Barrow Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England. The club competes in the National League in the 2026–27 season, following relegation from EFL League Two.
Having initially played in the Lancashire Combination, Barrow joined the Football League in 1921. They remained in the bottom level of the competition until 1967, when they achieved promotion to the Third Division by finishing third in the Fourth Division. The club's highest league placing was in 1967–68, when they finished eighth in the Third Division. They declined quickly, however, and at the end of the 1971–72 season Barrow were voted out of the Football League in the re-election process. They then spent 48 seasons in the top two levels of non-League football, with five relegations from—and promotions to—the Alliance Premier League (later the Football Conference and the National League), of which they were a founding member in 1979. Barrow won the FA Trophy (non-League football's most prestigious cup competition) in 1990 and 2010. They returned to the Football League as National League champions in 2020. Barrow's promotion return to the Football League made them the first, and to date only, club to have been automatically promoted to the Football League having previously lost their league place via the re-election process, although a number of clubs had previously lost and regained their league status via re-election.
The club colours are blue and white and their nickname is The Bluebirds. Since 1909, Barrow have played their home games at Holker Street near the town centre, from Barrow-in-Furness railway station. The record attendance at Holker Street is 16,874, for a FA Cup third round fixture against Swansea Town in 1954.
History
Early history Barrow were founded on 16 July 1901 at the old Drill Hall (later the Palais) in the Strand, and played initially at the Strawberry Ground before moving to Ainslie StreetBarrow The Beautiful History. Retrieved 02–05–11. and Little Park in Roose.Yelland, Phil. Chapter 1: In The Beginning A Brief History of Barrow AFC. Retrieved 02–05–11. The club was elected to Division Two of the Lancashire Combination in 1903, and in 1908 it was promoted to the first division. Barrow moved to Holker Street the following year, where they still play. The club remained in the Lancashire Combination until (and after) the First World War, winning the league championship in 1920–21. The victory preceded the formation of the Football League Third Division North in the 1921–22 season, and Barrow became one of the league's founding members.
Football League years In their early years as a league club, Barrow were notable for their lack of success.Yelland, Phil. Chapter 2: Into the League A Brief History of Barrow AFC. Retrieved 02–05–11. Their highest finish before the Second World War was fifth in the 1931–32 season. In the 1933–34 season, Barrow finished eighth. The club remained in the lowest tier of the Football League when football resumed after the war, and were founding members of Football League Division Four in 1958–59.Yelland, Phil Chapter 3: Post War Struggles and Cup Ties A Brief History of Barrow AFC. Retrieved 02–05–11. The 1950s saw greater success in FA Cup competition, however; the club's record crowd of 16,874 watched Barrow draw 2–2 with Swansea Town in the 1953–54 FA Cup. A few years later, it was followed by a third-round tie in the 1958–59 competition against Football League champions Wolverhampton Wanderers at Holker Street. The Wolves, captained by Billy Wright, won 4–2.
The late 1960s finally saw Barrow win promotion, after a third-place finish managed by Don McEvoy in the 1966–67 Fourth Division.Yelland, Phil Chapter 4: To Division Three And Back To Non League A Brief History of Barrow AFC. Retrieved 02–05–11. McEvoy's successor, Colin Appleton, led Barrow to their highest final league position (eighth place) in the Football League Third Division the following season. The club topped the Third Division league table for one day during the 1968–69 season, the highest position they have ever held. During this period, defender Brian Arrowsmith made the most Football League appearances for Barrow. Barrow remained in the third flight of English football for three seasons, before returning to the basement in 1970. Financial difficulties and poor performances saw Barrow twice up for re-election in 1971 and 1972. On the second occasion, at the end of the 1971–72 season, they were voted out of the Football League and replaced by Hereford United. The initial vote produced saw a tie between Barrow and Hereford for the last place in the league, with each receiving 26 votes. However a second vote saw Hereford win with 29 votes to Barrow's 20. Three factors were highlighted: Barrow's geographic isolation, Hereford United's FA Cup victory against Newcastle United, and the decision of the Barrow board to introduce a speedway track around the Holker Street pitch to offset financial difficulties.Gone But Not Forgotten (Part 4) Twohundredpercent.net. 07–08–07. Retrieved 03–05–11. Barrow joined the Northern Premier League for the start of the 1972–73 season,Willis.S (2007) 'Division Four 1971–72' , When Saturday Comes no.244, June 2007. Retrieved 1 May 2011. and the club spent 51 years in the Football League, 44 playing seasons due to the wartime closedown.
