A Star is Reborn Vince Taylor visits Scotswood
Newcastle Blue Star’ s ground at Scotswood Photo: Vince Taylor
When Newcastle Blue Star ended their eventful existence in 2009, it was fair to assume we had heard the last of them. It followed an action packed period for the club, which saw an FA Vase win, an appearance in the FA Cup First Round and a rise through the ranks to the Northern Premier League, but in the summer of 2009, having secured promotion to the Northern Premier League Premier Division, a combination of factors saw Newcastle Blue Star suddenly call a halt to proceedings.
Having lain dormant for nine years, the club was revived in 2018 / 19, when Northern Alliance side Hazlerigg Victory decided to rebrand themselves as Newcastle Blue Star, in the process moving seven miles south from Hazlerigg to Scotswood in the West End of Newcastle. The ground at Scotswood Sports Centre had previously been used by Grainger Park Boys Club in the Northern Alliance. Little more than a railed off pitch with a small dressing room block when the newly named Newcastle Blue Star arrived, pretty soon afterwards work began on transforming the site into a football ground that far exceeded the needs of the Northern Alliance and hinted at the club’ s ambitions for the future.
The Grainger Park Boys Club, a Newcastle based charity that was set up in 1928 to develop young people’ s confidence, self-esteem and self-belief through sports like football and boxing, established a presence at Scotswood Sports Centre following its opening in 1981. Close to the River Tyne, Scotswood was at one time identified as the workshop of the world, with the huge Vickers Armstrong factory employing many thousands. Following its closure and the loss of much of the local industry, Scotswood became a deprived area, mak-
Scotswood Sports Centre in 2017 Image: Google Earth
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