Football Focus Issue 73 | Page 79

Newton Aycliffe Having originally being formed in 1965 the team started out competing in the Wearside League and has gone on to put together a history of which they have every right to be proud since. The club won their promotion to the Northern League when they won the Wearside League in the 2008/09 season having won the Durham Alliance the year before. After one season settling into the new league they then finished seven points clear at the top of the table 2010/11 to claim the Championship and promotion in style. With results on the field being good the club has also worked hard on their ground to make sure that it is in the best condition possible. With grants from the Local Improvement Programme and the Football Foundation as well as backing from Newton Aycliffe Sports Club plenty of good work has been carried out. Last season the team put together a solid league campaign as they compiled a record of nineteen wins, seven draws and sixteen defeats from their forty two league matches. This saw them finish in the top half of the table with sixty four points on the board. “I’ve sponsored the club for four to five years now; my son, Sam, was playing for them in the Under 11s so it was an obvious decision to sponsor them. We sponsor the strips of two under 11 teams and are sponsoring the Under 12s next season. Newton Aycliffe is a very well-run club and we are proud to be associated with them.” Mark Porteous of club sponsor Beanies This should provide them with the perfect platform from which to build during the 2017/18 campaign. As long as they are able to retain their current group of players and can perhaps make one or two quality additions they should be in with a good chance of pushing on up the league. One of the highlights of the team’s performances was the attacking brand of football that they were able to produce. This was reflected by the fact that they found the back of the net eighty six times at a rate of more than two per game. This will certainly have meant that any supporters attending their matches will have been well entertained and should encourage more of the local community to get behind the side in