Macclesfield Town Football Club was an association football club based in Macclesfield, Cheshire, England.
Initially known as Macclesfield F.C., the club was formed in 1874 and from 1891 played home games at Moss Rose. It competed in the short-lived Combination league in the 1890–91 season, reforming in the Manchester League at the end of the 19th century. The club won the Manchester League title twice, before becoming inaugural members of the Cheshire County League at the start of the 1919–20 season, ultimately winning the League six times. Renamed Macclesfield Town in 1946, the club were founder members of the Northern Premier League in 1968, winning the league in its first two years, as well as the FA Trophy in 1970. They were promoted to the Conference after they won their third Northern Premier League title in 1986–87.
Manager Sammy McIlroy led Macclesfield Town to the top of the Conference in 1993–94, but they were not promoted as Moss Rose did not meet Football League requirements. They won the FA Trophy for a second time in 1996. They again won the Conference title in 1996–97 and this time were promoted, winning promotion in their inaugural Football League campaign with a second-place finish in the Third Division in 1997–98. However they were immediately relegated from the Second Division. The club stayed in the fourth tier of the Football League from 1999 to 2012, losing a play-off semi-final in 2005, before being relegated back into the Conference. Despite financial constraints, manager John Askey led the club back into the Football League as champions of the National League in 2017–18. In 2018–19, the club avoided relegation back to the National League, but financial issues continued to affect it. After a points deduction activated on 11 August 2020, the club was relegated to the National League, the 5th tier of English football, for the 2020–21 season.
The club was wound-up after a High Court ruling on 16 September 2020, and the club was initially suspended and then expelled from the National League with effect from 12 October 2020. In October 2020, local businessman Robert Smethurst purchased the assets of Macclesfield Town, and established Macclesfield F.C., entering it into the North West Counties Football League in the 2021–22 season.
History 19th century
The beginnings of Macclesfield Town Football Club can be traced, at least in part, to the 8th Cheshire Rifle Volunteers who were formed in 1873 and played regularly in Macclesfield from October 1874. It was agreed at a public meeting on 21 October 1876 that the 8th Cheshire Rifle Volunteers and the Olympic Cricket club teams be merged to form Macclesfield F.C.; initially matches alternated between association and rugby rules. At the beginning of the 1878–79 Macclesfield United Football Club merged with Macclesfield Football Club. The club played in the FA Cup competition for the first time on 18 November 1882, losing 3–4 to Lockwood Brothers and first entered the Cheshire Senior Cup in the 1879–80 season, winning this competition for the first time on 22 March 1890 when they beat Nantwich 4–1 and went on to be winners on three more occasions before the turn of the century.
Macclesfield became members of The Combination at the start of the 1890–91 season and moved from Victoria Road to the Moss Rose on 12 September 1891 which remains the home of the Silkmen today. In July 1894 the first limited company, Macclesfield Football and Athletic Club Limited, was formed but only lasted until the end of the 1896–97 season when it was wound up and Macclesfield Football Club withdrew from The Combination due to financial constraints. For the 1897–98 season, and the following two seasons, local amateur side Hallefield moved their fixtures to the Moss Rose.
1900 to World War II
Having re-formed, Macclesfield became members of the Manchester League for the 1900–01 season and were champions in the 1908–09 and 1910–11 seasons. They fielded two senior teams for the 1911–12 season, continuing in the Manchester League with the second team competing in the Lancashire Combination 2nd Division. Having withdrawn from the Manchester League at the end of the 1911–12 season, the club reverted to one senior team for the 1912–13 season which competed in the Lancashire Combination 2nd Division. They gained promotion as runners-up at the end of the 1913–14 season to compete in the 1st Division for the 1914–15 season. In line with all other football clubs after a decree by the government there was no further competitive football at the Moss Rose during hostilities.
Macclesfield became inaugural members of the Cheshire County League at the start of the 1919–20 season of which they were champions in the 1931–32 and 1932–33 seasons. In the 1933–34 season, Albert Valentine set an all-time club record scoring 83 goals in the season. The first ever manager, James Stevenson, was appointed for the 1936–37 season. Between 1900 and 1939 they won the Cheshire Senior Cup three times (1910–11, 1929–30 and 1934–35). Although a member of the Cheshire War-time League (1939 West Series and 1940 East Series), due to dwindling attendances and increasing debts Macclesfield withdrew from the league at the end of the 1939–40 season and no further football was played on the Moss Rose during the Second World War. It would be just prior to the 1946–47 season before the outstanding debts were settled.
