As Head of Media, what do you see as the biggest challenge in showcasing a non-league club like Stony Stratford Town FC to a wider audience?

The biggest challenge that I face is local captivity. Locally we have MK Dons, Newport Pagnell Town, MK Irish and a few others from step 6-8 that we are competing against for supporters. Actually getting people through the gate instead of them going to other local clubs is the biggest challenge. 

What strategies have you found most effective in engaging local supporters and creating a consistent media presence for the club?

I try to use X as much as possible with multiple days of build up posts, interviews and highlights to try to get more eyes on the club in the hope that it will get a handful more people down at the club. I started regularly posting to the club’s YouTube and even founded the TikTok account to try to keep a consistent audience engaged with the club. I find just regular posting on X keeps the audience we have the most captivated

How do you balance match-day responsibilities—content creation, filming, social updates—without missing the human side of the game

Sometimes I do miss the human side when I’m writing the twitter updates but when I’m not writing the updates I’m on the subs bench with the boys. The cameras are on the other side of the pitch and I press record before the game and let them sit and record, not touching them until the end of the game. I try to spend as much time before the game talking to the lads and warming the GK up and during the game I’ll just sit and talk to them, even missing the football sometimes.

Can you share a moment at Stony Stratford Town FC where your media work directly impacted community engagement or club momentum?

A few times some of the long-time supporters had come over to talk to me because they recognised me as the media guy and they sounded very impressed with the work I do. It’s really good to see the “old boys” of the club recognising and keeping up with the club at home which was much harder for them to do before I came in. A few people at College had asked to play for Stony because they had seen the highlights which was really good to see that we were building some casual watchers which is a net positive for the club. 

How do you future-proof the club’s media approach as digital expectations continue to rise at non-league level?

I make sure that all graphics are made long, long in advance so it gives me more time to create extra posts. In all honesty at Step 7 the expectations are already so low that to be churning out the amount we do already is a massive overachievement. I just try to keep consistent with everything always happening at the same time each week so we can build a platform not through needless production but consistent, regular and polished content. 

What initially attracted you to the analytical and tactical side of football that led you into opposition scouting?

I have always been interested in the behind the scenes of football and through playing, refereeing, watching and being in and around it all day everyday I thought I would apply for the job at Nuneaton but luckily on the same day Harry Harris contacted me and asked if I wanted to help out at Coleshill so I said yes and from that day I have spent all day everyday working on it to try to improve and learn more, from that I’ve only grown more interested in it. 

When preparing reports for Coleshill FC, what are the key patterns, behaviours, or metrics you focus on first?

Harry (Coleshill manager) has five things he wants to know before each game, they are: formation, style of play, strongest players, weakest players and set piece routines. So that is all I focus on. I do like to include set piece takers and squad depth to give him some extra things to think about. I like to look at formations first because only when you work out the formation can you see who is a strong or weak player. Some players will be good in one system but very poor in another.

How do you approach scouting non-league sides whose data and footage may be limited or inconsistent?

I usually look on club websites, X or I’ll just search for the club on google. It’s hard to find a lot of content but with a handful of clubs like AFC Rushden & Diamonds and Bedworth regularly posting highlights it does make my job a lot easier. I like to watch a lot of interviews because you can find out a lot from what a manager has to say when criticising his team. If the club has changed managers during the season then I’ll only look at more recent content as managers have wildly different styles so it rules out massive amounts of data. 

What’s the most surprising tactical insight you’ve uncovered while scouting that significantly helped a team prepare?

Most teams that I have looked at use one of three different formations which makes preparation a lot easier. They are all variants of a 4-2-2, 4-3-3 or 5-3-2. With that in mind identifying a formation is made a lot easier, but it’s very surprising that there aren’t a lot more 0-0’s in the NPL Midlands. 

How do you adapt your analysis style depending on the manager’s preferences or the level of detail they want?

I always try to include as much detail as possible so Harry has as much information as possible to pass onto the players. I always do the same things for each category. I very rarely mix it up unless there are very special circumstances like a cup game or the team has incredibly limited information on the team. The manager always asks the same things of me and knows what to expect, of course I always deliver!

What inspired you to launch Football Fixtures Buckinghamshire, and what gap did you feel needed to be filled in local football media

I’m a massive fan of local football in my area and I felt that anything to help push it forward was a positive. It has given me the chance to meet and speak to some really top quality people and get around to some new grounds and clubs that I previously haven’t been to. It’s really hard to juggle Stony with FFB but I try my best to get both done to the highest quality possible with the most consistent schedule. The other reason was that I noticed a lot of local sides aren’t active on X so I thought I can give them that extra element of exposure. 

How do you source, curate, and verify fixtures across the county to ensure supporters always have accurate information?

So the first thing I do is check FA Full-time to see what fixtures are around (roughly), I will then check facebook or X to see if the information is conflicting – if not then I’ll use my prior knowledge as a third level of verification and say that I know where the ground is, but if there is still doubt then I have an extensive list of contacts that has somebody from every club who will know where the game is. 

What does the future look like for Football Fixtures Buckinghamshire—expansion, partnerships, new content formats, or covering new areas?

I definitely won’t be looking to cover new areas any time soon. I’m looking to hire a few volunteers so the amount of high quality match reports and commentary can increase which is phase 3 of the 5 phase plan. Phase 1 was getting it off the ground with an X account and a few graphics, Phase two was a LinkedIn and a website along with match reports, live commentary and the Sunday league round-up. The other three phases are just growth strategies to cover more leagues in the roundup segment, produce more video content, conduct some more interviews, produce highlights for clubs, hire volunteers and get our first paid sponsorship (which is the last part of phase 5). Overall the future is really bright with lots of content coming out every week – with a lot more to come in the new year!

How has running Football Fixtures Buckinghamshire shaped your understanding of the football community beyond matchdays?

In all honesty it hasn’t made my thoughts on matchday’s any different, it makes my Sundays a bit fuller with a lot more to do but my actual matchday workload has stayed largely the same. I’ve been involved in the capacity I’m in now for a while and FFB is my way of showcasing my passion. 

Non-league football is built on community and passion—what does it personally mean to you, and why do you choose to invest so much time across various roles within it?

When I first moved to Milton Keynes I went to watch my local team called MK City, I then started watching MK Dons and it was that that made me love non league football. As prices increased it pushed me away so I went to watch MK Irish and slowly I fell down the football ladder working odd jobs here and there with clubs. Videos that they would promote, interviews and then I found Stony when I had contacted a few clubs as I was looking to film a Bunch of Amateurs style series with a local team and they were the first to respond.

Since then I have stopped filming the series as it was too much effort for very little reward personally but I stayed on to work with them as Head Of Media which allowed me to stay at the club and build a real brand for them. Football is my whole life and all the jobs I do take up every minute of every day. If I’m not making graphics I’m watching highlights of a team in the midlands, if I’m not doing that I’m making sure I’ve got all my fixture information correct. I never take time off but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I really found my purpose in working in a local non-league and without it I would have literally nothing to do with my time at all.

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At just 17 years old the commitment and dual roles in which Leland has taken on is one to be applauded.

I tip my hat to anyone who devotes their time free of charge to any organisation be it football or a charitable cause – so from myself well done Leland and keep up the great work you are doing.

Until next time!

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