For the most part, non-league football clubs are stuck in a position where infrastructural, financial and fan-based change is fairly non-existent. Caversham United have revolutionised the way in which they have grown their club by through social media interaction which has allowed them to bring together and find their place in the football community.

At the start of 2018, the Reading & District Sunday League side found themselves in rather familiar circumstances at that level. Postponements from January through March left them with 13 matches to play in just five weeks as the season came to a close; the worst part was they were still without a win that season.

After narrowly avoiding a winless season, a much needed summer break came along for a club in disarray following a bottom-placed finish.

What was their solution? Pack it in? Give up on their club? Of course not, they edged their bets and took to Twitter as a last resort in the hopes of an unlikely redemption.

Astonishingly, a club in crisis and with their future hanging in the balance were given hope through their presence online and a meteoric rise in numbers and fortunes soon became the product of their flourishing interaction on social media. In just a few weeks they went from struggling for a first eleven to their highest turn out at a session being 26, 20 of which didn’t play for them last season!

Whilst there are a few components of a non-league season that were out of Caversham’s control including postponements and the unavailability of their match day venue, ‘Mapledurham Playing Fields’, that didn’t prevent their fairytale story from coming into fruition both on and off the field.

Now, the Twitter named Billy Goats have become an internet sensation, attracting a following of more than 1900, some of which include professional teams from around the world including footballing giants Roma and Bayern Munich.

On top of that, Caversham have mounted a serious challenge for promotion this season and have found themselves in a cup semi-final, all of which is a journey that has resonated with their following and has helped bring the world of football closer. What a difference a year makes!

An inspiring story and an extraordinary turnaround for a team that, in the space of 12 months, have displayed the power of social media and the potential it has to become an important part in the future of non-league football by reinstating those at the bottom of the pyramid as part of the sport’s community by giving them to interact with whoever they want and be in partnership with those at the top.