For May 1st I'm going back just 2 years to 2019 and the National League Play-Off Eliminator between AFC Fylde and Harrogate Town.
AFC Fylde are an up and coming club. Or at least they were until experiencing relegation out of the National League's top division back into the National League North last season. Clearly that was a set back and, with the cancellation of season 2020/21, they cannot now achieve their boldly declared aim of reaching Football League status by 2022, a number that they've been displaying on their shirt sleeve since 2007 when the club was to be found in Division 2 of the North West Counties League (and which would have required six promotions at the time).
AFC Fylde are to be found at Mill Farm Sports Village on the outskirts of the town of Wesham on the Fylde coast. Mill Farm is a splendid modern stadium that is more than capable of hosting Football League fixtures should the need ever arise. The club was formed in 1988 following the merger of the Kirkham Town and Wesham clubs. Initially they were known as Kirkham & Wesham but decided to change their name to the current one following the club's FA Vase win at Wembley in 2008 to better reflect the wider area from which they hoped to draw their support. Incidentally, York City fans have a soft spot for that Vase win because both of the Kirkham & Wesham goals that day were scored by substitute Matt Walwyn, son of City legend Keith (RIP).
Fylde are, so far, the only club to have won both the FA Trophy and FA Vase. Much amusement was to be had by shoppers at the stalls of Wembley's pirate souvenir sellers in 2019 when Fylde reached the Final of the Trophy. Clearly not too much research had been carried out as, for just £10, you could become the proud owner of a scarf proclaiming AFC "Flyde" FA Trophy 2019! Remarkably, at the time of writing, Fylde remain as the longest ever holders of the Trophy whilst we await the delayed 2020 Final which is to be held on Monday May 3rd 2021!
Supporters of Harrogate Town have also had a fairy tale rise over the past few seasons. In 2002 Harrogate were to be found in the Northern Premier League's Division 1 (the fourth tier of Non-League football) and have achieved four promotions since then to take their place in the Football League . Today's featured programme covers 2019's end of season Play-Off. In effect it was a Quarter-Final with sixth placed Harrogate having to visit fifth placed Fylde for a winner-takes-all decider of who would get to face second placed Solihull Moors in the Play-Off Semi-Final. In front of an attendance of 1,560, programme cover star Dave Challinor's Fylde made the most of their home advantage beating Simon Weaver's Harrogate Town 3-1. Fylde also won 1-0 away at Solihull Moors in the Semi-Final before being crushed 3-0 by the Class of 92's Salford City in the Wembley Final. My suspicion is that Fylde will be back challenging for a place in the Football League before too long unless their Chairman and prominent UKIP supporter, David Haythornthwaite, gets tired of pumping his money into the club.
CRB Match No. 2302
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