From Inverness to Wembley - twice

Solihull Moors have come a long way since being formed in 2007.

And supporter Paul Adlinton will travel a long way to see them in two Wembley finals in the space of six days.

Already through to an FA Trophy final against Gateshead on 11 May, the club secured a place in the National League promotion final by thrashing Barnet 4-0 on Saturday in a one-sided play-off semi-final.

It means they will face Bromley on Sunday for a place in the English Football League in the West Midlands side's first-ever trip to Wembley, before returning to the national stadium the following weekend.

Paul, who lives in Inverness, will therefore make the 1,100-mile round trip twice to support his team.

He is no ‘glory hunter’, though. Paul, originally from Marston Green, has made frequent journeys to matches since moving to Scotland.

“I try to get down to about seven or eight games a year, some home and some away,” he told BBC WM.

“It’s nice to come down for games and see some of the regular faces. It’s just like catching up with old friends.

“It takes a lot of planning. There used to be a flight that went directly from Inverness to Birmingham but they’ve stopped that.

“This year for games I’ve had to travel to Manchester, Luton, Gatwick and Bristol airports and then travel north or further south, depending on who we’re playing.

“You’ve got to be resourceful. If there’s another reason I’ve got to come down then I’ll try to plan a game around that.

“I’ve also got a very good wife and family that put up with my passion. I’m kind of fortunate that the job I do has flexible hours.”

'Embrace and enjoy it'

What makes Paul’s support of the Moors somewhat surprising is that he moved to Inverness the year after the club was formed when Moor Green merged with Solihull Borough in July 2007.

He nevertheless had no doubt that it was the right club for him.

He explained: “I was quite disillusioned with the Premier League and things like that because, for me, it’s all about the money.

“I wanted to follow a club that was more community-based for the fans. So I decided ‘I’m going to go and watch them’.”

That support might be about to be spectacularly rewarded, with silverware or promotion - or both.

The victory at Barnet was the Moors’ sixth win in their past seven matches - a run which has included four clean sheets - so they will head to Wembley in excellent form.

Paul said: “It’s fantastic for the fan base and I know we’re going to turn out in decent numbers on Sunday and for the Trophy final the following Saturday.

“We don’t know if or when this will happen again, so we’ll embrace and enjoy it.”