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| Full name | Wigan Borough Football Club | |
|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The 'Boro – The Green Linnets | |
| Founded | December 1920 after being known as Wigan United and Wigan Association | |
| Dissolved | 1931 | |
| Ground | Springfield Park | |
| Capacity | 30,000 (approx) | |
| League | Football League North | |
Wigan Borough Football Club was an English football club from the town of Wigan, Lancashire. their forerunners were Wigan A.F.C., Wigan County, Wigan United and Wigan Town, County and Town having folded.
According to the Wigan Observer of 21 June 1920, Wigan Borough was originally formed as the amateur side Wigan United in November 1919, although the club predates this by at least two months as records exist from the previous September. [1] It is also possible that United were a continuation of the club who played at Springfield Park some 20 years earlier. United played 18 games in the 1919–20 season as members of the West Lancashire League and also entered the Richardson Cup. The club applied to join the Lancashire Combination for the 1920–21 season and continued as Wigan United for a further nine games (P9 L9) before being forced to close by the Lancashire FA as they were found guilty of paying their players for "lost time", which contravened rules of the time. A new club, Wigan Association, was formed on 6 November 1920, taking over the fixtures of Wigan United for four games (P4 D1 L3). After this short period the F.A. agreed that all their demands had been met with the exception that the club would have to change their name again to avoid confusion with Wigan FC, the town's rugby league team, allowing Wigan Association to become officially known as Wigan Borough Football Club on 11 December 1920. [2] The newly named Wigan Borough applied for entrance to the football league's Third Division North for the 1921–22 season, despite only finishing 17th of 18 clubs in the Lancashire Combination league. Astonishingly, they were, along with Barrow and Accrington Stanley, granted a place for the inaugural season of the competition. [3]
Borough's first match as a league club came against Arsenal in a friendly, which they won 2–1. Their first league match saw them fight back from 1–0 down to win 2–1 against Nelson, but they would go on to finish only 17th of 20 in their début season. [4] They spent ten years at this level before resigning from the league during the 1931–32 season.
Boro's most successful season came in 1928–29 when they finished fourth in the Third Division North League; however at the time only the regional champions were promoted. Also that season they reached the Third Round of the FA Cup, the furthest Borough would ever progress in the competition. Though they lost the match against Sheffield Wednesday 3–1, a Springfield Park record 30,443 crowd saw the game.
In 1931, the effects of the Great Depression proved too much and, unable to pay the players' wages any longer, Wigan Borough went out of business on 26 October 1931 [5] with liabilities of £30,000. [6] In truth the club had only made a profit for one year since they had been in the Football League. [7] The last four players Doran, Russell, Hartley and Hallam were given free transfers in mid-December. [8] The following year, Wigan's Mayor chaired a public meeting at Queens Hall which resulted in the founding of Wigan Athletic. It would not be until 2 June 1978, however, that Wigan would have a side in the Football League once more, and four more years would be needed to restore third-tier football to the town.
Wigan Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system.
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Springfield Park was a multi-purpose stadium in Wigan, Greater Manchester. It was the home ground of Wigan Athletic F.C. until the club moved to the new JJB Stadium after the 1998–99 season. At its largest, the stadium held 40,000. In its 102-year existence the ground only saw 32 years as a Football League venue, 11 years for Wigan Borough F.C. and 21 years for Wigan Athletic FC, before it was demolished to make way for a housing estate in 1999.
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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.
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Wigan United A.F.C. was an association football club existing from around 1896 into the early 1900s, and was based in Wigan, Lancashire, England.
Wigan Town A.F.C. was an association football club from Wigan, Lancashire which operated between July 1905 and May 1908.
Fred Ward, commonly known as Yaffa or Yaffer Ward, was an English professional footballer who made 245 appearances in the Football League playing for Lincoln City, Wigan Borough and Rochdale. He played primarily at left back.
The 2013–14 FA Cup was the 133rd season of the FA Cup, the main domestic cup competition in English football, and the oldest football knock-out competition in the world. It was sponsored by Budweiser for a third consecutive season. 737 clubs from England and Wales entered the competition, which began with the extra preliminary round on 16 August. For the first time in the history of the FA Cup, a team from Guernsey entered the competition, Guernsey F.C., who made it to the second round qualifying.
The 2015–16 season is Rochdale's 109th year in existence and their second consecutive season in League One. Along with competing in League One, the club will also participate in the FA Cup, League Cup and JP Trophy. The season covers the period from 1 July 2015 to 30 June 2016.
The 2021–22 FA Cup was the 141st season and marked the 150th anniversary of the first Football Association Challenge Cup, the oldest football tournament in the world, started in the 1871–72 season. It was sponsored by Emirates and was known as the Emirates FA Cup for sponsorship purposes.
The 2021–22 season was Wigan Athletic's 90th year in their history and second consecutive season in League One. Along with the league, the club will also compete in the FA Cup, the EFL Cup and the EFL Trophy. The season covered the period from 1 July 2021 to 30 April 2022.
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