On this day – 30 November
A look through the archives to see what was happening to Reds on the 30th November in previous years…………..
Prior to an FA Trophy game at Rothwell Town on this day in 1996, we had to check where our opponents were from. There are quite a few places called Rothwell in the UK but our opponents were members of the Dr. Martens Southern League (Midland Division) which meant a 260 mile trip to a small market town in Northamptonshire.
They were an unknown quantity to us, and vice-versa, but, the fact that they were 2nd in their division and we were lower half in ours, meant they had our utmost respect prior to the game.
There was sense of immense satisfaction, therefore, when we emerged 7-1 winners, scoring seven times in an away game for the first time since 1948! Weymouth and Blyth Spartans had also scored seven in one of their Trophy matches that season but they were on home turf which made our victory all the more special.
Reds were 3-0 ahead at the break before going on to record our best win in the competition. John George, Graham Caton (2), Martin Henderson, Graham Emerson, Mark Dobie and Garry Wright shared the goals in the impressive performance.
Sadly, Rothwell Town FC folded in 2012.
We had also been on Trophy duty in the early eighties with mixed success.
In 1982, we lost 2-0 in a replay at Burscough but, the following year, won 1-0 in another replay at Southport thanks to a well taken John Smith goal.
A Fourth Division home match against Brentford in 1974 marked the start of Colin Meldrum’s reign as manager. The Glaswegian had spent most of his playing career in England serving Arsenal, Watford, Reading, Cambridge United and Hillingdon Borough playing against Workington several times over the years.
It was a close game but not the start the new boss wanted as Brentford emerged narrow 1-0 winners.
There was an interesting FA Cup tie in 1935 when North Eastern League outfit, Workington, travelled to play struggling Football League side, New Brighton. Reds won 3-1 on the day thanks to a Billy Boyd hat-trick.
Older supporters will recall that when we were elected to the Football League in 1951, New Brighton was the team we replaced.
