NORTH EASTERN CLUBS
Brief accounts of aspects of the history
of a number of the clubs from the Northern
League and the Wearside League appear below. Those clubs included appear in alphabetical
order. If anyone can help extend coverage
by supplying short pieces of information
on clubs not currently included, please contact
the site. With a whole section of the
Conference not ‘touched on’ yet,
there’s plenty to go at. Also,
if you think a longer piece on YOUR club
is needed, you can help that happen by getting
in touch. Thanks to Willington and Windscale of the Wearside League for supplying longer
pieces of information, which can be found
by using the buttons to the left.
ASHINGTON
The club joined the North Eastern League in 1914 and had made a big enough impression to
become founder members of the 3rd Division (North) by 1921. Voted out of the Football League 8
years later, Ashington returned to the North Eastern League in 1929, playing in that competition until the league
folded in 1958, when the club switched to the Midland
League until that folded two years after this.
Ashington were in the Northern Counties League 1960-1962, the North Eastern League 1962-1964, the Wearside League 1964-1965 and the North
Regional League 1965-1968. For the
1968-1969 season the club played in the Northern
Premier League and later joined the Northern League in 1970. After much swapping about in previous
times, Ashington have remained in the Northern League since.
BISHOP AUCKLAND
Beginning life as Auckland Town, the club
took its present name in 1893 when rejoining the Northern League, of which ‘Bishops’ were members
for 95 years, taking the title on 18 occasions,
as well as winning the F.A. Amateur Cup 10
times. The club switched to the Northern Premier League in 1988, finishing as Premier Division runners-up
in 1997. After that things did not
go quite so well and Bishop Aucklane rejoined
the Northern League in 2006.
CONSETT
Consett joined the North Eastern League in 1926, leaving that competition in 1935, but re-entering in 1937 and remaining members until the league
folded in 1958. Consett joined the Midland League in 1958 but switched to the Northern Counties League (afterwards the
North Eastern League) in 1960. The club joined the Northern League in 1970, though what league was played for the 6
seasons before that is unknown. Consett
have remained in the Northern League since.
EASINGTON COLLIERY AFC
The club can trace its history back to 1913
when ‘Easington Colliery Welfare’
was founded. In 1980, Easington C.W., by this time
a Wearside League club merged with Easington
Rangers of the Houghton League to create
the present AFC, whose nickname is ‘The
Colliery’.
Home games are played at Welfare Park, Paradise
Gardens, Easington Colliery. Club colours are Green & White
striped shirts, with Green sorts and socks.
‘Colliery’, who do not have a
main sponsor at present, despite their good
reputation as a footballing side, have change
colours of Yellow shirts, Black shorts and
Yellow socks. Three leagues have been
played in since 1913 – the Northern
Alliance, the Northern League and the Wearside
League.
The club has achieved considerable success
over the years, with 5 League titles and
8 Cup wins. The Wearside League was won in seasons
1929-1930, 1931-1932, 1932-1933, 1947-1948
and 1948-1949, with the League Cup of the
same section being secured in 1932-1933,
1945-1946 and 1960-1961. Easington
have won the Monkwearmouth Cup three times
– 1930-1931, 1947-1948 and and 1975-1976
– and the Shipowners’ Cup on
two occasions – 1974-1975 and 1979-1980.
In the mid-1980s, the club finished runners-up
in the Northern League Division 2 (1986)
and, a year later reached the Final of the
Northern League Cup.
GUISBOROUGH TOWN
Guisborough Town were champions of the Northern
Alliance in 1980 as well as runners-up in
the F.A. Vase. The club joined the Midland League in 1980 and became founder members of the Northern
Counties (East) League in 1982. A switch was made to the Northern League in 1985, however, and the club is a member of that
competition’s Division 2 at the moment.
