A great start to life in the League for Longridge Town
Wed 16th January 2019 | Longridge Town | By Ian Templeman
Longridge Town Chairman Kevin Harrison says he is delighted at the progress the club has made in the past couple of years, both on and off the field.
Sitting at the top of the First Division North, with crowds increasing and the ground and its surroundings almost unrecognisable from a couple of years ago, it’s looking good for a club that only joined our league in the summer.
Kevin says that everyone at the club is enjoying the ride.
“I think that on the field we are probably exceeding our own expectations”, he said.
“It's a long way to come in such a short space of time. This time last year we were still getting the ground grading done, the main stand wasn't in place, and we had the question of whether we would get accepted (into the league) and we were still playing West Lancs League football.
“When we set out, we thought we would establish ourselves in the top half of the division and set ourselves up for next season, and that was it really.
“Last year was about making changes on and off the pitch. Football wise we took a bit of a back step and prioritised the ground, and put money into that, which has paid off as there's not a lot of work to do on the ground to get us to Grade G and qualify us for the Premier Division.
“Lee (Town manager Lee Ashcroft) is very competitive and very ambitious, but we set out initially to establish ourselves as a North West Counties football club.
“The way that it has gone on the pitch has surprised us a little bit, but at the moment, and we are just grateful really that we are still in a position where we have got something to play for”.
Kevin is keen to emphasise that off the field, an important factor in the club’s development has been the work put in by volunteers who have been associated with the club for many years
“There was an established committee here when we were in the West Lancashire League”, he said.
“But there are a lot of people in the town who played for the club in its various guises, and it was a question of getting these people back involved in the club.
“We have all - myself included - reached a stage where we can't play anymore, our lads are all 18-19, we have watched them, coached them, we have gone through the ages from under 10s onwards.
“It's now at the stage where if you are going to stay involved in football and involved in your local club, it has got to be off the pitch.
“There is a generation off the pitch now that 20 years ago were on the pitch, it's the same lads.
“For me, to be part of a Club that I have supported for 40 years in various guises, played for and now have the privilege of chairing is a great feeling”.
It’s not just the club volunteers that are contributing to the success, though, and Kevin is also pleased at the ways in which the local community is getting strongly behind the club too.
“This season, crowds have gone from an average of 50 up to over 160 and the local people are really supporting us.
“There are a lot of local businesses involved, if you look round the ground every advertising board is for a local business, and it's nice to see the people coming out and appreciating what we are trying to do.
“It's a growing community, there are houses popping up right left and centre, and last Wednesday night, it was a cold night, we were playing Daisy Hill who aren't really a local side and we had 171 on.
“That is a credit to the people of Longridge, and we have rewarded them by scoring eight goals in a good competitive game at a good standard, and hopefully they will come back.
“We had three Longridge lads in the team, and like any football club that is what people want to see, and of the other lads, most of the others live within about 10-12 miles of the ground.
“Our reserves team is playing in the West Lancs League, it is an under 18s team, and the team is pretty much all Longridge lads.
“For them, they can have aspirations to play North West Counties football, because when they see three Longridge lads in the first team, they can see it's an achievable ambition.
“We can provide the opportunity if they are prepared to work hard for it”.
Looking ahead to the rest of the season, Kevin believes that while promotion would be a great boost, it will only be a part of the long term growth strategy for the club.
“The ambition for this season now is to go up, and then settle down again pre-season and see how we look in terms of what we need to do for next season”, he said.
“It has been a very busy 12 months and in some ways it would be nice to take a breather and a step back, and then not necessarily stall, but say 'we are where we are now’. But without eleven lads running round and winning matches you lose that momentum.
“You can have the best pitch, the best ground and the best clubhouse in the league, but if you are not winning football matches, people won't come and watch.
“So we are very much focussed on results on the pitch. Lee (manager Lee Ashcroft) is under contract for another two and half years, and he has already been here five years.
“If we do go up, we'll take a deep breath, and take a look at what needs doing, to get the infrastructure in place going forward to develop the club, and really build the club off the pitch as well as on it”.
