By Garry Clarke
As the first edition of printed version of Warrington Worldwide hit the streets 25 years ago, the town’s football teams were in the first weeks of the 1999/2000 season, a season which saw, as now, Warrington Town as the town’s leading club, but only just.
Plying their trade in the North West Counties League Division Two, 5 levels lower than their current home the National League North, which did not exist in 1999, Town had finished the 1998/99 season in 4th place 6 places above cross town rivals Tetley Walker who finished the 1999/00 season two places higher than Town, the last time a Warrington team has finished a season above Town and the first time it happened since Rylands finished the 1981/82 Mid-Cheshire League season higher.
The following season 2000/01 saw Town and Tetley’s battling for the NWCFL Division Two title with Town coming out on top finishing two points ahead of Tetley’s in second place.
Going in very different directions this is where the two teams parted company; Tetley Walker folded following the completion of the season due to ground issues with the Social Club, while Town began their rise up the non-league pyramid system.
After three seasons Town regained their place in the Northern Premier League, which had been lost in 1997. After 12 seasons in the NPL First Division they gained promotion to the Premier Division and last summer after seven seasons were promoted to the National League North where they enjoyed a good debut season finishing in a respectable 12th place.
A level to which Warrington Rylands will be aiming to follow them in time after a remarkable rise through the divisions which has seen them jump from the Cheshire League to the NPL Premier in four years.
In 1999 Warrington Rylands, or just Rylands as they were then known, finished 8th in the Mid-Cheshire League Division One, a division which also included Warrington Borough (Town Reserves).
Three further Warrington based teams – Padgate St Oswalds, Rylands Reserves, Walkers Sports (Tetley Walker reserves) were competing in the Mid-Cheshire League Division Town, while today the only Warrington representatives in the Cheshire League (competition renamed in 2007) are Eagle Sports in the Premier Division and Moore United in League Two.
Back in 1999, Eagle Sports were one of the leading clubs in the Warrington & District Football League. The 3rd oldest league in the country having been formed in 1895 housed 60 teams playing in 4 divisions, with a number of teams entering reserve teams in reserve divisions.
In 2024 the Warrington & District League comprised 46 teams, including reserve teams, in 4 divisions and like in 1999 many of its teams come from outside the town boundaries as highlighted by the league champions, in 1999 Whiston Cross lifted the Premier Division title while St Helens based Sidac Sports took the 2024 title.
In 1999 there were another 60 teams, again many from outside Warrington, playing in the 6 divisions of the Warrington Sunday League; in 2024 there were just 15 teams in 2 divisions. Grange Valley were the 1999 Sunday champions and FC Sankey the 2024 champions.
Much has changed on the Warrington football scene in the 25 years of Warrington Worldwide; I wonder what changes the next 25 years will bring?
