Shildon Association Football Club is a football club established in 1890 based in Shildon,

County Durham County Durham ( ), officially simply Durham,UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. is a ceremonial county in North East England.North East Assembly �About North East E ...

, England. They compete in the and play at Dean Street.

History

Established in 1890, as Shildon Town first joined the Auckland and District League in 1892. In 1900, the Railwaymen were part of the

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 ...

Division Two, but folded due to financial issues. The club re-formed as Shildon Athletic in 1903 to take the place of resigned Stockton St Johns in the Northern League. They moved to the

North Eastern League The North Eastern League was an association football league for teams in the North East of England. The league was founded in 1906 and was initially successful, with teams defecting from the rival Northern Football Alliance to play. Although som ...

in 1907. The Club changed their name to Shildon in 1923, until 1933, when they re-joined the Northern League, after 20th and 21st-place finishes. They enjoyed immediate success, finishing as runner-ups in their first year, before winning four successive titles from 1934 to 1937. In 1985 Shildon were relegated to the Northern League Division Two after a finish in 18th place. However, they were promoted back to Division One after a finish in 3rd in 1987. The club experienced relegation again in 1992, however they immediately achieved promotion the next year. The Shells spent three years in Division Two after being relegated in 1999, only to be promoted again in 2002 after a first-place finish. In 2013 Shildon reached the semi-final of the Durham Challenge Cup and the

FA Vase The Football Association Challenge Vase, usually referred to as the FA Vase, is an annual football competition for teams playing in Steps 5 and 6 of the English National League System (or equivalently, tier 9 or 10 of the overall English footbal ...

, but lost both, in the cup to

Spennymoor Town Spennymoor Town Football Club is a football club based in Spennymoor, County Durham, in the North East of England. They currently compete in and currently play their home matches at The Brewery Field. The club began playing in the Northern ...

and in the Vase to Tunbridge Wells 4–3 on aggregate. The Shells bounced back, becoming cup holders two straight times. In 2014, with a 2–1 win over Spennymoor Town and in 2015, with a win over Dunston UTS. After finishing runners-up in the Northern League Division One 2015, one point from champions

Marske United Marske United Football Club is a football club based in Marske-by-the-Sea, North Yorkshire, England. They are currently members of the and play at Mount Pleasant. History The club was established in 1956 by members of Marske Cricket Club.

, the club won the League the following season. In the Durham Challenge Cup the club again finished as semi-finalists in 2018, and finished 3rd in Division One. The Railwaymen won their latest Durham Challenge cup in 2019, with a 1–0 victory over

South Shields South Shields () is a coastal town in South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the south bank of the mouth of the River Tyne. Historically, it was known in Roman times as Arbeia, and as Caer Urfa by Early Middle Ages. According to the 20 ...

. Shildon reached the First Round Proper In the FA Cup for the first time in 1927–28 after a replay win over York City. In November 2003, Shildon reached the FA Cup first round proper for the first time in 42 years. However, they were beaten 7–2 on the day by Notts County. Shildon's nickname is "The Railwaymen" after the wagon works that was the major employer in the town for many years. They are sometimes called by the nickname "The Shells".

Ground

Shildon play at Dean Street.

Bishop Auckland Bishop Auckland () is a market town and civil parish at the confluence of the River Wear and the River Gaunless in County Durham, northern England. It is northwest of Darlington and southwest of Durham. Much of the town's early history surro ...

also played at Dean Street for a couple of years in a groundsharing agreement whilst building their new stadium, Heritage Park.

Honours

Northern Football League 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 ...

**Winners: 1933–34, 1934–35, 1935–36, 1936–37, 1939–40, 2015–16 **Division Two Winners: 2001–02 **League Cup Winners: 1933–34, 1934–35, 1937–38, 1938–39, 1939–40, 1952–53, 2002–03, 2014–15, 2015–16 * Durham Challenge Cup Winners: 2013–14, 2014–15, 2018-19

Records

* Best FA Cup performance: Second Round, 1936–37 * Best FA Amateur Cup performance: Quarter Final, 1958–59 * Best FA Trophy performance: Third Qualifying Round, 1974–75, 1992–93 * Best FA Vase performance: Semi Final, 2012–13

References

External links

Official website
* {{Northern Premier League Football clubs in England Northern Football League Football clubs in County Durham Association football clubs established in 1890 1890 establishments in England North Eastern League Shildon Northern Premier League clubs