TRACK RECORD

Harrogate Railway will compete in the NCEL Premier Division in 2016/17 for the first time in 11 years after finishing 21st in the NPL Division One North last season.

Going into 2015/16, Railway promoted Lee Ashforth to Manager having served as Billy Miller’s Assistant for the previous three years.

The managerial shift came to fruition after Miller received an offer from Tadcaster Albion for his services, where he would go on to lift the NCEL Premier Division title.

One of Ashforth’s first jobs in management was to replace the likes of Matt Heath, Adam Baker and Jordan Armstrong who had followed in Miller’s footsteps to the i2i Stadium.

Railway’s new gaffer brought in the likes of Alex Low, Jack Stockdill and Charlie Clamp to his newly forming squad as well as naming long serving player Dan Thirkell Captain for the forthcoming season.

The season started positively with draws against fancied Droylsden and Spennymoor Town being followed up by home wins against Radcliffe Borough and Mossley leaving Railway in a strong position by mid-September.

Nine matches passed before the club’s next win, however, with November’s 3-2 win at Droylsden keeping Railway above the drop zone.

The weather then played its part in preventing Railway moving up the table as only one game was completed between mid-November and January, with the derby clash with Ossett Town at Station View abandoned at half-time with the home side 3-0 up!

The Railwaymen recorded just one win in the 18 games that followed the abandonment, but still had hope of surviving if they could go to Ossett Town and win in the final month of the season.

After falling a goal behind, Amar Purewal struck the visitors level and gave Ashforth’s men hope of claiming the much needed victory, only for Simon Rogers

to head in a winner that all but sealed Railway’s relegation. Railway did go on to record back to back wins against Prescot Cables and New Mills, but their drop back into the NCEL was confirmed with three games of the season remaining.

The club had spent 24 years in the NCEL’s various divisions between 1982 and 2006 before former Manager Martin Haresign guided the club to a third place finish and promotion to the Northern Premier League.

During the NCEL years, Railway shot to fame by reaching the second round proper of the FA Cup in the 2002/03 season when Second Division Bristol City travelled to Station View and came away with a 3-1 win in front of Sky TV’s cameras.

Incredibly the Yorkshire club repeated the feat of reaching English Football’s oldest trophy’s second round just five years later when Railway, under the management of Vince Brockie, defeated neighbours Harrogate Town on the way to setting up a tie with The Stags.

Live on Match of the Day, Mansfield saw off a plucky Railway 3-2 on a soggy Sunday afternoon at Station View.

In the penultimate season of their 11-year stint in the NPL, Harrogate Railway recorded their highest ever finish in English football in 2014/15 when the club placed eighth in the NPL Division One North, finishing above the likes of Warrington Town and Clitheroe. Under the helm of Billy Miller, Railway’s cause was helped by the scintillating goal scoring form of striker Nathan Cartman, who at one stage of the season was outscoring the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, and lifted the NPL Golden Boot.

Cartman earned a big money move to Darlington 1883 in January 2015 where he has since helped the phoenix club achieve back to back promotions to the National League North.

Railway narrowly escaped relegation to the NCEL just three years previous to their highest finish, but were handed a reprieve after finishing 21st following the demise of Woodley Sports and Durham City.