Evo-Stik Northern Premier League Marine is delighted to announce early plans to celebrate the Club’s 125th anniversary with events scheduled to start next summer which will continue through the 2019/20 football season.

Marine Association Football Club was founded in the summer of 1894 by a group of South Road shopkeepers in a meeting held in the Marine Hotel [now Champs bar] with the idea of setting up a football team for their sons. The new football club Marine took its name from the hotel.

After a few years of playing friendlies, Marine joined the I-Zingari League in 1897 and became a strong force in local football, winning seven championships before progressing into the Liverpool County Combination in 1927 where the Club stayed for just eight seasons. After winning four championships in the “County Comb” Marine moved up to the semi-professional Lancashire Combination in 1935 retaining their proud amateur status. Marine reached the final of the FA Amateur Cup in 1932 playing Dulwich Hamlet at a packed West Ham ground in front of 22,000 spectators.

In 1969 Marine stepped up to the challenge of the Cheshire League to lay the foundations of a great era under manager Roly Howard who managed for an amazing 1,975 games spanning 33 seasons from 1972 to 2005. In that time Roly and the late Club Chairman Tom Culshaw led Marine to win 28 trophies and reach the FA Cup 3rd round in season 1992-93.

Marine joined the Northern Premier League in 1979 winning the title twice in 1994 and 1995. Marine continue as members of the Northern Premier League and in the 125 season will celebrate 40 seasons as the League’s longest serving member Club. In the Club’s history Marine have never been relegated and have only ever moved upwards in the football amateur and non-league pyramids.

This week the Club announces its early plans to celebrate the 125th anniversary with the design of a new 125 club badge which will feature on a new home shirt and club tie, the staging of a celebration dinner and the publication of a book recording the photographic history of Marine from 1894 to 2019.

In the early days Marine played in a number of kits featuring the colours of gold and black before changing to white shirts in the 1920’s. The shirt to be worn at the home games in season 2019/20 has been designed by Marine kit supplier Macron and the bespoke design of gold and black halves also features the new club 125 badge.

At the beginning of this season Marine supporter Neil McAdam designed a new badge for the Club and the design has been modified to use during the anniversary season and features the year Marine was founded in 1894 and 2019, the 125th birthday of the Club. The badge will be worn on the new 125 home shirt and Club tie as well as on other Club products.

In 1994 Marine celebrated its centenary with a dinner at the Blundellsands Hotel and the 125 organising group are delighted to announce an agreement to stage the 125 celebration dinner at the Beautiful Game Suite in the new stand at Anfield. The dinner will take place on Friday 4th October 2019 in the presence of some very special guests who will pay tribute to the 125 year history of Marine FC

Marine Community Officer and life-time fan Barry Lenton is at the final stages of compiling a 250+ page photographic history of Marine. The document will be completed in the next couple of months and will then be prepared for printing by a book publisher. Early viewings of the photographic history are quite amazing and will prove to be a fantastic record of the 125 year history of Marine.

It is some years since Marine have designed a new Club tie and the celebration of 125 years gives good reason to launch a new design. The tie features the new 125 logo and has been produced by Tie Club Ltd

Discussions continue and plans are being prepared by Marine to stage a number of events and launch a number of products to celebrate its special anniversary during the 2019/20 season. A Marine 125 cask beer, player reunion, 125 quiz and some very special pre-season friendlies to be played in July and August 2019 are all in the advance stages of planning.

Marine Chairman Paul Leary said:
“It is a great milestone for Marine to be planning its 125th anniversary in season 2019/20. This is something that has to be celebrated and the events planned for next season will in some way acknowledge the many people over the decades that have given so much commitment, time and effort in ensuring that Marine Football Club is still here today. Our founders would be especially proud of what we have now at the Marine Travel Arena.

Who would have thought that the meeting in the summer of 1894 between baker Joseph Lawson, coal merchant John Lassey, chemist John Alexander, timber merchant George Nicklin, commercial traveler Tom Wood with Charles Greenwood and William Walmsley at the Marine Hotel in South Road Waterloo would create a football club that would be celebrating its 125th Anniversary in 2019.

I look forward to celebrating our special anniversary at the many events planned for during next season. I am sure that there will be lots of interest from the Merseyside football family in sharing and enjoying our celebrations in what will be a very special season for our football club.”

Paul Leary added:
“If anyone would like to book for the dinner, order a tie or shirt or place a deposit for the book they should download the order form on marinefc.com and follow the booking instructions. Numbers are limited for all of the items so interested fans across Merseyside should place there requirements as soon as possible with our secretary Richard Cross. Enquiries can be made by email to richard@marinefc.com ”