1928-29 Season
The new season started with a narrow 1-2 defeat at Southport with 5,151 in attendance, followed by two consecutive home wins – the first in a North East derby game against Darlington (4-2) infront of 2,540 and then a 2-1 win over Rochdale with another decent crowd of 2,464 at Portland Park. This was followed by a defeat at New Brighton (2-3) and a heavy 0-4 loss at Stockport before a crowd of 8,908. The next match saw the Colliers share the spoils against Wrexham at Portland Park as the game ended 2-2 with an attendance of 2,712 witnessing an entertaining game before two heavy defeats on the road at Darlington (0-4 and an attendance of 2,861) and Chesterfield (1-4 and an attendance of 4,978), with the Colliers winning one week later against Barrow at home by a single goal with 2,346 in attendance.
The Colliers first game in October saw them lose 2-1 at Doncaster with a massive crowd of 6,783 seeing the Colliers lose narrowly. Then came one of the clubs moist embarrassing results in their Football League history as Champions-elect Bradford City won 8-2 at Portland Park, witnessed by 2,592 unimpressed supporters. Despite that heavy defeat the Colliers achieved their first away win of the season defeating Accrington Stanley 1-0 in front of 3,411. The Colliers then made it two wins on the bounce as Hartlepool were beaten in a North East derby with a final score of 3-1 to Ashington, but only 1,419 were at Portland Park to see that win. The Colliers then crashed 1-5 at Carlisle United (attendance of 6,267) before going down to a single goal defeat at home to Rotherham in front of a crowd of only 1,626.
The FA Cup produced nothing in either prestige or cash as the team bowed out at Wigan, losing 0-2 after a heavy 1-5 defeat against the same side away in the League. Ashington then lost at Tranmere (2-3), Nelson (0-5) and Halifax (0-1) before drawing at home to Lincoln with a final score of 1-1 in front of a crowd of 1,129. Ashington then lost at home in a North East derby on Christmas Day against Gateshead/South Shields 1-3 with a seasons best attendance of 3,245 before gaining a point against the same opposition away one week later as the game ended 0-0 in front of 6,328 spectators. Ashington’s last game of 1928 saw the Colliers defeated at home again, this time 1-3 to Southport with only 1,105 attending.
New Years Day saw the Colliers finally gain another victory as Nelson were defeated in a thrilling game 3-2 with 1,344 in Portland Park to see it. This was followed by two consecutive 5-0 defeats – the first at Rochdale and the second at home to Crewe (with an attendance of 1,166)
With the Club in a financial mess and all but bottom of the table, a scheme was suggested whereby the mineworkers would agree to donate one penny per week from their wages in return for a greater say in running the Club – although the suggestion was not a popular one with the Ashington AFC Directors!!! The results got worse as the months went by, including some terrible defeats at Wrexham (0-4), at home to Doncaster (4-7), Barrow (0-3) and at home to Carlisle (0-4) as the Colliers went on a run of only one win in fifteen matches (that being a 3-1 win at Hartlepool in front 3,398). This run saw the Colliers rooted to the foot of the table with home attendances falling below 1,000 (only 729 saw the 4-7 defeat against Doncaster!), although an amazing 16,542 saw the Colliers lose 0-2 at League leaders Bradford City.
As the club were heading for a re-election application, the Chairman – John Craigs Junior – announced that some Directors were willing to stand down in favour of any individuals willing to put money into the Club – 1,947 shares at £1 each were still available – to which there was little if any interest shown. A 0-7 defeat at Crewe on April the 6th all but sealed bottom place and after a win at home to Tranmere (3-2 and a crowd of only 725) and a 0-1 home defeat against Stockport (with 1,399 attending) came the clubs last match in the Football League. The Club had come to the conclusion that they would receive little support from other Football League clubs in their re-election bid as local rivals Durham City had bid their farewells just 12 months earlier – the North East did not prove a popular venue for travelling teams as they could not expect the financial reward in terms of gate money at either club.
Just before the home game against Halifax Tow a local journalist wrote ‘’Probably the Colliers final appearance in the Football League……Efforts still being made to persuade the League Clubs attitude towards them’’
On a rainy day the Colliers took to the field at Portland Park before only 706 spectators and after holding to visitors to a goal-less half time score, the Colliers finally went down 0-3, not helped by an injury to Robson that reduced the side to ten men. The team on that final day was:
Latimer, Robson, Stephenson, Wilson, Price, Chipperfield, Alexander, Harris, Johnson, Carlton, Richardson.
Re-election was applied for on June the 3rd, but with only 14 votes they were ten short of York City’s successful bid. Ashington AFC found to their cost that they had few friends in the Football League. After eight seasons in the Football League and only their second re-election application – the first six years earlier – the Colliers were rejected back into the Non-League world.
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