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Sunday League football in Newbury is in crisis. Ten years ago, the league had 21 teams, comprising three divisions. A decade on, they now have just seven sides altogether. The past two years alone have seen eight clubs call it quits. Chairman of the league, Bill Fry, fears that this season could be the last, after 57 years of local football. Asked to explain why the number of sides had decreased so catastrophically, Fry laid out what he sees as the causes. “Costs, locally”, he said. “The FA say grassroots football is supported, but it’s not easy to get money out of them. “It isn’t subsidised, …

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