2004–05 North West Counties Football League
Football league season
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The 2004–05 North West Counties Football League season (known as the Moore & Co Solicitors North West Counties Football League for sponsorship reasons[1]) was the 23rd 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 9 and 10 of the English football league system, Steps 5 and 6 of the National League System respectively). Additionally there were two cup competitions: the League Challenge Cup knockout competition 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 | 2004–05 |
|---|---|
| Teams | 22 |
| Champions | Fleetwood Town |
| Promoted | Fleetwood Town |
| Relegated | Great Harwood Town |
| Matches | 462 |
| Goals | 1,493 (3.23 per match) |
| Average attendance | 105[2] |
← 2003–04 2005–06 → | |
Division One featured 22 clubs, 18 remaining from the previous season plus 4 additions (all promoted from Division Two):
At the end of the season the champions Fleetwood Town, who missed out the previous season owing to ground grading issues,[3] were promoted to the Northern Premier League Division One. Only the bottom club Great Harwood Town, who had been promoted into the division this season, were relegated to Division Two – had they not suffered a four point deduction for fielding an ineligible player[4] they would have finished two places higher and maintained their position in the division.
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Season End Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fleetwood Town (C, P) | 42 | 31 | 6 | 5 | 107 | 42 | +65 | 99 | Promoted to Northern Premier League Division One |
| 2 | Newcastle Town | 42 | 28 | 8 | 6 | 94 | 51 | +43 | 92 | |
| 3 | St Helens Town | 42 | 21 | 13 | 8 | 75 | 48 | +27 | 76 | |
| 4 | Curzon Ashton | 42 | 23 | 7 | 12 | 66 | 45 | +21 | 76 | |
| 5 | Ramsbottom United | 42 | 22 | 9 | 11 | 70 | 47 | +23 | 75 | |
| 6 | Skelmersdale United | 42 | 21 | 11 | 10 | 94 | 57 | +37 | 74 | |
| 7 | Alsager Town | 42 | 19 | 11 | 12 | 65 | 47 | +18 | 68 | |
| 8 | Maine Road | 42 | 20 | 7 | 15 | 76 | 69 | +7 | 67 | |
| 9 | Bacup Borough | 42 | 19 | 8 | 15 | 52 | 47 | +5 | 65 | |
| 10 | Colne | 42 | 18 | 10 | 14 | 75 | 61 | +14 | 64 | |
| 11 | Stone Dominoes | 42 | 17 | 12 | 13 | 73 | 64 | +9 | 63 | |
| 12 | Trafford | 42 | 16 | 8 | 18 | 69 | 59 | +10 | 56 | |
| 13 | Glossop North End | 42 | 15 | 10 | 17 | 79 | 75 | +4 | 55 | |
| 14 | Abbey Hey | 42 | 16 | 6 | 20 | 51 | 69 | −18 | 54 | |
| 15 | Atherton Laburnum Rovers | 42 | 14 | 6 | 22 | 64 | 82 | −18 | 48 | |
| 16 | Nantwich Town | 42 | 12 | 8 | 22 | 71 | 91 | −20 | 44 | |
| 17 | Squires Gate | 42 | 12 | 8 | 22 | 38 | 64 | −26 | 44 | |
| 18 | Salford City | 42 | 11 | 9 | 22 | 68 | 90 | −22 | 42 | |
| 19 | Congleton Town | 42 | 9 | 7 | 26 | 54 | 88 | −34 | 34 | |
| 20 | Formby | 42 | 8 | 8 | 26 | 47 | 99 | −52 | 32 | |
| 21 | Atherton Collieries | 42 | 8 | 7 | 27 | 57 | 102 | −45 | 31 | |
| 22 | Great Harwood Town (R) | 42 | 8 | 9 | 25 | 48 | 96 | −48 | 29[a] | Relegated to Division Two |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Notes:
Division Two
| Season | 2004–05 |
|---|---|
| Teams | 19 |
| Champions | Cammell Laird |
| Promoted | Cammell Laird Silsden |
| Relegated | None |
| Matches | 342 |
| Goals | 1,206 (3.53 per match) |
| Average attendance | 71[5] |
← 2003–04 2005–06 → | |
Division Two featured 19 clubs, 16 remaining from the previous season plus 3 additions:
- Cammell Laird, promoted as a runners-up of the West Cheshire League
- New Mills, joined from the Manchester Football League
- Silsden, promoted as champions of the West Riding County Amateur League
At the end of the season the champions Cammell Laird and runners-up Silsden (who had both joined the league this season) were promoted to Division One. All the other 17 clubs remained in the division.
Cammell Laird completed an unprecedented treble of winning the Division Two title, Division Two Trophy and League Challenge Cup.[6] Also with 142 league goals scored from 36 matches they broke the league record for the highest number of goals scored by a club in a season, exceeding the total from the 1997–98 season of Kidsgrove Athletic (127 goals from 42 matches). Additionally they created a league first as, with a goal difference of 108, they were the first club to finish the season with a positive goal difference greater than 100.
