| Founded | 1964 |
|---|---|
| Dissolved | 2009 |
| Ground | Green Lane |
| 2008–09 | Manchester Football League Division One, 4th |
Stand Athletic F.C. was a football club based in Whitefield, Greater Manchester, England.
The club was founded in 1964 [1] and played at Elms Park in Whitefield from 1969. The Club was originally in the Bury Sunday School League but in 1970 was accepted into the South East Lancashire League where it became a very successful Club running two teams managed by Harry Molineux with John Roebuck as Secretary and assisted by Warren Derbyshire with Coaching until 1973; A regular player, Tom Edwards then took over as Manager [2] In 1981 they joined the Lancashire & Cheshire Amateur League and won Division Two in 1982-83. In 1993, they joined the Manchester League. [3]
In 2000, the club moved from Whitefield to the Ewood Bridge ground formerly used by Haslingden F.C. on a seven-year lease but financial difficulties meant that they returned to Whitefield after two years. The club secretary said that "We were successful on the pitch but not off it. It's a large site and it could be a great opportunity for someone". [1] They joined the North West Counties League in 2001. In their first season at the higher level, they won the Division Two title, but were not accepted for promotion to Division One due to issues with this new ground.
After 12 matches of the 2002–03 season, they resigned from the North West Counties League, and rejoined the Manchester League for 2003–04. They finished fourth in the Manchester League Division One in 2008–09 [4] and had also fielded a team in Division Three. [1] They were forced to leave the Elms Park site in the summer of 2008 when the local council closed the changing facilities, which were used by various local sports teams. [2]
The club played one season at Agecroft in Salford [5] and then, in the summer of 2009, merged with another local club, called Standians F.C., that was to be managed by former Bury F.C. striker Kevin Hulme. [5] The new arrangements were fractious, with on-field brawls in pre-season training, and the merged club resigned from the Manchester League. A team calling itself Standians F.C., comprising mostly players from the former club of that name, went on to play in the Lancashire and Cheshire League for the 2009-10 season, leading to accusations from the Athletic coach that his players had been "stabbed in the back", although he did acknowledge that there were disciplinary problems. [6]
The club's home kit was yellow and black stripes. [7]
The club's overgrown pitch and dilapidated home supporters' stand at Ewood Bridge can be seen from the East Lancashire Railway, close to the Irwell Vale railway station. The ground is located just off Blackburn Road (B6527) between the railway line and the River Irwell.
The ground included a match pitch, a synthetic training pitch, a two-story clubhouse with changing rooms, a function room and bar, and a stand. [1]
The North West Counties Football League is a football league in the North West of England. Since 2019–20, the league has covered the Isle of Man, Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Merseyside, Cumbria, northern Staffordshire, northern Shropshire, the far west of West Yorkshire, and the High Peak area of Derbyshire. In the past, the league has also hosted clubs from North Wales such as Caernarfon Town, Colwyn Bay, and Rhyl. From season 2018–19 the league increased to three divisions: the Premier Division, at level nine in the English football league system, and two geographically separate Division Ones, North and South, at level ten. The league is a member of the Joint Liaison Council which administers the Northern arm of the National Football System in England.
Whitefield is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, Greater Manchester, England. It lies on undulating ground above the Irwell Valley, along the south bank of the River Irwell, 3 miles (4.8 km) southeast of Bury, and 5 miles (8.0 km) northwest of Manchester. Prestwich and the M60 motorway lie just to the south.
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The Lancashire County Football Association, also known simply as the Lancashire FA, is the governing body of football within the historical county boundaries of Lancashire, England. They are responsible for the governance and development of football at all levels in the county.
Haslingden F.C. was a football club based in Rossendale, Lancashire. In 1994, they won the North West Counties Football League Division Two. Haslingden played at Ewood Bridge, later used by Stand Athletic and were members of the North West Counties League between 1993 and 1998. Although Division Two Champions in their first season Haslingden were not promoted until finishing runners up in 1997. They completed just one season in the top flight, finishing 16/22 before financial difficulties signalled the end of the line for the club based adjacent to the East Lancashire Railway. The Ewood Bridge ground forlorn and overgrown is still extant today.
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