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YORKSHIRE LEAGUE
Yorkshire, some would say typically, didn’t
follow the national trend with regard to
organised football. As other parts of the country developed
an increasing number of soccer clubs and
regional leagues, Yorkshire had a relatively
small number of teams in the south and north
of the county, but no established league
system. The area where the game struggled
most to establish a foothold was in what
is now West Yorkshire where rugby league
was the favoured sport. Efforts to
run a Yorkshire League in the 1890s failed
and, though a more successful Yorkshire Combination
existed in the years before the First World
War and the county had a number of strong
Football League clubs, it was not until 1920
that a viable, lasting Yorkshire League was
set up.
There were 13 clubs in the Yorkshire League
during its opening season. There may have been another ‘starter’
to give the competition an even number of
participants, but no trace has been found
of such a team. The league proved popular
this time round and was to have at least
16 members for most of the 1920s, which saw
a number of weaker clubs withdraw and good
competition for the title on several occasions.
It is also noticeable, however, that the
Yorkshire League’s records were not
carefully kept as the goals for and against
totals fail to match for any of the first
10 seasons. The Great Depression, which
began in October 1929 and hit Britain in
the months which followed, had devastating
effects on the region and the Yorkshire League
only just survived, returning to decent size
and strength in 1934 after years of struggle.
1920-1921
1. Bradford Park Avenue Reserves
24 18 3 3
85 28 39
2. Wombwell
24 16 4 4
67 18 36
3. Wath
24 15 4 5
56 29 34
4. Harrogate
24 15 3 6
66 41 33
5. Selby Town
24
11 5 8 55
47 27
6. Wakefield City
24 10 6 8
41 33 26
7. Goole Shipyards
24 10 4 10
52 48 24
8. Rowntrees
24 9 2 13
42 45 20
9. Acomb
24
8 3 13 43 66
19
10. Fryston Colliery Welfare
24 7 5 12
35 59 19
11. Dewsbury & Savile
24 7 2 15
35 63 16
12. Yorkshire Amateur
24 6 3 15
42 66 15
13. York Y.M.C.A.
24 2 0 22
18 95 4
(312 134 44 134 637 638 312)
Harrogate, Wakefield City, Wath Athletic
and Wombwell all left to join the Midland
League, but entered reserve sides in the
competition. Dewsbury & Savile simply dropped
out. Five new sides were elected to
the competition – Brodsworth Main,
Castleford Town Reserves, Doncaster Rovers
Reserves, Halifax Town and Houghton Main.
Goole Shipyards became Hook Shipyards.
The early years of the Yorkshire League have
an almost chaotic sense about them. None of the Final Tables, up to and
including the 1929-1930 seasons, have ‘goals
for’ and ‘goals against’
columns which match, the differences being
as great as 13 for 1928-1929 and 14 for 1925-1926.
While research is carried out to try and
correct the figures, the outcomes as held
by the Northern Counties (East) League are
presented below. Another feature of
the Yorkshire League in its early history
is the constant change
in membership and size. By the end of the 1929-1930 season
only Harrogate and Selby Town had managed
to play in every campaign since the competition
began, with Brodsworth Main ever-present
from the league’s second season.
At the end of the 1920-1921 season Dewsbury
& Savile withdrew, while Harrogate, Wakefield
City, Wath Athletic and Wombwell placed their
reserve teams in the Yorkshire League, while
the clubs’ first elevens joined the
Midland League. Goole Shipyards changed their name
to Hook Shipyards. Five new clubs were
admitted – Brodsworth Main, Castleford
Town Reserves, Doncaster Rovers Reserves,
Halifax Town Reserves and Houghton Main.
1921-22
1. Houghton Main 32 24 4 4 86 25
52
2. Bradford Park Avenue Reserves 32 23
4 5 119 36
50
3. Brodsworth Main 32
20 7 5 81
34 47
4. Wombwell Reserves 32
21 4 7 86
45 46
5. Halifax Town Reserves 32
18 5 9 87
40 41
6. Doncaster Rovers Reserves 32
17 4 11 84
40 38
7. Selby Town 32
15 7 10 94
51 37
8. Rowntrees 32
14 9 9 60
44 37
9. Acomb 32
18 1 13 61
86 37
10. Wath Athletic Reserves 32
14 5 13 80
59 33
11. Fryston Colliery Welfare 32
13 2 17 76
65 28
12. Harrogate Reserves 32
10 5 17 62
74 25
13. Yorkshire Amateur 32
9 4 19 69
72 22
14. Castleford Town Reserves 32
7 6 19 49
86 20
15. Hook Shipyards 32
7 4 21 40
51 18
16. Wakefield City Reserves 32
3 4 25 33
140 10
17. York Y.M.C.A. 32
1 1 30 23
239 3
(544 234 76 234 1190 1187 544)
Castleford Town Reserves, Hook Shipyards,
Rowntrees, Wath Athletic Reserves and York
Y.M.C.A. all left at the end of the season. Harrogate and Wakefield City replaced
their reserve sides with their first teams.
Four new clubs entered the league –
Bentley Colliery, Castleford & Allerton
United, Frickley Colliery and Rothwell Athletic.
1922-1923
1. Bradford Park Avenue Reserves 30 24 2 4 119 43
50
2. Halifax Town Reserves 30
22 3 5 90
37 47
3. Frickley Colliery 30
18 3 9 58
35 39
4. Castleford & Allerton United 30 17
4 9 58 40
38
5. Doncaster Rovers Reserves 30
14 8 8 52
38 36
6. Wakefield City 30
11 11 8 53
39 33
7. Selby Town 30
14 5 11 56
52 33
8. Wombwell Reserves 30
11 9 10 55
44 31
9. Brodsworth Main 30
11 9 10 51
56 31
10. Bentley Colliery 30
12 5 13 57
52 29
11. Fryston Colliery Welfare 30
9 6 15 45
48 24
12. Yorkshire Amateur 30
8 7 15 49
78 23
13. Harrogate 30
8 6 16 30
50 22
14. Rothwell Athletic 30
6 5 19 27
81 17
15. Houghton Main 30
5 5 20 36
76 15
16. Acomb 30
4 4 22 42
108 12
(480 194 92 194 878 877 480)
Acomb, Doncaster Rovers Reserves (Midland
League) and Houghton Main all left at the
end of the season. Altofts West Riding Colliery, Leeds
Harehills, Methley Perseverance, Monckton
Athletic and York City Reserves joined the
competition.
