"There would be no better present for the club’s 125th birthday than for the club to reclaim its rightful place in the town" - Aylesbury United Chairman

Writing to the Bucks Herald, Graham Read has shared his thoughts on two seasons 'like no others'.

He wrote:

The current situation has shown us both how unimportant football is in the grand scheme of things, and yet at the same time how important it is when we’re not able to get together and share our collective passion for the game.

While everyone accepts the necessity of the current restrictions, it is still frustrating given the efforts made by the club, volunteers and its supporters that allowed football at our level to restart safely in September. Doubly so, given the encouraging on-field performances by the team, that has led the club to its highest position in the football pyramid for 20 years.

As a club without a home for the past 15 years – since our eviction from Buckingham Road stadium in Aylesbury in 2006 – we have been fortunate to sidestep some of the difficult decisions facing many clubs at our level with physical assets and permanent staff. And we have an understanding landlord in Chesham United, with whom we share a ground and whose help has been invaluable in navigating the new precautions and provisions needed to host games.

The Meadow has proved to be a home away from home for the past three seasons, and has become somewhat of a fortress. Since the start of the 2019-20 season, the Ducks have only lost once at home in the league – a record even more remarkable given the previous season, the team only notched up seven wins in total at home during the season prior. When the 2019-20 season was terminated, the Ducks were fifth, in a play-off position. When the current season was halted, we were also in fifth position. And a combined table based on points-per-game across both seasons, see us placed fifth – so we’ve certainly been consistent. And given the miniscule playing budget (the club refuses to play beyond its means), these performances are remarkable.

The abrupt conclusion to the season in March unfortunately denied us the opportunity to really celebrate the upturn in fortunes and those that contributed to it. We were lucky enough to pay tribute to long-serving midfielder and club stalwart Greg Williams, who achieved his 500th appearance for the Ducks shortly before the termination.

The credit for the turnaround must go to manager Ben Williams and his assistant Mike Hogg and Paul Batchelor, and the majority of the squad that have chosen to remain with the team despite the disruption. The positivity around the squad has spread to the terraces, and even in spite of the restrictions and the inherent difficulty in playing 30 minutes out of town, gates were up.

The few matches that did take place between September and the second lockdown in November, did at least give the increased crowds plenty of value for money. A heartbreaking defeat on penalties in the FA Cup against Moneyfields (in a game that had already featured four penalties in regular time), was followed by a remedying penalty shoot-out victory in the FA Trophy against Tilbury. And that’s not even mentioning coming back from 2-0 down against Daventry Town in the league to win 3-2 with an injury time penalty. (Penalties seem to have played a disproportionate role in the season’s drama.) With no further football looking likely this season, the club has offered to carry forward season tickets and player sponsorship for the next season, as a gesture of goodwill to those who have followed the club with dedication even without a ground to call our own.

Unfortunately, the club’s nomadic existence appears set to continue for the foreseeable future, with The Meadow at least secured as our home for a further season. Fans continue to draw attention to our plight as part of the campaign to #BringTheDucksHome. In October a group of supporters raised an astonishing £1,000 for the club’s charity partner – The Ducklings Trust, which funds equipment and improvements to the maternity department at Aylesbury’s Stoke Mandeville Hospital – by walking 14.5 miles from Buckingham Road in Aylesbury to The Meadow in Chesham.

Buckingham Road, which has remained derelict since the club was evicted in 2006, was put on the open market in 2019. But despite the club placing a bid for the land, we were trumped by a housing developer. A planning application for 42 houses on the site was submitted to the Council in November 2020, and in spite of around 180 objections, it appears unlikely that returning there is a realistic option for the club.

That doesn’t mean hope of returning to the town is lost though. The club continues to pursue other options in the town, ably assisted by supporter and the leader of Aylesbury Town Council Rich Lloyd. And the club’s juniors, ladies and girls, and walking football sides all continue to fly the flag for the team playing within the town.

There would be no better anniversary present for the club’s 125th celebrations in 2022 than for the club to reclaim its rightful place in the town.