2 | Liverpool Senior Cup Final WELCOME TO THE SENIOR CUP FINAL As the Chairman of the Liverpool Tonight’s match officials are also to County Football Association, it is be congratulated on their appoint- my privilege to welcome you all ments, to this season’s Senior Cup Final. The Association continues to go Congratulations are offered to from strength to strength; with both Prescot Cables and Sou- the help of my predecessor and thport on reaching this presti- our existing staff I will ensure that LIVERPOOL COUNTY gious Final and I sincerely hope we will continue to serve everyone FOOTBALL that, win or lose, the experience connected to the Liverpool Coun- ASSOCIATION will be long remembered for the ty FA. That will see us achieving right reasons. even greater success in the future. MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE Our thanks are offered to Pres- Finally, I hope that you enjoy the Chairman: I. Wild cot Cables FC for the use of their game and respect not only each excellent facilities and for pre- other but the facilities as well. I Vice-Chairman: A. Brown paring this evening’s match pro- would also ask that due respect is gramme. afforded to each team when co- Financial Director: J. Garrett llecting their medals at the end of I would also offer my thanks to the the match. Directors: D. Woods, P. Dawson, J. Competitions Committee Mem- Gibiliru, D . Watkins bers and staff who work tirelessly As always, I will continue to su- on your behalf to ensure that the pport the game and look forward Co-Opted Directors: D. Horlick, D. administration provided is first to meeting you during this busy Harrison, R. Gill, P. Farrell, G. Berwick class. Equally, we are indebted to period of matches. the Club volunteers as, without Chief Executive Officer: D. Pugh their dedication it would be im- Ian Wild possible for Clubs to exist. Chairman of the Board of Directors President: T. Lloyd Liverpool County Football Association Committee Members: P. Bridge, Mrs. P. Carter, I. Munro, K. Breen, R. Lucas, TONIGHT’S PROGRAMME OF EVENTS W. Roberts, W. Halfpenny, K. Davies, 7:40pm: The teams will enter the field and be introduced to the Presen- S. Swinnerton, D. Horlick, P. Dawson, tation Party, led by Chairman of Liverpool County FA, Ian Wild. Following D. Hill, D. Morgan, E. Pope, D Pinder, the presentation, the teams will complete the Respect Handshake. I. Dibbert, D. Lace, T. Brownlow, P. Farrell, S. O’Reilly, R. Gill, J. Milligan, 7:45pm: The match kicks-off! If the scores are level after 90 minutes play, M. Pugh, S. Lyon, J. Drury, G. Jones, S. the winner will be determined by the taking of penalty kicks. Smithies, T. Zeverona, J. Owen. 9:40pm (approx)): The players will leave the field before the post-match presentations. Spectators will be invited to assemble on the pitch; access will be provided via a gate on the Main Stand side of the ground. The presentations will then take place in the Main Stand, commencing with the Match Officials, then the runners-up, before the winning team receives the trophy from the Guest of Honour, Ian Wild. Prescot Cables v Southport | 3 THE PESKY BULLS PRESCOT CABLES FC: A HISTORY Tonight’s home club are in their 135th year and have enjoyed a resurgence on and off the pitch in recent seasons. rescot Football Club was formed in 1884 and the Pfirst organised game of As- sociation Football ever played in Prescot took place against the second team of a local St Helens side, St Thomas. Prescot lost the match by a score of 3-1. After playing friendly games for the first five years, Prescot ente- red the Liverpool & District Lea- gue in 1889. Prescot’s highest finishing position in that league was third in 1891-92, the year in which Prescot entered the FA Cup for the first time. A home game against Crewe Alexandra attracted 3,000 spectators to the club’s ‘Slacky Brow’ ground, where Prescot were beaten 7-1. Prescot joined the Lancashire Alliance in 1895 and were cham- pions in 1899-1900. The club fi- nished bottom the following year but joined the higher stan- dard Lancashire League for 1901-02. A ground dispute re- 4 | Liverpool Senior Cup Final sulted in Prescot dropping out of the league in 1902-03 and Pres- cot FC was dormant until 1906 when an athletic and football ground was opened at Hope Street and Prescot Athletic FC was formed. Prescot Athletic started in the St Helens & Dis- trict League and won the cham- pionship at the first attempt, -af ter which they joined the Liverpool League for four sea- sons. The Liverpool County Combination became the Pres- cot club’s sixth league, in 1911- 12. Leagues were suspended in 1914 for the Great War and the post-war