1923-1924
1. Methley Perseverance 34 24 6 4 84 24
54
2. Frickley Colliery 34
22 8 4 96
41 52
3. Bradford Park Avenue Reserves 34 22
5 7 96 38
49
4. Monckton Athletic 34
17 8 9 71
41 42
5. Altofts West Riding Colliery 34 17
5 12 67 47
39
6. Halifax Town Reserves 34
16 6 12 66
56 38
7. Brodsworth Main 34
15 7 12 62
65 37
8. Leeds Harehills 34
14 7 13 51
54 35
9. Wakefield City 34
15 5 14 51
54 35
10. Castleford & Allerton United 34 13
7 14 51 52
33
11. Harrogate 34
14 3 17 69
73 31
12. York City Reserves 34
10 9 15 36
58 29
13. Bentley Colliery 34
10 8 16 46
56 28
14. Wombwell Reserves 34
10 6 18 46
77 26
15. Fryston Colliery Welfare 34
10 5 19 46
60 25
16. Selby Town 34
10 4 20 65
81 24
17. Yorkshire Amateur 34
8 4 22 50 99
20
18. Rothwell Athletic 34
6 3 25 28
106 15
(612 253 106 253 1081 1082 612)
Bradford Park Avenue Reserves, Halifax Town
Reserves, Leeds Harehills, Rothwell Athletic,
Wombwell Reserves and Yorkshire Amateur all
left the competition. Frickley Colliery joined the Midland
League, placing their reserve team in the
Yorkshire League. Bridlington Town,
Bullcroft Main, Goole Town and Leeds City
were all admitted.
1924-1925
1. Brodsworth Main 30 21 4 5 73 28
46
2. Selby Town 30
17 6 7 77
57 40
3. Castleford & Allerton United 30 16
6 8 66 37
38
4. Fryston Colliery Welfare 30
17 3 10 58
41 37
5. Goole Town 30
15 6 9 49
46 36
6. Leeds City
30
13 7 10 59
44 33
7. Harrogate 30
12 7 11 46
49 31
8. Methley Perseverance 30
10 8 12 59
64 28
9. Bridlington Town 30
11 6 13 55
67 28
10. Altofts West Riding Colliery 30 9
8 13 30 44
26
11. Frickley Colliery Reserves 30
11 3 16 45
48 25
12. Bullcroft Main
30 11 3 16
49 66 25
13. Bentley Colliery 30
9 7 14 40
61 25
14. Wakefield City 30
7 9 14 38
48 23
15. York City Reserves
30 7 6 17
48 65 20
16. Monckton Athletic 30
8 3 19 40
59 19
(480 194 92 194 832 824 480)
Bentley Colliery, Bullcroft Main and Frickley
Colliery Reserves all departed at the end
of the season. O.C.O. Selby and Scarborough Penguins
joined the competition.
1925-1926
1. Methley Perseverance 28 20 4 4 99 36
44
2. SelbyTown 28
20 4 4 73
46 44
3. Altofts West Riding Colliery 28 17
3 8 76 54
37
4. Leeds City 28
15 4 9 84
55 34
5. Harrogate 28
14 5 9 62
52 33
6. Brodsworth Main 28
13 5 10 81
66 31
7. Monckton Athletic 28
11 7 10 84
82 29
8. Scarborough Penguins 28
12 3 13 56
68 27
9. Castleford & Allerton United 28 11
2 15 62 61
24
10. Bridlington Town 28
9 6 13 55
69 24
11. Goole Town 28
9 6 13 49
72 24
12. O.C.O. Selby 28
8 5 15 66
75 21
13. York City Reserves 28
7 4 17 53
76 18
14. Wakefield City 28
6 4 18 35
71 16
15. Fryston Colliery Welfare 28
4 6 18 39
77 14
(420 176 68 176 974 960 420)
Fryston Colliery Welfare left at the end
of the season. The size of the competition was increased
to 16 clubs by the admission of Castleford
Town from the Midland League and Scarborough
from the Northern League.
1926-1927
1. Harrogate 30 21 6 3 102 51
48
2. Castleford Town 30
20 5 5 87
37 45
3. Selby Town 30
19 5 6 94
48 43
4. Goole Town 30
17 3 10 92
71 37
5. Scarborough Penguins 30
17 1 12 72
63 35
6. O.C.O. Selby 30
15 4 11 67
46 34
7. Castleford & Allerton United 30 14
6 10 66 56
34
8. York City Reserves
30 10 8 12
73 54 28
9. Brodsworth Main 30
12 4 14 63
77 28
10. Scarborough 30
10 7 13 74
69 27
11. Leeds City 30
11 4 15 69
59 26
12. Monckton Athletic 30
11 2 17 58
94 24
13. Methley Perseverance 30
10 3 17 69
111 23
14. Altofts West Riding Colliery 30 10
3 17 42 74
23
15. Bridlington Town 30
9 3 18 52
70 21
16. Wakefield City 30
0 4 26 24
123 4
(480 206 68 206 1104 1103 480)
Leeds City, Monckton Athletic and Scarborough
all left at the end of the season. There were no new admissions.
1927-1928
1. Goole Town 24 17 3 4 88 47
37
2. Selby Town 24
16 4 4 88
35 36
3. Altofts West Riding Colliery 24 16
4 4 73 31
36
4. Castleford Town 24
17 2 5 89
47 36
5. Harrogate 24
15 3 6 85
46 33
6. Bridlington Town* 23
14 2 7 74
55 30
7. Brodsworth Main 24
9 4 11 57
59 22
8. O.C.O. Selby 24
9 2 13 49
60 20
9. York City Reserves* 22
8 2 12 38
63 18
10. Castleford & Allerton United 24 6
4 14 62 83
16
11. Scarborough Penguins* 23
5 2 16 56
82 12
12. Methley Perseverance* 20
2 2 16 24
67 6
13. Wakefield City 24
1 0 23 31
134 2
(304 135 34 135 814 809 304)
*Methley Perseverance did not complete their
fixtures. Castleford & Allerton United and
Wakefield City left the competition.
Five clubs were admitted – Bradford
City Reserves,
Bradford Park Avenue Reserves, Halifax Town
Reserves, Hull City ‘A’ and Pontefract
Borough.
