Armthorpe Welfare

Armthorpe Welfare FC is a non-league football club from the outskirts of Doncaster in South Yorkshire. The original club was formed in 1926 as part of the Social Welfare scheme for the nearby Markham Main Colliery.

Armthorpe played in the Doncaster Red Triangle League prior to progressing to semi-professional status in 1935 and joining the Sheffield League. In 1950 ‘The Wellie’ became members of Division Two of the Doncaster & District Senior League.

Their debut campaign in the competition saw them promoted to Division One. The team dropped back down after a couple of seasons before regaining their status at the first attempt.

Back in the top tier, Armthorpe were crowned as Doncaster & District Senior League champions in Champions 1952-53, 1953-54, 1954-55, 1956-57, 1957-58, 1960-61, 1961-62 and 1964-65.

However, that would see the end of the success. The team was relegated from the renamed Premier Division in 1966-67 before further demotions in 1969-70 and 1972-73 saw Welfare in Division Three before they folded in 1974.

The club reformed in 1976, re-joining the Doncaster & District Senior League and winning Division Three in 1978-79. The 1979-80 campaign saw Armthorpe win the Division Two title as well as the first of four consecutive League Cup’s.

In 1982-83 Wellie were crowned as league champions for a ninth time before they became members of Division Two North of the Northern Counties East League, ending as runners-up at the first attempt to progress to Division One Central.

Armthorpe won that league in 1984-85 to move up to the Premier Division, where the team finished as runners-up in 1987-88. Sixth place in 2001-02 and third in 2009-10 was as good as Wellie fared before they were relegated at the end of the 2016-17 season.

The board kept faith with manager Mike Carmody who had been appointed the previous September. Welfare twice finished in the lower reaches of Division One before they were an improved twelfth when the 2019-20 campaign was abandoned owing to Coronavirus.

Lee Morris replaced Carmody in October 2020, with the side again near the wrong end of the table when the 2020-21 also bit the dust early. In March 2022 also took on the role of chairman of the club to oversee the resumption of football following the pandemic.

James Baxendale became manager in August 2023 after the side had ended the previous season in eighth spot. Greg Beswick took over as Baxendale headed to Frickey Athletic, only to return for a second spell from October 2024.

Armthorpe Welfare FC will play in the Northern Counties East League Division One in the 2021-22 season.

My visits

Tuesday 6th August 1986

Hull City had been playing in a pre-season friendly at nearby Doncaster Rovers. I had gone in a car with lads from Bridlington and we called in at Church Street for a brief look as well as the Welfare Ground home of Hatfield Main.

The ground was open and pretty much as I would find it a few years later for my first match there, before he headed on to Thorne for a mini pub crawl after our couple of ground visits.

Armthorpe Welfare 3 Scarborough Athletic 2 (Saturday 20th February 2010) North Eastern Counties League Premier Division (att: 170)

I was back in Scarborough for the weekend when Scarborough Athletic’s game at Armthorpe Welfare was scheduled in February 2010. My good pal and regular driver when I’m up north, Jamie Nunns provided a lift for me along with Bunner, Gordon and Carl along with Jamie’s son Marcus. 

We got to the pub opposite the ground at around 2.15. The ground had no clubhouse and the pub had a pretty poor selection of beers. We made our way across to the ground to find that the home side were fielding Jamie Green in goal. 

This character caused a near riot when keeper of AFC Emley a couple of years earlier when visiting the Seadogs at Bridlington, when he was sent off for inciting the crowd and his front teeth had an unfortunate altercation with the forehead of a Boro player in the players tunnel.

This was a big game for both sides. Although Bridlington Town were running away with the league, Armthorpe still had a chance of finishing runners up, and Boro had an outside chance of promotion.

The clubs above them were unlikely to apply for promotion down to poor facilities and the financial implications of playing in the Northern Premier League. Boro had a makeshift defence with Glenn Powley making his first appearance in goal for nearly two years.

We were treated to a very open game with both sides dodgy at the back but excellent going forward. The home side went one up and nearly added another as the visiting defence creaked like a rusty gate. 

Eventually Richard Medcalf restored parity although this wasn’t good enough for Green who managed to get the Boro player booked while he tried to retrieve the ball from the net. Welfare struck the bar on the stroke of half time.

At half time the Boro chairman, Richard Adamson, came out to ask the Boro fans to refrain from getting involved with any verbal jousting with Green, who had complained to the referee, despite him swearing regularly at full volume.

Boro went ahead when Scott Phillips bundled the ball home. Our celebrations were cut short when the home side went straight up the other end and were awarded a penalty. To his credit Mr Green didn’t go over the top when the spot kick went in. 

