They may not like to admit it but Salford City and Stockport County have a lot in common. Both have been transformed by changes in ownership in recent times and face each other in a League Two playoff semi-final. The two clubs – little more than 10 miles apart – have come a long way in the past five years, from battling for promotion from the National League North.
In the Class of 92’s first five years as Salford’s owners, they achieved four promotions to reach League Two in 2019. Since then things have plateaued but this playoff, with the first leg at Salford on Saturday night, provides a chance to reach the third tier for the first time. Stockport, who have moved back to the Football League under the ownership of Mark Stott, are aiming to return to a division they were last in back in 2009-10.
Championship
Sunderland v Luton Sat 13 May (5.30pm) & Tue 16 May (8pm)
Coventry v Middlesbrough Sun 14 May (12pm) & Wed 17 May (8pm)
Final Sat 27 May (4.45pm), Wembley
League One
Peterborough v Sheffield Wed Fri 12 May (8pm) & Thu 18 May (8pm)
Bolton v Barnsley Sat 13 May (3pm) & Fri 19 May (8pm)
Final Mon 29 May (3pm), Wembley
League Two
Salford v Stockport Sat 13 May (7.45pm) & Sat 20 May (12.30pm)
Bradford v Carlisle Sun 14 May (7pm) & Sat 20 May (3pm)
Final Sun 28 May (1.30pm), Wembley
The former Manchester United teammates Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and the Neville brothers bought Salford in 2014, with David Beckham joining later. They have been open about wanting to reach the Premier League with a club that’s had League Two’s second-lowest average attendance this season at 2,831. The presence of the former internationals helped put the club on the map. A TV documentary, high-profile signings and big sponsorship deals, such as a five-year contract with TalkTalk, would not have happened without the status of their owners.
Stockport visited Salford’s Moor Lane twice in 2017, across two seasons, when the clubs were in National League North. For County, it was part of six seasons in regional football after a dramatic slide down the pyramid from what is now the Championship.
Salford, on the other hand, were on an upward trajectory and secured promotion in 2017-18 in their first campaign as full-time professionals. They won their home game against Stockport that season in front of a then record crowd of 2,358, swelled by 950 County supporters. The Ammies lifted the title while part-time Stockport missed out in the playoffs and had to wait another year to reach the National League.
“You could see the two clubs progressing but not to the points they are today,” says the former Salford and Stockport defender Liam Hogan, who captained both to promotion to the Football League. “They are looking like two great outfits in the Football League, looking to kick on again. They are full-time, have made stadium improvements and are really pushing to get as high up the EFL ladder as they can. It is going to be a very tough game to call.”
Salford were in the eighth tier when the Class of 92 rocked up with grand plans, while Stott turned things around at Edgeley Park after buying the club three years ago and investing heavily. Both clubs have made no bones about their goals to get higher up the pyramid.
Progress back into the league has allowed Stockport to relaunch their academy, where Hogan is the under-12s coach. At Salford, the Class of 92 wanted half their side to comprise youth-team graduates by this stage but scrapped the academy in 2020.
This season Stockport won 2-0 at Salford and drew the reverse fixture. Four points separated the clubs at the end of the 46-game campaign, with Stockport fourth and Salford seventh. Stockport’s most significant recent victory over Salford came when they beat them to take over Manchester City’s old training ground at Carrington.
Salford’s squad is littered with Premier League and Championship experience. The defender Adrian Mariappa helped provide the warm-up act for Argentina’s World Cup triumph, playing against Lionel Messi for Jamaica in a friendly in September. He will be aiming to stop Stockport’s January recruits Isaac Olaofe and Jack Stretton.
The Salford-born Hogan says of the clubs: “Both are in really healthy positions to go and compete in League One; they are really well managed off the field and things have been put in place at Stockport to look for those lofty heights of the Championship with the facilities. Salford will be looking for a permanent base, similar to Stockport’s.”
Salford’s attendances steadily rose as they gained promotions but they have hit a ceiling and only Harrogate had a smaller average gate this season. Stockport are at the other end of the spectrum, taking in 9,068 per game, behind only Bradford, who get almost nine thousand more (and face Carlisle in the division’s other playoff). Stockport have plans to increase their capacity to 20,000.
For both clubs there is room to grow. “Regardless of who wins this semi-final,” Hogan says, “it’s a matter of time before we see both teams in the league above.”