1928-1929
Scarborough Penguins amalgamated with former
Yorkshire League club Scarborough on October
26th and the remainder of the club’s fixtures
for the season were played as ‘Scarborough
Reserves’.
1. Bradford Park Avenue Reserves 30 28 2 0 191 23
58
2. Selby Town 30
18 5 7 73
74 41
3. Bradford City Reserves 30
18 2 10 108 52
38
4. Halifax Town Reserves 30
15 7 8 87
47 37
5. Goole Town 30
15 3 12 81
82 33
6. Methley Perseverance 30
14 3 13 76
88 31
7. York City Reserves 30
13 5 12 61
85 31
8. Bridlington Town 30
13 2 15 93
71 28
9. Altofts West Riding Colliery 30 11
5 14 95 98
27
10. O.C.O. Selby 30
9 7 14 77
96 25
11. Scarborough Reserves 30
11 3 16 60
81 25
12. Hull City ‘A’ 30
11 2 17 73
85 24
13. Castleford Town 30
8 7 15 77
100 23
14. Harrogate 30
9 5 16 56
90 23
15. Brodsworth Main 30
9 2 19 63
114 20
16. Pontefract Borough 30
7 2 21 76
148 16
(480 209 62 209 1347 1334 480)
Bradford Park Avenue Reserves and Castleford
Town left the competition, which was joined
by Leeds United ‘A’.
1929-1930
Methley Perseverance became Huddersfield Town ‘A’
during the season and completed their fixtures
under the new name. After playing 18
games, from which only 4 points were earned,
Pontefract Borough resigned and their record
was deleted. This meant only 14 clubs
finished the season, with the Halifax Town
Reserves-Hull City ‘A’ fixture
not played to leave the
final standings like this:
1. Bradford City Reserves 26 19 4 3 100 44
42
2. Leeds United ‘A’ 26
17 6 3 86
29 40
3. Harrogate 26
15 4 7 73
49 34
4. Scarborough Reserves 26
15 4 7 52
35 34
5. Goole Town 26
12 5 9 60
45 29
6. Selby Town 26
13 1 12 76
69 27
7. Bridlington Town 26
11 4 11 54
56 26
8. Halifax Town Reserves 25
9 5 11 53
53 23
9. York City Reserves 26
9 4 13 69
72 22
10. Huddersfield Town ‘A’ 26
5 9 12 39
57 19
11. Brodsworth Main 26
7 5 14 35
57 19
12. Hull City ‘A’ 25
8 2 15 58
93 18
13. O.C.O. Selby 26
5 5 16 41
70 15
14. Altofts West Riding Colliery 26 6
2 18 42 103 14
(362 151 60 151 838 832 362)
Altofts West Riding Colliery, Bradford City
Reserves, Hull City ‘A’ and Scarborough
Reserves all left the Yorkshire League. East Riding Amateurs joined
the competition and Yorkshire Amateur returned.
Yorkshire League 1930-1950 – From the
edge of extinction to post-war expansion
The region was badly hit by the Great Depression
and this was reflected in the next few years
of Yorkshire league history. A number of departures from the competition
in 1930 and only two clubs joining meant
there were just 12 clubs playing in the 1930-1931
season. This reduced to a membership
of 7 for the following campaign, with 10
the year after. During these three
seasons, member clubs played two rounds of
games. In 1933, however, the size of
the Yorkshire
League grew to 13 clubs, followed by a rise
in numbers to 20 by 1939. After World War II the 20-club structure
was soon restored, with an expansion to two
divisions beginning in 1949 when membership
reached 36.
1930-1931
Main Competition
1. Leeds United ‘A’
22 19 1 2 103 29
39
2. York City* 22
18 0 4 87
40 36
3. Selby Town 22
13 5 4 81
50 31
4. Goole Town 22
13 3 6 68
40 29
5. Yorkshire Amateur 22
10 2 10 52
51 22
6. Huddersfield Town ‘A’ 22
10 1 11 59
51 21
7. Halifax Town* 22
7 3 12 49
77 17
8. Harrogate 22
8 0 14 71
87 16
9. Bridlington Town 22
6 4 12 48
72 16
10. O.C.O. Selby 22
7 1 14 51
75 15
11. Brodsworth Main 22
7 1 14 44
83 15
12. East Riding Amateurs
22 3 1 18
37 95 7
(264 121 22 121 750 750 264)
Subsidiary Competition – Section A
1. York City* 10 9 0 1 46 17
18
2. Selby Town 10
5 1 4
28 27 11
3. Bridlington Town 9
4 1 4
27 25 9
4. Goole Town 9
4 0 5
22 22 8
5. East Riding Amateurs 10
2 3 5
23 39 7
6. O.C.O. Selby 10
2 1 7
15 31 5
(58 26 6 26 161 161 58)
Subsidiary Competition – Section B
1. Leeds United ‘A’ 10 9 1 0 47 14
19
2. Yorkshire Amateur 10
6 3 1
28 16 15
3. Huddersfield Town ‘A’ 10
5 1 4
22 23 11
4. Halifax Town* 10
2 2 6
25 35 6
5. Harrogate 10
2 1 7
15 41 5
6. Brodsworth Main 10
2 0 8
20 28 4
(60 26 8 26 157 157 60)
In the Subsidiary Competition Final Leeds
United ‘A’ beat York City Reserves
5-4
Brodsworth Main, East Riding Amateurs, Harrogate,
Olympia Cake & Oil Selby and York City
Reserves all left the Yorkshire League, which
now continued with seven clubs.
1931-1932
First Competition
1. Huddersfield Town ‘A’
12 7 1 4 28 18
15
2. Selby Town
12 6 3
3 30 23 15
3. Leeds United ‘A’
12 6 2 4
28 18 14
4. Halifax Town*
12 6 0 6
29 26 12
5. Yorkshire Amateur
12 6 0 6
35 35 12
6. Goole Town
12
4 2 6
18 37 10
7. Bridlington Town
12 2 2 8
24 35 6
(84 37 10 37 192 192 84)
Second Competition
1. Yorkshire Amateur 12 6 4 2 26 18
16
2. Halifax Town* 12
7 0 5
31 25 14
3. Selby Town
12 5 4 3
25 21 14
4. Leeds United ‘A’ 12
4 4 4
33 20 12
5. Huddersfield Town ‘A’ 12
3 5 4
22 29 11
6. Goole Town 12
3 4 5
19 18 10
7. Bridlington Town
12 3 1 8
23 48 7
(84 31 22 31 179 179 84)
In the Championship Decider, played at South
Kirkby Colliery on May 4th, Huddersfield Town ‘A’ beat
Yorkshire Amateur 1-0.