1946 to 1999
When competitive football resumed after World War II, Macclesfield Town Football Club Ltd was formed and the club gained their current name.Macclesfield Express 24 April 1946 The club re-joined the Cheshire County League in 1946–47, playing their first game after reformation on 31 August 1946, a 2–0 defeat to Buxton., p84 The club's form in the remainder of the 1940s was largely indifferent, with the exception of a Cheshire League Challenge Cup win in 1948. The 1950s proved more successful, with four trophies in as many years from 1951 to 1954, including the club's first Cheshire County League title in 20 years in 1953, though the team's fortunes faded in the latter half of the decade.
Macclesfield Town progressed through four qualifying rounds to make their first appearance in the FA Cup first round in 1960 under manager Frank Bowyer, but lost 7–2 to Southport.Phythian, p107 At the end of that season the club won the Cheshire County League, beginning a nine-year period in which they won three league titles and finished no lower than fifth, and in 1964 won the Cheshire County League by a record-equalling 13 point margin.Phythian, p207-208 The club reached the FA Cup third round for the first time in 1968, meeting First Division Fulham at Craven Cottage. Macclesfield Town lost 4–2, but the performance resulted in Macclesfield Town's Keith Goalen becoming the first non-league player to be named Footballer of the Month by the London Evening Standard.Phythian, p121
The club were founder members of the Northern Premier League, one of three leagues at the fifth tier of English football, upon its creation in 1968. Macclesfield Town were champions in each of the first two seasons of the competition, finishing 12 points clear in 1968–69, and by goal average in 1969–70. The 1969–70 season also resulted in a trip to Wembley for the inaugural final of the FA Trophy, a knockout competition for non-league clubs. Macclesfield Town defeated Telford United 2–0 in front of more than 28,000 spectators to win the competition. A period of decline then followed, despite the performances of Willie Mailey in goal, and the side's fortunes reached a nadir when the club finished bottom of the Northern Premier League in 1979, a year when the stronger teams from the division formed the national Alliance Premier League (now known as the National League). The 1980s saw steady rebuilding. The club finished as Northern Premier League runners-up in the 1984–85 season.
Macclesfield Town's third Northern Premier League title in the 1986–87 season resulted in promotion to the Football Conference; they also lifted the League Challenge Cup and President's Cup. They finished in mid-table in their first Conference season, and eliminated two League teams, Carlisle and Rotherham, from the FA Cup. The club reached the FA Trophy final for the second time in 1989, facing Telford United. However, the team did not match the achievement of their predecessors 19 years earlier, losing 1–0. From a high of a fourth place league finish in 1989–90, Macclesfield Town's final standing diminished each season, and following a struggle against relegation in 1992–93, manager Peter Wragg was sacked, and replaced with former Manchester United midfielder Sammy McIlroy.
McIlroy took charge at the start of the 1993–94 season, and guided the club to the Football Conference championship in his second season as manager. However. the club was denied promotion to the English Football League because the Moss Rose did not meet league requirements of having a 6,000 total capacity including at least 1,000 seats by the League's deadline of 31 December 1994.Phythian, p165 Macclesfield Town won the Conference title again two seasons later in 1996–97, by which time the stadium had been upgraded and they were promoted to Division Three of the Football League in place of Hereford United.
Upon gaining League status, the club turned fully professional.Phythian, p176 Macclesfield Town's first League match was a 2–1 win at home to Torquay United on 9 August 1997. Town's first ever goal in the Football League was scored by Efe Sodje who also became Macclesfield Town's first Black player that day. The momentum of the Conference success continued, and, unbeaten at home in their first League season, Macclesfield Town finished runners-up in Division Three and were promoted for the second consecutive season, this time to Division Two. However, the higher level proved a step too far for the club, who finished the 1998–99 season bottom of Division Two and were relegated. McIlroy soon left to become the Northern Ireland national coach and was replaced by former Manchester United colleague Peter Davenport.
2000 to 2020
A dismal start to the following season cost Davenport his job though, and Gil Prescott took over for the remainder of the season, keeping Macclesfield Town clear of relegation. David Moss in turn succeeded Prescott as manager and delivered two decent mid-table finishes, but a bad start to the 2003–04 season resulted in his sacking. Club stalwart John Askey succeeded Moss initially on a temporary basis, and earned the job permanently with some promising early results. However, a terrible run of one win in three months meant that Askey's term as manager was short-lived.
In March 2004, with relegation to the Conference threatening, Macclesfield Town turned to the experienced 55-year-old Brian Horton to take charge. Horton reinvigorated Macclesfield Town who finished fifth in the 2004–05 season, resulting in a playoff place, but the team were eliminated in the semi-finals by Lincoln City. In 2005–06, the team finished an undistinguished 17th. Horton was sacked by the club in late September 2006, following a 12-game winless start to the season, leaving the club bottom of the Football League.