Bowers & Pitsea

Bowers & Pitsea FC is a non-league football club from Pitsea in Essex, that was formed in 1946 by Bert Salmon as Bowers United. The team started out its life as members of the Thurrock and Thameside Combination playing at a ground where Pitsea Market now stands.

United won the competition in 1958-59, with Bert Salmon being tragically killed a few months later. His brother Len Salmon moved to the club from Pitsea United. The club progressed to the Essex Olympian League for the 1966-67 campaign, a year after moving into a new ground at Gun Meadow.

Len Salmon worked hard for the club raising funds and managing to purchase the Gun Meadow ground from the landlords, the Howard family, in 1962. His foresight would pay dividends as the venue had a Compulsory Purchase Order placed on it in 1972.

The government wanted to build a bypass extension to the A13 road, which had been originally mooted in 1959. The money received from the deal allowed Bowers to search for a new home, which was quickly sorted.

The club moved into Crown Avenue, with the new ground being opened in October 1973 with a match against a former Tottenham Hotspur all-star side. Bowers became members of the Essex Senior League for the start of the 1974-75 season.

The league title followed in 1980-81 under manager Malcolm Slater before finishing as runners-up in 1983-84. A second Essex Senior League title arrived in 1998-99 with Tony Cross in charge of the team. The club didn’t apply for promotion, preferring to remain at the county level.

Len Salmon died in August 2000, at which point the ground was renamed in his honour. The club was extended in 2004 when they absorbed Pitsea FC to take on their current title. Pitsea had been a successful club in the Vange & District Sunday League and the Basildon Sunday League.

In the summer of 2014, Rob Small, the successful manager of Essex Olympian League side Southminster St Leonards, was appointed as manager. He led his side to a league runners-up position in his first season in charge. This was a mere aperitif for what was to come in 2015-16.

Bowers & Pitsea were crowned Essex Senior League champions and were promoted to the second tier of the Isthmian League, as well as partaking in a fine FA Vase run, going all the way to the semi-finals before losing on aggregate to eventual winners Morpeth Town. In 2016-17, Bowers finished just outside the play-off spots of Isthmian League Division One North. 

The playoffs were reached in 2017-18, where the team lost out in the semi-finals in a local derby against Canvey Island. After regathering, the side was crowned as champions to be promoted to the Premier Division in 2018-19. The 2019-20 season saw Bowers beat Lewes and gain revenge on Canvey on their way to the fourth qualifying round of the FA Cup.

Bowers were defeated at home by Chichester City, who would then get a bye to the second round after being given a bye following the expulsion of Bury. In May 2022, James Collins arrived as the new manager to replace Rob Small after his eight seasons in charge.

The team was relegated in 2022-23 but fought back by finishing in the playoffs of Division North the following season. Victories over Felixstowe & Walton United and then Brentwood Town on penalties saw Bowers return to the Premier Division at the first time of asking. 

Luke Wilson and Joe Flowers became joint managers in January 2025 as the side was relegated back to the North Division a few months later.

Bowers & Pitsea FC will play in the Isthmian League North Division in the 2026-27 season.

My visit

Bowers & Pitsea 3 Folkestone Invicta 1 (Saturday 14th December 2019) Isthmian League Premier Division (att: 159)

I’d wisely taken a couple of extra days off work in the aftermath of the General Election to recover and enjoy the Friday night at Charlton Athletic v Hull City, as well as being able to accept a lift to Poole Town against Hendon on Saturday.

The weather had been pretty poor throughout the week, and my pal Lee informed me that he’d been given the heads up by a mate on the south coast that the notorious pitch at Poole would be unlikely to be fit and that it had been pouring down overnight.

Sure enough, I received a text around 9.30am to confirm the postponement. I needed a plan B. There were several options, but I had one eye on the weather and the possibility of being potentially stranded somewhere with no other opportunities on hand. Not in the best of moods, I resorted to some cheering-up therapy by way of a full English at the Bridge Café in West Hampstead. 

Immediately, the world seemed slightly brighter, despite the cold, windy conditions outside. It was a bit early to set out anywhere. I wasn’t keen on an extended pub stay as I’d had a good sample over the previous couple of days and had a 6.30am start at work the following day. The British Library looked like an excellent sanctuary.