Brodsworth Main, Sheffield University and
Thorne Colliery joined the Yorkshire League.
1932-1933
First Competition
1. Selby Town 18 13 3 2 58 20
29
2. Leeds United ‘A’ 18
12 3 3 45
25 27
3. Huddersfield Town ‘A’ 18
10 5 3 55
31 25
4. Goole Town 18
11 2 5 41
24 24
5. Yorkshire Amateur 18
9 5 4
46 26 23
6. Halifax Town* 18
7 2 9
41 46 16
7. Brodsworth Main 18
5 5 8
36 46 15
8. Thorne Colliery 18
3 2 13 28
60 8
9. Bridlington Town 18
3 2 13 31
65 8
10. Sheffield University 18
2 1 15 28
66 5
(180 75 30 75 409 409 180)
Only seven teams took part in the second
competition apparently.
Second Competition
1. Huddersfield Town ‘A’
12 8 1 3 38 13
17
2. Goole Town 12
7 1 4
31 21 15
3. Leeds United ‘A’ 12
6 2 4
32 25 14
4. Selby Town 12
6 1 5
23 19 13
5. Bridlington Town 12
5 1 6
25 37 11
6. Halifax Town* 12
4 2 6
21 29 10
7. Thorne Colliery 12
1 2 9
11 37 4
(84 37 10 37 181 181 84)
In the Championship Decider, played at Huddersfield
on April 25th, Selby Town beat Huddersfield Town ‘A’
3-2. Bradford City ‘A’, South
Kirkby Colliery and Upton Colliery joined
the Yorkshire League.
1933-1934
1. Huddersfield Town ‘A’
24 16 3 5 62 25
35
2. South Kirkby Colliery 24
14 6 4 42
24 34
3. Selby Town
24 15 3 6
71 36 33
4. Upton Colliery
24
11 6 7 63
54 28
5. Leeds United ‘A’ 24
12 3 9 57
45 27
6. Bridlington Town 24
11 4 9 42
33 26
7. Halifax Town* 24
10 5 9 45
41 25
8. Yorkshire Amateur 24
10 4 10 42
43 24
9. Goole Town 24
11 1 12 68
55 23
10. Bradford City ‘A’ 24
9 5 10 55
64 23
11. Thorne Colliery
24 7 5 12
53 58 19
12. Sheffield University 24
2 4 18 30
87 8
13. Brodsworth Main 24
3 1 20 26
91 7
(312 131 50 131 656 656 312)
Altofts West Riding Colliery, Castleford
Town, Sheffield United ‘A’, Sheffield
Wednesday ‘A’ and York City Reserves
joined the competition.
1934-1935
1. Selby Town 34 25 2 7 127 58
52
2. Upton Colliery 34
24 4 6 88
46 52
3. Sheffield Wednesday ‘A’ 34
23 4 7 125
60 50
4. Leeds United ‘A’ 34
19 8 7 90
59 46
5. Yorkshire Amateur 34
19 5 10 85
66 43
6. Huddersfield Town ‘A’ 34
17 8 9 79
53 42
7. Halifax Town* 34
18 4 12 110 66
40
8. South Kirkby Colliery 34
13 9 12 83
66 35
9. York City* 34
16 2 16 82
79 34
10. Bradford City ‘A’ 34
11 10 13 73 74
32
11. Sheffield United ‘A’ 34
12 4 18 87
104 28
12. Thorne Colliery 34
11 5 18 79
92 27
13. Castleford Town 34
11 3 20 74
114 25
14. Bridlington Town 34
10 4 20 77
108 24
15. Altofts West Riding Colliery 34 9
6 19 69 111 24
16. Goole Town 34
9 6 19 69
119 24
17. Brodsworth Main 34
7 5 22 52
115 19
18. Sheffield University 34
5 5 24 49
108 15
(612 259 94 259 1498 1498 612)
Brodsworth Main left at the end of the season,
but three new entrants (Barnoldswick Town,
Bradford Park Avenue ‘A’ and
Worksop Town) increased league membership
20.
1935-1936
1. Selby Town 38 25 5 8 144 67
55
2. Sheffield Wednesday ‘A’ 38
26 3 9 124
62 55
3. Worksop Town 38
23 7 8 116
60 53
4. Thorne Colliery 38
24 5 9 113
65 53
5. Bradford City ‘A’ 38
21 8 9 111
66 50
6. Leeds United ‘A’ 38
20 6 12 112 70
46
7. Huddersfield Town ‘A’ 38
19 6 13 88
59 44
8. Upton Colliery 38
19 5 14 78
75 43
9. South Kirkby Colliery 38
16 10 12 102 83 42
10. Goole Town 38
17 8 13 88
76 42
11. Halifax Town* 38
17 6 15 91
70 40
12. York City* 38
14 6 18 99
103 34
13. Bridlington Town 38
13 6 19 76
104 32
14. Yorkshire Amateur 38
13 6 19 75
102 32
15. Altofts West Riding Colliery 38 14
4 20 101 123 32
16. Barnoldswick Town 38
11 8 19 83
125 30
17. Bradford Park Avenue ‘A’ 38
10 9 19 83
119 29
18. Sheffield United ‘A’ 38
12 5 21 95
91 29
19. Castleford Town 38
4 5 29 61
157 13
20. Sheffield University 38
2 2 34 30
193 6
(760 320 120 320 1870 1870 760)
Barnoldswick Town, Castleford Town and Sheffield
University all departed. Dinnington Athletic and Ollerton Colliery
Reserves joined.
