National League 2020-21 Awards
For the last month, writers and podcasters of all leagues have been posting up their winners and losers from the campaign just gone.
Having taken in the highlights and reviews of over 500 National League fixtures during an eight-month period, it would be rude of me not to join in the fun.
Manager of the Season
Matt Gray – Sutton United
How can it not be? What Sutton United have achieved this season is incredible. The U’s were going strong as the 2019-20 campaign was halted but few expected them to return as champions. They’ve achieved the unthinkable by being the hardest and smartest working team in the division. They get the basics right, they make sure teams have to really earn the points they achieve against them and had the quality to turn games in their favour when the margin for error was tight. Gray has maximised the strengths of his players, stuck to his beliefs and kept his squad grounded when the pressure may have got to them. The 39-year-old will rightly praise the ownership, the coaching staff and everybody else associated with Sutton United but he has been the figurehead and his team have created history.
Player of the Season
Connor Lemonheigh-Evans – Torquay United
There are few things better than watching players have their coming-of-age campaign and this was Connor Lemonheigh-Evans’. The Welshman has been a joy to watch. He’s always involved in attacking moves, always wants the ball, makes clever runs to take away defenders, has an uncanny knack for finding himself in the right place and his delivery from open play and dead ball situations is excellent. His season started perfectly, scoring a last-minute winner against Stockport County and by matchday 17, he had scored 5 and assisted 8 as Torquay stormed to the top of the division. Those numbers wouldn’t be sustained during the middle period of the season where The Gulls were hit by numerous injuries to key players but the 24-year-old remained a positive and his form and confidence showed late in the campaign as Torquay battled it out with Sutton United for the title. He scored against Weymouth, Woking, Notts County, Chesterfield and Barnet and was outstanding in the 2-2 draw against Stockport County, winning a penalty and playing an exquisite pass in the build-up for the second. The Devonshire outfit ultimately fell short of first place but Connor Lemonheigh-Evans can look back on this campaign with real pride.
Moment of the season
Sutton United 3-0 Hartlepool United – the final whistle
The great shame of the 2020-21 season has been the lack of supporters in stadiums so it was heartwarming to see 21 of the remaining 22 National League sides host fans in May. For Sutton United fans, the return was extra special. Having watched their side via live streams all season, they were welcomed back to the game against Hartlepool United knowing victory would seal their promotion – their first ever into the Football League. Sutton United fans were returning to witness history. Goals from Rob Milsom, Louis John and Isaac Olaofe sealed the three points and the final whistle was met by an outpouring of noise and emotion. Proof, as if it was ever needed, that football needs fans.
Goal of the Season
Many would have understood if Sam Barratt hadn’t returned to Maidenhead United the same player that left. His dream Football League move had been spoiled by injury and soured by relegation. He returned to Maidenhead United knowing he would be looked after. It could not have gone better. Barratt scored 15 goals in 29 matches, 24 starts. Headers from corners, penalties, low efforts from outside of the box into the bottom corner and came the crème de la crème. The sheer audacity was matched by an unerring accuracy. There have been some fine goals scored in the National League this season but none hold a torch to this:
Assist of the Season
I love watching James Comley play football. I can’t imagine he receives much in the way of instruction from Alan Devonshire, just an understanding between the pair that Comley should get on or be given the ball as much as possible and make things happen. The 30-year-old knows his quality, plays with freedom on the pitch and occasionally, produces things like this:
Save of the Season
Hartlepool United’s title charge was slipping. Dave Challinor’s side had won 10 of their last 18 but had drawn their last three and when Woking came to visit, they must have felt the world was against them. This was a confident display but Luke Molyneux had hit the bar, Tom White and Luke Williams couldn’t finish chances while a couple of crosses just evaded the toes of men in blue. The score was 0-0 at the hour mark and Woking had a rare break. The ball was worked out to one-time England winger Matt Jarvis who delivered a teasing cross that had Sam Ashford’s eyes lighting up. The on-loan forward headed the ball downwards and must have been mentally preparing his celebration. Then Ben Killip moved his feet, moved his hands and produced this:
Player I most enjoyed watching
Jacob Mendy – Wealdstone
I’ve enjoyed watching a lot of players in the National League this season but there is something about Jacob Mendy that just excites me. I had genuinely never heard of him before the season started but his early-season strikes against Wrexham and Chesterfield put him on the map, both struck into the top corner from at least 25 yards out. I had to know more. Here was a 24-year-old that had worked his way up from the lowest tiers of English football to make it at National League level and he was taking to it like a duck to water while his team-mates struggled to adapt. He is built like an athlete, is brave and composed enough to step infield from left-back and play and possesses a left-foot that strikes a ball with power, purpose and precision. He has been such a threat going forward that Stuart Maynard changed his position from left-back to right-wing or wing-back. Mendy has stood out like a sore thumb and I can’t wait to see where he goes next.