I’d never been in there in my life, but found myself benefiting from the warm building and seating area twice in the previous three days. You never know when such facilities will be shut down. Twitter was my pal as I started to narrow down my targets. Royston Town in the Trophy was very tempting. 

A potential shock and guaranteed crowd, but a couple of Tweets slightly put me off, as they thought they’d be getting some rain on an already muddy pitch. Games at Chichester City and Phoenix Sports were also up there, but in the end, a trip to Essex came out as the winner. I’d nearly gone to the FA Cup tie between Bowers and Chichester earlier in the season.

I wanted to visit a new ground. Bowers would be the six hundredth different venue I’d paid to watch football on, covering nineteen different countries. The artificial playing surface also guaranteed that the game would be on. At Liverpool Street, I received a scare as a flurry of cancellations appeared on the board. 

Fortunately, the tree that had fallen on the track affected the line via Billericay to Southend. I was good to go for the service to Basildon. It looked a bit of a hike from Pitsea station to the ground, and several sources had indicated that a decent bus service would serve me better from the larger town. 

I was also interested to see what Basildon was like on my first visit. It hadn’t looked particularly glamorous when I’d passed through on the train. In its huge favour, it was the place that had produced Depeche Mode, Yazoo, and much of the rave scene. It’s not all about looks, which is probably as well in my case.

I found a gritty original new town, no longer new but sprawling like a bigger version of Stevenage. An underpass from the railway led me to the bus station under the market building. I found the right bay for the number 5 service towards Pitsea.

I’d purchased a return to Wilsner and settled to listen to the end of the Liverpool v Wolves game on the radio. The journey took just less than twenty minutes. After gathering my bearings, I saw the floodlights peeping through the gaps between the houses.

A few minutes later, I was by the turnstiles, having walked straight past the entrance to the clubhouse. I really should have asked if access was from inside the ground, but I paid my tenner admission. I bought the £2 programme from a lady shivering at a table.

Unsure of what to expect before I set out, I knew that the Len Salmon Stadium had enjoyed some work on it over the previous couple of years. I hadn’t imagined that it would be such a good little ground. I was immediately impressed. An old cover in three sections ran the full length behind the near goal. 

A new structure with tip-up seating and a flat covered standing area was down the entrance side. Opposite was a combination of flat standing and a couple of small seated stands. Past the main stand were a few steps of open terracing, with the far end consisting of open flat standing and a modern stepped cover behind the goal. 

Unfortunately, there was no access to the clubhouse, but that was my own stupid fault. A cup of tea and a bacon roll were purchased from “Bowers Burgers” near the entrance before I sought somewhere out of the way of the strong, cold wind that was blowing towards the gates across the flat landscape.

Invicta arrived as league leaders, having defeated nearest challengers Horsham in the last minute seven days previously. The hosts were towards the bottom third in the standings. The Kent side brought a decent following of support with them. Bowers came flying out of the traps. 

Their number five and skipper Lewis Manor played as centre forward and immediately created an aerial threat from a corner before Jamie Dicks fired just past the post. However, Invicta responded and took the lead in five minutes. Kieron McCann played a perfect pass into the stride of Scott Heard, who smashed his shot past keeper Callum Chafer and in off the underside of the bar.

Manor saw his header from another corner cleared off the line by scorer Heard, while Folkestone looked dangerous whenever they went forward. I’d taken a position near the visiting fans behind the goal and was thoroughly enjoying the action.

Bradley Warner headed a couple of efforts over for Bowers, while Jerson Dos Santos was denied by a good challenge at the other end. Ira Jackson was also causing problems for the home defence with his decent movement. The scores were levelled after twenty-four minutes. Warner hit the bar with his effort before Manor followed in to head home despite the efforts of Josh Vincent to clear off the line. 

Back down the other end, Ronnie Dolan was close with a thirty-yarder. It had been an absorbing first half, made better when I noticed a gate had been opened to gain access to the bar. I was straight in at the break for half of Theakstons and a whisky; purely for medicinal reasons, of course.

