The 2006-7 season will see a new era dawn for Saturday football in North Herts. The North Herts League and the Mid Herts League have merged to form the North and Mid Herts Football Association. This will provide senior men s football to clubs in the count

The 2006-7 season will see a new era dawn for Saturday football in North Herts.

The North Herts League and the Mid Herts League have merged to form the North and Mid Herts Football Association.

This will provide senior men's football to clubs in the county ranging from Letchworth to Harpenden and St Albans.

Both leagues had been experiencing a decline in club numbers in recent years.

And so to avoid the possibility of one or both leagues vanishing, the two league committees decided it was now time for a merger.

The new structure has been decided and will consist of a joint Premier Division, made up of six clubs from the old North and Mid leagues, together with two regional leagues, North One and Mid One.

Promotion and relegation to and from the combined Premier Division is likely, dependent upon geography.

To maintain the heritages of the two leagues, the Bingham Cox Cup and the Greg Cup will be retained in their existing states, played only by the clubs from the two original leagues.

There will also be a combined cup competition for the Premier Division clubs and individual divisional cups for the two division ones.

At the recent league annual meeting, new chairman Tony Butler expressed his thanks to the work carried out by John Burlison and Colin Newcombe, secretaries of the two leagues, who instigated the moves towards the merger. John will remain as league secretary and Colin becomes the treasurer.

North Herts League spokesman John Batcheldor (left) said: "This should be an exiting time for local football in the area with increased numbers and diversity of matches for all clubs which will strengthen the quality of football already present."

Special thanks were expressed to other committee members from both leagues standing down at the end of last season for all their sterling work over a number of years.

These included Batcheldor, Sue Robinson and Lin Grimsey from the North Herts League and Norma Atkinson, Dave Toope and Brian Hubball from the Mid Herts League.

The make-up of the new North and Mid Football Association will be:

Premier Division: Baldock Town, Bedwell Rangers, Clannad Celtic, Colney Heath A, Kings Sports Res, Lemsford A, London Colney A, Magnum, Redbourn, St Ippolyts, Whitwell Village, Woolmer Green.

Division One North: AFC Santos, Baldock Town Res, Benington, Bedwell Rangers Res, City Hearts, Codicote, Fairlands, Kimpton Rovers Res, Westwell, Wilbury Wanderers, Woolmer Green Res.

Division One Mid: Global, Harpenden Rovers A, IFK Buttles, Inn on the Green, Kimpton Rovers, London Colney Village, New Greens, Park Street Village Res, RCD Harpenden, RVC United, St Albans North, St Albans Wanderers.