Marine F.C.
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| Full name | Marine Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Mariners, The Whites | ||
| Founded | 1894 | ||
| Ground | Arriva Stadium, Crosby, Liverpool | ||
| Capacity | 3,185 (389 seated) | ||
| Chairman | Paul Leary | ||
| Manager | Phil Brazier | ||
| League | Northern Premier League Premier Division | ||
| 2012–13 | Northern Premier League Premier Division, 13th | ||
| Website | Club home page | ||
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Marine Football Club is an English football club in Crosby, Merseyside. The club, which was founded in 1894, is a member of both the Liverpool County and Lancashire County Football Associations, and currently plays in the Northern Premier League Premier Division.
Marine is notable for having the longest serving manager in post-war English football. Roly Howard occupied the post for 33 years, and a total of 1,975 games. His final match, in May 2005, was a 1–0 defeat against Everton in the Liverpool Senior Cup final.[1]
History
The club was formed in 1894 by a group of local businessmen and former college students. Marine takes its name from a hotel on the River Mersey sea front at Waterloo, seven miles to the north of Liverpool, where the founders of the club met. Marine moved to its present ground, the Arriva Stadium (formerly known as Rossett Park), in 1903.[2]
Marine quickly made an impression on local football, winning numerous titles in the I Zingari League and the Liverpool Combination. The club's greatest success as an amateur team in this period culminated in an F.A. Amateur Cup Final appearance in 1931–32, when they lost 7–1 to Dulwich Hamlet in front of a 22,000 crowd at Upton Park.
In 1935–36 the club moved to the all-professional Lancashire Combination and enjoyed limited success before moving to the Cheshire County League in 1969–70. In 1972 Roly Howard was appointed first team manager and completed 1,975 competitive games over a 33-year period before he retired at the end of the 2004–05 season. He was recognised by the Guinness Book of Records as the longest serving manager in world football as Marine enjoyed its most successful period, winning some 30 trophies.
The club relinquished its amateur status and became professional in 1974. Three Cheshire League Championships were won in five seasons, before Marine progressed to the Northern Premier League in 1979–80. They have twice been Champions (1993–94 and 1994–95) as well as twice being runners-up and have won the League Cup on three occasions (1984–85, 1991–92, and 2002–03).
The club has its own supporters association knows as the M.S.A (Marine Supporters Association).
The club's best performance in the FA Cup was reaching the 3rd Round in 1992–93 when they lost 3–1 to Crewe Alexandra. Marine have also achieved ten first and two second round appearances in the FA Cup and have beaten two Football League Clubs (Barnsley and Halifax Town) in the competition. Marine have twice reached the semi-finals of the F.A. Trophy in 1983–84 and 1991–92 and have been winners of 13 senior county cups.
Under the management team of Alvin McDonald and his assistant, Peter Carroll, Marine began to challenge for honours again. In the first two years of McDonald's management, the Mariners qualified for the Northern Premier League Premier Division play-offs only to lose to the eventual winners on both occasions. In the 2007–08 season Marine finished seventh and won the Liverpool Senior Cup.
In 2008–09, Marine started brilliantly, looking at first to be strong challengers for promotion. However, the team's good run came to an end around December, and eventually led to the departure of several players and, ultimately, their manager Alvin McDonald. Kevin Lynch, club captain, and Phil Brazier, both players at Marine, were given the job of joint caretaker managers. After the end of the season, Lynch was appointed as permanent manager with Brazier as his assistant. Marine finished the 2008–09 season in thirteenth place.
Lynch resigned at the end of the 2012-13 season with Phil Brazier being appointed as Manager, with Peter Cumiskey as his Assistant and Robbie Lawton as player coach.
Stadium
The club plays at Rossett Park, known as The Arriva Stadium since 2006 for sponsorship reasons. It is located on College Road in Crosby. Marine has played at Rossett Park since 1903, when it relocated from its previous ground at Waterloo Park, Crosby. The ground's current capacity is 3,185, of which 389 are seated, but in 1949, Marine played host to Nigeria at Rossett Park, and the crowd on that day was over 4,000. Everton Ladies also play there.
On 24 January 2011, the club announced plans to develop the Arriva Stadium. Plans include replacing the current floodlighting system with a new, eco-friendly 4-corner/column system, as the current 8-column floodlighting system is now over 30 years old and is not sustainable, having had three electrical faults in the last 12 months resulting in fire and failure. Further to these plans, the club plans to build a 130-seat covered stand at the Crosender Road end of the ground. The total cost of all the improvements is estimated at £150,000.[3]
Squad
Current squad
- As of 13th October 2013"[4]
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Backroom staff
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Manager |  Phil Brazier |
| Assistant Manager | Peter Cumiskey |
| Player/Coach | Robbie Lawton |
| Sports Therapist | Neil Coomber |
| Youth Team Manager | Billy White |
| Youth Team Coach | Dave Williams |
Committee, directors and club officials
- President – John Wildman
- Patron – Kenny Dalglish MBE
- Chairman & Press Officer – Paul Leary
- Vice Chairman – Dave McMillan
- Hon. Club Secretary – Richard Cross
- Hon. Treasurers – Maurice Broderick & Mark Prescott
- Management Committee – Paul Eustace, Peter McCormack, Barry Godfrey, Geoff Maddock, Brian Lawlor.
Honours
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References
- ↑ "Longest Serving Football Club Manager.". The Guinness World Records.
- ↑ "The History of Marine F.C.". The Official Marine F.C. Website.
- ↑ "Marine F.C News.". The Official Marine F.C. Website.
- ↑ "Marine F.C. Players & Coaches". The Official Marine F.C. Website.
- ↑ "Marine F.C. Honours". The Official Marine F.C. Website.
External links
Coordinates: 53°29′07″N 3°02′01″W / 53.485157°N 3.03363°W