To play football or not to play football? That is the question facing an increasing number of adults, as Sport England statistics show a fall in the number of participants from 2,990,700 in 2017 to only 1,451,700 in 2021.

Whilst the success of the England Lionesses will inevitably boost the number of women coming into the game, this will only serve to mask the clear and obvious decline in men playing our National game.

The Football Association’s post-Covid strategy for growing grassroots football does recognise the importance of retaining and re-engaging millions of male participants in the game, as well as delivering safe and inclusive Club environments and improving the quality of facilities.

However, the FA’s £180m investment strategy, planned for completion in 2024, appears somewhat flawed in its belief that 13.5m people in the UK are playing football “regularly” each year. Without understanding the true nature of the problem in front of them, how can the FA hope to address it?

The Toolstation Western League sits at the Rubicon between football’s fabled non-league pyramid and the grassroots game, falling between two strategic stools when it comes to growing and supporting the game.

Faced with dwindling player participation, the lowest rung in the National League System must recognise the threat that it could be confined to feeder league status, as the FA did with Step 7 of the NLS in 2020. Drawing up the NLS’s drawbridge in the face of declining Club and player numbers only perpetuates the belief that male participation in Saturday afternoon football is in decline.

The critics of the proposed merger between the Western League and South West Peninsula League, commonly known as Project South West, suggest the proposal to create a new division across Devon and Cornwall, will dilute the quality of competition. At first glance, the presence of thirty six clubs at a level of the game where only twenty currently compete, suggests over promotion. Yet its players, not clubs, that dictate the quality of the competition, so with a player pool in apparent decline what can Clubs and Leagues do to address this problem?

The post-Covid world has manifested many changes in our lives and Saturday afternoon entertainment for young men is no exception. The prospect of an eight hour round trip from Midsomer Norton to Mousehole is unlikely to fill anyone with enthusiasm, let alone finding the money to pay for the petrol. Whilst some may relish travelling to compete against teams from other parts of the region, the practical realities of 21st Century Britain must be recognised if non-league football, at the base of the pyramid, is to be made sustainable.

Making travel time more compatible with the rest of the non-league pyramid will inevitably ensure that more players are retained in the game and not lost to feeder league football. Indeed, reconciling the regions geographical challenges makes it more likely that players capable of competing at a higher level, will consider staying closer to home. Rather than diluting the product, an argument can clearly be made that Project South West will enhance it.

Player retention and financial sustainability need to be at the heart of the debate concerning how football is administered in the South West. Teams from Devon and Cornwall competing in the Western League is nothing new, but history has shown it to be unsustainable with teams including; Ilfracombe, Dawlish, Torrington and Exmouth all dropping out of the league to compete in more local competitions. Since the early 90’s Saltash left the Western League twice to compete in the old South Western League.

The appetite for competitive football in Devon and Cornwall is obvious. The ability of players from the region to compete in the Southern League and above, let alone the Western League is equally clear. However, ability and opportunity alone don’t guarantee that players are recruited and retained in the non league game and that is the critical issue for Project South West. If playing Western League football is not considered compatible with the lifestyles players wish to lead then they will be lost to the game, regardless of whether they live in Portishead or Penzance. Marcus Brody