Five Norfolk Alliance runners-up will miss out on promotion after Norwich’s defeat
Norwich's EAPL play-off final defeat spelt heartbreak for Liam Conroy and his Thetford team Picture: ARCHANT - Credit: Eastern Daily Press © 2016
Five Norfolk Alliance teams saw their promotion dreams shattered at the weekend when Norwich dropped out of the East Anglian Premier League.
Ashley Watson's side were beaten in a rain-affected play-off final at Saffron Walden and that was bad news for the sides who finished second in the Alliance this season.
In normal circumstances two teams would be promoted from each section -–but that can't happen this time around because of Norwich's relegation and the failure of Premier Division champions Fakenham to win promotion.
Both clubs will be playing their cricket in the Alliance in 2019, and with no provision for an 11-team line-up only Dereham, who finished top, will be going up from Division One.
That will also be the case in Divisions Two to Five, spelling heartbreak for Martham, Acle A, Sheringham and Denver as well as Division One runners-up Thetford.
You may also want to watch:
'It's a great shame for the clubs who have missed out but when this situation arises our rules state that two teams are relegated and only one is promoted,' explained Alliance secretary Andy Westgate.
'They would all have known that at the start of the season and, like me, would have been hoping that Norwich won their game on Saturday. But sadly that's not the way it turned out.
Most Read
- 1 Norfolk wakes up to snow with more expected to fall
- 2 Londoners fined for travelling to stay at second home in Norfolk
- 3 Norfolk's first mass Covid vaccination centre to open in food court
- 4 Drivers face non-essential travel fines after spate of snow crashes
- 5 Covid case rates continue to fall across Norfolk and Waveney
- 6 Government must step in to help 'desperate' Norwich hospital, says MP
- 7 Are you in our Norfolk school photos from the 1970s?
- 8 Voyeur watched people after setting up secret cameras in bathroom
- 9 Woman in 60s suffers serious injuries after car crashes into ditch
- 10 Photo gallery: Snow turns region into winter wonderland
'It is something we have discussed in the past and it was felt it was the best way of dealing with a situation like this. We did experiment with an 11 team league in 2010 when Fakenham came down but it caused all sorts of issues. You have to go from an 18 game to a 22 game fixture grid and it was extremely difficult to fit all the games in.
'So it was decided to stick with 10. It's tough on the second placed teams when this happens but it would obviously work the other way if the Alliance champions went up and no-one came down. Then two teams would go up from each division and only one would go down.'
Fakenham missed out on promotion to the EAPL after losing to Norwich in the semi-finals of play-offs, with Saffron Walden seeing off Worlington from the Two Counties League to set up Saturday's final, which they won by seven wickets after bowling Norwich out for 156.
