Feeder clubs make licensing decisions
Tuesday 04 August 2009
ONLY a small handful of feeder league clubs are expected to undertake the FAW's licensing process next season in an attempt to win promotion to the Welsh Premier.
Liaison meetings were held with the main feeder leagues - the Cymru Alliance and the Welsh League Division One - last week, with nine clubs attending each of the meetings in the north and the south.
But several clubs left the meetings 'despondent' at the scale of the task and only two - Llangefni Town in the north and Bridgend Town in the south - have publicly stated their intention of pursuing the licence process.
Feeder League clubs must apply for the licence before August 28 and be able to meet all of the criteria to gain a domestic licence in April if they are seeking promotion to the top flight for 2010/11.
Failure of feeder applicants to gain a licence would leave 12 clubs secure in the Welsh Premier, with six to be relegated, but two places will be available to promoted clubs if they can meet the criteria.
“I’ve already held site visits at two Cymru Alliance clubs and I was generally impressed with the current facilities and future plans at both," says FAW licensing officer Andrew Howard.
“The following evening with the Welsh League clubs, I was again pleased to hear positive feedback after the meeting from two clubs who were determined to meet the criteria as they felt that it was achievable.
“Again, there were some clubs who were not so interested and I felt that a few left the meeting feeling despondent. That’s not the aim of Licensing. It’s here to improve standards and to provide our national league and its top twelve or so clubs with an attainable benchmark for development.”