WEALDSTONE boss Gordon Bartlett will not lose sleep over the prospect of Wealdstone being moved into the Southern Premier League next season.
The FA's plans for next season of course depend on the outcome of the last few weeks of the current campaign but, given the current standings in the Blue Square South and the Ryman One South, a move sideways for Stones is a distinct possibility.
Of the Blue Square South strugglers (Thurrock, Maidenhead, Lewes and St Albans), only Maidenhead are further west than Bartlett's men. All the Ryman One South promotion chasers (Met Police, Bognor, Whitehawk and Leatherhead) look more likely Ryman Prem candidates.
A return to the Southern League would at one time have filled Wealdstone with trepidation, with longer away trips making it harder to keep and recruit players.
But Bartlett says the current geography of the Ryman League and the vagaries of the M25 mean things have changed a bit.
He said: "We've been in the Southern League before and there are certainly some long journeys, but my philosophy is it is not as bad as it used to be.
"There was a time when the Ryman League was all relatively local, but it is not like that now. We've had trips to Tonbridge, Hastings, Folkestone, Lowestoft and Bury this year in the Ryman.
"We travelled to Bashley in the FA Trophy this year and it was easier getting further out of London than around the M25, so while ideally we would prefer to stay in the Ryman, if we have to move sideways so be it."
