Workington A.F.C.
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| Full name | Workington Association Football Club |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Reds |
| Founded | 1921 |
| Ground | Borough Park, Workington |
| Capacity | 3,101 (500 seated) |
| Chairman | Glenn Heathcote |
| Manager | David Hewson |
| League | Northern Premier League Premier Division |
| 2015–16 | Northern Premier League Premier Division, 5th |
Workington Association Football Club is an English football club based in Workington, Cumbria. The club competes in the Northern Premier League, the seventh tier of English football.
The club plays its home matches at Borough Park, which has a capacity of 3,101. The club is often referred to as Workington Reds (red being its home colour) to distinguish it from Rugby League club Workington Town. Its traditional rivals are Carlisle United and Barrow.
Football in Workington has a very long history. Close by and adjacent to the home of Workington A.F.C the folk game of "Uppies and Downies" is still an annual event. There are records about the game from 20 April 1775 in the "Cumbrian Pacquet" which is one of the earliest reports of a football match ever. This report says the match on which it is reporting is "long contended" thereby noting an even longer unwritten history of the game in this Cumbrian Town.
Association football was introduced to Workington in the 1860s and further popularised when a group for steel workers migrated to the town from Dronfield, Derbyshire. They were workers of the Charles Cammel and Co steel works that arrived in the town in 1884. It is estimated that 1,500 townspeople moved to Workington. 'Dronnies', as the people of Workington called the newcomers, formed Workington AFC in 1888. This is also confirmed in a short history of the club which was produced as part of 16 page brochure in the club's application to the Football League in 1951.
The original Workington A.F.C. were one of the founder members of the Cumberland Association League in 1888 and played at Lonsdale Park. In 1894 they moved to the Cumberland Senior League, and in 1901 joined the Lancashire League. However, the league closed two seasons later, and they returned to the Cumberland Senior League. In 1904 the club were admitted to the Lancashire Combination, but in 1910 seasons they decided to economise and join the North Eastern League. However, after only one season, the club folded.
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