A Quentin Monville cross caused confusion in the visitors' box a minute after the restart. The ball evaded goalie Henry Newcombe, but defender Matt Newman was on hand to clear. Newcombe tipped an effort from the resulting corner onto the top of the bar. Folkestone halftime sub, Sam Hasler, fired off a thirty-yard shot from which Chafer made a superb diving save. 

Dos Santos fired wide as the table toppers looked to regain the lead. Chafer made a save from the same man before he pulled off another top stop from a Heard shot. Chafer went on to make further stops with his feet from Jackson after denying the former Hull City u23 forward Johan Ter Horst, who I’d seen in action a couple of years previously for the Tigers in a midweek afternoon game at Millwall.

Those were the moments that changed the direction of the game for me. The custodian had kept his team in the game, and from there, his colleagues responded to seize their opportunity.

With seventeen minutes left on the clock, Bowers went ahead to the delight of their vocal fans behind the goal. Newman complained about being penalised for a foul. 

The resulting free kick from Ben Sartain was met by the towering, powerful Manor, who headed home. Newcombe and some colleagues harangued the ref, who was having none of it. The local youths took great delight in the actions of the visiting players and gave the stopper some stick for the remainder of the game.

The temperatures continued to plummet. I continued to pace up and down on the side terrace while trying to mobilise my finger to keep in tune with scores from elsewhere. Folkestone tried to respond. Jackson shot over, and Hasler was denied by Chafer. The visitors threw men forward to try and salvage a point as a couple of home players were cautioned for delaying tactics. 

The ref was obviously unimpressed as seven minutes of stoppage time were added on to the astonishment of the hosts. However, they sealed the match in the very final minute when Dicks broke. He squared to the man of the match, Manor, who helped the ball on to Sartain, who made no mistake. The final whistle was met with great home celebrations.

I’d thoroughly enjoyed a proper game of football. Bowers came across as a traditional, hard-working Essex club. They were certainly ones I’d be keeping an eye on. Invicta more than played their part, and I expected that they’d be there or thereabouts at the season's end.

Poor old Folkestone. I’d now seen them play away three times. They’d drawn 3-3 at Hendon after being 3-0 up with ten minutes remaining and then lost 4-1 in the play-offs to the same opponents. I’d just seen them ship another three, even when they were top of the league. Apologies!

My bus wasn’t too long in showing up, so I easily made the 5.40 train back to Fenchurch Street, from where I was straight home for food and sleep with the electric blanket playing a blinder of its own!

Blackfield & Langley

Blackfield & Langley FC is a non-league football club from the village of Blackfield, just to the south of Southampton and close to the Solent estuary, that was formed in 1935.

The club initially started life as members of the Hythe & District League before joining the Southampton Junior League following World War II. The Division One title was collected in 1945-46, leading to a move to the West Division of the Southampton League.

‘The Watersiders’ picked up the West Division title to progress to Division Three East of the Hampshire League. The side won the divisional title in 1951-52 and finished runners-up on a couple of occasions to be placed in Division Three following league restructuring in 1956.

Promotion to Division Two was achieved in 1955-56, but the team was relegated back to Division Three in 1959-60. A couple of further league reorganisations led to the club being placed in Division Three West and then Division Four for the 1971-72 season.

A promotion to Division Three of the Hampshire League was won in 1974-75 before suffering relegation back to Division Four in 1978-79. The following year, Backfield & Langley moved to Division Three following another change to the league format.

A runners-up berth in 1981-82 saw promotion to Division Two, from where the team won the title in 1984-85 to move up to Division One. Three Hampshire League runner-up spots were achieved before being crowned as champions in 1997-98.

A further promotion to the Wessex League was denied owing to the Gang Warily Recreation Ground not meeting ground requirements. The highest level of the Hampshire League was renamed the Premier Division, with Backfield finishing third in 1999-00. Ground improvements meant that they could take up a position in the Wessex League.

The competition was extended with the club being relegated to the new Division Two for 2004-05. That division was retitled as Division One in the summer of 2006, from where promotion was won to the Premier Division as runners-up in 2008-09.

