25 years on from a season of debt, drama and uncertainty for Town
SOMEBODY POINTED out to me the other day that it was 25 years ago that Halifax Town played out one of those ‘lastgame-ever’ types.
Amid a sea of accrued debt, the club went into their penultimate fixture with the future uncertain with Kidderminster Harriers providing the opposition.
The match was filmed and packaged for prosperity, the visitors coming from behind to win a poor game 2-1.
Of course, the club was saved, the supporters rallying around as they’d done so many times in the past, but when the 1994-95 season actually began, there was no hint of the drama and financial worry to come.
Manager John Bird had put together an exciting looking squad that he hoped would challenge for promotion to the Football League after two years’ absence.
Already at his disposal had been the likes of goalkeeper Darren Heyes, Craig Boardman, Steve Prindiville, Kieran O’Regan and David German, but Bird worked hard to add to these.
Thus, arriving at The Shay were midfielder Kevin Langley from Wigan Athletic, flying winger Andy Kiwomya, forwards Andy Flounders and Gary Worthington, son of former player Dave, and lanky striker Dave Lancaster, who cost £10,000 when signing from Rochdale, £2,000 of that money being funded by the Supporters’ Club.
It would prove to be a troubled season, though for much of it Town competed near the top of the table, having opened their campaign with a 3-0 success at Woking and went on to set a club record of six unbeaten matches from the start of the campaign.
On 5 November, the side trounced Stafford Rangers 6-0, and having brought in former Shay favourites Dean Martin, on loan from Scunthorpe United,
and full-back Paul Fleming, after a spell with Guiseley, the side put together an impressive run which saw them climb to fifth, their defeat at the hands of Altrincham on New Year’s Eve spoiling a run of six victories.
Despite the encouraging signs, the board were concerned at the low attendances. The 4-0 victory over Runcorn on 10 December had been watched by a meagre 733.
Town’s involvement in the FA Cup provided a welcome financial boost, with a second round tie against Third Division Mansfield Town seeing a welcome 2,396 witness a goalless draw before Town were unlucky to lose in the replay.
In mid-November, the Yorkshire Rider bus company submitted plans for a supermarket on The Shay and their adjacent bus depot land.
Simultaneously, Town chairman Jim Brown threatened to quit if the council failed to approve plans for Shay improvements after Football League regulations meant the winners of the Conference would only be promoted if their ground met new stringent criteria.
This then fuelled a debate regarding the future of The Shay, and when in January the council backed Halifax RLFC’s own plans for a super stadium at Thrum Hall, the Town board sat down with their rugby counterparts to try to drive the plans through.
Town put their title hopes back on track in the New Year, completing a double over Gateshead at a frost-bound Shay, then recorded 4-0 home wins over Dover and Woking.
Town then won at Stafford Rangers, and a home draw with Dagenham & Redbridge saw them sitting in fourth. So this good run of form made their exit from the FA Trophy at the hands of Unibond First Division North side Bamber Bridge all the more baffling.
Activity, however, now switched to the corridors of power, where, despite having earlier voted in favour of a super stadium at Thrum Hall, Calderdale councillors were voting against the Yorkshire Rider’s proposed shopping development at The Shay.
With Jim Brown seeing a move to Thrum Hall as the only way Town could regain Football League status and having backed such a move, he now threatened to resign should it not come off.
When councillors voted by a majority of 28 to 17 against selling The Shay in front of a packed public gallery at Halifax Town Hall on 24 February, Brown tendered his resignation to the board three days later, claiming that the club was ‘light years away from having a ground that will earn them League status and I do think they could fade into obscurity’. The board face an uphill battle for survival.’
Indeed, John Stockwell, who succeeded Brown in the hotseat on 6 March, would endure a tough couple of months from the outset.
No sooner had he been installed as chairman, than Town were preparing for their makeor-break home game with leaders Macclesfield, who were 18 points clear of the Shaymen, but with Town having two games in hand, they weren’t ruling out a late challenge.
But when Darren Lyons headed the game’s only goal after 42 minutes, Town gave up the ghost.
The side climbed to third, but this was against a backdrop of real uncertainty. The club announced on 15 March total debts of £175,000, with £100,000 of that owed to the Inland Revenue.
Big money earners such as Lancaster and Kiwomya were offloaded, while the likeable Mick Rathbone was released.
Stockwell then announced that unless a backer could be found, the club would fold at the end of the season. A ‘Fighting Fund’ was set up, part of which saw top footballers – Eric Cantona was one – being pictured and signing a Halifax Town shirt, which was later auctioned off.
On 2 May, three days after Town’s defeat by Kidderminster in the final home game, around 250 supporters rolled up at Arden Road Social Club to help secure the club’s future.
With the Inland Revenue clamouring for an initial £30,000, incredibly half that sum was raised on the night, matching a similar amount already in the bank. With the future secured, hordes of supporters made the trip to Runcorn for the final match to witness a Dave Hanson hat-trick secure a 3-0 win in baking heat.
Town finished in eighth but headed into the summer with the future still in doubt.
Meantime, on the basis that ‘every penny counts’ the home game with Kidderminster was packaged in VHS video form and went on general sale, with money going to the club. Just under what genre WH Smith sold it is unclear, but generally it was viewed as a video nasty.