2024 – An eventful year, on and off the pitch
We look back on what has been a challenging twelve months for the club – physically, mentally and financially.
As always, it has been difficult to keep the club going and thanks to quite a large ‘small army’ we are still ticking over and heading towards an existence spanning one hundred and four years since the re-formation.
The main focus, as always, has been the team and 2024 has proved a testing period for the most important aspect of the club.
Faced with the crumbling of one empire and the rebuilding of another, the ‘team’ has been a major concern for more than twelve months and keeping one step ahead in what is always an ongoing process has proved difficult.
We were fortunate to have the core of a settled squad over several seasons but that luxury came to an end in April when a mass exodus left us without a team and the new manager faced with the task of a major rebuild. More of that later.
The first game of the year was an entertaining 2-2 draw against Bamber Bridge before an 800 plus crowd at Borough Park. The fact that Reds surrendered a 2-0 lead was symptomatic of what 2024 would bring – a theme of uncertainty!
There was some very sad news to deal with after the sad passing of club stalwart, Joan Crellen, who collapsed in the Shankly Lounge before the game and died in hospital next day. Joan would be the first of many members of the Workington Reds family who said goodbye to the club.
There was disappointing news from the dressing room, too, with assistant manager Terry Mitchell announcing his departure whilst the NPL confirmed the resignation of Marske United whose record was immediately expunged.
Conor Tinnion and Jamie Devitt were ‘promoted from within’ to assist Danny Grainger.
Dav Symington started the year in blistering form and was scoring goals on a regular and consistent basis. He scored our first five goals of 2024, including another ‘worldie’ at leaders Radcliffe, but we weren’t winning matches.
Bradford Park Avenue won their sixth successive game at Borough Park and there was more ‘bad’ news behind the scenes. Niall Brookwell announced he was leaving to join Cork City and, still on the Irish theme, Jamie Devitt confirmed his retirement as a player.
A flurry of positivity produced three good results in February/March but coincided with the shock news that Danny Grainger had decided to leave the club at the end of the season (or earlier). A bizarre situation with two months of the campaign remaining.
Towards the end of March, Mark Fell was announced as Danny’s successor so in effect we had ‘two managers’ in the building for the final month of the campaign.
Danny’s last away win coincided with our first visit to FC United of Manchester’s Broadhurst Park where supporters, from both clubs, engaged in a bout of fisticuffs after a Workington victory.
League form deteriorated throughout March and April with seven consecutive defeats leaving us entrenched in the bottom six of the division, albeit with enough points to avoid the relegation zone.
There was a lighter moment to savour when goalkeeper Jim Atkinson headed home a goal against Atherton Collieries with the novelty winning him the ‘goal of the season’ trophy. Coincidentally, this happened on the 1st April!
A less than convincing run to the Cumberland Cup Final included a strange scenario for the showpiece game staged, for a change, at Borough Park. Josh O’Brien, Aran Fitzpatrick, Jake Allan and Sam Hetherington, all of whom had played for us on loan, were opponents in the blue of Carlisle United.
Reds lifted the Cup for the 28th time and Scott Allison’s winner, his 156th goal for the club, took him to second in the all-time list of scorers.
There was another fairytale to end the season when Messrs Grainger, Tinnion, Allison and Smith got the send-off they deserved with a victory over Guiseley, as they said their goodbyes to the club. Sam Smith must have written the script as he headed home a last-gasp winner.
Top scorer Dav Symington was voted double Player of the Year (by players and supporters) and was named in the hypothetical NPL team of the season.
We said farewell to many stalwarts and legends and started to meet and greet a new batch of heroes.
Over three months after his appointment, Mark made his bow as the new Reds’ boss as the pre-season programme got underway. Many managers in the past have come into the job with their hands tied behind their back but Mark remained positive and upbeat despite setback after setback.
It has been a bumpy ride for the staff but the green shoots of recovery were starting to show towards the end of the year.
There was a mixed bag of results in the pre-season friendlies, including excellent home draws against Carlisle United and Morecambe (with DG making a quick return as their assistant manager), but a disappointing opening day defeat at Guiseley to mark the start of our 38th campaign in the NPL.
Ceiran Casson had the satisfaction of scoring our first goal of the new season then, in the home win over Whitby Town, two significant milestones were reached.
At 43 years and 7 months, David Norris became the oldest scorer in the club’s history whilst skipper David Symington had the satisfaction of netting his 100th goal for the club.
And Steven Rigg has enjoyed his best of five seasons at the club with his highest tally of goals, player of the month accolades and numerous inspirational performances contributing to the cause.
Efe Ambrose and Jamie Allen became ‘high-profile’ recruits to the squad, quickly winning a host of admirers amongst team mates and supporters alike. And Efe’s wonderfully headed goal against Morpeth Town produced the loudest cheer of the year but was that for the goal or the magnificent acrobatic celebration which followed?
New heroes are emerging from a collection of three dozen or more players used – from youngsters to veterans, all wearing the red shirt with pride.
Injuries are part and parcel of football we know, but to have so many at one time (thirteen at the peak of the epidemic) has been soul destroying.
We have experienced good fortune, too. The team was reinstated into the Cumberland Cup, despite losing to Whitehaven in a penalty shoot-out, after our neighbours were found to have, unknowingly, used an ineligible player. If we were to retain the Cup, it wouldn’t seem right, somehow!
Early exits from the FA Cup and Trophy followed the pattern of recent years but morale boosting wins were obtained against Prescot Cables, Mickleover, Hebburn Town, Ilkeston Town and Worksop Town and the gallant performance against Macclesfield deserved some reward.
We played forty league matches during the calendar year winning ten, drawing ten and losing twenty of those. Reds scored 45 league goals but conceded 68. In those forty matches, we only kept three clean sheets.
Rigg had a fantastic 2024 scoring 19 goals in total, Symington started the year with a bang but missed over two months through injury, latterly, yet still bagged 15 goals.
Throughout the year, Jim Atkinson, Chad Grisdale, Sam Hetherington, Kaedyn Kamara, Jamie Allen, Ben McCarron, Steven Swinglehurst, David Norris, Tyler Beck, Ruben Grewal, Owen Johnston and Efe Ambrose all scored their first competitive goals for the club.
The support has been fantastic considering the inconsistency in the results and the twenty-seven competitive matches, and the handful of friendlies, have attracted over 20,000 fans through the turnstiles. Thank you so much
Fair to say, the mood in the camp is very positive and on an upward trajectory although tinged with sadness. We mentioned Joan Crellen’s sad passing but we also remember, with great fondness, the likes of Dave Cumberworth, Tommy and Rosemary Cassidy, Viv Busby, Dale Brotherton, Tony Barnett, David McDonald, Les Sharkey, Peter Rushforth, Eamon Tremble, Alan Chadwick, Paul Rutherford, Marjorie Hunter, Paul Grisdale, Gilbert Johnston, John McNamee, Charlie Wright and others, sadly, no longer with us.
And to all members of the Workington Reds family, we wish you a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous 2025.
