The West Midlands has a rich history when it comes to professional football and that much is an understatement. Aston Villa, Birmingham City, Wolverhampton Wanderers, West Bromwich Albion, Coventry City and Walsall all currently compete in the top four professional leagues in England.
In recent years, though, there’s been a new contender emerging: Solihull Moors. In both 2022 and 2024, Solihull were able to make their way to the National League playoff final. Unfortunately, in both instances, they were beaten, despite being pretty competitive throughout both campaigns.
Last season, they slipped down to a midtable spot, leaving many to wonder whether or not they would ever be able to make their way to the big time. Now, with odds of 33/1 to gain promotion, you can use this bet calculator to see that pundits think it’s pretty unlikely that they will be in a position of prominence by the time we reach May.
One of the big issues at play here is simple: the two promotion spots in the National League. It’s not like one more would have substantially changed their standing last season, but given that they finished in 3rd place with 87 points back in 2022, you can understand why they would feel slightly hard done by.
They were able to make a few moves in the summer window but it just doesn’t seem like there is a strong attraction to the Moors from many players looking to make their way up the pyramid.
Getting Left Behind
Plus, with the gap growing financially for a lot of the pro clubs in the fifth tier, Solihull run the risk of getting left behind.
With that being said, they have been able to start off the season with back-to-back-to-back draws against Sutton, Forest Green and Carlisle. While the Sutton game left a lot to be desired in terms of entertainment value, Rovers were a team that looked set for promotion just a matter of months ago.
The fact that they were able to take them to the limit, and do so with ten men for most of the game, speaks volumes to the kind of grit and determination within their squad.
Moving forward, it will be interesting to see how they navigate this season. They don’t appear to be the kind of side that is in any rush, but instead, they are testing the waters with rotations and figuring out what kind of blend they need for the perfect starting XI.
The games come thick and fast at this level of the game and you don’t need to be in the running for the entire season in order to sneak into the playoffs – just go and ask Southend United.
Off the back of another big point against Carlisle during the week, it’s definitely starting to feel like they could be gaining a bit more confidence in themselves in comparison to the inconsistency they experienced last season.
Times are still tough, but the West Midlands minnows are still a factor to consider in the National League in the months ahead.
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