Return to non-League competition
To gain access to the Northern Premier League, the club had to promise to remove the speedway track from Holker StreetHolker Street Newsletter 1674 2 March 2006. Retrieved 3 May 2011. (although it remained until 1974). Barrow struggled in the league, with limited financial resources.Yelland, Phil Chapter 5: Fighting For Survival A Brief History of Barrow AFC. The club were invited to join the new Alliance Premier League in 1979, the first national division in non-League football. Barrow won the Lancashire FA Challenge Trophy in 1981 (their first success as a non-League club since winning the Lancashire Combination in 1921), but were relegated two years later.Yelland, Phil Chapter 6: Making Progress A Brief History of Barrow AFC They won the Northern Premier League title the following season under manager Vic Halom, but were relegated again by 1986. The club hired Ray Wilkie as a manager just before relegation, and Wilkie led Barrow to their most successful period to date in non-League football.Yelland, Phil Chapter 7: The Wilkie Years A Brief History of Barrow AFC
After a number of near-misses, the club did promote to the renamed Football Conference in 1988–89 after their Northern Premier League championship. Driven by Colin Cowperthwaite, holder of club records for appearances and goals, Barrow had two respectable finishes in the Conference: 10th in 1989–90 and 14th the following season. In addition to league success, Wilkie had a number of successful cup runs. Barrow reached the 1988 FA Trophy semi-final, losing to Enfield after two replays: the first at Aggborough, Kidderminster and the second at Marston Road, Stafford. The first leg, at Holker Street, attracted 6,002 supporters (a club non-League record). Enfield won the first leg 2–1, and Barrow won the second 1–0. Enfield went on to win the trophy against Telford United in a replay at the Hawthorns in West Bromwich after a goalless draw in the final at Wembley. Barrow reached the first round of the FA Cup the following season, losing 3–1 to Rotherham United.
They won the 1990 FA Trophy, their first major trophy as a non-League club, defeating Leek Town in the final at Wembley. Kenny Gordon, not ordinarily a goal-scorer, scored the first and third goals in his final game for his hometown club before emigrating to Australia. Other notable members of the squad included Kenny Lowe, who was sold to Barnet for £40,000 (a club record at the time) after the final.Turnbull, Simon The real Barrow boys The Independent. 12–11–00. Retrieved 08–05–11. The following season (benefiting from direct entry to the first round), Barrow made the third round of the FA Cup for the first time as a non-League club before losing 1–0 away to Third Division high-fliers Bolton Wanderers.
Wilkie was forced to step down during the 1991–92 season due to health problems. Barrow were returned through relegation to the Northern Premier League and Cowperthwaite retired after fifteen seasons with the club, 704 appearances and 282 goals.The highlight of my career , North West Evening Mail, 6 May 2010. Retrieved 1 May 2011. Wilkie died in December 1992 at age 56,Obituary: Ray Wilkie The Independent. 03–12–92. Retrieved 08–05–11. and the road outside the Holker Street ground was later named Wilkie Road in his honour.
1990s turmoil After Wilkie's departure and Barrow's relegation, the club had three mediocre seasons in the Northern Premier League. In February 1995, Barrow were purchased by boxing promoter and businessman Stephen Vaughan.Conn.D (2009) 'Chester City owner told by FA to surrender his majority shares' , The Guardian, 18 November 2009. Retrieved 1 May 2011. Vaughan invested in the club, building an all-seater grandstand and signing Conference-standard players.Conn, David (2002) 'Barrow's hate figure moves in at Chester' , The Independent, 2 November 2001. Retrieved 18 July 2020 The Bluebirds were promoted to the Conference in 1997–98 under manager Owen Brown.
Vaughan (who had connections with Liverpool drug-dealer Curtis Warren) was investigated for money laundering,Conn.D (2001) David Conn: Barrow's case exposes hole in ownership rule, The Independent, 23 November 2001. Retrieved 1 May 2011.Horrie.C (2002) Footie goes back to drawing board , The Observer, 28 April 2002. Retrieved 1 May 2011. although no charges were brought.Sweeney.J (2000) 'Cocky' , The Observer, 14 May 2000. Retrieved 1 May 2011. He left the club at the end of 1998, withdrawing the financial support which had kept it afloat. It was learned that the Holker Street ground (Barrow's main asset) had been sold for £410,000 to Northern Improvements, a company in which Vaughan had a financial interest.Robson.K (1999) 'Unfair dismissal' , When Saturday Comes, vol.149, July 1999. Retrieved 1 May 2011. In January 1999, the club were the subject of a compulsory winding-up order and a liquidator was appointed to run it while efforts were made to establish the ground's legal owner. A members' company was formed to provide financial support for the club, with the long-term intention of taking it over.
Although Barrow avoided relegation in the summer of 1999, they were expelled from the Football Conference for improper administration. With support from the Football Association after a long dispute, the club were admitted to the Northern Premier League for the 1999–2000 season almost a month after the season had begun. Barrow survived in the league under manager Kenny Lowe, despite an almost-entirely-new squad. The team improved over the next few years, remaining in administration. They narrowly missed promotion to the Conference twice, finishing second and third in 2003–04 and 2004–05. The legal disputes over the ownership of Holker Street were resolved in August 2002, and the members' company bought the stadium from the liquidator. In 2003, the Football Association allowed Barrow's "football membership" to be transferred to the new company.
The club defeated local rivals Workington in a two-legged April 2004 final in the UniBond Presidents (League) Cup. The game finished 6–6 on aggregate, with Barrow winning on away goals. After their failure to gain promotion to the Conference in 2004–05, Barrow became founding members of another division: the Conference North, which replaced the Northern Premier League one level below the Conference National.
National League years