Blackfield & Langley were crowned as Wessex League champions in 2012-13 but did not apply for promotion to the Southern League on account of the prohibitive costs of further upgrades to the Gang Warily Rec. Former Poole Town midfielder Glenn Howes became club manager in 2015.

Promotions in non-league football later became compulsory, so when the club won a second Wessex League title in 2017-18, they went up to Division One South of the Southern League. A further title followed in 2018-19 saw Blackfield promoted to Premier Division South.

Howes departed in April 2020, probably knowing the news that the club would be resigning from the Southern League owing to cost implications and taking a voluntary demotion to the Premier Division of the Wessex League to safeguard their future. 

First team player Fawzi Saadi took over as manager from Howes. Jayda Chiutare became manager in August 2024 to replace Carl Bennett after the side narrowly avoided relegation. He was replaced by Nathan Brown the following January. Jake Hallett was appointed manager in February 2025. The team was relegated a few months later. 

Blackfield & Langley FC will play in the Wessex League Division One in the 2025-26 season.

My visit

Blackfield & Langley 2 Hendon 2 (Saturday 30th November 2019) Southern League Premier Division South (att: 86)

Talk about extremes and journeys to a match. I’d set off from Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport at 8.30pm local time on Friday evening, changing planes in Abu Dhabi before landing at 7am at Heathrow. The rain was lashing down. A real welcome home!

After depositing my luggage, a brief nap on top of the electric blanket, and grabbing a bite to eat, I was heading to meet Bob and our driver Lee at Harrow-on-the-Hill for a ride down the M3 to the south coast.

It was a good journey, even if the final few miles seemed a little remote and an unlikely destination for a Step 3 non-league football club. It was certainly pleasant surroundings, even in the howling wind. At least it was dry.

Lee went looking for some petrol while we joined other visiting fans who would make up at least half the crowd in a small but homely and welcoming clubhouse. The East Coast IPA hit the spot as I chatted with Tom Stockman about our break.

Tom had gone with us and had an absolute ball. He fitted in perfectly among previous strangers and had proved the ideal tourist. Plenty of our pals seemed keen to hear about our adventures.

It was time to brave the conditions outside. The ground had obviously had a fair bit of cash spent on it to meet stipulations, but still needed further upgrades to satisfy the FA. It seemed bonkers. Blackfield was a small community club doing well on the pitch, with generous backers but no fans. They didn’t need any further stands.

It brought the whole ground-grading shenanigans into question once again with its over-the-top requirements and inconsistencies. This was a neat, tidy, and above all, safe venue. It was certainly safer than some larger venues with crumbling steps and rubbish strewn about.

Gang Warily had a couple of covered seated stands, a covered standing area, and hard standing all around the pitch. It had a smashing refreshment hut, where the Bovril was most welcome on a bitterly cold afternoon with a strong crosswind.

The towers of the Fawley Oil Refinery offered a contrasting backdrop behind the attractive trees. It was a venue I’d have preferred to have visited on a mild autumn afternoon, but I guess that football is a game for all conditions.

The changes had continued in playing personnel at Hendon while I’d been away. It was like virtually a new team taking the field. The Twitter feed with the team line-up was most welcome as we tried to match the names up with seven men making their debuts.

New full-backs Joe Howe and Lucas Perry appeared keen to get involved in attacking play. The visitors went into the lead early in proceedings when a cross found its way across to Isaac Galliford, who fired home from a narrow angle.

Giant loan keeper Rihards Matrevics from Barnet cut an imposing figure, and he got off to a promising start with a couple of early stops. I’d seen the hosts in action at Harrow earlier in the season, and I’d been impressed by their forward play in a game that they could easily have drawn instead of losing 3-1.

Devane Bongou looked dangerous leading the line in an open game. Shaun Lucien had a shot from range tipped over by Bradley Snelling, who then denied the hard-working forward Liam Brooks from close in when he should have scored. Another effort was somehow blocked when a second goal looked like coming.

It’s amazing how games can change if a side doesn’t take their opportunities, and this would prove to be another occasion. Dons defender Tom Hamblin was badly exposed for pace with Hisham Kasimu going through to go around Matrevics and score.