This may or may not have had something to do with Bunner warning him he’d be coming on the pitch if he did! The game ebbed and flowed until Armthorpe got a second penalty fifteen minutes from time.

Worse was to follow as Carl Wood was deemed to be the last man so he went to have an early bath. The penalty was despatched to make it 3-2. The referee, who to that point had a reasonable game then seemed to lose the plot as the game became tetchy. 

A home player was shown a straight red card and Boro’s extremely erratic Danny Moore also went for a second yellow. The game had certainly given full entertainment to an official crowd of 170, of which there were a large majority of away fans in attendance.

Armthorpe Welfare 1 Scarborough Athletic 4 (Saturday 26th November 2011) Northern Counties East League Premier Division (att: 203)

Back on the North Yorkshire Riviera for a long weekend and having a great time with my Dad and my mates this match coincided nicely. I had been to a very candid, but upbeat club AGM the previous evening and then tried some lovely ales to refresh my body after the blustery mid afternoon walk around Whitby.

Saturday saw me going back fifteen years or so, as I was going to the game on a mini bus with the lads. I met in Wetherspoons and sat with Bunner and a few others as we discussed our proposed sponsored walk from the Athletic Ground to Bridlington before our Boxing Day clash. 

Before long Badger was outside in his lovely gleaming bus. No beer, food or cigarettes were permitted on board. How times had changed. It reminded me of the joke about how the Rolling Stones now tidied hotel rooms instead of wrecking them!

Another welcome edition, at least for the lads in the back was the DVD player showing the latest Peter Kay release. Noddy and I in the front didn't get the visual gags, but it was great to hear everyone laughing along. 

Badger thought my hints were a good idea as we were running early, so he pulled into the market town of Howden for a comfort break. A local pub benefitted from eight lads all having a minimum of a couple of drinks, as did the butcher next door who soon sold out of his lovely pies. 

We left in good form, quite impressed with the old town, and noting it down for future reference. We were outside the ground just gone 2pm so we piled into The Wheatsheaf over the road, which had thankfully now got hand pulled ales. 

The pub was fairly busy with thirsty Seadogs and the mood was good as we trudged over the road to the turnstiles before kick off. As ever there was a great turn out of visiting fans. I would have estimated around 150 Boro supporters were in attendance.

There was a strong wind blowing down the pitch, with a low sun as the players came out. Our old friend Mr Green in the home goal looked to have lost a lot of weight, which was readily commented on.

Boro had the wind behind them in the first period and although they had the lions share of possession, Welfare had their chances. They certainly knew how to whinge to the referee as Boro really got stuck in. 

There was no way they were going to be bullied as had been the case over the previous few seasons on far too many occasions, especially on the road. A fine Curtis Bernard header sent Boro in one up at half time, with many of us in the crowd slightly concerned.

The wind had dropped at the start of the second period, but it was Boro who blew Armthorpe away. Matt Draper doubled the lead rapidly and celebrated as though it meant so much to him. Boro were winning the midfield battle and the defenders were as tough as teak.

Just after the hour Ryan Blott, who got better as the game went on, beautifully beat some close attention to set up Bernard who scored a lovely goal from the edge of the box. Jamie Green was taking plenty of stick as he collected the ball from the net. 

He deserved nothing more, as he spent much of the game out of his area trying to influence the referee. His language was also a disgrace for a club captain. Welfare pulled a goal back from the penalty spot, before Bernard was sprung and he made no mistake as he guided the ball past Green to complete his second successive league hat trick. 

He really did play well, but much credit had to go to those who'd done the dirty work further back. We returned to the pub for a pint and to watch the other results come in. Irish Mark set me up with a local drunk, much to the amusement of the others. 

As I mentioned at the time, "It's a long season!" The team came across the road for their sarnies as we were getting back on the bus. I think they worked out that we were happy, judging by the noise coming out of the vehicle. 

The lads settled down to watch an alternative DVD of the Boro v Wolves game. The Man City fans song of We're not really here" couldn't have been more apt. From Wolves to Armthorpe.

I had a few pints on Falsgrave when we got back, before I conked out. The next day I had another long walk with my Dad and even went to watch Athletic's Under 12 side rack up a massive win.

Sadly the weekend had a dark side to any genuine football fan, as news came through that Gary Speed had committed suicide. It really put everything else into perspective.

Two days later Curtis Bernard left Boro to move to Bradford Park Avenue for a huge pay increase, but it didn't stop Boro going top of the league after defeating Tadcaster Albion.