Recently hitting the bookshelves is The Complete Non-League Groundhopper’s Guide.
The book, by Alan Burge, chronicles his odyssey of exploration around some of football’s lesser-known - but by no means less remarkable or significant - football grounds.
There are a number of past and present Southern League clubs featured in this fascinating publication that also includes hundreds of fantastic images and tales of travelling to some unique and quirky venues.
“I’ve always been interested in grounds and penned a column in a non-League magazine,” the author told us. “When the magazine closed down, the editor suggested turning my articles into a book, which I thought was a good idea, so we set about putting something together.
“Everywhere I go I take plenty of photographs and always jot a few things down about the visit, so in many ways the book wrote itself as I already had so much unseen content to include.
“I enjoy visiting the quirkier venues, so no breeze block and plastic identikit stadia here!
“You’ll never share the away end at the Emirates Stadium with a tree, or the Anfield Kop with a replica shirt-wearing Great Dane, but they can be found right here in my book - along with hundreds of other equally enchanting and evocative images.”
66 year-old Burge is a lifelong Cambridge United supporter who attends home games, but when the team are away, he gets out his Sat Nav and heads off in search of new grounds to explore.
“I’ve been groundhopping for years and absolutely love it,” he added with a smile. “I’ve got some favourites from down the years; I was always fascinated by the wooden terracing at Hitchin Town, Gresley Rovers was an interesting little place tucked in amongst housing, whilst the likes of Whitby Town and Bury Town are always worth a visit and I have been back to them quite a few times over the years.
“The early feedback to the book has been positive. I’m proud to see it in print and putting it together was a real labour of love.
“Non-League football is so special; the camaraderie, the characters, you just can’t beat it! I’m looking forward to more adventures over the season ahead and who knows, another book may come out of it!?”
The book is on sale now at £15.99 from Amazon here…
Alternatively, direct from the publisher, Victor Publishing here…
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