Tow Law Town F.C.
Full name | Tow Law Town Association Football Club | ||
---|---|---|---|
Nickname(s) | The Lawyers | ||
Founded | 1890 (as Tow Law) | ||
Ground | Ironworks Road Tow Law County Durham | ||
Capacity | 3,000 | ||
Chairman | Steve Moralee | ||
Manager | Lee Walker/Lee Pratt | ||
League | Northern League Division One | ||
2022–23 | Northern League Division Two, 12th of 20 | ||
Website | Club website | ||
|
Tow Law Town Association Football Club is an
The club was founded in 1890 as Tow Law F.C., before adding the Town to their name in 1905, and throughout their history they have played in a number of local leagues including the Auckland and District League, the South Durham Alliance and the Crook and District League, before joining the
History
There was a football team operating in Tow Law as early as 1881, when a vicar captained the team.
In the 1967–68 season, the club had their best ever run in the FA Cup. After reaching the first round proper, they beat Mansfield Town 5–1 at Ironworks Road, and took Shrewsbury Town to a second round replay after a 1–1 draw at home. The team went into the third round draw and were drawn against Arsenal at home. However this never happened because they were beaten 6–2 by Shrewsbury in the replay. Arsenal were said to be "saved from a fate worse than death – a trip to Tow Law in January."[2]
In 1974, they won the Northern League Cup, beating
The club made their first and so far only visit to Wembley Stadium on 9 May 1998, by winning through to the final of the FA Vase, under the management of Peter Quigley and his assistant Tony Heslop.[2] They reached the final, beating Taunton Town 5–4 on aggregate in a two legged semi-final.[6] In reaching the final, Tow Law, with its population of only 2,200, became the smallest town to ever reach a Wembley final.[7] The team took around 4,000 supporters with them down to London, about twice the population of Tow Law at the time.[6] They were beaten in the final 1–0 by Tiverton Town.[2]
They finished second in the league in 1998–99 and 2001–02.[4] With Harry Dixon's death in 2002, Harry Hodgson took up the post of President. In 2004, John Flynn stood down as chairman, and so for a year long period, Hodgson took up the title of club chairman as well. At the end of the 2004–05 season, he retired from the club. His replacement, Sandra Gordon, is still chair at the club. She is the first ever female chair of the club, and only the third in the history of the Northern League. In 2007, Bernard Fairbairn, who had followed his father and grandfather into the job, stood down as club secretary, a post he had held since 1961, giving him a total of 46 years in his position. Stephen Moralee has now taken over as club secretary.[2]
At the end of the
Colours and crest
Tow Law Town's home colours have traditionally been vertical black and white stripes with black shorts and socks. This is common amongst clubs in the
The club's crest features a colliery headframe, reflecting the strong history of coal mining in County Durham.[14]
Supporters and rivalries
Followers of Tow Law Town are known as the Misfits. In the club's run up to the FA Vase final in 1998, they left a "trail of devastation" in towns as they progressed through the rounds of competition.