1936-1937
1. Goole Town 36 23 8 5 101 49
54
2. York City* 36
23 3 10 99
59 49
3. Upton Colliery 36
20 9 7 108
69 49
4. South Kirkby Colliery
36 19 8 9
109 74 46
5. Worksop Town 36
17 12 7 86
60 46
6. Huddersfield Town ‘A’ 36
18 7 11 75
55 43
7. Sheffield Wednesday ‘A’ 36
17 6 13 94
73 40
8. Leeds United ‘A’ 36
17 5 14 114 75
39
9. Dinnington Athletic 36
15 7 14 90
79 37
10. Selby Town 36
14 6 16 92
87 34
11. Bridlington Town 36
14 5 17 76
81 33
12. Halifax Town* 36
14 5 17 77
84 33
13. Bradford City ‘A’ 36
13 4 19 83
92 30
14. Sheffield United ‘A’ 36
12 5 19 93
104 29
15. Thorne Colliery
36 11 6 19
73 103 28
16. Bradford Park Avenue ‘A’ 36
9 10 17 72
112 28
17. Yorkshire Amateur 36
10 6 20 61
89 26
18. Altofts West Riding Colliery 36 6
8 22 70 145 20
19. Ollerton Colliery* 36
9 2 25 65
148 20
(684 281 122 281 1638 1638 684)
Bradford City ‘A’ left the competition,
but Barnsley ‘A’ and Bolsover
Colliery joined to restore membership to
20 clubs. Ollerton Colliery’s first team
took over from the club’s reserve section.
1937-1938
1. York City* 38 26 7 5 118 60
59
2. Ollerton Colliery 38
23 5 10 101 53
51
3. Selby Town 38
23 4 11 114 62
50
4. Dinnington Athletic 38
21 7 10 91
72 49
5. Worksop Town 38
19 5 14 82
59 43
6. Bridlington Town 38
17 9 12 74
61 43
7. Leeds United ‘A’ 38
18 6 14 83
54 42
8. Huddersfield Town ‘A’ 38
15 10 13 74 66
40
9. Sheffield Wednesday ‘A’ 38
17 4 17 100 91
38
10. Halifax Town* 38
17 4 17 84
85 38
11. Goole Town 38
17 4 17 61
83 38
12. Bolsover Colliery 38
15 6 17 78
84 36
13. Thorne Colliery 38
15 5 18 75
76 35
14. Yorkshire Amateur 38
13 8 17 65
82 34
15. Barnsley ‘A’ 38
15 3 20 72
81 33
16. Sheffield United ‘A’ 38
12 7 19 76
85 31
17. South Kirkby Colliery 38
11 7 20 61
82 29
18. Upton Colliery 38
11 5 22 59
91 27
19. Bradford Park Avenue ‘A’ 38
11 5 22 63
108 27
20. Altofts West Riding Colliery 38 7
3 28 39 135 17
(760 323 114 323 1570 1570 760)
Bradford Park Avenue ‘A’ left
and were replaced by Chesterfield ‘A’.
1938-1939
1. Sheffield Wednesday ‘A’
38 31 3 4 138 44
65
2. Leeds United ‘A’ 38
30 1 7 125
47 61
3. York City* 38
24 8 6 121
44 56
4. Ollerton Colliery 38
21 5 12 83
64 47
5. Huddersfield Town ‘A’ 38
19 8 11 91
71 46
6. Bridlington Town 38
17 11 10 99 71
45
7. Worksop Town
38 18 8 12
92 64 44
8. Chesterfield ‘A’ 38
15 9 14 77
69 39
9. Upton Colliery 38
16 6 16 78
76 38
10. Dinnington Athletic
38 14 8 16
85 78 36
11. Sheffield United ‘A’ 38
13 9 16 103 85
35
12. Barnsley ‘A’ 38
12 11 15 87 87
35
13. Thorne Colliery 38
15 5 18 80
90 35
14. South Kirkby Colliery 38
13 8 17 90
94 34
15. Goole Town 38
14 4 20 74
91 32
16. Halifax Town* 38
11 8 19 81
112 30
17. Bolsover Colliery 38
11 8 19 82
125 30
18. Yorkshire Amateur 38
10 6 22 58
103 26
19. Selby Town 38
9 6 23 84
118 24
20. Altofts West Riding Colliery 38 0
2 36 30 225 2
(760 313 134 313 1758 1758 760)
Altofts West Riding Colliery, Bolsover Colliery
and Dinnington Athletic left the Yorkshire
League at the end of the season. Gainsborough Trinity Reserves, Ransome
& Marles (Newark) and Scunthorpe United
Reserves were elected to the 3 vacant places.
However, the competition was suspended on
the outbreak of the 2nd World War.
When the Yorkshire League started again in
1945 there were several changes to the line-up. Bridlington Town, Gainsborough Trinity
Reserves, Ollerton Colliery, Ransome &
Marles, Upton Colliery, Worksop Town and
the ‘A’ teams of Barnsley, Chesterfield,
Leeds United, Sheffield United and Sheffield
Wednesday did not rejoin – a total
of 11 pre-war members. Six clubs did
join, however – Bradford City ‘A’,
Bradford United, Firbeck Main Colliery, Hull
Aateurs, Ossett Town and Wombwell Athletic.
1945-1946
1. Wombwell Athletic 28 24 0 4 103 36
48
2. Thorne Colliery 28
17 5 6 67
50 39
3. Huddersfield Town ‘A’ 28
16 6 6 82
58 38
4. Goole Town 28
11 7 10 81
54 29
5. Bradford United 28
12 5 11 72
60 29
6. Yorkshire Amateur 28
13 3 12 72
61 29
7. Scunthorpe United* 28
11 6 11 57
71 28
8. Firbeck Main Colliery 28
11 5 12 78
74 27
9. Bradford City ‘A’ 28
11 5 12 71
71 27
10. Selby Town 28
9 8 11 65
76 26
11. York City* 28
8 10 10 48
57 26
12. Halifax Town* 28
8 7 13 52
83 23
13. Ossett Town 28
8 4 16 52
77 20
14. South Kirkby Colliery 28
5 6 17 51
74 16
15. Hull Amateurs 28
6 3 19 51
100 15
(420 170 80 170 1002 1002 420)
Bradford City ‘A’ and Firbeck
Main Colliery departed at the end of the
season, but membership was restored to the
20-club level of 1939 through the election
of Chesterfield ‘A’, Gainsborough
Trinity Reserves, Harworth Colliery, Keighley
Town, Leeds United ‘A’, Sheffield
Wednesday ‘A’ and Upton Colliery.
