Workington
Alice Hine, Administrator at Numech recently
told Football Focus Magazine, “Numech have
sponsored a lot of teams over the years, so we
felt it only natural to sponsor Workington Reds this
year.”
“This is our first season as a Sponsor at
Workington AFC, although we have sponsored
them in previous years.
“Regarding their performance, we would just like to
say ‘Keep doing what you are doing and continue
your hard work, from all your friends at Numech.”
Both Reds (the football team)
and Town (the rugby league club)
are ingrained in the community as is
Workington Comets, the speedway
club. Sadly, they were never invited or
included in ‘new stadium’ discussions.
The football club can reflect on a
wonderful history but have lived on a
hand to mouth existence for too long.
The aging support has enjoyed some
wonderful occasions at Borough Park
and none more so than the visits of
Manchester United and Chelsea in the
fifties and sixties respectively.
Now it is time to cater for those who
will support the club for the next seven
or eight decades.
Workington played in the North
Eastern League between 1921 and 1951
before enjoying twenty six seasons in the
Football League. The highlight of their
time in Third Division North and the old
Fourth Division was winning promotion
from the latter in 1964 and spending
three seasons in the Third Division.
Proud Sponsors of Workington AFC
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They became noted League Cup
battlers, twice reaching the quarter final
stage in the sixties and derby matches
against Carlisle United attracted 18,000
plus crowds to Borough Park. The
aforementioned Manchester United
game, pre-Munich in 1958, attracted a
record 21,000 attendance to the ground.
Bill Shankly famously managed
the club in the fifties and others who
have occupied the hot seat include Joe
Harvey, Keith Burkinshaw, Ken Furphy
(the promotion winning boss) and Alan
Ashman.
Replaced by Wimbledon in1977,
Workington’s existence as a non-league
club has been far from easy, flirting
with relegation and the lower end of the
table far more frequently than titles and
promotions.
That’s why the 1998-99 North West
Counties League title was appreciated
by the Workington faithful, a first ever
championship after descending to their
lowest level of the pyramid.
National cup glory is long overdue,
over ten years since a First Round
appearance in the FA Cup and only
supplemented
by
the
occasional
enjoyable run in the Trophy.
So what does the future hold for my
club?
No doubt it will be a battle for
survival – has it ever been any different,
certainly not in my time. But the club
must continue, become more self
sufficient and retain their status as west
Cumbria’s leading football club.
We have got to provide a decent
standard of football for the young ladies
and men to aspire to. A return to the
Football League is nothing more than a
pipe dream at this point but getting back
to Step 2 (National North) is a realistic
aim.
The general mood at the club this term
has been one of frustration, bordering
on depression, but the supporters will
continue to back the club – we are all
masochists at heart, but believe that one
day the dream will come true.
Come on you Reds!
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