West Midlands Regional Premier League Fans’ Guide 2014-15

The West Midlands Regional League is three divisions spanning steps six to eight of non league football, and this season celebrates its 125th birthday, having been formed in 1889 as the Birmingham & District League. This guide concentrates on the Premier division (step six) where Lye Town are the current champions. They now play in the newly formed Midland League, which combined the step five Midland Alliance and the step six Midland Combination. Future winners will also be promoted to the Premier division of the Midland League.

Two clubs were promoted from division one, champions AFC Bridgnorth and runners-up Haughmond FC.

This year, in the Premier League, you can get 22 teams’ grounds for the price of 19, due to current sharing arrangements. These are:

Smethwick Rangers playing at Dudley Sports’ Hillcrest Avenue.
Black Country Rangers playing at Cradley Town’s Beeches View ground.
Wolverhampton Sporting Community playing at Wednesfield’s Cottage Ground at Amos Lane.
(Shawbury United also share a ground, Wem Town’s, who play in Division One)

The Premier division is quite Black-Country-centric, with six teams (five grounds) in the Wolverhampton area and six teams (four grounds) in the Dudley area. The Northern most club is Ellesmere in North Shropshire, closely followed by fellow Salopians, Shawbury United, who share with Wem Town and new boys Haughmond (north Shrewsbury).

Shifnal Town and Wellington Amateurs are from the Telford area, with AFC Bridgnorth sitting in south Shropshire. It then spreads out again right down to Hereford and Pegasus Juniors, the southernmost club. Wellington sit slightly north and Malvern to the West. Between Malvern and the Black Country lies Bewdley in Worcestershire, to complete the division.

Dudley Town are the oldest club in the league; in fact the only club to have outlived the league itself, founded in 1888. Bilston Town and Wolverhampton Casuals were also founded in the 19th century (1894 and 1899 respectively). The only other pre-second world war team is Gornal Athletic (1919).

The newest team is Wolverhampton Sporting Community, founded (as Heath Town Rangers) in 2001. The Rangers of both Black Country and Smethwick are 1996 vintage, while Sporting Khalsa and Shawbury United were also founded in the 1990s.

The Wellingtons are not from the same town. Wellington are from the town in Herefordshire, whereas Wellington Amateurs are named after Wellington near Telford (but play in Oakengates).

I have yet to visit the grounds of Pegasus Juniors, Wellington, Malvern Town and Bewdley Town. Bearing in mind I have these four to do, the grounds I’d recommend, to those who may only get to the area infrequently, are:

Bilston Town Community – ground teeming with character, from its bright orange signage and paintwork, to its unusual caged surround and big stand, not to mention their eccentric superfan, Mr Bilston. If you only do one ground in this division, do Queen’s Street.
Gornal athletic – for its wonderful huge terrace alone.
Cradley Town – quirky ground with great bits of terracing and stand behind goal
Sporting Khalsa – I went to their Noose Lane ground when it belonged to Willenhall. When I went it was in a state of disrepair, but it was clearly a grand old non league ground with large stand and lots of land around it. It has since been redeveloped and will I’m sure now be one of the best in the league
Haughmond – new sports village development and I guess you could say cage. However, large ten step terrace behind goal and unique stand make it a great new stadium.

Others of note I’d say were Shifnal Town and AFC Bridgnorth, both with big interesting stands.

West Midlands League Premier division clubs

AFC Bridgnorth
Founded: 2013 (Bridgnorth Town – 1949) Nickname: Meadow Men Address: Crown Meadow Innage Lane, Bridgnorth, Shropshire WV16 4HS
07748-302650
Nearest Station: Bridgnorth & surrounding area not served my mainline trains. Buses available from Shrewsbury, Telford, Wolverhampton, Kidderminster and Ludlow.

Bewdley Town
Founded: 1978 Nickname: n/k Address: Ribbesford Meadow, Ribbesford, Bewdley, Worcestershire DY12 2TJ
07739-626169
Nearest Station: Kidderminster 5.8 miles, buses from Kidderminster Station to Bewdley, then 1.5m walk from Bewdley.

