A season that seemed like it might never end, went out to the sound of trumpets. If you thought Paris Saint-Germain could not be topped in Munich, you weren’t at Wembley on Sunday. Oldham Athletic’s extra-time victory over Southend United to return to the Football League felt every bit as momentous for a club that almost went out of business in 2022.
If PSG’s conquest of Europe was further evidence of elite football’s grotesque repudiation of the norms that birthed it, Oldham’s “non-league” epic against Southend might be seen as an emphatic restating of the game’s core values.
The National League play-off final at Wembley attracted a crowd of more than 53,000, a record for a non-league game. Frank Rothwell, the entrepreneur whose £12m investment saved Oldham from extinction three years ago, estimated it would cost supporters at least £100 to make the trip to Wembley, a figure he acknowledged was a significant investment for the ordinary fan.
Oldham players celebrate winning the National League play-off final (Photo: Getty)This is no longer a sum that troubles him, but his sensitivity to it acknowledged the connectivity of club and community, a bond that has been utterly swept away by the billions distorting the competition at the top end of the game.
Whatever the monetary reward might be for winning the Champions League, PSG’s Qatari owners have little need of it, save for Uefa’s financial fair play considerations.
Oldham, on the other hand, could not survive without the cash that trickles down through the ecosystem, notwithstanding Rothwell’s generosity. They and Southend were fighting for survival as much as glory. PSG were simply hoovering the rewards of a playing field that state ownership helped to skew in their favour.
Oldham’s win will see a return of the academy, which will deepen the relationship with grass roots football in the town, and help cement initiatives linked to the club’s Sports Town educational project. The aim is to achieve university status for the expanding Boundary Park campus, which is underpinned by a £5m government development grant.
Thus the team is the engine of vital community regeneration. In Paris, the principle is turned on its head since the team’s purpose is not to serve the French capital but to aggrandise the state of Qatar. I doubt the Emir, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, was taking calls from reporters on the way back from Munich.
Thousands of Oldham fans were in attendance at Wembley on Saturday (Photo: Getty)Rothwell, however…
“Hello Frank, it’s Kevin Garside from The i Paper. Where are you now?”
“Hello Kevin. I was asleep. You woke me up.”
“Oh, I’m sorry, Frank.”
“No, no, it’s alright. I’m sat next to Judith, my wife of 55 years, and we couldn’t be more happy because we are in someone else’s car and they are doing the driving.”
Well, that’s two wins in one day.
“You know what, I thought it was all over,” he went on, describing his emotions as Oldham fell behind for a second time in the match.
“At 2-1 down in extra-time it meant we had to win 2-0 from there. I thought that’s not going to be happening. To get two in less than half an hour when there wasn’t much between the teams I didn’t think was possible.
“And then we did it. Everyone around me went absolutely crackers. It was very emotional and means everything to us and the people of Oldham.”
“How does Judith feel?”
“Well, ask her yourself.”
“Hello Judith. Ok, what does this mean to you?”
“Hiya love. I’ve lost my voice. I’m a bit croaky, croaky.”
“You must be exhausted.”
“My voice is,” she said.
Your next read
square FOOTBALLWhy Man Utd are in an ideal position to follow PSG’s blueprint to glory
square FOOTBALLMy 23 favourite pictures after visiting all 92 football league stadiums
square FOOTBALLMarco Silva’s Juventus temptation means Fulham must act swiftly
square FOOTBALLArteta and Arsenal sent humble reminder after PSG’s dominant win
Judith explained how football meant little to her when she met her husband and subsequently how weekends were given over to building their business (portable cabin manufacturer). As the business grew, the Rothwells would receive corporate tickets to the Manchester clubs and latterly Oldham.
“We didn’t have time in the early days. It’s only been the last 15 years,” she said.
“Our lives have changed a lot. We have a lot of passion and we want to support Oldham all the way, as much as we can do. We want Oldham to become a family club.
“That’s what we have worked at. Oldham council have been very good with us and we all want to make Oldham a better place for people to live.”
I left them counting the returning Oldham coaches powering back up the M1 towards the brighter future outlined by manager Micky Mellon, who became the first coach to steer a third team out of the National League after Fleetwood Town and Tranmere Rovers.
“I’m speechless,” Mellon said. “This is what it’s all about if you’re on the winning side of it.
“I’m elated. It’s an unbelievable achievement to get a result from where we were. This club is a monster.
“We were under pressure, we needed to go up, it makes so much difference to everything. We can really build forward. Everything changes now. What a day. It will never leave you, this day.”
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Oldham’s promotion was the perfect antidote to grotesque Champions League final )
Also on site :
- Broncos sign TE Caden Prieskorn after injury hits the position
- I Tried 8 Store-Bought Mayos and the Winner Was Abundantly Clear
- Derek Hough Gushes Over Wife Hayley Erbert During Romantic Trip to Greece