Stockton Town F.C.
Full name | Stockton Town Football Club | ||
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Nickname(s) | The Anchors | ||
Short name |
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Founded | 1987 | ||
Ground | Bishopton Road West | ||
Capacity | 1,800 (200 seated) | ||
Chairman | Martin Hillerby | ||
Manager | Michael Dunwell | ||
League | Northern Premier League Division One East | ||
2023–24 | Northern Premier League Division One East, 2nd of 20 | ||
Website | Club website | ||
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Stockton Town Football Club is an English football club based in Stockton-on-Tees, England. They are currently members of the Northern Premier League Division One East and play at Bishopton Road West, which has an overall capacity of 1,800, including 200 available seats. They are managed by former player Michael Dunwell, who retired from playing in 2014.
The club are notable for reaching the
Their club badge, which includes their motto, "Fortitudo et Spes" (Latin for "Strength and Hope"), is navy and yellow, representing their traditional colours. The historic club nickname, "the Anchors", is taken from the Stockton coat of arms, representing the town's shipbuilding history during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
History
The club was initially formed in 1979 as Hartburn Juniors, entering a 5-a-side league in Middlesbrough to give youngsters an opportunity to play organised football. The club changed to their name to Stockton Town in 2003.
For the 2009–10 season, a senior team was entered into the Teesside League Division Two and finished in fourth place in their first season. In the summer of 2010, the club applied for membership to the Wearside League and were accepted for the 2010–11 season where they finished in tenth place. In the 2011–12 season, the club finished third in the league and lost in the final of the League Cup.
The club won their first league title in the 2012–13 season, and repeated the feat in their following league campaign, finishing the season with a league record of 104 points. At the end of the 2014–15 season, the club applied for qualification for the Northern League Division Two. However, despite winning the league title for a third time, their application was withdrawn due to legal issues.[2]
In the 2015–16 season, the club won their fourth consecutive league title to gain promotion to Northern League.
In only their second ever Northern League campaign, Stockton reached the final of the 2017–18 FA Vase. They played Thatcham Town of the Hellenic League. The final, played at Wembley Stadium, took place on 20 May, with Stockton narrowly losing by 1–0.[1] Furthermore, that season's semi-final against Marske United, taking place on home turf and resulting in a 2–0 victory in Stockton's favour, saw the ground record broken, with an attendance of 3,300 (1,800 of Stockton).[7]
In the
Ground
In April 2008, the club moved to facilities at Bishopton Road West in
In July 2015, the club narrowly won approval from planners for expansion, at a cost of around £800,000. The plans, which had been recommended for approval by Stockton's planning officers, included fencing, flood lights, stands, dug outs, a turnstile, a changing block, a storage container and refreshments room. They had previously been given the green light a year previously to erect a 200-seat stand, floodlighting, artificial (3G) turf pitch, pay booth, changing facilities and toilet and refreshment areas. However, the expansion had met with a mixed response from residents, with 69 letters of objection submitted against 50 in support. A 105-signature petition of support was also submitted by the principal of Stockton Sixth Form college, insisting that students would benefit from the scheme.[15]
Management team
As of 24 September 2022[16]
Role | Name |
---|---|
Manager | Michael Dunwell |
Assistant manager | J.D. Briggs |
First team coach | John Fielding |
Goalkeeping coach | Jason Hamilton |
Physiotherapist | Sam Higgins |
Honours
Stockton Town's honours include:[17][18]
League
- Northern Football League Division One
- Promoted: 2020–21 (combined results of two previously curtailed seasons)
- Northern Football League Division Two
- Champions: 2016–17
- Wearside Football League
- Champions: 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16
Cup
- Northern League Ernest Armstrong Trophy
- Runners-up: 2016–17
- Wearside League Cup
- Winners: 2014–15, 2015–16
- Monkwearmouth Charity Cup
- Winners: 2014–15, 2015–16
- Shipowners Charity Cup
- Winners: 2014–15
See also
- Norton and Stockton Ancients F.C.
- Stockton RFC
- Stockton Cricket Club
References
- ^ a b "FA Vase: Thatcham Town beat Stockton Town 1–0 to win title for first time". BBC Sport. 20 May 2018. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
- ^ "Cup finalists Stockton Town will have to put Northern League promotion disappointment behind them". The Gazette. 2 April 2015.
- ^ "Stockton Town". The Northern Premier League. Retrieved 24 September 2022.
- ^ "Stockton Town FC 2 Eccleshill United 0 – Stockton Town Football Club". Stockton Town Football Club. 10 September 2016.
- ^ "FT Whitley Bay 0 Stockton Town 2". Twitter. 24 September 2016.
- ^ "Football Matters on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 16 April 2017.
- ^ "FA VASE SEMI-FINAL: From Stockton high street to Wembley Way". The Northern Echo. 25 March 2018. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
- ^ Loughlin, Nick (9 April 2020). "Stockton and South Shields are denied promotion". The Northern Echo. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
- ^ Scott, Laura (31 March 2020). "More than 100 non-league clubs send letter to FA over expunging season". BBC News. Retrieved 29 August 2020.
- ^ "Breaking News: Stockton Town Promoted to Step 4 of Non-League". Stockton Town F.C. 18 May 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ Gordon, James (18 May 2021). "2021/22 League Allocations". Northern Premier League. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ "Northern Premier League - East Division Play-off Final – Marske United 2 - 1 Stockton Town – 2021-2022". Football Web Pages. 30 April 2022. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
- ^ James Cartwright (30 April 2023). "Anchors season ends in heartbreak". Stockton Town FC. Retrieved 1 May 2023.
- ^ "Teams – Stockton Town Football Club (See: Club Development Section)". Retrieved 11 November 2021.
- ^ "Stockton Town FC narrowly win approval for controversial £800,000 expansion plans". 2 July 2015.
- ^ "Management Team". Stockton Town FC. Retrieved 24 September 2022.
- ^ "Club Honours". Stockton Town FC. Retrieved 24 September 2022.
- ^ "Football Club History Database - Stockton Town".