{"id":18506,"date":"2021-08-11T15:17:16","date_gmt":"2021-08-11T14:17:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fiveminutesspare.com\/football\/?p=18506"},"modified":"2021-11-16T22:33:29","modified_gmt":"2021-11-16T22:33:29","slug":"national-league-2021-22-promotion-prediction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fiveminutesspare.com\/football\/national-league-2021-22-promotion-prediction\/national-league\/","title":{"rendered":"National League 2021-22 Promotion Prediction"},"content":{"rendered":"

The 2021-22 National League season gets underway on the 21st of August this year and despite the problems of 20-21 only Dover Athletic will be starting on negative points.\u00a0 Grimsby Town and Southend United were relegated last season but there was no relegation from the division and it will have 23 teams as Macclesfield Town<\/a> sadly folded. They are back this year but not at this level.<\/p>\n

National League Winners<\/h2>\n

Stockport County is our tip. They went close last year losing in the playoff semi-final to eventual winners Hartlepool after finishing 3rd. They appointed Simon Rusk as manager in January and he let them to 14 wins & 10 draws in his 28 games. He has spent the summer overhauling the squad and has added some intriguing signings including England Youth International Will Fish from Manchester United.<\/p>\n

Playoff Contenders<\/h2>\n

Under the current format, six teams make the playoffs, this keeps the interest alive pretty much to the final games which is no bad thing for teams who are reliant on gate receipts. Wrexham who counts Hollywood A-lister Ryan Reynolds amongst their owners is an obvious choice to finally bounce back. This will be their 14th season out of the league and if money is made available they should be in the hunt.<\/p>\n

\"Ryan

Ryan Reynolds Hollywood A-Lister and Wrexham owner. Image: Featureflash Photo Agency\/Shutterstock.com<\/p><\/div>\n

Notts County also appears to be looking to go one better having fallen at the semi-final stage last year. They have acquired some good players from divisional rivals Chesterfield & Torquay United and are our tip for the second promotion place.<\/p>\n

Newly relegated Grimsby should be competitive as should last season’s beaten playoff finalists Torquay. Both were long term football league stalwarts and with good fan bases should be hard to beat at home.<\/p>\n

Further, we have heard good things about Dagenham & Redbridge who have been out of the league since 2015-16. They have kept most of last seasons squad together and they should benefit from the return of Sam Ling. They could be the season’s surprise team.<\/p>\n

How will the relegated Teams fare?<\/h3>\n

Grimsby Town will be expecting a quick return, however, as they have found in the past this is a hard division to bounce straight back from. In their previous spell here it took six seasons to regain their league status and they might just miss out this year.<\/p>\n

This brings us on to Southend, who are hard to fathom. They almost pulled off the immaculate escape last year but a lot of that squad is now gone and has been replaced by experienced but older players. They might need this season to adjust before pushing for a league place again.<\/p>\n

National League Relegation candidates<\/h3>\n

Dover Athletic are obvious candidates, starting on -12 points. The squad is hardly recognisable from last year and the new faces will need time to settle in. Kings Lynn has done well getting to this level and only stayed up due to a reprieve last season.<\/p>\n

Only Three teams are going down this year due to Macclesfield’s situation and we think it is two from Wealdstone, Weymouth or Woking.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

National League Final Table Prediction<\/h2>\n

1. Stockport County
\n2. Wrexham
\n3. Notts County
\n4. Grimsby Town
\n5. Torquay United
\n6. Dagenham & Redbridge
\n7. Solihull Moors
\n8. Chesterfield
\n9. Southend
\n10. Bromley
\n11. Boreham Wood
\n12. Eastleigh
\n13. Halifax
\n14. Yeovil Town
\n15. Aldershot
\n16. Maidenhead
\n17. Barnet
\n18. Altrincham
\n19. Wealdstone
\n20. Woking
\n21. Weymouth
\n22. King’s Lynn
\n23. Dover Athletic<\/p>\n

Playoff Final Notts County (promoted) Vs Dagenham & Redbridge<\/strong><\/p>\n

So there we have it, our predictions for the National League in 2021-22. Why not check out our most recent National League posts while you are here, or have a go at one of our growing bank of Football Quizzes<\/a>.<\/p>\n