Whitley Bay

Whitley Bay FC

Ground: Hillheads Park

Capacity: 4,500

Club Founded: 1897

League: Northern League Division One - Step 5/9th Tier (current level)

The coastal club of Whitley Bay FC, near Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, is no stranger to league and cup triumph, winning the FA Vase multiple times with three victories at Wembley Stadium along the way.

Club Background

The club has a proud and long history, with its first incarnation known as Whitley and Monkseaton FC, later shortened to Monkseaton FC, and then to Whitley Bay Athletic in 1950, before becoming just plain Whitley Bay FC.

In 1955, Bay became members of the North Eastern League before joining the Northern League three years later, where they finished as runners-up in their second season. During the 1960's, the 'Seahorses' were one of the most prominent amateur clubs in the country, winning the league and finishing as runners-up three times.

My drawing of Hillheads Park and some old Bay team kits.
Click on the image to enlarge it.

Cup Runs

The FA Amateur Cup also featured prominently for Bay in the same period, with Hendon beating them in the semi-finals at Roker Park in 1965-66. Three years later, Sutton United ended dreams of a Wembley appearance with a semifinal victory at St Andrews. The club went into the doldrums before being resurrected towards the back end of the 1980's.

They were promoted to Division One of the Northern Premier League (NPL) before reaching the third round of the FA Cup in 1989-90, defeating league clubs Scarborough and Preston North End before losing to Rochdale. The following season ended in promotion to the NPL Premier Division, where they remained for four seasons.

FA Vase Glory Years

The team was relegated back to the Northern League at the end of the millennium. However, it allowed the club to compete in the FA Vase, where they would go on to leave their indelible mark over the ensuing years at a time when the Northern League dominated the competition.

Bay enjoyed the greatest successes in its history as support gathered to see the club win the FA Vase in 2001-02 when Tiptree United were overcome by a solitary goal at Villa Park under manager Andy Gowans. A league title was also collected in 2006-07 before Bay went on to create history by winning three consecutive Wembley FA Vase Finals. 

Glossop North End were defeated 2-0 in 2008-09 with the goals coming from Paul Chow and Lee Kerr. Wroxham were hammered 6-1 the following year. Both scorers from the previous year netted again and were joined on the scoresheet by Andy Eastaugh, Adam Johnston, Paul  Robinson, and Josh Gillies.

The  Vase was lifted for a third consecutive season at Wembley when Coalville Town were defeated 3-2 in a pulsating final as Kerr was once again on the mark with Chow netting a brace, including the winner four minutes from time for the side managed by Ian Chandler, who oversaw all four triumphs.

 

Chandler departed after ten years with the club in 2014. He would return after Leon Ryan and  Paddy Atkinson had spells in charge of the team. More managers came and went, including Gowans for a second spell.

After a series of mid-table league finishes, the Bay reached the playoffs in 2025-26 under manager Jay Bates, where West Auckland Town won the semi-final tie.

My visits

June 1984

Duran Duran and the Tyne & Wear Metro

On a summer's day in 1984, I took a shopping bus to Newcastle with my brother Nick, and as part of the day, we took the Metro to the coast to have a look at Whitley Bay. In those days, it was still a relatively thriving holiday resort with a busy seafront. 

The big news was a recent gig at the ice rink by Duran Duran, whose member John Taylor had opened up a wine bar in town. We walked to Hillheads past the town's impressive cricket club and went inside for a look. 

It seemed pretty basic with one stand and plain, uncovered standing everywhere else. I was disappointed after reading the figures about the place in the Non-League Annual. It just goes to show that people can do anything with statistics!

Thursday 2nd October 2008

Fast forward twenty-four years, and I was back in Whitley Bay. Scarborough Athletic were drawn away to Esh Winning the following Saturday in the FA Vase, so I booked a value train ticket to Newcastle to travel up after doing a shift at work. 

I was to use Whitley as my base for a two-evening stay to enjoy the area's nightlife and to do some serious groundhopping.  I took the Metro from Newcastle Central on the thirty-minute journey to the coast. I soon found my B&B on the promenade, soon working out that the town had seen more prosperous days. The less said about my accommodation, the better. 

It was obvious that the town was now used by commuters to Newcastle, contractors in the building trade working in the area, and stag and hen parties. The light had beaten me on the day of my arrival, so instead I plumped for a night out locally. It's fair to say it was lively! 

The next morning, I passed on breakfast and grabbed something from a shop, which I presumed was safer as I set off walking to Hillheads Park. I eventually got to the ground after a brisk walk and found a fence I could see over from a car park behind a goal, as the ground was locked up. In front of me was an area of flat standing. 

Down the right-hand side touchline was a few steps of terracing, which continued behind the far goal. This left the side by the main entrance on a side road off Hillheads Road, with the ice rink behind it. The club's own public house, Seahorses, was also just behind it. 

The Main Stand dominated proceedings with a covered area for standing spectators alongside it. There are some offices and portacabins alongside this by the turnstiles. The ground had improved and had been tidied up with a secure perimeter fence enclosing it. It wasn't a bad venue in my opinion, but it could do with some additional covered areas.