2002–03 North West Counties Football League
Football league season
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The 2002–03 North West Counties Football League season was the 21st in the history of the North West Counties Football League, a football competition in England.
The league comprised two divisions, Division One and Division Two (at levels 8 and 9 respectively of the English football league system), and there were additionally two cup competitions: the League Challenge Cup knockout competition (known as the Worthington Challenge Trophy for sponsorship reasons) open to all the league's clubs and the Second Division Trophy, a knockout trophy competition for Division Two clubs only. The league also had a reserves team section.
Division One
| Season | 2002–03 |
|---|---|
| Teams | 22 |
| Champions | Prescot Cables |
| Promoted | Prescot Cables |
| Relegated | Flixton Winsford United |
| Matches | 462 |
| Goals | 1,559 (3.37 per match) |
← 2001–02 2003–04 → | |
Division One featured 22 clubs, 20 remaining from the previous season plus 2 additional, both promoted from Division Two:
At the end of the season the champions Prescot Cables were promoted to the Northern Premier League Division One and the bottom two clubs, Flixton and Winsford United were relegated to Division Two.
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Season End Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Prescot Cables (C, P) | 42 | 30 | 6 | 6 | 110 | 38 | +72 | 96 | Promoted to Northern Premier League Division One |
| 2 | Clitheroe | 42 | 28 | 8 | 6 | 97 | 38 | +59 | 92 | |
| 3 | Mossley | 42 | 27 | 7 | 8 | 100 | 41 | +59 | 88 | |
| 4 | Newcastle Town | 42 | 23 | 12 | 7 | 83 | 52 | +31 | 81 | |
| 5 | Skelmersdale United | 42 | 22 | 8 | 12 | 91 | 51 | +40 | 74 | |
| 6 | Nantwich Town | 42 | 19 | 11 | 12 | 90 | 74 | +16 | 68 | |
| 7 | St Helens Town | 42 | 17 | 14 | 11 | 77 | 60 | +17 | 65 | |
| 8 | Congleton Town | 42 | 19 | 8 | 15 | 72 | 62 | +10 | 65 | |
| 9 | Salford City | 42 | 17 | 12 | 13 | 84 | 63 | +21 | 63 | |
| 10 | Fleetwood Town | 42 | 17 | 9 | 16 | 73 | 70 | +3 | 60 | |
| 11 | Alsager Town | 42 | 15 | 11 | 16 | 61 | 67 | −6 | 56 | |
| 12 | Squires Gate | 42 | 13 | 12 | 17 | 58 | 71 | −13 | 51 | |
| 13 | Abbey Hey | 42 | 12 | 13 | 17 | 56 | 73 | −17 | 49 | |
| 14 | Atherton Laburnum Rovers | 42 | 11 | 12 | 19 | 65 | 86 | −21 | 45 | |
| 15 | Ramsbottom United | 42 | 11 | 11 | 20 | 73 | 83 | −10 | 44 | |
| 16 | Warrington Town | 42 | 11 | 11 | 20 | 48 | 66 | −18 | 44 | |
| 17 | Woodley Sports | 42 | 11 | 9 | 22 | 62 | 85 | −23 | 42 | |
| 18 | Curzon Ashton | 42 | 11 | 9 | 22 | 60 | 87 | −27 | 42 | |
| 19 | Atherton Collieries | 42 | 11 | 7 | 24 | 52 | 85 | −33 | 40 | |
| 20 | Glossop North End | 42 | 10 | 9 | 23 | 55 | 104 | −49 | 39 | |
| 21 | Flixton (R) | 42 | 10 | 8 | 24 | 44 | 112 | −68 | 38 | Relegated to Division Two |
| 22 | Winsford United (R) | 42 | 10 | 7 | 25 | 48 | 91 | −43 | 37 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Division Two
| Season | 2002–03 |
|---|---|
| Teams | 18 |
| Champions | Bacup Borough |
| Promoted | Bacup Borough Stone Dominoes |
| Relegated | None |
| Matches | 306 |
| Goals | 1,012 (3.31 per match) |
← 2001–02 2003–04 → | |
At the commencement of the season Division Two featured 19 clubs, 17 remaining from the previous season plus 2 additional, both relegated from Division One:
However, during October 2002 Stand Athletic resigned from the league and disbanded:[1] their record was expunged and the division reduced to 18 active clubs.
At the end of the season the champions Bacup Borough and runners-up Stone Dominoes were promoted to Division One.