1946-1947
1. Thorne Colliery
38 25 6 7 117 56
56
2. Bradford United 38
25 5 8 151
68 55
3. Huddersfield Town ‘A’ 38
21 7 10 125 64
49
4. York City* 38
22 5 11 115 74
49
5. Ossett Town 38
20 9 9 96
87 49
6. Selby Town 38
20 6 12 106 75
46
7. Halifax Town* 38
18 9 11 109 77
45
8. Wombwell Athletic 38
20 4 14 114 95
44
9. Scunthorpe United* 38
20 3 15 105 74
43
10. Chesterfield ‘A’ 38
15 9 14 101 83
39
11. Goole Town 38
16 5 17 88
87 37
12. Harworth Colliery 38
14 8 16 82
76 36
13. Sheffield Wednesday ‘A’ 38
14 7 17 69
88 35
14. South Kirkby Colliery 38
13 8 17 79
85 34
15. Leeds United ‘A’ 38
15 4 19 83
99 34
16. Yorkshire Amateur 38
16 2 20 94
130 34
17. Gainsborough Trinity* 38
9 9 20 63 107
27
18. Keighley Town 38
9 5 24 63
87 23
19. Hull Amateurs 38
6 6 26 49
155 18
20. Upton Colliery 38
2 3 33 46
188 7
(760 320 120 320 1855 1855 760)
Hull Amateurs, Upton Colliery and York City
Reserves left the Yorkshire League and were
replaced by Barnsley ‘A’, Brodsworth
Main and Sheffield United ‘A’.
1947-1948
1. Goole Town 38 29 5 4 118 48
63
2. Gainsborough Trinity* 38
24 3 11 99
53 51
3. Selby Town 38
20 10 8 92
73 50
4. Harworth Colliery 38
22 4 12 92
70 48
5. Bradford United 38
20 6 12 104 56
46
6. Ossett Town 38
17 11 10 91 95
45
7. Barnsley ‘A’ 38
18 8 12 68
59 44
8. Thorne Colliery
38 19 2 17
90 83 40
9. Scunthorpe United* 38
15 9 14 83
90 39
10. Wombwell Athletic 38
17 4 17 85
92 38
11. Chesterfield ‘A’ 38
15 5 18 82
70 35
12. Halifax Town* 38
13 9 16 77
72 35
13. Sheffield Wednesday ‘A’ 38
15 5 18 81
83 35
14. South Kirkby Colliery 38
14 6 18 82
92 34
15. Yorkshire Amateur 38
15 2 21 89
97 32
16. Leeds United ‘A’ 38
12 8 18 78
93 32
17. Sheffield United ‘A’ 38
11 7 20 61
105 29
18. Brodsworth Main 38
11 5 22 80
98 27
19. Huddersfield Town ‘A’ 38
6 7 25 53
118 19
20. Keighley Town 38
6 6 26 53
111 18
(760 319 122 319 1658 1658 760)
Bradford United and Keighley Town departed
at the end of the season. Bradford Park Avenue ‘A’
and Rotherham United ‘A’ took
their places. Goole Town also left
the Yorkshire League, but placed their reserve
team in the competition instead of their
first team.
1948-1949
1. Sheffield United ‘A’
38 26 4 8 98 49
56
2. Goole Town* 38
26 3 9 114
55 55
3. Gainsborough Trinity* 38
22 6 10 99
60 50
4. Selby Town 38
20 4 14 93
69 44
5. Ossett Town 38
19 6 13 94
73 44
6. Rotherham United ‘A’ 38
17 9 12 79
62 43
7. Halifax Town*
38 18 7 13
86 82 43
8. Huddersfield Town ‘A’
38 15 9 14
65 72 39
9. Leeds United ‘A’ 38
17 5 16 85
93 39
10. Wombwell Athletic 38
15 8 15 74
81 38
11. Chesterfield ‘A’ 38
14 9 15 68
92 37
12. Scunthorpe United* 38
12 12 14 83 82
36
13. Barnsley ‘A’ 38
13 9 16 79
86 35
14. Sheffield Wednesday ‘A’ 38
13 8 17 70
78 34
15. Harworth Colliery 38
10 13 15 90 98
33
16. Yorkshire Amateur 38
11 9 18 62
74 31
17. Thorne Colliery 38
12 5 21 68
91 29
18. Brodsworth Main 38
9 8 21 65
106 26
19. South Kirkby Colliery 38
11 3 24 85
107 25
20. Bradford Park Avenue ‘A’ 38
10 3 25 65
112 23
(760 310 140 310 1622 1622 760)
After the end of the season the decision
was taken to introduce a 2-division structure
to the Yorkshire League, with 18 clubs in
each section. Bradford Park Avenue ‘A’
and South Kirkby Colliery were therefore
‘relegated’ to the new 2nd Division, joining the League’s 16
new members there. The 18 remaining
clubs formed the new Division 1. These
included Halifax Town ‘A’, who
replaced the club’s reserve team in
the section.
1949-1950
Division 1
1. Goole Town* 34 27 3 4 91 37
57
2. Wombwell Athletic 34
22 6 6 73
29 50
3. Ossett Town 34
22 4 8 120
61 48
4. Scunthorpe United* 34
17 11 6 75
44 45
5. Yorkshire Amateur 34
19 5 10 85
55 43
6. Gainsborough Trinity*
34 15 10 9
79 57 40
7. Rotherham United ‘A’ 34
15 7 12 64
54 37
8. Selby Town 34
15 6 13 82
63 36
9. Sheffield United ‘A’ 34
15 4 15 75
52 34
10. Barnsley ‘A’ 34
13 7 14 53
49 33
11. Sheffield Wednesday ‘A’ 34
12 7 15 52
55 31
12. Huddersfield Town ‘A’
34 12 6 16
58 65 30
13. Brodsworth Main 34
11 8 15 53
68 30
14. Leeds United ‘A’ 34
11 7 16 62
67 29
15. Halifax Town ‘A’ 34
11 4 19 52
71 26
16. Chesterfield ‘A’ 34
6 7 21 48
90 19
17. Thorne Colliery 34
7 5 22 62
124 19
18. Harworth Colliery 34
2 1 31 31
174 5
(612 252 108 252 1215 1215 612)
Scunthorpe United Reserves moved to the Midland
League and Harworth Colliery resigned. This meant only two sides were relegated
– Chesterfield ‘A’ and
Thorne Colliery.
