Cray Wanderers physio Ally Maloney launches The Non-League Football Therapist Support Group

CRAY WANDERERS physio Ally Maloney has explained her reasons for setting up a support group network for her peers that work in non-league football.

The self-proclaimed ‘Little Physio’, who treats the players at the Isthmian League Premier Division club, works for the NHS in the real world and said working the circuit can sometimes be a lonely place without support for her or her peers.

But she has jointly set-up a WhatsApp Group - The Non-League Therapist Support Group - where therapists can support one another.

“Therapists in non-league football – this one’s for us. After years of waiting, we’ve finally created something that’s long overdue, said Maloney.

“Let me tell you why it matters,” she wrote on social media.

“I’ve been in non-league a long time. Never left, never wanted to. I found my spark, my people, my purpose here.

“But I’ve also found loneliness, doubt and nights wondering if I was enough. That part no one talks about.

“You can love the game and feel completely alone in it, especially when you’re strapping ankles on a cold Tuesday night in (the circuit) and no one’s asking if you’re ok.  That’s the reality for so many of us.

“So we’ve built a space. A WhatsApp community to start.  A community where therapists can share knowledge, vent safely, swap resources, feel supported, grow together. We don’t have to do this job in insolation anymore.

“This isn’t elite football. It’s real football. Tight budgets, long drives, big expectations. And yet, week in and week out, we show up.  Now it’s time we showed up for each other too.

“If you’re a therapist working in non-league, physio, sports therapist, rehab, S&C – this space is for you.

“DM to join the WhatsApp group. Let’s connect. Let’s grow. Let’s finally make this community real.”