Seven minutes from the interval, Hamblin was shown a straight red card for dragging back Kasimu, who was about to speed clear once again. It was sad to see an accomplished defender and decent bloke being found out. Could it have been his final Hendon appearance?

Another of the new boys, Solomon Sambou, was adjudged to have brought down a home player in the area as things went from bad to worse for the Dons. Fatah Makhloufi slotted away the spot kick.

The visiting bench was unhappy with the officials at the break, as were one or two fans who were over the top. The ref didn’t really stand out one way or the other to me. I think the annoyance was brought through the frustration of Hendon causing their own misery.

We returned after a warm in the bar to grab another hot drink and take shelter with the wind at our backs down the far side. Hendon had come out in determined fashion and matched their start to the first half with some pressure despite being a man down.

Keeper Snelling was having an inspired afternoon with a fair bit of luck thrown in for good measure. Manager Allinson made three substitutions to try to find a goal. Blackfield were still dangerous on the break as the game hung in the balance.

With eight minutes remaining, Hendon scored an equaliser. Sub, Kingsley Eshun chased a through ball and collided with keeper Snelling, who, in return, smashed into one of his defenders. The ball ran loose for Brooks to tap into an empty net.

If the referee had aided the hosts at all, he certainly repaid the visitors. It could have easily been called a foul. Not that any of the team, management, or Dons fans were bothered. The home bench was particularly put out. Again, a sign of frustration?

Blackfield could well have gathered all three points in the remaining time. A cross seemed to land perfectly on a forward’s head, but the chance was spurned. Matrevics pulled off a stunning save from a free kick before the game came to an end.

It had been a good, hard, old-fashioned game of football in difficult conditions. Everyone shook hands and went away relatively happy. It was certainly good to get back into the warm car. I didn’t need much rocking before I got to sleep when I got back home after my takeaway.

Sutton Common Rovers

Sutton Common Rovers FC is a non-league football club formed in 1978 in the south London borough of Sutton by Alan Salmon, as Inrad FC; before going on to be titled Centre 21 FC in a sponsorship deal, before Sutton Common Road FC came into being, or SCR for short.

Further sponsorship deals led to Plough, Grapes, Litten Tree, and Kingfisher being added after Sutton Common Road at various stages. By the 2006-07 campaign, SCR found themselves playing in the Surrey South Eastern Combination.

A third-place finish led to an unsuccessful application to join the Combined Combination League. An alternative was found with a place in the Middlesex County League as Sutton Common Rovers FC. Another third position was enough to secure a place in the Combined Combination League under manager Darren Salmon. 

In the summer of 2008, the club changed its moniker to Mole Valley SCR to reflect the area in which the club was playing home games. SCR just missed out on promotion from Division One. However, the 2009-10 season saw Rovers crowned as champions and promotion to the Premier Division while lodging at Cobham FC.

The 2011-12 campaign ended in relegation to Division One, but the team regrouped and regained its Premier Division spot at the first attempt. In 2014-15, SCR narrowly escaped relegation before moving in to share the Borough Sports Ground with Sutton United.

At the same point, the club dropped Mole Valley from their title, again narrowly avoiding relegation, which was backed up with a mid-table slot. However, SCR improved dramatically with a third-place finish in 2017-18.

With Donny Rennalls joining Darren Salmon at the helm, Rovers clinched a runners-up position in 2018-19. Off the pitch, the club had organised a petition to try and secure their own home ground.

It would be at Glenthorne High School in conjunction with Sutton Council, with the installation of a brand new 3G football pitch on the Daisy field located directly behind the school, just off the A217, near Sutton Common Road, where the club was founded.

Once football resumed to normal following the worldwide pandemic, Rovers' previous record was rewarded as they were given a place in the South Central Division of the Isthmian League. The 2022-23 campaign saw the side stay up after defeating Crawley Green Gatwick in a relegation playoff game.

Lee Flavin had joined manager Salmon to take on joint responsibility with the escape season being played as tenants to AFC Whyteleafe. For the 2024-25 campaign, the club moved to Colston Avenue to share with landlords Carshalton Athletic. The team was relegated at the end of their first season there, with Rovers going down to the Premier Division South of the Combined Counties League.

Sutton Common Rovers FC will play in the Combined Counties League Premier Division South in the 2026-27 season.