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Season End Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cammell Laird (C, P) | 36 | 27 | 6 | 3 | 142 | 34 | +108 | 87 | Promoted to Division One |
| 2 | Silsden (P) | 36 | 25 | 5 | 6 | 93 | 42 | +51 | 77[a] | |
| 3 | Winsford United | 36 | 23 | 7 | 6 | 72 | 28 | +44 | 76 | |
| 4 | Padiham | 36 | 21 | 7 | 8 | 84 | 56 | +28 | 70 | |
| 5 | Norton United | 36 | 17 | 12 | 7 | 63 | 40 | +23 | 60[a] | |
| 6 | Nelson | 36 | 16 | 11 | 9 | 75 | 52 | +23 | 59 | |
| 7 | Ashton Town | 36 | 13 | 8 | 15 | 61 | 62 | −1 | 47 | |
| 8 | Daisy Hill | 36 | 12 | 10 | 14 | 61 | 68 | −7 | 46 | |
| 9 | New Mills | 36 | 13 | 6 | 17 | 51 | 74 | −23 | 45 | |
| 10 | Blackpool Mechanics | 36 | 12 | 9 | 15 | 49 | 67 | −18 | 42[a] | |
| 11 | Eccleshall | 36 | 11 | 8 | 17 | 47 | 58 | −11 | 41 | |
| 12 | Cheadle Town | 36 | 11 | 7 | 18 | 47 | 80 | −33 | 40 | |
| 13 | Oldham Town | 36 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 54 | 56 | −2 | 39[a] | |
| 14 | Leek County School Old Boys | 36 | 9 | 10 | 17 | 59 | 68 | −9 | 37 | |
| 15 | Holker Old Boys | 36 | 10 | 7 | 19 | 65 | 81 | −16 | 37 | |
| 16 | Darwen | 36 | 13 | 5 | 18 | 39 | 56 | −17 | 35[b] | |
| 17 | Chadderton | 36 | 7 | 7 | 22 | 40 | 94 | −54 | 28 | |
| 18 | Flixton | 36 | 14 | 6 | 16 | 72 | 79 | −7 | 27[c] | |
| 19 | Castleton Gabriels | 36 | 4 | 5 | 27 | 32 | 111 | −79 | 17 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted
Notes:
League Challenge Cup
The 2004–05 League Challenge Cup was a knockout competition open to all the league's clubs. The final, played at Bury F.C., was won 2–0 by league newcomers Division Two club Cammell Laird who defeated Division One Skelmersdale United.[6] It was part of a treble of North West Counties League titles won by Cammell Laird and the first occasion in four seasons that a Division Two club had won this cup.
Quarter-finals, Semi-finals and Final
(The semi-finals were decided on aggregate score from two legs played)
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final[a] | ||||||||||||||||||
| Fleetwood Town (D1) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Colne (D1) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Fleetwood Town (D1) | 1 | 0 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| Cammell Laird (D2) | 0 | 2 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| Cammell Laird (D2) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Bacup Borough (D1) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Cammell Laird (D2) | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Skelmersdale United (D1) | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Skelmersdale United (D1) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| St Helens Town (D1) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Skelmersdale United (D1) | 4 | 0 | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| Blackpool Mechanics (D2) | 0 | 2 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| Abbey Hey (D1) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Blackpool Mechanics (D2) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Club's division appended to team name: (D1)=Division One; (D2)=Division Two
sources:
- Quarter-finals: "League Challenge Cup Fixtures/Results". nwcfl.co.uk. February 2005. Archived from the original on 8 February 2005. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- Semi-finals:Andrew Moffatt (11 April 2005). "Football: Laird to meet Skem in cup final". The Free Library: Daily Post (Liverpool). Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- Final: Andrew Moffatt (30 April 2005). "Football: Record-breaking Laird's treble". The Free Library: Daily Post (Liverpool). Retrieved 16 May 2026.
Second Division Trophy
The 2004–05 Second Division Trophy was a knockout competition for Division Two clubs only. In the final the winners, completing a Division Two league and cup double as part of a treble of North West Counties League titles, were league newcomers Cammell Laird who defeated Flixton 4–0.[7]
Semi-finals and Final
(The semi-finals were decided on aggregate score from two legs played)
| Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||||||
| Cammell Laird | |||||||||||||
| Silsden | |||||||||||||
| Cammell Laird | 4 | ||||||||||||
| Flixton | 0 | ||||||||||||
| Ashton Town | |||||||||||||
| Flixton | |||||||||||||
sources:
- Semi-finals: "Division Two Trophy Fixtures". nwcfl.co.uk. February 2005. Archived from the original on 8 February 2005. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- Final: Andrew Moffatt (4 April 2005). "Football: Skem put one foot in third cup final". The Free Library: Daily Post (Liverpool). Retrieved 16 May 2026.
Reserves Section
Main honours for the 2004–05 season:[8]
- Reserves Division
- Winners: Skelmersdale United Reserves
- Runners-up: New Mills Reserves
- Reserves Division Cup
- Winners: Colne Reserves
- Runners-up: Squires Gate Reserves