Prescot club dropped ‘Athletic’ from its name and joi- ned the Lancashire Combination Liverpool Section. In their first season, 1918-19, Prescot fini- shed runners-up to Tranmere Rovers but did not fare too well the following season and the club returned to the more loca- lly-based Liverpool County Prescot Cables v Southport | 5 6 | Liverpool Senior Cup Final Combination for the 1920-21 Prescot Cables was re-taken and ll committee being formed from season and spent a further seven in 1982, Cables became a mem- the Supporters Club. The assets years in that league. ber of the newly formed North and liabilities of the old club, West Counties League, where Prescot Cables, were transferred In 1928, the local expanding ca- they remained for 20 years. Pres- over to a new legal entity, namely ble giants, BICC, donated a mag- cot finished in the top 10 in Prescot Football Club Limited, nificent 1,000-seater stand NWCL Division One in all but which continued trading as Pres- (which was destroyed by fire in one season from 1990 and, in cot Cables Football Club. The 1960) to the club. In what was 2001-02, the club had its most new company would subse- clearly an early form of commer- successful season for over two quently be reconstituted as a cial sponsorship, the club’s name decades, winning the Worthing- Community Interest Company was changed to Prescot Cables ton Challenge Trophy (League owned by more than 300 su- and the team colours became Cup) and finishing as Division pporters who each pay a small black and amber to commemora- One runners-up, narrowly mis- annual subscription in return for te a bit of local industrial history, sing out on promotion to the one share. as the first successful insulated Northern Premier League Divi- cable drawn at Prescot was co- sion One. On the pitch, the club produced vered with black and amber pa- another mid-table finish in the per. Prescot Cables joined the However, Prescot went one bet- following season to avoid beco- Lancashire Combination In ter in 2002-03 and finished as ming involved in another 1928-29 and, in 1929, applied to champions of the North West non-league ‘shake-up’ that saw join the Football League Third Counties League Division One to two regionalised First Divisions Division (North), along with four win promotion to the Northern being created within the Nor- other hopefuls. All the applicants Premier League Division One. thern Premier League ahead of failed, although one, Mansfield Ground improvements were ca- the 2007-08 season. Town, was successful two years rried out at Valerie Park (formerly later.The 1950s and early 1960s known as Hope Street) to meet That campaign was a more diffi- were something of a ‘golden era’ the relevant regulations and en- cult one and during the club’s fi- for Prescot Cables, who were the sure that Prescot could take their nal match, Prescot was 15 minu- first winners of the Liverpool Se- place in the higher league. tes from relegation. Two late nior Non-League Cup and lifted goals secured a win at Lincoln the trophy four times within a For the season 2004-05, Prescot United and survival. Due to how decade. During this period, the found themselves playing at the closely contested the division club reached the First Round highest level in their history. Due had been, Cables eventually fini- Proper of The FA Cup on two oc- to a suitable finishing position, shed in 13th place! Shortly after casions and claimed the Cham- and a re-organisation of the Na- the season’s end, the ground was pionship of the Lancashire Com- tional League System, Prescot purchased by Triman Develop- bination. took their place in the Northern ments Ltd from a company con- Premier League Premier Division. trolled by a former Chairman of Prescot Cables changed its name As a result of a club being unable Prescot Cables AFC. The current to Prescot Town in 1964 but the to fulfil their fixtures, and after football club are working on club struggled and in 1975, it the controversial intervention of ground improvements in order to was voted out of the Lancashire the FA, Cables were elevated to provide the team and supporters Combination. Prescot Town joi- fifth position in the final League with an opportunity to move ned the Mid-Cheshire League Table. Cables had the opportuni- forward. and won it at the first attempt. In ty to gain promotion to what is 1978-79 they returned to the now called National League Nor- A lacklustre 2008-09 season saw Cheshire County League, in Divi- th, although defeat at Working- Prescot propping up the Nor- sion Two, after an absence of 42 ton in the first play-off game en- thern Premier League Premier years.