Tow Law's main local rivals are Consett, based only 7.5 miles (12.1 km) away from each other, the two having played together in the Northern League since 1970.[20]
Club records
Tow Law Town's best ever league finish has been three wins of the
The club have only reached the rounds proper of the FA Trophy on four occasions, the first round in 1977–78 and 1990–91, and the second round in 1982–83, where they were beaten 0–3 by Altrincham after taking them to a replay, and in 1989–90, when they were beaten 0–2 by Bath City. They have twice reached the third round of the FA Amateur Cup, the first in 1969–70 when they were beaten 0–4 by St Albans City, and the second the following year in 1970–71 when they took Skelmersdale United to a replay and were beaten 0–1. Tow Law reached the final of the FA Vase in 1997–98 but lost 1–0 to Tiverton Town at Wembley Stadium.[4]
The highest attendance figure recorded at Ironworks Road came when the team played Mansfield Town in the FA Cup first round in the 1967–68 season in front of a crowd of 5,500 people.[21]
Current staff
A list of the current backroom staff at the club.[2][22]
Position | Name |
---|---|
Manager | Lee Walker/Lee Pratt |
Assistant Manager |
|
Chairperson |
Steve Moralee |
President | Lady Elsie Robson |
Vice-president | Vacant |
Honours
The following are the honours Tow Law have achieved since their foundation in 1890.[2][4][23]
League
- Northern League Division One: 3
- 1923–24, 1924–25, 1994–95
- Runners-up (4): 1928–29, 1988–89, 1998–99, 2001–02
Cup
- Runners-up (1): 1997–98
- Northern League Cup: 1
- 1973–74
- Runners-up (5): 1947–48, 1951–52, 1968–69, 1988–89, 1997–98
- 1895–96
- Durham Amateur Cup: 1
- 1892–93
- J.R. Cleator Memorial Cup: 1
- 1994–95
- Ernest Armstrong Memorial Trophy: 5
- 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2001–02
- Rothmans Overseas Cup: 1
- 1976–77
Former players
1. Players that have played/managed in the Football League or any foreign equivalent to this level (i.e. fully professional league).
2. Players with full international caps.
3. Players that hold a club record or have captained the club.
For a full list see the category page - Category:Tow Law Town F.C. players
References
- ISBN 978-0-582-50596-4.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Moralee, Stephen. "Tow Law Town AFC History". www.towlawafc.co.uk/. Retrieved 16 January 2011.
- ^ "Tow Law". Football Club History Database. Retrieved 16 January 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Tow Law Town". Football Club History Database. Retrieved 16 January 2010.
- ^ "Goal.com's Top 50 English Players: Chris Waddle (35)". Goal.com. 12 May 2009. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
- ^ a b Turnbull, Simon (3 May 1998). "Football: Wembley rises for Law men". The Independent. Retrieved 18 January 2011.
- ISBN 0-9540134-8-4.
- ^ McKay, Neil (4 August 2009). "Sir Bobby Robson remembered by Langley Park residents". The Journal. Retrieved 18 January 2010.
- ^ "Club news". towlawafc.co.uk. 22 July 2010. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
- ^ "They also play in Black and White - Introduction". nufc.com. 24 June 2009. Retrieved 8 April 2011.
- ^ "Tow Law Town AFC Scores A Winner". McInerney Homes. 4 December 2006. Retrieved 24 January 2011.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Simpson, Ray (17 August 2010). "RAY SIMPSON'S NORTHERN LEAGUE ROUND-UP". nonleaguedaily.com. Retrieved 18 February 2011.
- ^ "Tow Law Town AFC Sponsors, "www.pitchero.com", 3 January 2020
- ^ "Tow Law Badge". Retrieved 8 April 2011.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Goodbody, John (18 February 1999). "Hooligans put the boot in non-leaguers". barrowfc.com. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
- ^ "Tough stance urged on 'the Misfits'". thefreelibrary.com. 7 March 2007. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
- ^ "Fans on fundraising bike ride". BBC News. 22 April 2003. Retrieved 8 April 2011.
- ^ McKay, Neil (22 August 2010). "Tow Law vicar's wife in unique fundraiser". sundaysun.co.uk. Retrieved 31 March 2011.
- ^ McKay, Neil (7 April 2011). "Italian fans travel 1,000 miles to support Tow Law Town Football Club". The Journal. Retrieved 8 April 2011.
- ^ "Consett 2 Tow Law Town 1". consettafc.com. 7 August 2010. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
- ^ "Club information". towlawafc.co.uk. Retrieved 18 January 2011.
- ^ "Tow Law Town AFC Team 2015–2016". towlawafc.co.uk. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
- ^ "Tow Law Town Details". northernleague.org. Retrieved 21 January 2011.
External links
- Official website
- Tow Law at the Football Club History Database
- Tow Law Town at the Football Club History Database
- Tow Law Town at footballdatabase.eu
- Interview with manager Ian Davison and secretary Stephen Moralee
54°44′49.58″N 1°49′07.04″W / 54.7471056°N 1.8186222°W