

But the question remains. How long will he finance (or whoever it is) his club on crowds of less than 200 especially considering their chequered past. How long before their bubble bursts!!..this Saturday would be a good time to start!

Ambition is still alive in the Step 5 leagues. 73 clubs have applied to move up to Step 4.

Certainly if we were to be promoted on merit or by whim of the FA we should accept it and hopefully play in the Calor League Central div 1 where the majority of clubs are between Northants and North London. Everything about our club is geared for at LEAST Step 4.

sussexdiamond wrote:Formic..according to todays NLP Pat Payment thinks the FA "stink" and he is glad his team will not be playing in the Vase next season.

That makes it look like he's assuming the title is already his - in December.

I take it he won't enter a team in the FA Cup or FA Trophy if they do gain promotion in that case.

He also fell out with the UCL after the fixture lists were published - he's starting to make Imraan Ladak look like a diplomat.

sussexdiamond wrote: How long will he finance (or whoever it is) his club on crowds of less than 200 especially considering their chequered past.

Apparently it's Pat Payment's partner who provides finance from her property development activities that's why I found it strange that he showed an interest in the vacant Corby Town manager's position a few weeks back.
Last season it was John Chand, Holbeach United's manager who provided financial backing from similar activities enabling the Tigers to win the title but he resigned his role last summer and you can see the impact it had on that club this season.

corby diamond wrote:Oh god no, not the f word again :roll:

Not sure what that's supposed to mean?

The UCL page is a fantastic source of information - if you've taken a look tonight you will see they have published updates about our club shop over Christmas, as well as advertising working and volunteering positions within the club.

Sid wrote:Why wouldn't it be true? I'd be astonished if we hadn't applied. The difficult bit will be getting ahead of Spalding. There is virtually no chance of 2 UCL clubs being promoted, it would require several clubs from above to go bust.

Apologies - I didn't quite know how the system worked. From the brief message on the Facebook page, I thought the application for promotion was irrespective of our final league position. Thanks to all for clarifying. Fantastic we've applied and hopefully the playing staff will see the clubs belief in them and enjoy a fantastic second half of the season, making sure we push Spalding all the way!