My visit

Sutton Common Rovers u18s 1 Uxbridge u18s 3 (Monday 28th October 2019) FA Youth Cup Round One (att: 183)

A full day off work and limited fixture options gave me a long-overdue opportunity to see a Rovers side in action playing at home. There was no way I was paying £30 for QPR v Brentford when I knew the potential stars of tomorrow would be giving it their all for just £5.

The fixture dovetailed nicely as it allowed me the opportunity to watch the 2pm kick-off at Dartford between the under-23 sides of Charlton Athletic and Bristol City before taking a train to Carshalton via Peckham Rye for my evening dose of entertainment.

There was no way I was heading to the area with a bit of spare time and not calling into The Hope in Carshalton. The excellent pub didn’t let me down before I boarded a delayed service to Sutton.

My luck seemed to be in as the Thameslink train to West Sutton was also behind schedule, meaning that I didn’t miss it. Fortunately, I didn’t have my music on, as the driver announced it was going non-stop to Blackfriars owing to its late running.

It’s fair to assume that I was not particularly impressed with the news as I’d now miss kick-off. However, my mood was positively bright compared to how it would have been if I’d been deposited in the city after whizzing past the stadium. The number 80 bus came to my rescue, or at least offered me damage limitation as it dropped me within a quick ten-minute walk from the ground.

I walked back along Collingwood Road and then through the park with the floodlights flickering to my left. Admission was via the rear entrance to the Main Stand at Gander Green Lane. I heard a large cheer just as I was about to go in. I bought a decent programme for a couple of quid and got confirmation that the hosts were 1-0 up as I had missed Cordell Whyte’s effort.

The first thing that got me was the size of the crowd, with the local youth out in force to support their mates, which was really good to see. There was also support for Uxbridge around the venue. It was good, competitive, and fast action out on the pitch. I’d certainly seen a lot worse at senior level, and it was different gravy compared to the mismatch I’d seen in the previous round at Hornchurch when they smashed Dagenham & Redbridge 11-0.

Uxbridge drew level before the interval. By now, I’d taken a seat at the top of the stand, and during the break, I had a nice chat with an older Rovers fan who was proud of his club’s set-up and achievement.

The second half saw an even encounter, though the pacey forward line of the visitors looked dangerous throughout. It didn’t come as a huge surprise when they went in front. Sutton did their best but were up against a fine keeper in Jayden St Paul.

It was turning into a cold night as the half progressed. The play was end-to-end and becoming stretched. I was faced with a dilemma with around ten minutes remaining. I could wait for a later train or nip out and catch a service at 9.25.

With the earlier delays and shambles in mind, I departed before full-time, missing the third Uxbridge goal. It was a shame to leave early, but I felt I’d had my money's worth, and I wanted to warm up and have a couple of pints back in Kingsbury.

The Thameslink train took me all the way to West Hampstead, and I was in the pub to tell my pal Steve Barnes all about my long day out before 11pm. It had been a good day of exercise, a double dose of football, and some decent ale. A perfect day off work!

Guiseley

Guiseley AFC is a semi-professional non-league football club that was formed in 1909, based at Nethermoor Park in the small town of Guiseley in West Yorkshire, which is located in the metropolitan borough of the City of Leeds.

The club kicked off life competing in the Wharfedale League, becoming league champions in 1912-13 before switching to the Leeds League and then the West Riding County Amateur League. Guiseley won the league title in 1932-33, 1933-34, 1934-35 and 1938-39.

The competition split into two divisions in 1953, with ‘The Lions’ winning Section A in 1955-56 before reverting to the Leeds League in 1960, becoming champions in 1960-61 and 1964-65. The club joined the Yorkshire League in 1968, where they were placed in Division Two.

After the league was enlarged, Guiseley dropped down to Division Three in 1970 but regained their Division Two place with promotion twelve months later. A further promotion followed in 1973-74, but the jump proved too severe as they went back down after just one season.

However, the team regrouped and won promotion back to Division One at the first attempt, where they ended up as runners-up in 1979-80 and 1980-81 before the league merged with the Midland League to form the Northern Counties East League. Guiseley were placed in the Premier Division. Aside from the 1986-87 season, Guiseley never finished outside the top seven places for the rest of the decade. 

