Non-league football takes centre stage this weekend as The Eyrie, home of Bedford Town FC, hosts a Southern League double header with both Bedford Town and near neighbours, Real Bedford in action on the 3G-laden turf.
Real Bedford plays against Biggleswade FC in Southern League Central Division One on Saturday (22 February), with Biggleswade playing their home games at The Eyrie this season as part of a ground share agreement with Bedford Town.
However, the Eagles are first up as they host rivals, Kettering Town under the Eyrie floodlights on Friday.
You can buy tickets for the clash here.
With the off-field news of a potential merger between Bedford Town and Real Bedford stealing the spotlight, the former continue to spring surprises in Southern League Premier Central, sitting top of the seventh-tier division with just ten league games to go.
Read: Bedford Town and Real Bedford in merger talks to “transform football in Bedford”
Bedford Town manager, Lee Bircham has moved on from, “survival is all we’re thinking about” to “we’re giving it a go!” as the Eagles continue to gain enough points to remain at the summit, but Friday night will prove to be an acid test as Bedford Town host rivals, Kettering.
This rivalry dates back to the 1950s when Kettering and Bedford Town battled it out for a Southern League title, and with the merger chatter at the moment circling around protecting history and legacy, there’s a timely if solemn nod to the past with this 2024/25 reincarnation.
When the fixture list was released back in July, few would have expected this to be a clash between two clubs who have a chance at taking the league title, but with the business end of the campaign looming large, that’s exactly what it has become.
Speaking to Ollie Bayliss of BBC Three Counties Radio on the Non-League Show earlier this week, Bircham said, “This is probably the best season I’ve had, either as a player or a manager”.
“We could be the last occupants of Bedford Town as everyone knows it. We want to make everyone proud if the club isn’t going to be Bedford Town next year.
“It’s only the last two weeks where we haven’t looked at the bottom four. Now, we’re looking at the teams at the top end.”
In 2022/23, albeit with an entirely different squad and a different manager, Bedford Town were relegated straight back down to step four, picking up just two points post-Boxing Day, losing 17 of their last 19 league games at this level.
The change in fortunes on the pitch, playing a lot of the same clubs, has been startling.
In some ways, the pressure is off, as Bedford Town are safe from relegation and while the futures of the players and Bircham himself are unclear, they see this as an opportunity to potentially put themselves in the shop window.
Bircham himself had already been headhunted by clubs in higher divisions earlier this season thanks in large to spending the majority in the league’s top six, but the Bedford Town manager committed to life at The Eyrie by signing a new contract in October.
Read: Bedford Town manager Lee Bircham signs new two-and-a-half-year contract extension
“It has been unsettling. You probably wouldn’t have known it from our results”, added Bircham.
“But I said to the lads, you’re not paid a great deal at the minute; if you’re here next year you could be doubling or trebling your wages, so make sure you put a shift in.”
“In some ways, they’re on trial! But we’ve done phenomenally well. Biggleswade Town won our league last season and they’re bottom and we’re top and I tell the players not to forget that.”
If this is the final team to play under the name of Bedford Town, they’re providing their loyal fanbase with some excellent memories to take into the sunset with them as they exceed expectations on every front.
Kettering Town have already made national headlines this season, reaching the second round proper of the FA Cup after defeating near neighbours, Northampton Town in the first round.
They eventually succumbed to League Two side, Doncaster Rovers but remain the favourites to win Southern League Premier Central, aided by the likes of former Newcastle United striker, Nile Ranger and former Watford forward, Marvin Sordell who played for Team GB at the Olympics.
Bircham and his bosses are right when they say Bedford Town cannot consistently compete with the budgets on show at this level, making their achievements all the more impressive as they “give it a go” and see what transpires.
If only competitive football was always so carefree.
What about the “noisy neighbours”?
Over the way at the Ledger Stadium, the world feels a bit more intense.
Real Bedford is once again in a title battle with the ever-consistent Berkhamsted, aiming for an almost unprecedented third straight league triumph although whether they’ll actually be promoted if they are victorious – as Real Bedford or under another guise – remains to be seen.
The rules around merged clubs from the Football Association remain unclear, with the wording ambiguous. Ordinarily, two clubs cannot “merge up”, meaning any new club is unlikely to compete at step two.
However, with any potential merger required to be completed by 31 March in order to come into effect next season, the worst-case scenario would be the new club remaining at step four, as that is where Real Bedford plays right now.
At the recent fans’ forum, giving local football fans the chance to voice their opinion on the proposed merger, Real Bedford chairman and co-owner, Peter McCormack said Bedford Town’s “noisy neighbours” want to bring them all on the journey with him.
Read: Real Bedford co-owner floats ideas for the future at merger fans’ forum
The ambition is clear to see, although opinion remains divided on the number of issues at play.
A survey created by long-time Bedford Town supporter and fundraiser, Steve Fish outlined that the “vast majority” of Bedford Town fans would accept a merger that left the name as Bedford Town.
And, given the name ‘Real Bedford Town’ was floated as an idea by McCormack at the forum, more than half of current Bedford Town fans say they would not accept that as a new club name and would not support the new club as a result.
On the pitch, Rob Sinclair continues to get the best out of his talented group as Real have opened up a three-point gap at the top of Southern League Central Division One with a game in hand, winning eight of their last nine games in the process.
Sinclair’s objective is clear: Win the league.
One could argue his future is also unclear, as there would only be a single manager’s job available at any newly merged club.
However, with McCormack and Sinclair already forging a formidable partnership at the Ledger Stadium, human nature dictates the manager who already has a working relationship with any new club’s chairman is the favourite.
A third successive league title would certainly help.
As for Lee Bircham at Bedford Town, he remains his optimistic self and by all accounts, relatively modest.
He attributes all of the success of these last two campaigns to his players and coaching staff, who have responded to his management style by continuing to fight for the current badge.
For fans of non-league football, that is 90% of the battle and a result against the Poppies on Friday night would only raise his stock further.
If this is the last ever Bedford Town – and it is important to reiterate that nothing is set in stone – then Lee Bircham is leading his troops to a dignified and triumphant end.
Tickets are available for Bedford Town’s clash against Kettering Town on Friday (21 February) here, while tickets for Real Bedford’s game against Biggleswade FC at the same venue are available on the gate at The Eyrie the following day.
