Kirkley & Pakefield

Kirkley & Pakefield FC is a non-league club which is based in the suburb of Kirkley, in the Suffolk port and seaside town of Lowestoft. The club has had an interesting history since the original incarnation of Kirkley FC was formed in 1886.

That club merged with East Suffolk to form Lowestoft Town FC. A second Kirkley FC was formed shortly after; playing home games at  St Aubin's College. For a short time they were the town’s prominent club as they reached the semi-final of the FA Amateur Cup in 1896-97.

The team of the time competed in the North Suffolk League; going on to become champions in 1894-95 and 1896-97. The club continued to field a side in that league despite joining the higher rated Norfolk & Suffolk League.

There had been plans to merge with Lowestoft Town; which were abandoned in 1907. The club joined the East Anglian League before disbanding at the completion of the 1913-14 campaign; when Stanley Rous played in goal for the club.

A third version of Kirkley FC came into being in 1919; going on to join the East Anglia League in 1921, before going on to be crowned as champions in 1923-24 before moving to the Norfolk & Suffolk League for the following season.

A merger with Waveney Athletic in 1929 led to the club being renamed Kirkley & Waveney, before reverting to Kirkley three years later. Like the original Kirkley FC, the club went on to merge with Lowestoft Town; in 1935.

In 1975 Anglian Combination club Brooke Marine were playing at the Kirkley Recreation Ground on Walmer Road and applied to change their name to Kirkley FC. That name was owned by Lowestoft Town FC following the 1935 merger, so the title of Kirkley United was adopted in 1978.

The change of name led to a successful period for the club as two promotions were secured to take the team to the Premier Division of the Anglian Combination by the end of the 1979-80 season. Despite a relegation, the team regained their Premier Division status in 1988-89.

Kirkley became Anglian Combination champions in 1999-00 before further titles arrived in 2001-02 and 2002-03; with the team also winning the Suffolk Senior Cup on a couple of occasions. Kirkley were promoted to Division One of the Eastern Counties League for the 2003-04 season.

Promotion to the Premier Division followed in 2003-04 before a merger took place with Pakefield FC to form Kirkley & Pakefield FC in 2007. The team strung several mid table finishes together as they consolidated their position.

‘The Royals’ finished in fourth position in 2009-10 and then again in 2014-15, before ending in half way up the table at the end of the 2016-17 campaign.

Kirkley & Pakeham FC wil play in the Eastern Counties League Premier Division in the 2017-18 season.

My visit

Saturday 16^th September 2017

My visit to Kirley & Pakefield coincided with a trip to the seaside to watch the FA Cup Second Qualifying tie between Lowestoft Town and Harlow Town, a couple of miles further north. It also enabled me to take in some much needed exercise.

The weather was decent enough when I arrived on the train from Norwich, so I decided to walk along the sea front. The beach was more or less deserted, but plenty of people were having a stroll in the blustery conditions.

It took me the best part of half an hour to cut away from the sea, walk along London Road South and then Acton Road into Walmer Road. A heavy shower dropped as I was outside of the sports ground, so I took shelter for fifteen minutes under a tree.

Once the rain abated I walked up the lane to where it looked like a junior match was about to commence on one of the artificial pitches across the car park from the main ground. I passed the clubhouse and changing rooms to enter the ground.

The Recreation Ground was a fine little venue for its level of football, with plenty of room for further scope. The near side had a couple of small covers in front of another building funded by the Football Foundation.

The near end goal also had a small standing cover, with the far touchline having a new looking seated covered stand straddling the half way line. The rest of the ground consisted of flat hard standing and grass.

Once I’d taken my photos I made the decision to set off on what I decided was a short cut past the Pakefield Village Green and along Blackheath Road, when another downpour started falling. This was heavy rain. I was pretty soaked when I took shelter at the shops at Carlton Road.

Once the rain had abated I walked back to London Road South and back towards town in search of my pre-match pub before the afternoon’s entertainment.