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Season End Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bacup Borough (C, P) | 34 | 25 | 2 | 7 | 91 | 32 | +59 | 77 | Promoted to Division One |
| 2 | Stone Dominoes (P) | 34 | 24 | 3 | 7 | 94 | 34 | +60 | 75 | |
| 3 | Maine Road | 34 | 23 | 2 | 9 | 74 | 55 | +19 | 71 | |
| 4 | Padiham | 34 | 20 | 5 | 9 | 69 | 42 | +27 | 65 | |
| 5 | Holker Old Boys | 34 | 18 | 7 | 9 | 65 | 42 | +23 | 61 | |
| 6 | Great Harwood Town | 34 | 15 | 7 | 12 | 64 | 61 | +3 | 52 | |
| 7 | Nelson | 34 | 13 | 12 | 9 | 50 | 40 | +10 | 51 | |
| 8 | Darwen | 34 | 14 | 7 | 13 | 59 | 64 | −5 | 49 | |
| 9 | Norton United | 34 | 14 | 6 | 14 | 50 | 52 | −2 | 48 | |
| 10 | Colne | 34 | 14 | 5 | 15 | 65 | 53 | +12 | 47 | |
| 11 | Ashton Town | 34 | 12 | 9 | 13 | 49 | 53 | −4 | 45 | |
| 12 | Castleton Gabriels | 34 | 10 | 8 | 16 | 43 | 60 | −17 | 38 | |
| 13 | Cheadle Town | 34 | 10 | 8 | 16 | 39 | 56 | −17 | 38 | |
| 14 | Blackpool Mechanics | 34 | 9 | 10 | 15 | 39 | 52 | −13 | 37 | |
| 15 | Leek County School Old Boys | 34 | 8 | 9 | 17 | 46 | 57 | −11 | 33 | |
| 16 | Daisy Hill | 34 | 7 | 5 | 22 | 42 | 93 | −51 | 26 | |
| 17 | Oldham Town | 34 | 4 | 12 | 18 | 40 | 86 | −46 | 24 | |
| 18 | Chadderton | 34 | 5 | 5 | 24 | 33 | 80 | −47 | 20 | |
| 19 | Stand Athletic | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Resigned (Record Expunged)[a] |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted
Notes:
- During October 2002 Stand Athletic resigned from the league and disbanded:[1] their record, P12 W5 D4 L3, was expunged.
League Challenge Cup
The 2002–03 League Challenge Cup (known as the Worthington Challenge Trophy for sponsorship reasons) was a knockout competition open to all the league's clubs. The all Division One club final, played at Bury F.C., was won 2–1 by Mossley who defeated Clitheroe.[2]
Quarter-finals, Semi-finals and Final
(The semi-finals were decided on aggregate score from two legs played)
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final[a] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Clitheroe (D1) | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Skelmersdale United (D1) | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Clitheroe (D1) | 4 | 1 | 5 | |||||||||||||||||
| Padiham (D2) | 1 | 1 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| Padiham (D2) | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Congleton Town (D1) | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Clitheroe (D1) | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Mossley (D1) | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Salford City (D1) | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Mossley (D1) | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Mossley (D1) | 4 | 1 | 5 | |||||||||||||||||
| Newcastle Town (D1) | 1 | 2 | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| Ramsbottom United (D1) | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Newcastle Town (D1) | 4 | |||||||||||||||||||
Club's division appended to team name: (D1)=Division One; (D2)=Division Two
sources:
- Quarter-finals and Semi-finals: "Worthington Challenge Trophy Sponsored by Coors Brewery". nwcfl.co.uk. March 2003. Archived from the original on 29 April 2003. Retrieved 28 April 2026.
- Final: "Disappointing Blues fail to rise to occasion". The Clitheroe Advertiser and Times. Clitheroe. 15 May 2003. p. 38.
Second Division Trophy
The 2002–03 Second Division Trophy was a knockout competition for Division Two clubs only. The winners, in the final played at Congleton Town F.C., were Stone Dominoes who defeated Ashton Town 2–1.[3]
Semi-finals and Final
| Semi-finals | Final[a] | ||||||||||||
| Oldham Town | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Ashton Town | 3 | ||||||||||||
| Ashton Town | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Stone Dominoes | 2 | ||||||||||||
| Stone Dominoes | 6 | ||||||||||||
| Bacup Borough | 0 | ||||||||||||
- Played at Congleton Town F.C.
sources:
- Semi-finals: "Division Two Trophy". nwcfl.co.uk. March 2003. Archived from the original on 26 April 2003. Retrieved 28 April 2026.
- Final: "Ashton Town lose trophy final in tense clash". Wigan Observer. Wigan. 15 May 2003. p. 69.
Reserves Section
Main honours for the 2002–03 season:[4]
- Reserves Division
- Winners: Padiham Reserves
- Runners-up: Skelmersdale United Reserves
- Reserves Division Cup
- Winners: Skelmersdale United Reserves
- Runners-up: Daisy Hill Reserves