In 1989-90, Frank Worthington signed for the club as they reached the semi-finals of the FA Vase, going out on aggregate to Bridlington Town. In 1990-91, the Lions went one step further, defeating Warrington Town, Farsley Celtic, King’s Lynn, Hinckley Athletic, Buckingham Town, and Trowbridge Town to reach the final at Wembley Stadium under manager Gordon Rayner.

The match against Gresley Rovers ended in a thrilling 4-4 draw before Guiseley lifted the trophy in a 3-1 replay win at Bramall Lane. The season was rounded off as the team became Northern Counties East League Champions and were promoted to Division One of the Northern Premier League.

Guiseley came desperately close to retaining the Vase in 1991-92, reaching the final once again before losing 5-3 to Wimborne Town at Wembley. A run in the FA Cup saw the side reach the first round before going down 1-0 away to Chester City.

Ray McHale had become manager as Guiseley won the Division One title in 1993-94, as well as reaching the semi-final of the FA Trophy, where they went out to Runcorn. The following season saw another FA Cup round one appearance, ending in a 4-1 defeat to Carlisle United in a game moved to Valley Parade in Bradford. Bobby Davison arrived as player-manager to replace McHale during 1997-98, with youngsters being given a chance to impress. 

After a third-place finish, Guiseley went down from the Premier Division in 1999-00 as Davison was replaced by Neil Parsley. Luton Town won at Nethermoor Park in the FA Cup first round in 2002-03 before the Lions were restored to the Premier Division following a restructuring of non-league football in the summer of 2004. 

Experienced Football League boss Terry Dolan was appointed as manager in November 2006.

Steve Kittrick replaced Dolan in November 2007, with his side reaching the play-off final in 2008-09 but losing out to Nantwich Town in their semi-final encounter, before bouncing back to lift the Northern Premier League title in 2009-10 and winning promotion to Conference North.

The following season saw Guiseley bow out in the first round of the FA Cup to Crawley Town, as well as making the league play-offs. Boston United were defeated, but AFC Telford United came out on top in the final. Stars of the Guseley show were forwards James Walshaw and Darryn Stamp.

In 2011-12, Nuneaton Town beat Guiseley in the playoff semi-final. In 2012-13, FC Halifax Town did the damage at the same stage after an earlier first-round appearance in the FA Cup, which ended in a replay defeat to Barrow. The consistency in the league continued in 2013-14 under new manager Mark Bower, who replaced Kittrick. 

On this occasion, North Ferriby United were overcome in the semi-final before Altrincham won the final 2-1 at Moss Lane with Danny Forrst netting for the Lions. The play-off curse was finally put to bed in 2014-15 when AFC Fylde were defeated before Guiseley beat Chorley at Victory Park in dramatic style, after coming back from a two-goal deficit as Adam Boyes, Liam Dickinson and Nicky Boshell scored to send the club into the National League.

Guiseley narrowly escaped relegation in their first season at the summit of non-league football before Adam Lockwood replaced Bower after a poor start to the 2016-17 season. The team once again just stayed up before Paul Cox was appointed as the new manager in September 2017.

Accrington Stanley were defeated in the FA Cup as Guiseley reached the second round for the first time before succumbing away to Mansfield Town. Cox lasted until February 2018 before being replaced by Sean St Ledger, who couldn’t prevent his team from being relegated.

Back in the National League North, the club turned to the duo of Marcus Bignott and Russ O'Neill to lead the team. Cambridge United were defeated in the FA Cup before Fleetwood Town left Nethermoor Park with a win in round two, before Guiseley narrowly survived relegation.

One decent season was followed by an abandoned one before the 2021-22 campaign saw defeat in the first round of the FA Cup to AFC Wimbledon at Plough Lane, before league form imploded, leading to  Steve Kittrick coming in as caretaker boss, but he could not help save the side from relegation back to the Northern Premier League.

Danny Ellis was appointed as manager in the summer of 2022, remaining in charge until November of his first season at the helm. Paul Phillips was eventually named as his successor, before being succeeded by Andy Welsh in October 2023. Former boss Mark Bower was appointed in April 2024 to try to lead Guiseley to promotion.

