 | |||
| Full name | Emley Association Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname | The Pewits[1] | ||
| Founded | 2005 | ||
| Ground | Welfare Ground,Emley | ||
| Capacity | 2,000 (305 seated)[2][3] | ||
| Chairman | Marcus Pound | ||
| Manager | Richard Tracey | ||
| League | Northern Premier League Division One East | ||
| 2024–25 | Northern Premier League Division One East, 5th of 22 | ||
Emley Association Football Club is afootball club based inEmley, West Yorkshire, England. Known as AFC Emley from 2005 to 2019, they are currently members ofNorthern Premier League Division One East and play at the Welfare Ground. They are nicknamed ThePewits.
Theoriginal Emley club were founded in 1903 and were members of theHuddersfield District League,Yorkshire League andNorthern Counties East League, before winning promotion to theNorthern Premier League in 1989. In 2000 new ground grading regulations introduced by theNorthern Premier League forced Emley to relocate toBelle Vue inWakefield, although the reserve team continued to play at the Welfare Ground in Emley. In 2002 the club was renamed Wakefield & Emley, and when the reserve team (which still played in Emley) was disbanded in 2005, supporters of the original club decided to establish a new club based in Emley under the name A.F.C. Emley.[4] The following year Wakefield & Emley was renamed Wakefield,[5] and remained in the Northern Premier League until disbanding in 2014.
A new Emley club was established in 2005 and joined Division One of theWest Yorkshire League for the 2005–06 season.[6] After finishing third in their first season, they were promoted to Division One of the Northern Counties East League.[6] In 2014 the club rejected a merger with the Wakefield club.[7] In2015–16 they finished fourth in Division One, qualifying for the promotion play-offs. After beatingPenistone Church 1–0 in the semi-finals, they lost 4–3 on penalties toBottesford Town in the final after a 1–1 draw. Striker Ashley Flynn finished the season with 73 goals, a league record.[8] In2016–17 the club finished third, missing out on automatic promotion on goal difference; they went on to lose 3–1 to Penistone Church in the play-off semi-finals.
In March 2019 it was announced that the club would be renamed Emley A.F.C. from the start of the 2019–20 season, five years after the original club was dissolved.[9] The club were transferred to Division One North of theNorth West Counties League for the2019–20 season. They were fourth in Division One North with games in hand on two clubs above them by mid-March 2020, but the season was the abandoned due to theCOVID-19 pandemic. They were subsequently transferred back to Division One of the Northern Counties East League for the2020–21 season and were top of the league when the season was abandoned in February 2021. In May 2021 the club were promoted to the Premier Division based on their results in the two abandoned seasons. In 2022–23 they won theSheffield & Hallamshire Senior Cup, beatingMaltby Main 2–0 in the final.
The2023–24 season saw Emley win the NCEL Premier Division title, securing promotion to Division One East of the Northern Premier League. In thefollowing season they finished fifth in Division One East, before losing 1–0 toDunston in the play-off semi-finals.
The club plays at the Welfare Ground in Emley. It has a capacity of 2,000, of which 1,000 is covered and 305 seated. The ground is shared with the local cricket club is therefore three-sided; the Warburton End, which consists of a small terrace and uncovered hard standing behind one goal; the Main stand (Alec Hardy Stand) side which has a small terrace section below the seats, uncovered terracing and hard flat standing towards the Warburton end, small area of terrace steps at the other end housing the clubs offices, changing rooms and sports bar; and the Richard Hirst Stand (also known as The Shed), a low covered terrace behind the other goal which is home to Emley's vocal supporters and supporters' flags. During the football season, a fence is erected along the cricket field side. The main stand and dugouts were upgraded during summer 2023 with new seats being brought in from theKirklees Stadium. An electronic scoreboard was installed at the Warburton end during the 2023–24 season and new LED floodlights were installed in the summer of 2024.
Emley have a local rivalry withGolcar United in the 'Huddersfield derby'.[10] as well a cross county rivalry with South Yorkshire-basedPenistone Church.[11]
| Position | Name | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Manager | Richard Tracey | [12] |
| Assistant Manager | Steve Nicholson | |
| Coaches | Ben Walker | |
| Richard Batley | ||
| Goalkeeping Coach | David Walsh | |
| Assistant goalkeeping coach | Chris Brown | |
| Physios | Richard Walker | |
| John Mason | ||
| Academy manager | Steve Sennett | |
| Academy Coach | Conner Tuff |
53°36′45″N1°37′55″W / 53.612629°N 1.6319150°W /53.612629; -1.6319150
