Barnsley FC's opponents Forest Green leave rival clubs green with envy - despite lowly league position

The Gloucestershire side - who will be relegated to the fourth tier if they fail to beat the Reds on Saturday - topped the EFL’s recently-unveiled first 'sustainability' table, scoring maximum points.

Marks were awarded in 11 climate-friendly categories including clean energy, energy efficiency, sustainable transport, waste management, water efficiency, plant-based or low-carbon food and biodiversity.

Rovers - the world's first UN-certified carbon-neutral football club - scored a flawless total for its many schemes which include having a stadium powered by renewable energy, an entirely vegan menu for players, staff and fans, electric car charging points, water recycling, an electric lawnmower and an organic pitch.

So while the Nailsworth-based outfit - who delight in the moniker of being the 'greenest club in the world' - are set for an instant return to League Two just a season after promotion, they are pioneers in another respect for EFL clubs.

Many are starting to get greener, with two Yorkshire clubs in Bradford City and Sheffield United being named in the top 20 of the table.

Crewe Alexandra have announced plans to install a 3,000-panel solar farm with the ambition of becoming carbon negative in the future, while Millwall have declared plans to reduce their CO2 'footprint' by 50 per cent by 2030 with the goal of being carbon neutral by 2040.

The EFL has its own 'Green Clubs' accreditation scheme which assesses environmental credentials. Fifty clubs are currently in the scheme.

One player in the Reds camp who knows the club well is Nicky Cadden - although suspension is set to rule him out of a first return to Rovers - who he left to join Barnsley last summer after a highly successful spell in the West Country.

The Scot can at least provide an insight to his team-mates in terms of what to expect, certainly regarding the stadium and its facilities ahead of Barnsley's first-ever visit to the New Lawn.

Cadden told The Yorkshire Post: "There are the greenest club in the world and got given that title.

"They don't use any fertilisers on the grass and the lights are powered by solar panels and windmills.

"There's no plastic bottles around the place and it is all reusable stuff and then there's obviously all the vegan stuff."

As for the topic of sustenance, he continued: "The food was all right. I was sceptical when I joined.

"But when you try it, some of the stuff is really nice. I would not cook it in the house as I don't know how to make it and wouldn't know how to cook it.

"But the chef at the stadium was good and made really good meals. You would not even tell it was vegan.

"I would definitely do it if I could eat like that.

"But I just couldn't live without milk, cheese and eggs and it (supplements) aren't the best (for me)."

On his two seasons at the club as an overall career experience, Cadden, who joined after leaving Greenock Morton, continued: "I loved it. (But) It was hard for me and the family in that I moved six hours away and I was there during Covid.

"My girlfriend at the time and fiancee now was having to get a plane down to Bristol every month as she was not able to see me.

"She was stressed out as she was a nurse and going through the Covid pandemic. It was hard, but everything started to open up and she moved down and last year worked out quite well. I am glad I made that jump."