(Re)introducing the new member Clubs: Wythenshawe
Thu 24th July 2025 | Wythenshawe | By Ben Wilkinson
The seventh and final piece in this mini-series looks at Wythenshawe, who rejoin the League after just one season away.
It was a dramatic three-horse race for the Premier Division title in spring 2024 but it was the 'Ammies' who took the crown on the final day of the season, manager Shane Goldrick leading his side to a second successive promotion.
Fast forward 12 months though and last season will go down as one to forget in this corner of South Manchester. The Hollyhedge Park outfit struggled to get going and ultimately finished in 20th position in the NPL West, a full 12 points from guaranteed safety. There's also a new face in the dugout; Goldrick departed in January of this year and James Kinsey is the man entrusted to lead the Ammies back to Step 4.
The club first joined the NWCFL back in 2018 following promotion from the Manchester League. 4th and 5th placed finishes in the First Division South, the latter culminating in a play-off semi-final defeat to FC Isle of Man, showed that the club weren't just here to make up the numbers. In their third full season at this level, they ran riot in the division, amassing 93 points from 38 games and securing the league title at the end of the 2022/23 season.
Looking through the record books before their first Counties stint, the club was founded in 1946 as Wythenshawe Lads' Club and they had been a member of the South Manchester amateur footballing establishment, joining the Manchester League in 1972-73 season, and winning automatic promotion to the Premier Division by becoming champions of the First Division in their first season.
The won the league three times, were runners-up ten times, including the last two seasons before promotion, and were three times winners of the Lancashire Amateur Cup and finalists on another six occasions.
However, despite the success, development of facilities was always a problem, until the club struck gold in 2013 when they won a £50,000 grant from the Budweiser Club Futures Programme in the North West, followed by a further £100,000 in a public Facebook the following year in the national awards.
In July 2016 the club secured further funding from the Premier League, the FA, and the National Lottery, and this along with the Budweiser money meant that work began in February 2017 on building a clubhouse, installing a new pitch and drainage, a car park and fencing when a new long term lease was finally agreed with Manchester City Council.
The side finished an impressive 4th place in their debut season in the NWCFL First Division South in 2018/19 before Covid halted proceedings for a couple of years. The 'Ammies' got even closer the following year as despite finishing 5th, they qualified for the newly re-introduced play-offs however they were soundly beaten by FC Isle of Man in the semi-final.
There was no need for play-off drama the following year as automatic promotion was sealed in style, amassing 93 points en route to the divisional title in 2022/23. It was that summer that the club dropped the 'Amateurs' suffix of their name (where the 'Ammies' nickname originates) and continued as just 'Wythenshawe'. Under the chairmanship of Sacha Lord and with Shane Goldrick in the dugout, they made it back-to-back titles as they rocketed straight through the Premier Division to the NPL West and Step 4 football.
John Cotton, Club Secretary at Wythenshawe, kindly gave us his thoughts:
"Never a dull moment at Wythenshawe, joining NWCFL in season 2018/19, after a pandemic hit couple of seasons we lost in the Division One South playoffs away at FC Isle of Man, followed by back-to-back titles, promotions, the Premier Division title in 2024 was particularly exciting, a three horse race, ourselves, that noisy lot down the road and Bury, going down to the wire, then for the first time competing in the Northern Premier League.
Our stay in the NPL was short-lived, suffering our first relegation in the clubs 80 year history, returning to the NWCFL after one season.
Our women’s team though, under the leadership of James Mulvihill, went in the opposite direction, back-to-back promotions in North West Regional football now in the Women’s National League.
Back to the NPL, tables don’t lie, but may not tell the whole truth, I personally believe we did not deserve to be relegated, with respect to the teams we faced, we more than matched some teams in the higher echelons of the division.
We have re-grouped, both on and off the pitch, with James Kinsey at the helm, bringing in players, retaining, youth and experience complementing each other, a properly structured pathway, which hopefully will see us over the line in our quest for promotion.
Life back in the NWCFL will be tough, looking at the first released phase of fixtures, one would agree we have a difficult start, but that is a reminder, not that anyone needs reminding, that there are a lot of very good teams in this league, and whoever gets promoted, after 46 games, will thoroughly deserve it.
One thing we can guarantee, we will be entertaining."
Wythenshawe begin their NWCFL return with an away fixture at Padiham's Ruby Civil Arena on Saturday at 3pm; their first match at Hollyhedge Park being under the lights against Chadderton on Tuesday 29th July (7.45pm).