There is another Guisborough Town, formerly
Guisborough Black Swan, currently playing
in the Wearside League, which was joined from the Teesside League
in 2006, becoming Guisborough Town HC in 2008. And, for those who don’t like
the simple life, there is a club named Guisborough Town BS playing in the Teesside League Division 2, the league table for which can be found
on the Wearside League 2009-2010 page.
A club named ‘Guisborough Priory’ played in the Wearside League 1993-1995 – this team does not seem to have
called itself ‘Town’.
HORDEN COLLIERY WELFARE
We know that Horden Athletic were a successful Wearside
League side in the early years of the 20th century, but the details of how the league finished
in the seasons in question have yet to come
to light. Horden were in the North Eastern League from 1935, moving into the Midland League in 1958 when the old competition was wound up.
The folding of the Midland League led to
Horden joining the Northern Counties League in 1960, this competition taking the name the North Eastern League 1962-1964. It seems likely that Horden moved
next to the Wearside League, but records
for that competition have not been found
for seasons 1964 to 1975 when the club joined the Northern League. There was a ‘Horden Athletic’ in the Wearside
League 1997-1999, but this was a separate
entity. Last season brought relegation to
Division 2, but the club is expected to climb
again.
JARROW
Jarrow Croft joined the North Eastern League in 1910, changing their name to Jarrow two years later. The club remained in this competition
until 1915, re-joining after the end of the Great War in 1919. Jarrow played in the North Eastern
League through to 1939. Exactly what happened after this
is something of a mystery, but the name ‘Jarrow’
reappeared in Division 2 of the Wearside League in 1991 and the club has maintained its membership
of this association since then.
JARROW ROOFING BOLDON COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION
Also joining the Wearside League in 1991,
Jarrow Roofing BCA moved up to the Northern
League in 1996 and played in Division 2 of that competition last
season, which ended with the club earning
promotion to Division 1.
KIRKBYMOORSIDE FC
One of the more recent recruits to the Wearside
League, the ‘Moorsiders’ were
founded in 1888 and therefore have something
in the common with the Football League. Playing at Kirkby Mills, the club,
whose first team is sponsored by Ryedale
Garages of Kirkbymoorside, also have a link
with me as my grandfather, Thomas White,
was born at Kirkby Mills in 1895.
Members in the past of the Scarborough &
District League, the club has proved forward-looking
in the past few years, moving through the
Teesside League’s two sections before
making its debut in the higher-status Wearside
League in 2008. The Moorsiders won the North Riding
County Cup in 2001 and added three more honours
to their collection last season, winning
the Gordon Harrison Memorial Trophy, the
Beckett League and the Victory Cup.
The Beckett League, based in North Yorkshire,
is the competition in which the club’s
reserve team play.
Kirkbymoorside FC play in an all-red kit. According to the Wearside League website,
the club’s change colours are ‘all
white’. However, I’ve been
tipped off that Kirkbymoorside play in a
gold strip away from home when there is a
colour-clash with their hosts’ kit.
We wish the club well in the future as there
is an obvious desire there to progress.
NORTH SHIELDS
The club began life as North Shields Athletic
and joined the North Eastern League in 1908, playing there until the Great War. The new name of Preston Colliery was
adopted in 1918 and the club re-joined the
North Eastern League in 1921, becoming ‘North
Shields’ in 1928. When the league
folded in 1958, Shields joined the Midland League, which folded two years later. The
Northern Counties League (which became the
North Eastern League 2 years later) was joined
in 1960 and, when this competition folded, North
Shields switched to the Northern League in 1964. The club won both the title and the
F.A. Amateur Cup in 1969 and took the bold
step of moving to Northern Counties (East) League in 1989. Title success was celebrated in this
competition in 1992, but things went ‘pear-shaped’
and the club was forced to re-form and enter
the Wearside League in 1992. Two name changes later, North Shields
did well in the Wearside League and moved
up to the Northern League in 2004.
