The History of Carlisle United AFC

Read here for the abbreviated but very full history of Carlisle United Football Club as never told before.

Let the story begin

The story of Carlisle United football club begins with two teams, neither, being identified or known as Carlisle United. Shaddongate United and Carlisle Red Rose were in the late nineteenth century the two top football sides in the city, bitter rivals there was never any love lost between them.

Sadly so embroiled were the two clubs with one-another?s on and off the field activities that elsewhere in the county the football force of Workington seized the advantage and for too long were regarded as Cumberland?s top football side. By the end of the 1903-1904 season, Shaddongate United felt that something had to be done to transfer the local football power back to the city of Carlisle. In an attempt to formulate a joint initiative that would be of benefit to the city of Carlisle as a whole, shareholders of Shaddongate United quietly approached their Red Rose counterparts and sought their opinion on merging both clubs to form one city based club. The result was uproar. The shareholders of Red Rose went public and claimed that the Shaddongate club were suffering serious financial problems and were about to fold, hence the appeal to merge both clubs. The Shaddongate offer was publicly ridiculed and dismissed.

So it came to be that at a shareholders meeting of the Shaddongate club held on Tuesday 17 May 1904 that Shaddongate United ceased to exist, in their place was a newly formed football club known as Carlisle United. Club secretary was Harry Kirbride ably assisted by his old friend Jimmy Hind the latter of whom ?knew the local game better than most? claimed the local press. At the end of that first season in the Cumberland Senior League it was Carlisle United who finished as Champions, eight points clear of Carlisle Red Rose and thirteen above Workington.

To thank the support, who turned out in their thousands at the Millholme Bank ground (which sat just off Boundary Road in the city) special friendly games were organised, one against the Scottish giants Glasgow Rangers, these truly were memorable times for supporters of the new club. In 1905 a new ground was built/constructed at Devonshire Park, I use the term built loosely as it was little more than a fenced off area of parkland with mounds of mud at each end for supporters to stand on and a rickety grandstand (holding up to 800 people) which also housed the changing rooms, wash area and kitchen facility. The ground was where Trinity School playing fields are now situated.

As further success followed, the crowds turned to Carlisle United as the representative team of the city. The FA Cup first round was reached in he 1907-1908 season when league side Brentford were held to a 2-2 draw at Devonshire Park and thoroughly beaten 3-1 in West London. In the second round proper, Grimsby Town ended the dream by thrashing United 6-2 at Blundell Park, Cleethorpes. Attendances continued to grow and it was quickly realised that Devonshire Park was unsuitable for the continued growth and development of the football club.

A new area for a stadium was identified and purchased, Brunton Park as it came to be known first housed Carlisle United on 2 September 1909 when North Easterly neighbours ? Newcastle came to play in the inaugural semi-competitive fixture which they won 2-0. Thus from humble beginnings, the basis for the future of Carlisle United was cemented into football history.

It was clear that the team were not being tested to their full competence level in the local leagues or in the Lancashire Combination and so they progressed through the North Eastern League, taking the Championship at the end of the 1921-1922 season.
By the end of the 1927-1928 season they finished in second place behind Sunderland Reserves, United took the step to apply for election to the Football League.

On 4 June 1928, representatives of the club sat in the Football League meeting to listen to the results of the voting for election/relegation to and from the Football League. The votes were cast as follows: Nelson ? 37, Carlisle ? 33, Durham ? 11, York ? 7, Chester ? 2. By virtue of the fact that United had received more votes than Durham (who were then a league club) Durham were relegated with Carlisle united taking their place in the Football League.

Carlisle United?s first ever Football League fixture was against Accrington Stanley at Peel Park on 25 August 1928. a fantastic following travelled to Lancashire to cheer the team on, goals from Jimmy McConnell, Billy Ward and Alf Agar secured a 3-2 United victory on the day. A few days later, a crowd of 11,771 filled the revamped and refurbished Brunton Park stadium to witness the first Football League fixture to be played there which ended in a 2-2 draw with Bradford City.

As the years progressed, United slowly but surely climbed through the leagues, firstly
it was the Third Division North, then the old fourth division and third division, before settling for much of the 1960?s in the second division, where they held their own. The team and the football club earned themselves an excellent reputation as being solid and reliably run. At the end of the 1969-1970 season they reached the semi-final of the old League Cup competition, just 45 minutes away from Wembley they eventually lost out 4-2 on aggregate to West Bromwich Albion.

More fairy tales were to develop in the following years, players such as Stan Bowles, Chris Balderstone, George McVitie, Allan Ross, Hugh McIlmoyle all plied their trade here during this era. Eventually at the end of the 1973-1974 season Carlisle United were promoted to the First Division (that which is now the Premiership). Three straight victories (2-0 at Chelsea, 1-0 at Middesbrough and 1-0 at home against Tottenham Hotspur) took the team to the top of the First Division. It was an incredible achievement, Carlisle United looking down on the likes of multi million pound organisations and clubs such as Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Leeds United. The success was short lived and relegation followed at the end of the season, however, just one team outplayed United all season, that being Stoke City who had the likes of 1966 World Cup final hat trick hero Geoff Hurst and Alan Hudson among their ranks.

The years which have followed that success have been to say the least, interesting, relegation followed relegation. After a brief rally in the early 1980?s when promotion was achieved, the team were soon falling back down the leagues. In the 1990?s the entrepreneur and egotistical self publicist Michael Knighton bought the club for the basic price of a pound, taking on all debts. It was to be a rollercoaster of a ride for all supporters during his tenure. Initial success was followed by relegation, followed by talk of turning part of Brunton Park into a butterfly sanctuary! Knighton even claimed to see UFO?s and hear alien voices calling to him! Highly successful managers were dismissed, solid and dependable players released, there was also the odd visit to Wembley in the Auto-glass Windshield trophy final. Knighton even took over as manager! For a time he banned the press and the media from all home games, fell out with supporters and threatened to put the club out of business. It is alleged that he even tried to move it into the Scottish Football League and ground share with a Glasgow based club. Whatever is blamed, Knighton was the sole author of his own down fall. His ego was too big for his own good he demanded respect but received none, simply he became little short of a laughing stock firstly in Cumbria then throughout football. Behind the scenes, the football club were in more debt than they had ever before known, it was truly the worst period in the clubs entire history.

To make matters worse for himself, Knighton publicly proclaimed that he had sold the majority shareholding in the club to a multi millionaire businessman who apparently bought and sold hotels in Spain. The media packed the press conference eagerly awaiting the new owner, who arrived at Brunton Park stadium in a beaten up old Vauxhall Cavalier. Curiosity filled the air. A couple of journalists made background checks into the apparent new owner Stephen Brown. He apparently lived in sheltered accommodation in Scotland and was nothing more than a waiter in a Peebles Curry House! He was virtually penniless. Knighton and his supposed finite business skills and acumen immediately became the brunt of all things hilarious in the business of football.

Shortly after, one suspects with much egg on his face, he sold his share in the football club, he later resurfaced as a close and personal business colleague and close friend of a certain Darlington chairman who had previously been in jail for safe blowing and was recently jailed again. From the very day he left the departure of Michael Knighton has seen the fortunes of Carlisle United have turned around. A low spot of a season in the non league game served as a reminder as to how grim life can be at such woeful places as Gravesend and Northfleet.

Thankfully, United won promotion back to the Football League at the first attempt and now sit comfortably in the second division. The future is looking very bright indeed for Cumbria?s number one football club.