Scarborough Athletic - a message of hope

[ConisbroughSeadog]

Evening all - friendly local Scarborough Athletic fan checking in after an amazing day by the seaside. We have just been promoted to the National League North after beating Warrington Town 2-1 in the Northern Premier League playoff final in front of a sellout 2,805 crowd.

Why am I telling you this? It's because I know you'll all be feeling utterly despondent at the moment, and probably falling out of love with football, and in particular with your own club. Relegation is horrible, especially when it's apparently with a whimper and not a fight. But things get better, and success comes back, and you'll fall in love with the club again in time.

As you'll all know, Scarborough FC folded in 2007, and in a matter of weeks we had to set up Scarborough Athletic without any players, a manager, or a ground. For ten seasons we played our home games in Bridlington, struggling along on crowds of 400, playing the likes of Askern Villa, Rossington Main, and Armthorpe Welfare in league games. Ten years previous we'd made the Division Three playoffs. It was tough.

However, two promotions took us into the Northern Premier League Division One, and with a new ground in Scarborough on the horizon, things were looking up. In 2017, we moved home to the Flamingo Land Stadium (I know, I know...), and over 2,000 saw us lose 1-4 to a young Sheffield United team. In our first season back home, we won promotion to the Northern Premier League, and a year later opened a brand new 1,138 seater stand to take our capacity up to 2,833. In our first post-COVID season, we were lower mid-table in October having lost 6-0 at FC United, 5-1 at Buxton, 4-0 in the Trophy at Liversedge (a league below), and Jono Greening, despite his Champions League pedigree, was on a tightrope. We wanted him out, but the board persisted with him. Since November, we have lost two games, and we shot up the league into 3rd position. There's a lesson in there about giving a manager a fair crack of the whip, too...

Anyway - after defeating Matlock on Tuesday in the playoff semi-final, we finished the job today against Warrington. Scarborough FC were in the Conference North when we folded in 2007, and for the first time in 15 years, a Scarborough team are back at that level. We lost everything on that summer's day in 2007. Not only a club, but our stadium, and for many of us, friends who decided not to start the journey again with SAFC. But we're back.

Football is a funny old game. It can take you to the lowest of lows, but it can propel you to ectasy just as quickly. You lot are going through a rough patch, but remember the Britannia Stadium and the playoff final, remember Brentford away, remember the Millenium Stadium and Wembley trips, and if you really must - remember your last league visit to the McCain Stadium when you walloped us 5-2 on Boxing Day (damn you, Paul Barnes). They're never that far away. Just need to strap yourselves in and see where the journey takes you. You might not like the ownership, the business model, the manager, or the players - but it's the same badge, and the same fans. That's what makes a club, as we've learned all too well.

All the best in League Two - you never know, you might just enjoy it.

Up the Boro, and RIP Neil Campbell. 

[DearneValleyRover]

Absolutely cracking post

[drfchound]

Ditto from me too.

[RoversAlias]

Great stuff Seadog, congrats on returning to the National North. Perhaps we will have a derby again before long, although for our sake I hope it isn't due to us declining further!

[Wiltshire Exile]

What a brilliant post! Congratulations to you all at Scarborough; you deserve it after all that you have been through in the last 15 years or so. See you in the not-too-distant future I hope!

[normal rules]

I hope the sea dogs get a cup run next season. And our paths cross again. Fancy another trip to Scarborough. It’s got to be better than Oldham.

[tommy toes]

Congratulations!
I was there when we won 5-2 and when we lost 4-1 in 98 when Ian Snodin was playing for you.
Always a great day out.
I love Scarborough, fabulous place.
Hope you continue to climb the leagues and that we meet again soon.

[selby]

  I don't know anyone who wanted Warrington to win, and great to see they didn't

[Spud]

Perspective.
Great Post, cheers Seadog & all the best.

[Monkcaster_Rover]

Cracking post.

All the best!

[Upton Rover]

Happy days at Scarborough FC, well done

[roversdude]

Brilliant post Seadog, I’ve kept an eye on your results and this is fantastic. I used to love our Christmas games

[Nudga]

Would be great to have a pre season friendly against Scarborough, I miss those games, always a bit spicy.

[idler]

All the best for the coming season. You have experienced something that the Man. U and Liverpool fans never can. Enjoy your success and I hope that there's more this season for you.
True fans not glory hunters when the chips are down.

[DRCraig]

Brilliant stuff. A friendly against them would be nice.

[roversontheup]

Brilliant post. It certainly resonates with me. I loved our Boxing Day and New Years Day matches when we were both in the Conference.
Good luck in the coming season. I’ve got everything crossed that York City win the Play offs this year but if not that’s a lovely local Derby.

[pib]

Fantastic, that. Good to see Scarborough on the up. A great town to visit as well.

Hopefully we'll be welcoming the Seadogs to the Eco-Power in a Football League game in a few years' time.

[northbayviking]

As a Rover RTID , I live in Scarborough and I have followed the rise of SA at the same time as the fall of the Rovers. I watched the play off final live on you tube, although the football was not great the sense of occasion was superb. The main difference I have seen is that the whole town were behind Scarborough and having a local hero in charge really helped. Jono a legend.. as is Copps to us. - So a lesson must be learnt. Get behind the team, be positive
 as JR said live the dream. we have the stadium we can start to be positive starting now. a new spine to the team and all can be well again..
never say die.

[Campsall rover]

Fantastic, that. Good to see Scarborough on the up. A great town to visit as well.

Hopefully we'll be welcoming the Seadogs to the Eco-Power in a Football League game in a few years' time.

That’s a big ask for Scarborough. We will be in the Championship in a few years time won’t we?   

[arkseyrover]

A big well done to Scarborough. Am really chuffed for you. Have kept in touch with their progress over the past few years through a couple of mates who live there and watch them. I just hope they don't overreach themselves and get shafted like they did when they hit the big league all those years ago and then had to be re-born but given that they are now a fan owned club and with their knowledge and experience of what happened before I'm sure they will be very cautious. We all know what happens when a Dick Turpin rides in and promises the earth don't we!

[pib]

Fantastic, that. Good to see Scarborough on the up. A great town to visit as well.

Hopefully we'll be welcoming the Seadogs to the Eco-Power in a Football League game in a few years' time.

That’s a big ask for Scarborough. We will be in the Championship in a few years time won’t we?   

If we can get that pesky 5 year plan in action!

[Sammy Chung was King]

We could play a few non league sides round that area in pre season. No reason why they couldn’t do a training camp there.
We could play Scarborough, Tadcaster, Pickering, York City, nice area round there.