Harrogate Railway Athletic will play in the tenth-tier division play-off semi-final tomorrow.
After finishing fourth in the NCEFL (Northern Counties East Football League), Railway will travel to Brigg Town to play a ‘one off’ fixture.
Railway manager, Mick O’Connell, is a former jockey and took over in February 2020 when the club was struggling.
He’s turned the club into a play-off team with the second-best home defensive record in the division.
He said:
“It’s great. When we took over we were relegation favourites, so we had to come in and change the culture. We had players who were too comfortable with losing and it needed to change.”
Manager Mick O’Connell (Right.) Photos by – Craig Dinsdale
Speaking about playing the match away, Mick said:
“It was a shame we couldn’t get the home game, but we have to treat it like any other match. We won’t go too gung-ho as it is a one off game. We ended the year in a good run of form so we are confident and we have a couple of sessions the week before the match to freshen the lads up.”
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Formed in 1935, Railway are the second highest semi-professional team in the district, after Knaresborough Town. If they win the play-offs, they will be promoted to the ninth tier of English football.
In the 2000’s, Harrogate Railway reached the second round of the FA cup twice, playing Bristol City and Macclesfield Town. With a record attendance of 3,500 in 2002, it will be the twenty year anniversary of their match against Bristol later this year.
Michael Edwards, the club chairman, said:
“With our budget, we were fighting above our weight this season, but we just had to consolidate the right players around Mick (O’Connell.) We just want to play at the highest level possible without damaging the club financially. Hopefully success can bring more sponsorship opportunities to the club.”
Harrogate Railway Athletic will play Brigg Town on Saturday 16th April. The game will be held at the EC Surfacing Stadium and will kick off at 15:00. Tickets will be available at the gate.
