Bradford (Park Avenue) look able to cope with new challenge

As we know, it is the first time in over a decade that Avenue have been down at this level, after a rollercoaster ride in the sixth tier.

Play-off near misses and relegation great escapes have both featured in that spell, but the club’s time finally ran out at the end of April, as they slipped into the Northern Premier League Premier Division.

But for years, long-serving manager Mark Bower has insisted that Avenue’s goal, first and foremost, was to stay in National League North.

Avenue will have a new experience this season, having narrowly failed to survive in National League North. (Image: John Rhodes.)

All of a sudden, Bradford are big fish in a new division, so a successful season suddenly looks very different.

Speaking to Simon Parker last month, Bower said: “The onus now will be on us to dictate games and dominate, be the better team.

“It will be tough, don’t get me wrong. There are obviously more big budgets in the Conference North but there are still a fair few in this league as well.”

And reflecting on what Avenue can achieve, he said: “We have been punching above our weight for the last few years in that league.

“When the luck goes against you, like it did when we had 11 or 12 players injured in one spell when we were playing every Saturday and midweek, it really did cause us problems.

“We’ve kept some good players for the level. If we can keep people fit and get near to our best 11 out on the pitch every week, then we should be competing in the top half of the table.

George Sykes-Kenworthy was at City only recently, and many might have expected him to move on from Avenue after their relegation. (Image: Thomas Gadd.)

“Do that and you’re looking to get into the top five and hopefully back to where we’ve just come from.

“We’ve definitely got a few more bodies to bring in.

“We won’t have a squad full of depth. We’re going to have a core of decent quality, experienced players for that level.”

Crucially for Avenue, who remember were only relegated on the final day of last term, they have retained an impressive number of players, including the likes of Luca Havern, Oli Johnson and Jamie Spencer, who have tasted relative success at the club.

While many sides find themselves picked apart, or simply have players no longer wanting to stay, after going down, Bower has been rewarded for fostering a fine team spirit over the last few years, with many happy to help him try and guide the side back up.

From all of Steps 1 to 6 in the Non-League system (Avenue now find themselves in Step 3), promotion has been standardised, to ensure the champions go up and the four teams below them enter the play-offs.

Four also go down from Steps 1 to 3, as Avenue know all too well from last year, while some of their neighbours in and around Bradford are more fortunate, with two relegated from Step 4, only one from Step 5, and three being liable to drop from Step 6, depending on the suitability of the amateur teams primed to replace them.

But for once, Avenue are surely looking at that top end of the table, rather than avoiding that dreaded trapdoor.

Ultimately, a couple of moves have been made that should improve Avenue regardless.

Avenue owner Gareth Roberts wrote off £1.8m of the club’s £2.1m debt in June, turning that into equity/shares, meaning the financial constraints that have held the club back for a long time should be much less severe.

And in addition to their ever-growing academy, the Horsfall outfit are now moving to a hybrid structure, meaning they will finally have full-time players and coaches among their set-up as well as part-time ones.

Oli Johnson is now a strength and conditioning coach at Avenue as well as a striker. (Image: John Rhodes.)

That should offer a step up in the level of professionalism for the club, and allow them to dedicate the time and energy needed to some of the brightest talents in BD6.

Avenue have a reputation for notoriously sluggish starts to league seasons, and that is one drawback of this league, the unpredictable nature of the teams in it, given many will be all-new to the club.

Ever-growing phoenix club Macclesfield FC, Avenue’s opening day opponents, are a case in point.

Having been formed just three years ago, they have won back-to-back promotions, with famous pundit and Welsh international Robbie Savage as their director of football.

Who knows whether this will prove a step too far for them or whether their epic rise will continue.

But after an early wobble in pre-season saw them trounced by Campion, Avenue have played well in beating the Bantams and Chorley, and pushing Blackpool all the way, since.

It gives them some momentum heading into 2023/24 and with a settled squad and a sense of stability off the field, Avenue really should have no excuses other than to challenge towards the top.