NORTON & STOCKTON ANCIENTS first appeared when joining the Northern League in 1982 and are still in that association today. There may be links with the old STOCKTON club which folded in 1975 after playing
in the Northern League 1889-1939, the North Eastern
League 1939-1958 and 1960-1964, the Midland
League 1958-1960 and 1972-1973, and the North Regional League 1967-1968.
There are gaps in Stockton’s history,
which may mean membership at some point of
the Wearside League, but the records to establish
this one way or the other don’t seem
to be available. Another link with
the old Stockton club stems from 1980 when
Stockton Cricket Club FC adopted the name
and joined the Wearside League, becoming
Thornaby-on-Tees in 1999 and Thornaby after
that. There is also now a Stockton
Town, who play in the Teesside League, tables
for which appear on the Wearside League 2009-2010
page.
PENRITH
The club joined the North Eastern League in 1907, entered the Northern League in 1948, moved to the North West Counties League in 1982 and were members of the Northern Premier League 1987-1990. After that there was a return to the North West Counties League
1990-1997 and a further move back to the Northern League in 1997.
In recent years the club was briefly called
Penrith Town.
SHILDON
Under the name Shildon Athletic, the club
joined the Northern League in the 1903-1904 season, taking over the place and record of Stockton
St. Johns. Athletic switched to the North Eastern League in 1907 and became simply Shildon in 1923.
The Northern League was re-joined in 1932, with 5 title wins following by 1940.
Shildon remain members of this competition
in which they had their best finish for many
years in 2010, when completing the campaign
as runners-up in Division 1.
SOUTH SHIELDS
The story of South Shields is a complicated
one. Beginning as South Shields Adelaide
the club joined the North Eastern League
in 1908, changing its name to a simpler form
in 1910. Twice champions of this strong
competition, the club was elected to Division
2 of the Football League after the Great
War and were among the promotion contenders
in their first few years as League members.
However, in 1928 relegation to the 3rd Division (North) was followed by a move
(and a change of name) to Gateshead in 1930.
A new South Shields club was set up and joined
the North Eastern League in 1935, winning
the title twice before the League folded
in 1958. South Shields joined the Midland League
in 1958 and the Northern Counties League
in 1960, staying in the competition after
it became the North Eastern League in 1962.
In 1964 the league folded again and Shields
moved to the North Regional League until
becoming founder members of the Northern
Premier League in 1968. In 1974, however,
there was a second move and change of name
to Gateshead.
Once again a new South Shields club was formed
and this incarnation joined the Wearside
League in 1976. After winning this competition twice,
South Shields joined the Northern League
in 1995. You will still find them there
today, still playing in South Shields and
not called Gateshead.
WHITLEY BAY
Whitley Bay joined the North Eastern League in 1955. When that competition folded, Bay
moved to the Northern League in 1958, taking the title twice. The club
made a creditable effort to survive in the
mainstream of the Non-League Pyramid, joining
the Northern Premier League in 1988 and reaching the Premier Division of that
competition in 1991. After that, however,
the strain placed on any club from the North-East
in the NPL began to tell and a return was
made to the Northern League in 2000, with a 3rd title being procured in 2007 and three F.A.
Vase triumphs (2002, 2009 and 2010).
WILLINGTON
A club called Willington Athletic played
in the Northern Alliance in the 1890s and
were champions at the end of the 1899-1900
season. Whether this team was connected or
not with Willington, who joined the Northern League in 1911, has proved impossible to verify.
Once in the Northern League, Willington were
champions three times by 1930 and enjoyed
an F.A. Amateur Cup triumph at Wembley in
1950. Northern League runners-up in
1958 and 1976, the club has fallen onto harder
times in recent years, dropping to the Wearside League in 2005. There are more details on Willington
in the longer article, written by the club’s
Geoff Siddle.
WINDSCALE
Founded in 1950, Windscale played in Cumbrian
competitions in their first few years of
existence. The club joined the Wearside League in 1990. There have been a number of successes
in cup competitions, details of which can
be seen in the longer article, written by
the club’s Joe Shepherd.
