Middlesbrough Ironopolis Football Club was a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

club based in Middlesbrough, England. Although it was only in existence for five years, the club won three

Northern League Northern League may refer to: Sport Baseball * Northern League (baseball, 1902–71), a name used by several minor leagues that operated in the upper midwestern U.S. and Manitoba from 1902 to 1971 * Northern League (baseball, 1993–2010), an indep ...

titles, two cup competitions and once reached the FA Cup quarter-finals. They were based at the

Paradise Ground The Paradise Ground was a football ground in Middlesbrough in England. It was the home ground of Middlesbrough Ironopolis. History The Paradise Ground was initially a field behind Oldgate Farm to the south-west of Middlesbrough town centre. W ...

History

The club was formed in 1889 by some members of Middlesbrough F.C., an amateur club at the time, who wanted the town of Middlesbrough to have a professional club. The team played its first ever non-competitive game against Gainsborough Trinity on 14 December 1889 at home. The match ended in a 1–1 draw.

League and Cup

Middlesbrough Ironopolis played in the

from 1890 to 1893, winning three consecutive titles. In their first season, they reached the Fourth Qualifying Round of the FA Cup, losing to

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town. In the 19th century, Darlington underwen ...

. During the 1892–93 season, the team reached the quarter-finals of the FA Cup before losing to

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...

in a replay, after drawing the first game. Following an abortive attempt to enter the

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...

in combination with Middlesbrough F.C., under the name Middlesbrough and Ironopolis, Ironopolis were accepted into the Second Division for the 1893–94 season, replacing

Accrington Accrington is a town in the Hyndburn borough of Lancashire, England. It lies about east of Blackburn, west of Burnley, east of Preston, north of Manchester and is situated on the culverted River Hyndburn. Commonly abbreviated by locals to ...

who had resigned. Competing in the league alongside them were Liverpool,

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...

, and Woolwich Arsenal (now known simply as

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

). Ironopolis finished 11th out of 15 clubs, recording wins against Small Heath (now Birmingham City), 3–0, and over Ardwick (now

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...

) 2–0. They played in total 28 games, won 8, drew 4, lost 16, scored 37 goals, conceded 72, and finished with 20 points. The squad that season was: G. Watts; J. Elliott, Philip Bach; Thomas Seymour, Robert Chatt, R. Nicholson; J. Hill, Archibald M Hughes, Thomas McCairns, P. Coupar, Wallace McReddie. The club lost its stadium, the Paradise Ground, which was adjacent to Middlesbrough F.C.'s

Ayresome Park Ayresome Park was a football stadium in Middlesbrough, Yorkshire, England. It was the home of Middlesbrough F.C. from its construction in time for the 1903–04 season, until the Riverside Stadium opened in 1995. It was demolished in 1997 and r ...

, at the end of the season. Its financial position was poor, as gate receipts did not cover the cost of players' wages and the costs of travelling to fixtures in distant parts of England. In February 1894 all the professional players were served notice of the plans to liquidate the team. The club's final game was a 1–1 draw against

South Bank The South Bank is an entertainment and commercial district in central London, next to the River Thames opposite the City of Westminster. It forms a narrow strip of riverside land within the London Borough of Lambeth (where it adjoins Alber ...

on 30 April 1894. Ironopolis resigned from the Football League the following month and disbanded. Ironopolis and Bootle are the only two clubs to have spent a single season in the Football League.

Seasons

Name and colours

The club was formed during the late Victorian industrial boom and adopted the name "Ironopolis" ( iron-city) partly to emphasise this (Middlesbrough was then a centre for iron and steel production; see

Teesside Steelworks The Teesside Steelworks was a large steelworks that formed a continuous stretch along the south bank of the River Tees from the towns of Middlesbrough to Redcar in North Yorkshire, England. At its height there were 91 blast furnaces within a 10 ...

) and also to distinguish itself from the other local club, Middlesbrough F.C. The club had three sets of colours in its brief history; initially a maroon and dark green kit, later changed to a dark blue kit with a white sash, and on entry to the Football League, its best-known kit; cherry red and white stripes.

Honours

Northern League Division One The Northern League is a men's football league in north east England. Having been founded in 1889, it is the second-oldest football league in the world still in existence after the English Football League. It contains two divisions; Division O ...

**Champions: 1890–91, 1891–92, 1892–93 * FA Cup **Quarter-finalists: 1892–93 *Cleveland Charity Cup **Winners: 1889–90, 1892–93

References

External links

* {{former football league members Association football clubs established in 1889 Association football clubs disestablished in 1894 Defunct English Football League clubs Defunct football clubs in North Yorkshire 1889 establishments in England 1894 disestablishments in England Sport in Middlesbrough