A New Challenger: The Lowdown on Blyth Town

A deep dive into Blyth Town FC, the Steelmen’s newest Northern League competitor.

Perhaps the toughest test yet in league play, this afternoon marks a historic first meeting between Redcar Athletic and their Northumberland counterparts, Blyth Town.

WHO ARE YA?

Blyth Town

Formed in 1995, Blyth Town boast a history not too disimilar from our own.

The Northumberland outfit were born as a junior football club – home to just three youth sides – before taking the leap into the senior pyramid as late as 2002.

Blyth Town competed in the Northern Football Alliance for most of their short existence, claiming the Division Two title at their first attempt in a rather impressive back-to-back set of promotions.

Having won a treble of titles in 2014 – the Northern Football Alliance Premier Division, the Challenge Cup and the George Dobbins League Cup – the First Team broke away from the main organisation to become a separate entity.

The breakaway would eventually become Blyth AFC, winning Northern League Division Two at the third attempt, before folding due to a lack of funding, and a permanent home.

The birth of Blyth AFC allowed Blyth Town to return to senior football, fielding their First Team back in Division Two of the Northern Football Alliance.

As of 2024, Town have mirrored the success of the since defunct breakaway, making their own way to Northern League Division One, and unlikely to stop there.

CURRENT FORM

Promoted to Division One as champions, Blyth Town took little time to adjust to their surroundings, making haste alongside the prevailing pack within the opening weeks.

Unfortunately, the Northumberland outfit seem to have stalled as of late, shocked at Mount Pleasant by an inconsistent Marske United, before dropping points on home soil against Whitley Bay.

Redcar Athletic dropped points of their own in the chase to catch Boro Rangers, sharing the spoils at the Kevin Edward KGV Stadium last weekend in the lone blemish on a stellar results sheet.