Player I was wrong about
Tyrone Barnett – Eastleigh
During my years of football fandom, I’ve come across Tyrone Barnett a few times. I can’t say I’ve ever been too fond, if truth be told. That has changed this season. It could be experience, it could be having the faith of his manager, it could be the role he is now playing, it could be that I know nothing about football (which is probably the most likely answer) but Barnett is a completely different player to the one I remember. The ball sticks with him, he’s dominant in the air and provides a presence in attack that makes life difficult for opposition defenders and easier for his more youthful team-mates. He has been durable too. Barnett is 35 years of age yet he has started 33 league matches and scored 12 goals, his highest totals since 2011/12. Clearly, Barnett is an excellent professional, a reliable forward and I’ve been happily proved wrong.
Surprise package
Kyle Hudlin – Solihull Moors
When a 20-year-old striker standing 6”9 playing in the 11th tier of English football signs for a National League club, you don’t expect him to finish the season having played 39 games (24 starts) and scored 12 goals in all competitions yet here we are. Injuries played a part in Hudlin getting his chance – Solihull Moors had lost four or five attacking players when Hudlin was thrown in at the deep end by Jimmy Shan – but he most definitely took his opportunity. Most impressive is that Hudlin is not a “head on a stick” stereotype. He can play. The ball sticks with his feet or chest, he’s awkward to defend against and quicker than opposition players seem to anticipate thanks to his lengthy strides. He scores a wide variety of goals too. He has scored a tap in, a back post header, rounded the keeper, a 20-yard thunderbolt, a side-foot finish from 25 yards and then there is his winner against FC Halifax Town when he controlled a free-kick on his chest then teed himself up for a volley that landed in the top corner from 25 yards. I doubt even Hudlin believed his chance would come around this quickly but boy has he made the most of it.
Biggest gripe
The failings of the National League
Focus on the top end of the National League table and you would be forgiven for thinking all is well. At the bottom, it was a mess. A mess mostly created by the National League board. They initially won a grant from the government to support clubs, based on the gate receipts being lost due to the pandemic per club. They botched the handing out process and gave National League clubs the majority of it. They told clubs they would receive further money if fans remained unable to attend matches but failed to take (or keep) official notes meaning they could not back this claim up when the time came. National League North and South clubs stopped playing, then the majority voted to end the season. Dover Athletic decided they couldn’t afford to continue. King’s Lynn Town furloughed the majority of their squad. They, along with Woking, Altrincham and Wealdstone, went into freefall on the pitch because aside from professional pride, what was the point? They weren’t being relegated. And as the season finished, a vote of no confidence raised by National League North and South clubs was thrown out because they only get four votes per division – 33 clubs voted in favour of a no confidence vote. Southend United and Grimsby Town were rightly ridiculed for their attempts to avoid relegation via the court rooms but you can understand why they briefly thought about trying their luck – this season has been a shit show.
National League Team of the Season
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