Division 2
1. Retford Town* 34 23 5 6 91 55
51
2. Beighton Miners’ Welfare 34
21 7 6 103
60 49
3. Scarborough* 34
20 8 6 95
47 48
4. Dinnington Athletic 34
21 6 7 82
53 48
5. Norton Woodseats 34
20 4 10 86
49 44
6. Bentley Colliery 34
19 6 9 96
69 44
7. Stocksbridge Works 34
20 3 11 78
68 43
8. Farsley Celtic 34
16 5 13 100 76
37
9. Bradford Park Avenue ‘A’ 34
15 6 13 71
65 36
10. Sheffield 34
14 4 16 89
79 32
11. Hull City ‘A’ 34
14 4 16 99
89 32
12. Worksop Town* 34
12 6 16 78
86 30
13. Doncaster Rovers ‘A’ 34
11 8 15 60
78 30
14. South Kirkby Colliery 34
9 6 19 61
86 24
15. Frickley Colliery* 34
8 7 19 71
109 23
16. Maltby Main 34
4 8 22 48
117 16
17. York City ‘A’ 34
4 7 23 54
94 15
18. Kiveton Park 34
3 4 27 47
129 10
(612 254 104 254 1409 1409 612)
Beighton Miners’ Welfare, Dinnington
Athletic, Retford Town Reserves and Scarborough
Reserves were promoted. Bradford United re-joined the Yorkshire
League. Division 2 now had 17 clubs.
A double asterisk at the end of a team name
shows that this was the ‘A’ (3rd) team of a Football League side, while a
single asterisk shows it was the reserve
side of a non-league club.
1950-1951
Division 1
1. Sheffield Wednesday** 34
24 4 6 101
47 52
2. Selby Town 34
22 2 10 103 68
46
3. Beighton Miners' Welfare 34
21 3 10 95
58 45
4. Scarborough*
34 20 4 10
86 57 44
5. Goole Town* 34
19 4 11 77
51 42
6. Ossett Town 34
20 2 12 93
65 42
7. Gainsborough Trinity* 34
13 10 11 87 86
36
8. Retford Town 34
15 5 14 60
44 35
9. Yorkshire Amateur 34
15 4 15 67
68 34
10. Barnsley** 34
13 7 14 56
44 33
11. Wombwell Athletic 34
12 8 14 71
82 32
12. Rotherham United** 34
13 5 16 72
61 31
13. Sheffield United** 34
10 10 14 61 64
30
14. Leeds United** 34
12 2 20 68
104 26
15. Huddersfield Town** 34
11 3 20 61
87 25
16. Dinnington Athletic 34
7 9 18 55
107 23
17. Brodsworth Main Colliery 34
6 8 20 52
96 20
18. Halifax Town** 34
6 4 24 44
120 16
(612 259 94 259 1309 1309 612)
There is no record of an end-of-season ‘championship
match’. Dinnington Athletic resigned
from the Yorkshire League at the end of the
season. Huddersfield Town ‘A’,
Brodsworth Main Colliery and Halifax Town
‘A’ were relegated to the Second
Division.
Division 2
1. Stocksbridge Works Social 32
23 5 4 106
30 51
2. Worksop Town* 32
22 5 5 94
51 49
3. Hull City** 32
20 5 7 77
50 45
4. Norton Woodseats Amateurs
32 19 5 8
75 33 43
5. Bentley Colliery 32
20 3 9 105
63 43
6. Chesterfield** 32
17 7 8 102
51 41
7. Sheffield 32
16 5 11 85
55 37
8. Farsley Celtic 32
16 4 12 77
67 36
9. Bradford United 32
15 3 14 78
58 33
10. Doncaster Rovers** 32
13 7 12 66
58 33
11. Thorne Colliery 32
15 3 14 74
89 33
12. Frickley Colliery* 32
10 8 14 50
60 28
13. Bradford Park Avenue** 32
8 2 22 39
99 18
14. South Kirkby Colliery 32
7 3 22 49
84 17
15. Kiveton Park Colliery 32
5 3 24 48
109 13
16. York City** 32
5 3 24 43
125 13
17. Maltby Main 32
3 5 24 32
118 11
(544 234 76 234 1200 1200 544)
Stocksbridge Works Social, Worksop Town Reserves,
Hull City ‘A’ and Norton Woodseats
Amateurs were promoted to the 1st Division. Bradford United, Kiveton
Park Colliery and York City ‘A’
all left the competition and, with no new
clubs seeking to join the Yorkshire League,
membership of the Second Division fell to
13 clubs.
1951-1952
Division 1
1. Stocksbridge Works Social 34
22 9 3 94
36 53
2. Retford Town 34
23 7 4 99
39 53
3. Beighton Miners' Welfare 34
19 9 6 92
48 47
4. Goole Town* 34
20 7 7 75
50 47
5. Selby Town 34
19 8 7 99
57 46
6. Hull City** 34
19 7 8 90
54 45
7. Sheffield Wednesday** 34
17 4 13 84
64 38
8. Leeds United** 34
14 6 14 77
77 34
9. Norton Woodseats Amateurs 34
12 7 15 64
60 31
10. Rotherham United** 34
13 5 16 73
82 31
11. Ossett Town 34
13 5 16 61
71 31
12. Barnsley** 34
12 3 19 55
76 27
13. Sheffield United** 34
10 5 19 59
91 25
14. Wombwell Athletic 34
9 6 19 64 86
24
15. Gainsborough Trinity* 34
8 5 21 61
102 21
16. Yorkshire Amateur 34
7 7 20 46
99 21
17. Scarborough* 34
8 4 22 56
120 20
18. Worksop Town*
34 6 6 22
39 76 18
(612 251 110 251 1288 1288 612)
In the end-of-season First Division ‘championship
match’, played at played at Retford
on May 3rd, Retford Town defeated Stocksbridge Works
Social 2-1. Gainsborough Trinity Reserves
resigned from the League. Yorkshire
Amateur, Scarborough Reserves and Worksop
Town Reserves were relegated to the Second
Division.
Division 2
1. Farsley Celtic 24
17 1 6 78
37 35
2. Bentley Colliery 24
14 5 5 55
43 33
3. Sheffield 24
13 5 6 85
41 31
4. Doncaster Rovers** 24
14 3 7 73
43 31
5. Chesterfield** 24
14 3 7 58
39 31
6. Huddersfield Town** 24
11 3 10 61
43 25
7. Bradford Park Avenue** 24
11 2 11 48
49 24
8. South Kirkby Colliery 24
11 2 11 55
61 24
9. Thorne Colliery 24
10 4 10 47
56 24
10. Brodsworth Main Colliery 24
8 2 14 52
54 18
11. Frickley Colliery* 24
7 4 13 45
61 18
12. Halifax Town** 24
3 3 18 35
91 9
13. Maltby Main 24
3 3 18 26
100 9
(312 136 40 136 718 718 312)
In the end-of-season Second Division ‘championship
match’, played at Farsley on May 3rd, Farsley Celtic defeated Bentley Colliery
2-1. Farsley Celtic, Bentley Colliery,
Sheffield and Doncaster Rovers ‘A’
were promoted to the First Division.