(Re)introducing the new member Clubs: Wythenshawe
Thu 24th July 2025 | Wythenshawe
By Ben Wilkinson
The seventh and final piece in this mini-series looks at Wythenshawe, who rejoin the League after just one season away.
It was a dramatic three-horse race for the Premier Division title in spring 2024 but it was the 'Ammies' who took the crown on the final day of the season, manager Shane Goldrick leading his side to a second successive promotion.
Fast forward 12 months though and last season will go down as one to forget in this corner of South Manchester. The Hollyhedge Park outfit struggled to get going and ultimately finished in 20th position in the NPL West, a full 12 points from guaranteed safety. There's also a new face in the dugout; Goldrick departed in January of this year and James Kinsey is the man entrusted to lead the Ammies back to Step 4.
The club first joined the NWCFL back in 2018 following promotion from the Manchester League. 4th and 5th placed finishes in the First Division South, the latter culminating in a play-off semi-final defeat to FC Isle of Man, showed that the club weren't just here to make up the numbers. In their third full season at this level, they ran riot in the division, amassing 93 points from 38 games and securing the league title at the end of the 2022/23 season.
Looking through the record books before their first Counties stint, the club was founded in 1946 as Wythenshawe Lads' Club and they had been a member of the South Manchester amateur footballing establishment, joining the Manchester League in 1972-73 season, and winning automatic promotion to the Premier Division by becoming champions of the First Division in their first season.
The won the league three times, were runners-up ten times, including the last two seasons before promotion, and were three times winners of the Lancashire Amateur Cup and finalists on another six occasions.
However, despite the success, development of facilities was always a problem, until the club struck gold in 2013 when they won a £50,000 grant from the Budweiser Club Futures Programme in the North West, followed by a further £100,000 in a public Facebook the following year in the national awards.
In July 2016 the club secured further funding from the Premier League, the FA, and the National Lottery, and this along with the Budweiser money meant that work began in February 2017 on building a clubhouse, installing a new pitch and drainage, a car park and fencing when a new long term lease was finally agreed with Manchester City Council.
The side finished an impressive 4th place in their debut season in the NWCFL First Division South in 2018/19 before Covid halted proceedings for a couple of years. The 'Ammies' got even closer the following year as despite finishing 5th, they qualified for the newly re-introduced play-offs however they were soundly beaten by FC Isle of Man in the semi-final.
There was no need for play-off drama the following year as automatic promotion was sealed in style, amassing 93 points en route to the divisional title in 2022/23. It was that summer that the club dropped the 'Amateurs' suffix of their name (where the 'Ammies' nickname originates) and continued as just 'Wythenshawe'. Under the chairmanship of Sacha Lord and with Shane Goldrick in the dugout, they made it back-to-back titles as they rocketed straight through the Premier Division to the NPL West and Step 4 football.
John Cotton, Club Secretary at Wythenshawe, kindly gave us his thoughts:
"Never a dull moment at Wythenshawe, joining NWCFL in season 2018/19, after a pandemic hit couple of seasons we lost in the Division One South playoffs away at FC Isle of Man, followed by back-to-back titles, promotions, the Premier Division title in 2024 was particularly exciting, a three horse race, ourselves, that noisy lot down the road and Bury, going down to the wire, then for the first time competing in the Northern Premier League.
Our stay in the NPL was short-lived, suffering our first relegation in the clubs 80 year history, returning to the NWCFL after one season.
Our women’s team though, under the leadership of James Mulvihill, went in the opposite direction, back-to-back promotions in North West Regional football now in the Women’s National League.
Back to the NPL, tables don’t lie, but may not tell the whole truth, I personally believe we did not deserve to be relegated, with respect to the teams we faced, we more than matched some teams in the higher echelons of the division.
We have re-grouped, both on and off the pitch, with James Kinsey at the helm, bringing in players, retaining, youth and experience complementing each other, a properly structured pathway, which hopefully will see us over the line in our quest for promotion.
Life back in the NWCFL will be tough, looking at the first released phase of fixtures, one would agree we have a difficult start, but that is a reminder, not that anyone needs reminding, that there are a lot of very good teams in this league, and whoever gets promoted, after 46 games, will thoroughly deserve it.
One thing we can guarantee, we will be entertaining."
Wythenshawe begin their NWCFL return with an away fixture at Padiham's Ruby Civil Arena on Saturday at 3pm; their first match at Hollyhedge Park being under the lights against Chadderton on Tuesday 29th July (7.45pm).
