Bury get the ground back

[albie]

Good news for the future of Bury FC;
https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/bury-fans-new-owners-administration-25280162

Big step in re-establishing the club in the pyramid.
It would be good if the lessons were learned on dodgy owners looking to asset strip....I'll wait!

[drfchound]

Interesting news.
Should they be allowed to start at a higher level than NW Counties league?
What do we think?

[German Rover]

Interesting news.
Should they be allowed to start at a higher level than NW Counties league?
What do we think?

Why parachute them in at a higher level? it was good enough for Macclesfield who restarted under similar circumstances. it would also protect the integrity of the pyramid.

[scawsby steve]

Interesting news.
Should they be allowed to start at a higher level than NW Counties league?
What do we think?

No, mate, they shouldn't. Other teams that had gone bust, such as Accrington and Aldershot, all had to start again at the bottom of the pyramid.

[albie]

The reformed AFC Bury are top of their regional NW league division.
Macc are top of the NM league top division.

Both will progress quickly to National North, because their gates are much higher than the teams they play against.

Macc are getting better gates than they did in L2.
5 year plan to reach the National League would be reasonable, winning games on the way so building the support back.

[drfchound]

I assume that AFC bury were formed by former supporters of Bury FC.
If Bury FC reform it would be interesting to see how the two clubs pan out.
It could create a clash of interest for the AFC version.

[albie]

AFC Bury were formed by fans, and are playing on someone else's ground, with crowds of about 1,500.

I think that they will reach an agreement to form one club at Gigg Lane, back to the base of the club in Bury.

I never understood why Gary Neville did not get involved with Bury (his home town) rather than Salford. His mother was the Bury secretary, and his late dad was also involved.

[POD]

I put this on an earlier thread and it’s still relevant with the news of a new ownership becoming closer……………

Bury AFC are currently unbeaten and top of the North West Counties League Division One (in the 10th tier) and have an average home crowd of around 1,300 against a league average of less than 100.  They play home matches at the Neuven Stadium, home of Radcliffe Borough which is approx 2 miles from Gigg Lane.  Many former Bury FC fans have got behind the newly formed club and are happy to go on the journey back to the football league however long it takes.   The latest developments mean that there could be a return to Gigg Lane for the ‘original’ club but that is by no means certain and if it did happen, could lead to a split in the fan base between Bury FC and Bury AFC which for a club / town the size of Bury could mean an unsustainable long term future for both.  Lots of negotiating ahead and issues to resolve but a return to football in Bury is very welcome after the unscrupulous conduct of the last two owners.

[DRCraig]

North West counties league. It might seem unfair. But you cannot just put them somewhere in the middle.

[ColinDouglasHandshake]

Good to hear that things are looking up a bit for Bury. Always enjoyed going to Gigg Lane and they played the best music in football which was mostly Madchester indie stuff as opposed to the dirge most clubs churn out these days.

I don't think crowd size determines success though. My local club Matlock Town get about 500 gates and are top of their league whilst Scarborough get gates of about 1500 and are struggling this season and have struggled to get out of the league for a while now.

Hereford have also plateaued and their crowds are decent.

[POD]

I dont think crowd size determines success though. My local club Matlock Town get about 500 gates and are top of their league whilst Scarborough get gates of about 1500 and are struggling this season and have struggled to get out of the league for a while now.

Hereford have also plateaued and their crowds are decent.

I think that ‘cost’ has a lot to do with the size of crowd as well as success or history.   It costs £7 for an adult to watch Bury AFC whereas to watch Bury FC in their final season in the league it would have been £20 as it is at Rovers.