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Pete Lamont kept Wallingford afloat

After a nightmare season, AFC Wallingford are to drop out of the Sport Italia Hellenic League and join the North Berks League.

Wallingford, beset by financial problems, finished bottom of the Premier Division, winning only two of their 42 games and conceding 164 goals in the process.

They would have been relegated to Division 1 East,but told the league that they wished to drop down another level.

"I see this as a positive step," said Wallingford chairman Gerry O'Garr.

"The only way we could rebuild the club, both financially and on the playing side, was to join the North Berks League.

"Playing in Division 1 of the Hellenic would have been almost as expensive as being in the Premier. In our financial state we could not afford that."

Reflecting on the season just finished, O'Garr said: "With our income, we just could not compete.

"Lots of players left and it was only thanks to manager Pete Lamont, that we were able to complete the season.

"With his contacts and commitment, Pete did brilliantly to keep us going."

However, Lamont indicated that he wished to step down at the end of the season to concentrate on his business commitments.

"We're very grateful, for all he did," said O'Garr.

The new man in charge is former Wallingford player Mark Bonner, who managed Cholsey United to success in the Reading Sunday League over the last two seasons.

"It's all about getting local people involved and rebuilding the club over a number of years," said O'Garr.

AFC Wallingford were actually formed in 1995, following a merger between the long-established Hellenic League side Wallingford Town, who had fallen on hard times, and Wallingford United, from the Chiltern League.

The new club enjoyed a number of successful seasons in the Combined Counties League, before switching across the non-league pyramid to join the Hellenic.

"We were in the Hellenic League for two seasons, and it proved far more expensive to play in, and led to our current plight," said O'Garr.

"However, I am much more optimistic about the future now we've left the Hellenic."

Wallingford'are hosting an evening with Mike Summerbee, the former Manchester City and England forward, at the Regal Centre, Wallingford, on Saturday.

Compere and comedian for the evening is John Stiles, son of World Cup hero Nobby Tickets, £20, are available from Wallingford Sports Park, Hithercroft Road.

3:17pm Wednesday 7th May 2008

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