Not sure if many keep in touch with the lower leagues, stockton town once again having a great start to a season, just 1 league below darlo, won again on monday in front of 1300. Looks like a club on the up at the moment.

Stockton are a good well run little club - they have done so well getting to where they are. Id imagine one day they will get NLN.

off topic but was in Durham at the weekend and always stuns me as to why Durham City FC have never quite made it. I know the Uni have a really good team but for a City like Durham its mad they dont have a team as high up the football ladder as like a Stockton etc...
But then again is Spennymoor that big its never really happened for Durham ?

Ye 12 pts from 6.
They same ambitious and with a plastic pitch advantage wudent be surprised to see them progress.
Probably grow a decent fan base with Boro extortion champions league admission prices.

Good luck to all of the North East non league teams.
Loads of these x northern league teams getting closer to the Mighty HUFC.

Problem for all these smaller local clubs is finance, the higher up you go the more money you need to sustain your position or improve it further.
Not too long ago Spennymoor didn't want promotion as the added travel costs moving from regional football to national football was out of their reach. Similarly South Shields, unfortunately both are now in a position where their rich owners don't want to or can't invest any more. Both will probably finish mid table this time. Have Stockton got the financial backing to move up the Leagues?

with the size of the city you,d expect them to have a team of at least stocktons standard. so many large villiage and small towns around in the pyramid have teams and durham city stands out as somewhere thats missed out. its not like the lancashire/yorkshire situation where many towns are rugby league ones where even kids play that game at schools.

It has taken a long time for Stockton to get themselves a club of the standing the town should have. I suppose the 2 Billingham clubs held them back, but after the Synners became ground nomads and Stockton got their own pitch the rise has been impressive.

Problems for them now are climbing to higher levels. As mentioned the travel costs increase and wages increase but their biggest problem would be the ground. There isn't a great room to expand so unless they can extend the area with the school they will be restricted.

As for Durham, they attempted to reach the heights with one of the first plastic pitches on an industrial estate. As the team climbed the leagues quickly the FA stopped them by preventing plastic pitches being used in The Conference/ National League at the time(2009). So their run was stopped and like many clubs that reach their limits they went into decline. The owner of the plastic pitch, (used for local clubs and 5 a side leagues) then pulled back on the investment an they slid down the leagues, eventually sold on to Olivier Bernard, former footballer, the decline continued as they now trundle on in the Wearside League. The rent at New Ferens Park became unsustainable and I think they play in Houghton le Spring at the moment. There have been other teams setup in recent years with Durham in the name but they also are in the Wearside League and not yet challenging to make the Northern League. Obviously the restriction at the New Ferens Park ground is the rent and unless something changes with a new pitch or cheaper rent there will be no Durham team moving up for a while.

I notice Redcar Athletic have put some money into their squad this season, probably inspired by Stockton and the chance to move up the leagues now the North East is in the pyramid properly. Apart from our youth goalkeeper they have a few signings from Whitby, Marske and Spennymoor dropping down the levels. The clutch of Middlesbrough over their non league surroundings is slackening.

I've always wondered why Stockton haven't got a football club hovering on the verge of the EFL or indeed in it. I worked there for a while and they were all "Burra" supporters to a man. Maybe they were a bit late getting on the "football bus" and Burra got the monopoly.
When we drive up to Pools, as we pass Stockton I traditionally say I wonder why Stockton have never had a decent football club, the other two say it now.

1300 thats a good attendence.

Great thread

would they have got that if there was league football available on the day. somebody mentioned redcar as well. add them to marske you have 3 clubs after one set of fans that for there reasons do not like the league football on show at the boro. if they are really going to go up the pyramid i feel some sort of joining up with others is necessary before you get into a thameside greater manchester situation of having two ashton clubs, hyde, stalybridge . mossley all at a similar level and a short bus ride between em all. possibly down to old fashioned dislike of a near neighbour where they,d rather stick where they are instead of being having one club who could become a new football league club of the future and put nearby oldham back into the history books.

Imagine a Billingham/Stockton/Wolviston Hybrid sort of thing - Teesside FC.

Stockton play widnes in the fa cup Saturday be interesting to see if they are good enough to get very far in that.

It won,t be.

Hope they Progress and it's
Pools v Stockton in the 4th qualifying round.
Imagine the Away tickets would sell out instantly.

add pools to that so they,d have a ground to play on. big question is if Teeside FC was born those including us disappeared and we stayed in the NL would we still support that new hybrid.

well stockton are a round closer to getting us in the cup by beating widnes yesterday.

Quite a few north eastern teams made it through yesterday or are still in the draw for the 2nd qualifying round tommorow. I presume darlo are in tommorows draw too.

Always remember them years ago in the Wearside league, anyone know where there ground was in the 70’s….

Stockton play marine at home in 2nd qualifying round. Darlo play thr mighty didsbury.

Thats them out then

oufff tough opposition Marine - they love an FA cup run too

The current Stockton Town FC has no connection with the old Stockton FC, which was set up in 1882 and had a ground in Oxbridge, just west of the town centre. They were founder members of the Northern League but went bust in 1975.

What was left of them went into a new club, Norton & Stockton Ancients, that joined the Northern League in 1982. They play in Norton.

Stockton Town FC were originally Hartburn Juniors! They've only had a men's team since 2009, after picking up £1.4 million of investment to develop their facilities from Stockton Borough Council, the Football Foundation and two schools. They got into the Wearside League in 2010/11 and have won 7 promotions since then.

Their ground has had another £800,000 spent on it and currently has an 1,800 capacity. Don't think they can grow much bigger on their present site - it's in a residential area with plenty of nimbys.

every club has its level. its finding its top level it seriously can play at thats important with the club and fans realising this and be happy at it. possibly the national league north is the highest level they could attain both regarding the ground and support the club could ever get.

The original Ferens Park was a proper old non-league ground (by that I mean rough but homely) and within a stroll of the city centre but far too valuable as a development plot. The new ground (built on the pitches I used to play rugby on with Durham Civil Service Club) is just too out of the way and transport and parking is a nightmare. The City itself is now empty too much of the year as it's become an extra dormitory for the Uni and all the old Citizens have moved to the outskirts (my family sold out to the Uni developers as well so I can't be blaming anyone). The number of coaches leaving the city each weekend either to Newcastle or Sunderland proves there is a decent football following but if it didn't work before when they had a ground in the City, it won't work now. A big shame.

And practically every football fan in Stockton is a Boro supporter - it's only 4 miles away.

then every football fan in northern ireland say they support man.united even if the irish sea is between them and england.

Gateshead were nobodies opposite Newcastle, but maybe a bit of local pride and effort has got things moving…even if their Council ain’t helping. A town like Stockton should be able to support a club.

stockton can support a club but at what level and the highest level they could sensibly play at. do not think we,d be happy if another billionaire rolled up there to make them into a new harrogate and swerved pools.