Scunthorpe United

The Case For Them

Here is the argument for Scunthorpe United: England, England National League, and a ground called Glanford Park. A second team should give you something your first one cannot, and this is a different country's whole weather system.

• The calendar you inherit

  England National League is cold-weather football: mud in February, breath visible under the lights, and a fixture list that rewards anyone who sticks it out. England does not do easy neutrals.

• Old enough to matter

  1899 is the founding date, old enough that the club has survived a war, a rebuild and at least one financial scare, young enough that the good years are still in living memory.

• Nothing won, everything to play for

  Trophyless, so far. That is the pitch: be there before the story turns.

• Close to the pitch

  Glanford Park holds about 9,088. You can hear the defenders shouting at each other, which is the single best argument for lower-capacity football.