Is This the Toughest Title Race Ever in England?

If Liverpool, Arsenal, Nottingham Forest, Chelsea, and Manchester City were only divided by three points with six matches remaining, everybody would claim that this might turn out to be one of the most thrilling finishes in Premier League history.

However, moving from the glitz and fame of top-flight football down to the sixth tier of English football is precisely what’s happening currently in the National League South.

This might be the most closely matched league in England at present – possibly even in all of Europe – where both well-known clubs and lesser-known sides compete fiercely for a single spot of automatic promotion along with securing an advantageous position heading into the playoffs.

Who will emerge victorious among Worthing, Truro City, Eastbourne Borough, Dorking Wanderers, and Torquay United in their pursuit of securing a spot in the National League?

Home advantage for the top team, Worthing

"We consistently believed that if we managed to navigate the initial seven matches with at least an average point yield, it could possibly position us well for a favorable conclusion to the season," says Chris Agutter, the manager of Worthing, speaking to GudangMovies21Radio Sussex.

Despite leading the league, The Rebels' advantage has significantly diminished from a four-point cushion with an extra match to now following consecutive defeats against struggling Welling United and middle-of-the-table Hornchurch.

However, the fact they are in first place at all is quite an achievement considering they began the season with six consecutive away matches because of renovation work at their Woodside Road stadium.

However, they secured 11 out of a potential 18 points away from home — with their sole defeat being a decisive 5-0 loss to their closest competitors, Truco City.

Given that Agutter's team has four home games in their last six matches, you'd likely consider them favorites—though they still need to play three teams currently in the top five.

He remarks that their beginning of the season lacked positivity since they did not emerge victorious in every match.

However, when considering matches played away from home and the travel involved, if you analyze it logically, you would think, 'actually, that’s quite a good points haul'.

During the incredible Christmas season, we faced seven out of the top eight teams and managed to secure 30 points from 36 available, which was when we won many crucial matches to get ourselves into this favorable situation.

A Cornwall National League team for the first time ever?

Trailing behind in second place, Truro City has emerged as perhaps the biggest surprise of this season in the National League South.

A year ago, they were confronting each other. a sequence of 13 matches over 28 days To conclude the season following floods at their temporary ground, they still managed to achieve a 16th-place finish, which was nine points clear of the relegation zone.

Last summer they lost manager Paul Wotton to nearby club Torquay United and proceeded to hire an individual with extensive experience across various levels of lower-tier football at the upper end of non-league competition - John Askey.

He has assumed leadership of a team that could have the smallest budget among the championship contenders, yet possesses an infectious energy. a brand new ground and relatively new owners.

The ex-manager of Port Vale, Shrewsbury Town, and Hartlepool United understands what it takes to achieve promotions at this tier—he steered Macclesfield Town to the National League championship in 2018 and took York City to promotion through the playoffs in National League North three years prior.

Yet, despite his extensive experience of over twenty years as a manager, he has never encountered a championship battle quite similar to this one.

"He suggests you might drop to as low as sixth place, but everyone still has a strong shot at taking first spot," he says to GudangMovies21 Radio Cornwall.

What we solely have control over is, relative to the other squads and excluding Worthing, it lies within our grasp.

If we manage to win all six remaining matches, we will secure the championship. While it’s not quite that straightforward, everything is now within our control.

I believe we’ve had a successful season regardless of the outcome, which likely means there’s less stress for our team compared to others. Even with just six matches remaining, I’m certain there will still be some unexpected developments as the season draws to a close.

'A year filled with turmoil for Torquay'

Among the teams vying for promotion, Torquay United is the most recognizable.

The Gulls remained in the lower two divisions of the English Football League for 87 years before relegation in 2014.

Since then, they've experienced quite a few downs as well. loss in the 2021 National League playoff finals on penalties was followed by relegation to the sixth tier for the second time in 2023.

And then, last year, they entered administration after Clarke Osborne, who was the owner at that time, ceased providing financial support to the club.

A group of local businesspeople assumed control. And reconstructed a team that only consisted of one player and lacked a manager.

"The past year has been filled with drama for Torquay United, and this will persist until the very last moment of play on the final day of the season—it’s quite remarkable," says co-chairman Michael Westcott to GudangMovies21Sport.

Financial sustainability has always been our aim; however, we remain ambitious as well. We believed we had put together a team capable of competing in this league. At the start of the season, our objective was to secure a spot in the playoffs.

Westcott's unexpected encounter with former Gulls manager NeilWarnock concluded with the ex-sheffield united, crystal palace, middlesbrough manager, to mention only a few of his teams, joining as a consultant.

Given the club’s storied league history and average attendance over 1,500 spectators higher than their closest competitors, Westcott believes Torquay has been the dominant force this season.

He remarks, 'I suppose our legacy precedes us, and people continue to view us as the dominant players.'

Whenever teams visit Plainmoor, they elevate their performance since they face audiences many of their players haven’t competed in front of previously, and we’re considered the prize that every team within our division aims to secure.

We've had to struggle with that issue, but I believe our standing in the league mirrors the budgets we operate with.

While we may appear like a large organization, our budget isn’t the biggest in the league; actually, multiple teams have significantly bigger budgets. This is due to our commitment to managing the club responsibly.

We require the club to achieve financial sustainability to ensure we never return to the situation we were in during February of last year.

'A very average league'

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the National League South has witnessed several dominant teams emerging as clear victors.

In last season, Yeovil Town clinched the championship by a margin of 11 points. Meanwhile, Ebbsfleet United led the pack by 20 points over the team in second place in 2023. The previous year, Maidstone United topped the league table with a lead of just six points.

Why has it been so closely contested this season?

"Frankly, I believe this is a bad split," Marc White, the manager and owner of Dorking Wanderers, stated to GudangMovies21Radio Surrey.

He trails by three points at the summit of the leaderboard after getting demoted from the National League in the previous season.

I believe we belong to that lower division, and I feel we aren’t top-notch. The league itself is quite ordinary with mediocre teams.

However, is it truly that terrible? Not always, as per Hayden Baker, a fan of Worthing.

"It’s strange to claim that the league has declined in quality this season since no team is dominating as they did in our last couple of years — teams like Ebbsfleet and Yeovil thoroughly outplayed this division before," he explains to GudangMovies21Sussex.

The consistency in the quality of the league spans all throughout its divisions.

The gap between a team in the top six and one that’s around 16th or 17th has become quite small nowadays.

There’s tremendous drive throughout the league, with each team believing they have a rightful claim or possess an aspiration to make it into the National League.

Despite the quality of football falling short of expectations, the thrill of a tightly contested title battle more than compensates for it.

And with so many sides in with a chance, who is to say who will be lifting the title come the final day of the season on 26 April.