A great start to life in the League for Longridge Town
Wed 16th January 2019 | Longridge Town
By Ian Templeman
Longridge Town Chairman Kevin Harrison says he is delighted at the progress the club has made in the past couple of years, both on and off the field.
Sitting at the top of the First Division North, with crowds increasing and the ground and its surroundings almost unrecognisable from a couple of years ago, it’s looking good for a club that only joined our league in the summer.
Kevin says that everyone at the club is enjoying the ride.
“I think that on the field we are probably exceeding our own expectations”, he said.
“It's a long way to come in such a short space of time. This time last year we were still getting the ground grading done, the main stand wasn't in place, and we had the question of whether we would get accepted (into the league) and we were still playing West Lancs League football.
“When we set out, we thought we would establish ourselves in the top half of the division and set ourselves up for next season, and that was it really.
“Last year was about making changes on and off the pitch. Football wise we took a bit of a back step and prioritised the ground, and put money into that, which has paid off as there's not a lot of work to do on the ground to get us to Grade G and qualify us for the Premier Division.
“Lee (Town manager Lee Ashcroft) is very competitive and very ambitious, but we set out initially to establish ourselves as a North West Counties football club.
“The way that it has gone on the pitch has surprised us a little bit, but at the moment, and we are just grateful really that we are still in a position where we have got something to play for”.
Kevin is keen to emphasise that off the field, an important factor in the club’s development has been the work put in by volunteers who have been associated with the club for many years
“There was an established committee here when we were in the West Lancashire League”, he said.
“But there are a lot of people in the town who played for the club in its various guises, and it was a question of getting these people back involved in the club.
“We have all - myself included - reached a stage where we can't play anymore, our lads are all 18-19, we have watched them, coached them, we have gone through the ages from under 10s onwards.
“It's now at the stage where if you are going to stay involved in football and involved in your local club, it has got to be off the pitch.
“There is a generation off the pitch now that 20 years ago were on the pitch, it's the same lads.
“For me, to be part of a Club that I have supported for 40 years in various guises, played for and now have the privilege of chairing is a great feeling”.
It’s not just the club volunteers that are contributing to the success, though, and Kevin is also pleased at the ways in which the local community is getting strongly behind the club too.
“This season, crowds have gone from an average of 50 up to over 160 and the local people are really supporting us.
“There are a lot of local businesses involved, if you look round the ground every advertising board is for a local business, and it's nice to see the people coming out and appreciating what we are trying to do.
“It's a growing community, there are houses popping up right left and centre, and last Wednesday night, it was a cold night, we were playing Daisy Hill who aren't really a local side and we had 171 on.
“That is a credit to the people of Longridge, and we have rewarded them by scoring eight goals in a good competitive game at a good standard, and hopefully they will come back.
“We had three Longridge lads in the team, and like any football club that is what people want to see, and of the other lads, most of the others live within about 10-12 miles of the ground.
“Our reserves team is playing in the West Lancs League, it is an under 18s team, and the team is pretty much all Longridge lads.
“For them, they can have aspirations to play North West Counties football, because when they see three Longridge lads in the first team, they can see it's an achievable ambition.
“We can provide the opportunity if they are prepared to work hard for it”.
Looking ahead to the rest of the season, Kevin believes that while promotion would be a great boost, it will only be a part of the long term growth strategy for the club.
“The ambition for this season now is to go up, and then settle down again pre-season and see how we look in terms of what we need to do for next season”, he said.
“It has been a very busy 12 months and in some ways it would be nice to take a breather and a step back, and then not necessarily stall, but say 'we are where we are now’. But without eleven lads running round and winning matches you lose that momentum.
“You can have the best pitch, the best ground and the best clubhouse in the league, but if you are not winning football matches, people won't come and watch.
“So we are very much focussed on results on the pitch. Lee (manager Lee Ashcroft) is under contract for another two and half years, and he has already been here five years.
“If we do go up, we'll take a deep breath, and take a look at what needs doing, to get the infrastructure in place going forward to develop the club, and really build the club off the pitch as well as on it”.