To make up the fixture list, a 2nd Division Supplementary Cup competition was
played, the teams being divided geographically
into 2 sections.
Section ‘A’ (South)
1. Chesterfield** 6
5 0 1
18 9 10
2. Doncaster Rovers** 6
4 1 1
20 5 9
3. Bentley Colliery 6
3 1 2
19 15 7
4. Brodsworth Main Colliery 6
2 2 2
14 14 6
5. Sheffield 6
2 0 4
13 13 4
6. Thorne Colliery 6
0 3 3
7 19 3
7. Maltby Main 6
1 1 4
9 25 3
(42 17 8 17 100 100 42)
Section ‘B’ (North)
1. Bradford Park Avenue** 5
4 0 1
16 11 8
2. South Kirkby Colliery 5
3 1 1
17 7 7
3. Huddersfield Town** 5
2 2 1
17 8 6
4. Farsley Celtic 5
2 2 1
12 10 6
5. Frickley Colliery* 5
1 1 3
9 15 3
6. Halifax Town** 5
0 0 5
5 25 0
(30 12 6 12 76 76 30)
The section winners then played a Supplementary
Cup Final, on May 3rd, at Chesterfield, where visitors Bradford
Park Avenue ‘A’ defeated Chesterfield
‘A’ 2-1, after extra time.
Halifax Town ‘A’ left the League,
but Second Division membership rose to 14
clubs with the election of Briggs Sports
Club, Hallam and Hampton’s Sports Club.
1952-1953
Division 1
1. Selby Town 34
26 2 6 106
54 54
2. Beighton Miners' Welfare 34
21 6 7 93
52 48
3. Stocksbridge Works Social 34
19 4 11 104 54
42
4. Retford Town 34
17 8 9 106
69 42
5. Hull City** 34
16 4 14 74
55 36
6. Bentley Colliery 34
13 10 11 79 74
36
7. Ossett Town 34
14 8 12 85
85 36
8. Sheffield 34
15 6 13 72
76 36
9. Rotherham United** 34
14 7 13 79
69 35
10. Barnsley** 34
13 8 13 54
66 34
11. Norton Woodseats Amateurs 34
15 3 16 53
63 33
12. Sheffield Wednesday** 34
11 10 13 59 69
32
13. Goole Town* 34
10 10 14 77 95
30
14. Farsley Celtic 34
12 5 17 77
84 29
15. Leeds United** 34
12 5 17 65
80 29
16. Wombwell Athletic 34
10 3 21 53
102 23
17. Doncaster Rovers** 34
8 3 23 45
91 19
18. Sheffield United** 34
6 6 22 50
93 18
(612 252 108 252 1331 1331 612)
In the end-of-season First Division ‘championship
match’, played at Selby on April 29th, Beighton Miners’ Welfare defeated
Selby Town 4-1. Leeds United ‘A’,
Wombwell Athletic, Doncaster Rovers ‘A’
and Sheffield United ‘A’ were
relegated to the Second Division. Stocksbridge
Works Social changed their name to Stocksbridge
Works.
Division 2
1. Huddersfield Town** (-2) 26
22 1 3 106
27 43
2. Yorkshire Amateur 26
15 3 8 64
33 33
3. Scarborough* 26
15 1 10 72
50 31
4. South Kirkby Colliery 26
13 4 9 76
64 30
5. Worksop Town* 26
13 2 11 62
56 28
6. Bradford Park Avenue** 26
9 10 7 56
62 28
7. Frickley Colliery* 26
9 7 10 60
67 25
8. Thorne Colliery 26
10 3 13 54
59 23
9. Chesterfield** 26
10 3 13 50
69 23
10. Briggs Sports Club 26
10 3 13 57
83 23
11. Hallam 26
9 4 13 59
57 22
12. Brodsworth Main Colliery 26
8 4 14 45
77 20
13. Hampton's Sports Club 26
6 7 13 49
62 19
14. Maltby Main 26
4 6 16 38
82 14
(364 153 58 153 848 848 362)
In the end-of-season Second Division ‘championship
match’, played at Yorkshire Amateur’s
ground on April 29th, the home side defeated Huddersfield Town
‘A’ 3-1. Huddersfield Town ‘A’,
Yorkshire Amateur, Scarborough Reserves and
South Kirkby Colliery were promoted to the
First Division.
To make up the fixture list, a Second Division
Supplementary Cup competition was played
again, the teams being divided geographically
into two sections.
Section ‘A’ (North)
1. Yorkshire Amateur 6
4 1 1
16 9 9
2. Bradford Park Avenue** 6
2 3 1
14 12 7
3. Scarborough* 6
3 1 2
10 10 7
4. Frickley Colliery* 6
3 0 3
16 13 6
5. Huddersfield Town** 6
2 2 2
14 14 6
6. South Kirkby Colliery
6 3 0 3
13 14 6
7. Thorne Colliery 6
0 1 5
6 17 1
(42 17 8 17 89 89 42)
Section ‘B’ (South)
1. Briggs Sports Club 6
5 1 0
19 7 11
2. Worksop Town* 6
4 1 1
11 3 9
3. Chesterfield**
6 3 1 2
20 19 7
4. Hallam 6
2 2 2
9 8 6
5. Brodsworth Main Colliery
6 2 1 3
9 11 5
6. Hampton's Sports Club 6
1 1 4
7 13 3
7. Maltby Main 6
0 1 5
4 18 1
(42 17 8 17 79 79 42)
The section winners then played a Supplementary
Cup Final, on May 1st, at Goole, where Yorkshire Amateur drew
0-0 with Briggs Sports Club. Twenty-four
hours later, the two sides met again with
Yorkshire Amateur winning the game 1-0.
Dunscroft Welfare and Rawmarsh Welfare joined
the Yorkshire League, increasing the membership
of the Second Division to 16 clubs.