FOOTBALL fans should flock to Wembley for the forthcoming all-North-East FA Vase final or risk it being moved to a lesser stadium in future, it has been said.

West Auckland face Dunston UTS on Sunday, May 13, and the chairman of the Northern League, Mike Amos, issued a rallying cry in the latest edition of the league magazine, Northern Ventures Northern Gains.

Mr Amos said: “We really want the whole of the North- East to go.

“There is a train of thought that if the Vase final gates do not start to get better, it will be moved away from Wembley which, with all due respect to the other stadiums, would be terrible as Wembley is such a special place.”

It will be the eighth time in his 16 years as chairman that he has travelled to see a Northern team compete in the final. The last time two clubs from the region played at Wembley was the 1954 FA Amateur Cup Final between Bishop Auckland and neighbours Crook Town.

Mr Amos said: “It just shows how far the Northern League and its clubs have come, and establishes us as the pre-eminent amateur league in the country, which is something everyone in the region should be proud of.”

The magazine, priced 30p, is available from several shops including The Northern Echo office in Newgate Street, Etheringtons, in Cockton Hill Road, both Bishop Auckland, from Manor News, in Manor Road, and McColls in Front Street, both West Auckland, and from Sheldons, in Commercial Street, Willington.

Tickets for the final are £25, £12.50 for under-16s and over- 60s, and will be available from both clubs, visit westaucklandtownfc.

co.uk or dunstonuts- fc.co.uk 􀁧 See The Northern Echo this week and next for more stories previewing the game.

􀁧 Are you planning anything special to mark the final? Call reporter Duncan Leatherdale on 01388-602232 or email duncan.

leatherdale@nne.co.uk