TALKING TO CHRIS MASCALL - CHAIRMAN AND PLAYER/MANAGER OF DAGENHAM UNITED

Dagenham United will play in the Essex Alliance League Premier Division which will sit at Step Eight of the non-league ladder for the 2021/22 season. Here I spoke to Chris Mascall who is very busy being the adult section chairman and player/manager of the first team at The Daggers.  

What's your footballing history? 

In terms of my involvement with football, it’s always been a huge passion of mine since I was a kid starting off at my local Sunday league side Lakeview FC. I moved into academy football continuing my educational development as well with QPR and then started to work my way through the Senior non league scene making appearances at teams such as Billericay Town, Met Police, Barking, VCD Athletic and May & Bakers before transferring to Dagenham United with the view to playing and going into management. 

Since arriving at Dagenham I worked my way through from first team captain, reserve team player manager, first team player manager and adult section chairman overseeing our two adult teams with the view to climbing the footballing ladder, which we have been doing very successfully since I’ve taken on the role. 

We had a recent promotion in the Essex Alliance League Premier Division a testament to that, with the aim to keep taking strides and continue on upwards and into the non league scene, especially with the EAL Senior Division now being a step 7 NLS feeder league into step 6 football.

How many teams do Dagenham United have? 

As I mentioned above, our adult section currently have two men’s teams, with the aim to expand further in the next couple of years to include a vets team, Sundays and potentially an u21/u23 development side. In terms of the club as a whole, we run football right the way down to our mini kickers at U5s and all the way through the age groups as the children go into 11 aside. I believe we have around 22 current youth teams.

What can the FA do to improve football at grass roots level? 

Funding absolutely. I’ve mentioned it before when talking about grassroots football. So many clubs every season are folding and 90% of those are down to issues with funding. There are so few facilities to offer pitches etc to clubs that they are able to charge whatever they like most of the time with no shortage of clubs to replace each other should they no longer be able to find the funding needed to continue and so it’s very often a case of quantity over quality where venues are hired out and those that are of a better standard are naturally a lot heavier on the purse strings. 

I would also like to see the FA offer days with local players or coaches of a higher level to give advice and talk about their experiences to local grassroots teams and coaches as feel many of the players and coaches would really benefit from their experiences. 

What are the aims for the first team this season? 

To continue on from the success of our last season following our promotion and hopefully to gain promotion to the Senior division. We pride ourselves on giving opportunities to young players taking their tentative steps into senior football, and so hope to continue being able to further these players development to build a long term future for both the players and the club as we continue taking steps forward. 

How much does it cost to run a men's team in the Essex Alliance League? 

I mean it really does depend how much you put into it as a team and what you want to offer. In terms of general league fees etc, the EAL have been fantastic and after the last couple of seasons having been curtailed early, they have given existing clubs free entry to the league and cup competitions as a show of support. 

In terms of playing throughout the season, again it depends on what you want to offer, kits, pitch and equipment wise etc. We are proud to offer top quality in each of these aspects, with Adidas & Puma kits for our first team and 3g training and match days, naturally that sets us back more so then what the minimum some teams do. 

Realistically if I was to give a ball park figure over the course of the season for pitches, refs, equipment, kits etc for a new team with decent standard your talking a good few thousand a season 

What's the best thing about football at grass roots level? 

The raw passion. The old adage of ‘can he do it on a cold rainy night In Stoke’ sort of thing comes to mind. Some of the ability and goals etc scored at this sort of level would be worthy of winning games at any level, we’ve had a few ourselves this season! I think this and the social side of things. Being grassroots, your able to create a real family feel to the club as it’s not so business orientated, this allows you to develop relationships on another level you maybe wouldn’t have the opportunity too higher up. 

Whats the worst thing? 

That’s a tough one, would say the obvious ones like the standard of some facilities and as mentioned, lack of financial support. But I think one that does get to me personally, is the lack of respect the grassroots game gets amongst the non league scene. There are a lot of teams and players playing in step 8 or below that could easily mix it with teams a few steps above but often are limited in their progress by finances and facilities. There is so much more talent in grassroots football then people quite realise and I genuinely believe the standard of the teams and leagues are increasing year after year with many really talented players opting to play at steps below where their ability could take them, due to work and family commitments.

Many people consider Dagenham not quite Essex but not quite East London...What's Dagenham like as an area at the moment and what's it like to live in at the moment? 

Haha, exactly that. It’s so strange, we are sort of caught in the middle, not quite London, not quite Essex. I mean, I guess it depends on whom you ask in terms of what it’s like to live here. I’ve been a Dagenham lad all my life so have seen the changes over the years first hand. If I was being truthful, I do feel it is an area that needs improvements and renovation on a number of fronts, especially for local young people and families, but equally there are some beautiful nature spots in the surrounding areas such as Eastbrook Country Park which breaks up the mundane built up areas. 

What are the aims of the whole of DUFC as a club over the next five years? 

When I took on the role of Adult Section chairman of DUFC, I set out a five year plan for our men’s teams, and so far have managed to tick every box I’ve set and are ahead of where we planned to be which is great. As I mentioned, our main aim is to continue climbing the footballing ladder and reach as high a level of football in the NLS as physically possible. Doing this allows our youth section a clear pathway into men’s football and hopefully then a greater retention of ‘home grown’ players so to speak. I’ve been extremely busy of lately working on a number of exiting projects that when they come to fruition, will elevate the club to a greater level then it’s been before, and wake a sleeping giant of a club in my opinion.

Many famous footballers have ground up in the borough - Tony Adams, Terry Venebles to name two. Are there any names with your club or in the local area we should be keeping an eye on? 

Oh that’s a tough one as there is a lot of talented players both in the team and the surrounding area, with very often a players progress down to how much they really want it, but also the contacts they are able to make along the way. This is something I’m keen to do, either progress players through and up the none league system via Dagenham, or with us as we carry on our journey climbing the ladder. 

 We have a number of talented players whom I truly believe have the talent to go far in the game, but wouldn’t like to put unnecessary pressure on them by naming them ! 

Hopefully we’ll see a top pro coming from the Dagenham area in the years to come like you’ve mentioned with Tony Adams and Terry Venables! 

Many fans in Dagenham will travel to support West Ham United or go to Dagenham & Redbridge. What could they expect if they came over to watch a DUFC first team game next season? 

That’s very true, lots of the supporters round the area are naturally drawn to those two sides. 

My long term aim, would be to provide that third option for the community and grow the club to the point that we are having our name in the same discussion as teams like Dagenham & Redbridge. 

 What I would say we offer is again that welcoming family feel as a club, we see our players as extended family and treat them as such, with supporters then falling into that category. I believe we offer a really exiting brand of football and quality that would surprise a lot of people making their first trip over to support us and I’m sure they would get the bug and be back soon after.