 | |||
| Full name | Squires Gate Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nicknames | Gate, The Blues | ||
| Founded | 1948 (as Squires Gate British Legion) | ||
| Ground | The Skiddle Community Stadium,Squires Gate,Blackpool | ||
| Capacity | 1,000 | ||
| Chairman | John Maguire | ||
| Manager | Luke Evans | ||
| League | North West Counties League Division One North | ||
| 2024–25 | North West Counties League Premier Division, 24th of 24 (relegated) | ||
Squires Gate Football Club is a football club based inSquires Gate,Blackpool, Lancashire, England, formed in 1948. After spending thirty years in the West Lancashire League, in 1991 it was elected to theNorth West Counties Football League Division Two, and is currently in the Division One.
Squires Gate was formed in 1948 asSquires Gate British Legion and competed in the Blackpool & District Amateur League. The team won the League's Rawling Shield in their first season. The name of the club was changed to Squires Gate F.C. in 1953. They won the League's First Division in1955–56 and1956–57; also the Blackwell Cup in1958–59 and1959–60. They spent the1960–61 in the Fylde District League, winning the Fylde Cup and being the losing finalists in the Bannister Cup.[1]
Thefollowing season the club moved up to theWest Lancashire League, where it spent the next thirty years. From 1961 until 1980 it was in Division Two, being promoted in 1981 as champions. In the1986–87 season the side won the Richardson Cup.[1]
They were elected into theNorth West Counties Football League for the1991–92 season, joining Division Two for the1991–92 season. Squires Gate won the league's Fair Play Award for the1993–94 season and were losing finalists in the1997–98 Division Two Trophy.[1]
They won the2001–02 season Division Two Trophy and then thefollowing season they missed the runner-up spot on goal difference but were still promoted to Division One following the demise ofStand Athletic F.C. who had originally been promoted as Division Two champions. They reached their highest league placing in the2005–06 season, also reaching the quarter-finals of theFA Vase.[1]
On 10 March 2007, Squires Gate played a home match againstFC United of Manchester atCurzon Ashton's ground. The club had approachedBlackpool about playing the game atBloomfield Road but the ground was not available. The team played the match inAshton-under-Lyne, as it was felt that FCUM fans were more likely to attend with the match being staged in theGreater Manchester area. A crowd of 1,650 saw Squires Gate lose 0–1, the club earning about £7,000.[2]
In the summer of 2012, Gate changed its Stadium name to The Royal British Legion Stadium.
On 12 November 2014; Jack Sowerby, signed for League One outfit Fleetwood Town. He now plays football for Northampton Town.
On 25 April 2015, Gate manager Dave McCann led his team to the club's highest-ever position, reaching sixth position in the NWCFL Premier Division, finishing with 67 points after playing Alsager Town. The Squires Gate team that played that day were: Fletcher, Richards, Westwood, Anderson, Ferguson, Mckenna, Penswick, Kay, Dunn, Murphy, Buchan. Subs: McCann, Lancashire, Rowley, Cunningham.
The following season, manager Dave McCann's resignation was reluctantly accepted by club chairman Stuart Hopwood; he was replaced by club captain Daniel Penswick. Penswick led Gate to a 19th-place finish in the 2015–16 season, with a last-day win over Ashton Athletic, to remain in the Premier Division.
Another success story came from Squires Gate, as Josh Kay went on to play for AFC Fylde, before eventually getting a move to Barnsley in 2015. He now plays for League Two side Barrow AFC.
Luke Evans was appointed manager of the club in October 2019. Evans led the club to 9th in his first season at Squires Gate before the season was deemed null and void due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The club play at The Skiddle Community Stadium.[3] It has seen some development since the club was elected to the North West Counties League. There is a clubhouse at the ground and floodlights. The record attendance at School Road is 1,000, for a regular season matchup againstBury FC in 2024.[4] During the summer of 2025 the ground has seen further development, including the erection of a modern entrance and refurbishment of the catering facilities.
League
Cup
53°46′45.33″N3°00′54.59″W / 53.7792583°N 3.0151639°W /53.7792583; -3.0151639