Picture courtesy of Keiron Bridges

Bilston Town Community
Founded: 1894 Nickname: The Steelmen Address: Queens Street Stadium, Queens Street, Bilston, West Midlands WV14 7EX
07725-816043
Nearest Station: Bilston Central (Midland Metro) 0.4m

Black Country Rangers
Founded: 1996 Nickname: Rangers Address: The Beeches (home of Cradley Town), Beeches View Avenue, Cradley, Halesowen, West Midlands B63 2HB
Nearest Station: Cradley Heath 1.7m, Lye, 2.2m, Old Hill 2.3m
07708-659636 David

Cradley Town
Founded: 1948 Nickname: The Lukes, The Hammers Address: The Beeches, Beeches View Avenue, Cradley, Halesowen, West Midlands B63 2HB
Nearest Station: Cradley Heath 1.7m, Lye, 2.2m, Old Hill 2.3m
07708-659636 David

Dudley Sports
Founded: 1979Nickname: The Piemen Address: Hillcrest Avenue,  Brierley Hill, West Midlands DY5 3QH
01384-826420
Nearest Station: Cradley Heath 1.8m

Dudley Town
Founded: 1888 Nickname: The Duds, The Robins Address: The Dell Stadium,  Bryce Road, Brierley Hill, West Midlands DY5 4NE
01384-812800
Nearest Station: Cradley Heath 3.4m

Ellesmere Rangers
Founded: 1969 Nickname: The Rangers Address: Beech Grove Playing Fields,  Beech Grove, Ellesmere, Shropshire SY12 0BT
07947-864357
Nearest Station: Shrewsbury 17m (501 bus to Shrewsbury from Ellesmere)

Gornal Athletic
Founded: 1919 Nickname: The Peacocks Address: Garden Walk Stadium,  Garden Walk, Lower Gornal, Dudley, West Midlands DY3 2NR
07762-585149
Nearest Station: Tipton 3.7m (No 42 bus from station)

Haughmond
Founded: 1981 Nickname: The Mond Address: Shrewsbury Sports Village, Sundorne Road, Shrewsbury SY1 4RQ
07785 531754
Nearest Station: Shrewsbury 1.7m

Malvern Town
Founded: 1946 Nickname: u/k Address: Langland Stadium, Langland Avenue, Malvern WR14 2EQ
01684-574068
Nearest Station: Great Malvern 1.3m

(picture courtesy of Andy Dakin)

Pegasus Juniors
Founded: 1955 Nickname: The Redmen Address: Old School Lane, Hereford HR1 1EX
07980 465995
Nearest Station: Hereford 1.8m

(picture courtesy of Andy Dakin)

Shawbury United
Founded: 1992 Nickname: u/k Address: Butler Sports Centre (Home of Wem Town), Bowensfield, Wem, Shrewsbury SY4 5AP
01939-233287
Nearest Station: Wem 0.6m

Shifnal Town
Founded: 1964 Nickname: The Town/Reds Address: Phoenix Park, Coppice Green Lane, Shifnal, Shropshire TF11 8PD
07986 563156
Nearest Station: Shifnal 0.7m

Smethwick Rangers
Founded: 1996 Nickname: u/k Address: Hillcrest Avenue (home of Dudley Sports), Brierley Hill, West Midlands DY5 3QH
01384-826420
Nearest Station: Cradley Heath 1.8m

Sporting Khalsa
Founded: 1991 Nickname: u/k Address: Aspray Arena (Noose Lane), Noose Lane, Willenhall, West Midlands WV13 3BB
01902-219208
Nearest Station: Wolverhampton 2.9m (529 bus from station)

Wednesfield
Founded: 1961 Nickname: The Cottagers Address: Cottage Ground, Amos Lane, Wednesfield, Wolverhampton WV11 1ND
01902-735506
Nearest Station: Wolverhampton 2.2m (11 bus from station)

Wellington
Founded: 1968 Nickname: The Wellies Address: Wellington Playing Field, Wellington, Herefordshire HR4 8AZ
07842-186643
Nearest Station: Hereford 6.1m (492 bus from station)

(picture courtesy of Andy Dakin)

Wellington Amateurs
Founded: 1950 Nickname: The Ams Address: Wickes Stadium, School Grove, Oakengates, Telford, Shropshire TF2 6BQ
07821-431337
Nearest Station: Oakengates 0.6m

Willenhall Town
Founded: 1953 Nickname: The Lockmen, The Reds, Red Army Address: Long Lane Park, Long Lane, Essington, Wolverhampton WV11 2AA
01922-406604
Nearest Station: Bloxwich North 1.7m, Landywood 1.7m

Wolverhampton Casuals
Founded: 1899 Nickname: The Cassies Address: Brinsford Stadium, Brinsford Lane, Coven Heath, Wolverhampton, West Midlands WV10 7PR
01902-783214
Nearest Station: Bilbrook 4.1m (no 5 bus from station)

Wolverhampton Sporting Community
Founded: 2001 Nickname: Wolves Sporting Address: Cottage Ground (home of Wednesfield), Amos Lane, Wednesfield, Wolverhampton WV11 1ND
01902-735506
Nearest Station: Wolverhampton 2.2m (11 bus from station)

Contributions:

Thanks to Andy Dakin (groundhopper23) for pictures of Malvern Town, Pegasus Juniors and Wellington.
Thanks to Keiron Bridges for the picture of Bewdley Town