They reached the playoffs in 2024-25, losing their semifinal tie to Stockton Town but being given a place in the final after their opponents fielded an ineligible player. Worksop Town ended their dreams of promotion. Ian Richards was named as Guiseley manager in October 2025.

Guiseley AFC will play in the Northern Premier League Premier Division in the 2026-27 season.

My visits

Guiseley 2 Scarborough 2 (Saturday 6th August 1994) Yorkshire Electricity Cup (att: 375)

It was a steaming hot day as a group of us set off by train for a game in the short-lived pre-season tournament, equipped in our new Boro shirts, which drew attention at Leeds station as they were red with white and black trim.

After a quick beer, we continued on to Guiseley, where The Station pub sold an absolute cock on a pint of Tetley’s. It was touching the taste buds of Crusher and me, so we stayed for a couple more along with Carl Ellis before walking up Otley Road to Nethermoor Park. The neat set-up at the ground saw more fine ale in the clubhouse. We also had access to watch the cricket over the fence. 

That would prove to be a decent option. Boro were in transition after chairman John Russell had sacked popular manager Steve Wicks. His replacement was a former playing legend at the club, big centre back Billy Ayre, who was used to dealing with nutty owners as his previous appointment was under Owen Oyston at Blackpool. Talk about out of the frying pan and into the fire.

I offered Billy a “welcome home” and a handshake as he emerged from the tunnel. He responded with a thanks, son. Guiseley’s boss was another former Seadog favourite in Ray McHale, whose programme message in the £1 edition caused a giggle for the visiting fans. It included a cutting line about a former Scarborough chairman, an apology saying that it was meant for Tuesday’s programme. 

Guiseley would be facing Bradford City, whose chairman was Geoffrey Richmond, who’d not been particularly helpful to Razor during his tenure at the McCain Stadium. Most fans settled for a vantage spot on the far side in the shelter of the seated stand. There was also a bit of cover down the clubhouse side. The whole ground was neat and tidy in the most pleasant surroundings. Further giggling came from the locals as their side gave Boro a bit of a chasing at times. 

It was a most unconvincing performance for a Football League side against Northern Premier League opposition. We were asked if it was our reserve team? Alas, it was not. Boro escaped with a draw thanks to goals from Stuart Young and Darren Foreman, who was continuing his rehabilitation from a broken leg. Sadly, he never really recovered his potency from before the injury, at least in a Scarborough shirt.

Lubrication was taken at regular intervals. It played its part in an interesting post-match conversation with a ratty John Russell, who was complaining about fans having a go at him about his sacking of Wicks. The later convicted fraudster told us that Wicks would bankrupt the club with his spending and demands, so he was looking after its best interests. 

He also told us of new players who were on their way and a couple of Czechs he was looking to sign. Looking back, it was comedy gold, especially the bit about signing Czechs. The joke was that they’d probably bounce. Inevitably enough, they never arrived, but it made him feel better telling us. We left in a state of bewilderment, but it was a hot day, and we were thirsty.

Leeds station was busy on our return and had some real sights on their way back from the Saturday’s Test play at Headingley, where England failed to take control against South Africa.

Wednesday 17th September 2008

I’d enjoyed an extensive tour of several football venues in West Yorkshire the day after watching Scarborough Athletic play at Glasshoughton Welfare. I’d stayed overnight in Leeds before visiting Bradford, Halifax, Thackley, Shipley, and Saltaire.

The World Heritage Site at Salts was interesting and a good exercise before a train at Shipley took me to Guiseley for my final football call of the day. Although the ground was locked, the low perimeter fence allowed me to take photos.

It hadn’t really changed since my previous visit; take, perhaps, an additional bit of cover down the clubhouse side? The seated stand had been ravaged by fire but was in the process of repair. Once done, I continued a few minutes further up Otley Road to the original Harry Ramsden’s. 

It was closed and now a franchise operation, unlike when it first opened and had a reputation for being the best chippy in the area. A bus took me back to Leeds in time for a final pint and to grab something to eat before I caught the train back to London.