Ossett Albion

Ossett Albion AFC was a non-league football club based in the small town of the same name located west of Wakefield in West Yorkshire. They were formed in 1944 and continued until 2018 when they merged with neighbours Ossett Town to form Ossett United FC.

Albion progressed from being a junior club, through regional leagues, becoming members of Division Two of the Yorkshire League in 1957. A runners-up berth was rewarded with promotion to Division One in 1958-59 whose title was nearly won the following season, with ‘The Unicorns’ again coming in second place.

Many further top four places ensued, prior to suffering relegation in 1971-72, regaining their Division One position in 1973-74 after ending as league runners-up. The Yorkshire League crown was collected in 1974-75. However, they were relegated once again in 1977-78.

The team bounced back to win promotion at the first time of asking as Division Two champions, only to be demoted twelve months later. Another Division Two title followed in 1980-81, as Albion returned to Division One prior to becoming founder members of the Northern Counties East League in 1982.

Following league re-organisation the club was placed in Division One Central in 1984-85 before becoming Division One champions in 1986-87 to claim a place in the Premier Division. Gerry Quinn took over as manager by the time Albion became NCEL champions in 1998-99.

The facilities at Dimple Wells halted progression, until the dressing rooms were enlarged enabling Albion to join the Northern Premier League after finishing runners up in the NCEL Premier Division in 2000-01. 

After finishing bottom of Division One in 2001-02, Albion were relegated back to the Northern Counties East League, winning the title in 2003-04 to reclaim a place in the Northern Premier League where they stabilised in Division One and then Division One North following further expansion of the competition.

The team remained at that level for over a decade, with a few narrow escapes from relegation thrown in. It was announced that Ossett Albion would be merging with Ossett Town to form Ossett United FC from the start of the 2018-19 season.

The new club would play first team games at Town’s Inglefield home, with Albion’s Dimple Wells ground becoming home to the women’s and academy sides. The new club was placed in Division One East of the Northern Premier League.

My visit

Ossett Albion 1 Scarborough 1 (Saturday 14th October 2006) FA Cup Third Qualifying Round (att: 582)

I had listened in my local internet cafe in Willesden North London to updates of my club Scarborough playing in the previous round replay at Lancaster City and raised a few looks when I cheered vociferously at full time. I was delighted at Scarborough’s victory, as I had the day off work from the tube on the day of the next round at Ossett.

The draw worked out perfectly for me to catch a train to York to meet up with Nick and his family and watch my niece Sally play her match in the morning. When she had finished, we all travelled down the A1 to Dewsbury where they kindly dropped me off to meet my mates who had gone through for pre match beers on the train.

Dewsbury was not the most aesthetic town I’d ever visited and the couple of pubs we found were not much better. I had to laugh when I met the group walking up the street and one of them asked what I was doing shopping in Dewsbury. Well, to be fair they had been drinking early!

We caught taxis to Ossett, which resembled a ghost town, save for the people in the pubs and bookies. There was quite a crowd of us who went down to the ground. It certainly caught out the Albion officials as the queue snaked out onto the adjoining cricket ground.

We eventually got in and I was pleased we’d got some fish to eat on the way down judging by the queues for refreshments. Dimple Wells, Queen’s Terrace, later called the Wharehouse Systems Stadium in a sponsorship deal in 2010, was a nice venue.

The pitch sloped down to the far touchline. We had entered in one corner. Behind the goal were the changing rooms and admin block with a cover behind the goal. The far end also had a cover, also for standing. The far side had a small stand straddled over the halfway line fitted out with seats, with the side to our right consisting of a few steps of open terracing.

Boro were playing the league games in the Conference North and were slowly improving after suffering a ten-point deduction for financial irregularities. However, they were still hamstrung by a FA ruling stopping the club from signing any new players.

Often spaces were not filled on the subs bench owing to injuries and suspensions. Despite that the side had a real fighting spirit under boss Mark Patterson. This was a game we really needed a win from to bring some prizemoney and an extra games revenue into the club.

Ossett Albion were a couple of divisions below in league status, but obviously fancied their chances in front of a big crowd. Boro were not at their best in a scrappy game. Jamie Vermiglio scored for the Seadogs, but we could only manage a draw and a replay at the McCain Stadium.

A few incidents that stood out were the low walls around the gents’ toilets at the far end of the ground which allowed fans to watch the action while relieving themselves. In a few moments of tomfoolery, the corner flag found itself being removed before someone went over the top and used it as a javelin throwing in over the ground’s perimeter wall.

At full time an additional exit was provided when a gate was separated from its hinges. One or two had enjoyed a beer too many, ridiculing a venue that would seem like a big arena compared to what was in store when the club folded, and a phoenix club took its place several tiers below.

My lift was waiting on the main road after the match after Nick, Rach and Sally had a couple of hours around the Westgate Centre in Wakefield. Sally had wanted to go to the match, but it was probably wise she hadn’t. I was dropped off at York station to return to London and pray for a win in the replay and a decent draw for the next round.

The Times had covered the match at Ossett and quoted good news from Boro, saying a resolution to the signing embargo was nearby. It was never cleared all season. Yet another lie spun by the owners of the day. Boro won the replay but went out to Stafford Rangers in the next round.