Non-league spirit helps Walthamstow FC quadruple attendance amid rising costs
There is a feeling of doom and gloom in English football at this moment in time.
The Covid pandemic has rocked the finances of clubs - including many in the English Football League (EFL) - while the cost-of-living crisis is having an impact on the disposable incomes of supporters. Yet Walthamstow FC are thriving through the adversity.
The Londoners have seen their attendances quadruple since Covid first hit the UK thanks to their desire to connect with the local community. Their stunning form, which has put them in contention for consecutive promotions, has also played a part in their success.
Walthamstow were achieving gates of between 40 to 50 fans when they changed their name from Waltham Forest in 2018. Yet up to 600 punters were visiting their ground, Wadham Lodge, towards the back end of last season - as they won the Essex Senior Football League title.
Walthamstow’s gates have increased from around 150 fans during the 2019/20 season, which was curtailed by the pandemic. When non-league football resumed in the summer of 2020, they were pulling in crowds of up to 300 fans - the maximum allowed to attend due to Covid rules.
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"No one had anywhere to go," assistant secretary and communications manager Andrzej Perkins tells Mirror Football. "All the pubs were shut, but you could have a drink at our ground."
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Some of those fans started watching league football again once Covid restrictions were lifted, but not all of them. Many have fallen in love with the club. "A lot of those people who had come [during the pandemic] started coming back last season. It helped that we were doing well on the pitch."
When it comes to football, Walthamstow is best known as the birthplace of England skipper Harry Kane. Yet the club has existed in the community since 1868. Walthamstow have adopted various guises over the years, but their gates peaked during the 1950s – when around 1,000 fans were supporting them each week. Yet a drop in attendances coincided with the team’s lack of success.
Perkins and his family have stuck by the club through thick and thin. "I’ve been involved since pretty much my birth! I’m 34 in a few weeks. My dad [Andy] is the chairman and he’s been involved since his birth – and his dad was on the committee as well!"
Their aim is to continue building the club for the community to enjoy – "just building a core and getting people aware of who we are and where we are". They are succeeding, as their attendances suggest. Stella Creasy, the Labour MP for Walthamstow, has even worn their club badge in parliament.
"It kind of goes in ups and downs. Only in the last five or six years have we started performing well on the pitch again. That obviously brings people in, but we’ve tried to create a welcoming atmosphere for people.
"We’ve teamed up with the local brewery to sell their craft beers... there’s a lot of social media promotion and trying to get out in the community a bit. So, it’s all come together and we’re on the crest of a wave at the moment."
The cost-of-living crisis, which the Conservative government has struggled to tackle amid high energy prices and mortgage interest rates, has impacted non-league football. According to a joint-survey by the Football Supporters Association and the Non-League Paper last October, 57.7 per cent of non-league fans were concerned about the amount of money they had to spend on football.
Walthamstow are not impacted too badly by the rising energy prices because they pay a set rent for their ground. They are doing what they can to help fans by making the game "as affordable as possible".
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That includes giving away free season tickets to key workers, offering discounted tickets to pensioners and students, and allowing kids to attend for free. It is all part of the non-league spirit.
"Personally, I’d always want us to be a non-league club. That’s why I love it so much - because it’s non-league and it’s not everything that comes with professional football.
"I think that’s why a lot of supporters come down. They can bring their kids, their kids can play football while their parents are watching the game, and they can have a beer.
"We’re one of the cheaper teams in our league. It’s only £8 a game, so it’s kind of a cheap day out. You can have a day out for £20, which would cost you a round in the pub."
Walthamstow recently scored three goals in added time to beat rivals Ware 6-4 (Walthamstow FC/Bill Badger)Walthamstow's good form certainly helps. They have won 10 of their last 11 league games to leave them fifth in the Southern League's Division One Central League - the eighth tier of English football. They are on course to qualify for the play-offs.
Yet there will always be those fans who protest that non-league football is not as glamorous as the Premier League or as prestigious as the Champions League. The appeal of semi-professional football is best summed up by Perkins.
Asked why he loves it, the Walthamstow stalwart replies, "I think it’s just how honest it is. You can have a chat with the players before and after the game. They’re kind of like you – they’ve got normal day jobs – and they’re doing this as a hobby… they really want to be there.
"And we’re just seeing it so many times with people who come once, just have a good time, realise it’s not as passionate or serious or aggressive as league football… it’s always just a nice atmosphere.
"Every club you go to, you’re welcomed with open arms because that £8 or £10 [the ticket] does make a difference, so the supporters are really appreciated. The volunteers who give up hundreds of thousands of hours a season are really appreciated.
"It’s just genuine. More than anything, it’s just a laugh."
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