The Football Club That Wouldn't Die.

how long have you been to Berry Farm for 52 years 1971. what have you been doing in the last four years now I was here pretty much where I'm still now waiting for the news that though from the football league will tears be shared yeah well you will know him [Music] so how did Berry go from being a respected servant of English football to not exist in for four years [Music] this man is Steve Dale he admitted on radio that he didn't know Barry existed before he purchased them that's probably a basic entry-level requirement when buying a football club he bought Berry for one pound in 2018 from Stuart day it's more common than you think in football that you can buy a club for basically the same price as chocolate bar these days well we're here then at gig Lane this stadium is now the home of a a ninth Level Club in the pyramid to be a football club owner in the UK you've got to pass the efl fit and proper test Steve Dale had been a director of over 20 companies that were either dissolved in liquidation or a CVA yeah go on then let's let him in that'll be a right laugh c5000 here today it's just uh amazing five thousand that's that's incredible division nine as well and um hopefully we can carry on that momentum towards season now and move on and you know get up the leagues you know how far we can get all the league as a fan on a fan run Club you know you know because as you go up it's like to the National League North you know it's a lot of money there great to be back you know there's a lot of memories of this ground it's great that we're back in the ground but Barry we're in a lot of debt they couldn't pay players staff or hmrc which is tax Steve Dale was given an offer for Berry he rejected it reportedly it was because he believed he could get a better offer Barry would then thrown out of the English football league in August 2019. I know just say I am actually a Bolton fan so you're gonna watch the game yeah and I want I want the Rivalry back yeah it'd be brilliant matches back again but at the moment it'll have to be rivalry against Prestwick cheers Dale placed Barry into Administration Berry still existed they just had no players no League no staff you do need those things if we're being completely honest wow there's an old entrance so you can see the ticket price used to be 20 pounds for adults today it's 10 pounds but they have dropped down about five divisions since those ticket prices I'm not being brutal it's just a fact Phoenix nights Fab television show Phoenix clubs completely different concept A Phoenix Club is a football club created so the fans still have someone to support when their Club is going through struggles Berry AFC began the 2021 season in division one north of the nwcfl they ground shared with Radcliffe football club everyone's saying hello everyone's excited they've got volunteers everywhere volunteers who've painted the steps inside the ground volunteers have cleaned the six volunteers who've cut the grass and got it ready for football Community together and I'm sure it would happen if City or United Bolton Wigan wanted that in fact we've seen it at Wigan and Bolton in the troubles they've had but it just brings the best out of people and non-league football has this different sense of community that nowhere else can it get so that's what makes it so special [Music] very FC was said to have debts of over 15 million pounds the administrators whose job is to find a way to pay this money off put gig Lane up for sale [Music] fairy fans were tirelessly thinking of ways in which they can get their stadium and their Club back and one year later a group called established 1885 purchased gig Lane and acquired the berry FC name so Berry FC had a stadium and no team Berry AFC had a team but no gig Lane [Music] fans voted to merge Berry AFC and Berry FC the fa confirmed that Berry FC could be used [Music] thank you what are you playing [Music] [Applause] [Music] so my grandma she started coming in at late 70s early 80s she's a season to get older year on year she was always here and um the club went under in and she followed shortly after I think I still think it's linked I think where Barry went a part of her went as well um so me and my family are here today she'll be here with us we know she won't be um but it's a special day from the town as well it's just very special [Music] thank you [Applause] I don't think there's enough space there [Applause] we go [Music] back thank you [Applause] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] how did Barry get to the Premier League from where they are it's gonna be the context so they're currently in the Northwest counties Premier Division One promotion would take them to the Northern premier league first division another promotion was taken to the Northern premier league Premier Division another promotion was taken to the National League North another promotion was taken to the National League then they would be promoted to League Football League two then League one then the championship and then the Premier League it's just pretty easy to be clear again no it just takes me after about a decade Fleetwood Town won this league 18 years ago and then six years later they signed Jamie vardy you probably won't sign Jamie valdi that doesn't make any logistical sense but you will sign the next Jamie vardy you just don't know where football's going to take you in life [Applause] and in the first 10 minutes got a penalty [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] foreign thing about the history books is that we create them ourselves and we think of Barry as a club that have won two fa cups as fa cups were in 1901 and 1903. I'd be a bit alarmed if there's anybody on present day that was alive to see those fa cups but we still think of them and Berry fans will cherish the fact that they've won those two fa cups once it's been written and it can't be Unwritten so 100 years ago we think of that and in 100 years time we won't be thinking about the villains of the story Steve Dale a relevant an irrelevant man in the part of history in which Barry and the supporters were basically able to come together as a community and save their football ground and save their club and this next 10 years 15 years of Barry basically trying to get promoted and promoted and get back to the football league will be a huge part of their history that they'll look fondly back on and they can forget all the stuff that was before and all the irrelevant people that were involved in the demise because that was nothing to do with them and basically people came tried to kill their Club and they resurrected it and that is amazing that's absolutely amazing imagine the people who lived here that don't like football and got four years apiece I thought you were dead Barry I kind of watched different point in pieces

Channel: StuntPegg

Views: 265,223

Keywords: premier league, what on earth, football, football club, bury fc, bury, bury fc expelled, bury fc documentary, bury fc last game, gigg lane, football club that wouldn't die, english football

Id: oBlF24WfqLw

Length: 9min 45sec (585 seconds)

Published: Wed Aug 09 2023