South Shields FC - Proper Football 'On The Road'

Our latest Proper Football 'On The Road' club visit saw us make our longest trip to date with us travelling up to the North East to visit South Shields football club for their

National League North game against Kidderminster Harriers, and it was thoroughly worth it! With the teams situated 2nd and 6th respectively, this had the makings of a cracking game, and we hope you enjoy the article below as much as we did making it.

As always, we kick things off with an opening chat, and you will hear we have been completely blown away by what we have seen so far.

Brief history

South Shields FC who are known as The Mariners was originally formed in 1888 and was re-founded in 1974 where they then spent most of their time in the Wearside League with a brief spell in the Northern Football League 1st Division, then in 2015 the club was purchased by local businessman Geoff Thompson which then saw the club gain several promotions, increasing crowds and victory in the coveted FA Vase at Wembley in the 2017 final! After a few near misses and the interruption of the pandemic, they finally gained promotion to the National League North in 2022/23 after going up as champions!

The facilities at the 1st Cloud Arena are amongst the best we have come across. The main stand, which is now two years old, houses a large clubhouse, various administration facilities, and a fantastic club shop.

The stand itself accommodates 900 seats and is home to 15 Corporate boxes equipped with seating, giving a fantastic view of the pitch along with TVs, a kitchen with a well-stocked drinks fridge, and, if you want to take in the atmosphere, each box comes with 10 seats directly outside.

We had the pleasure of joining Chairman Geoff Thompson in his box for the game.

Geoff was kind enough to give up his time and speak to us about his role at the club and the plans for the future at South Shields FC.

Leading up to our visit we was in contact with Commercial Director, Carl Mowatt, Carl was the first person we met on arrival and he went above and beyond in looking after us and showed us around the fantastic facilities at the stadium, we spoke to Carl on the raised balcony that looked over the pitch outside one of the other excellent clubhouses in the ground.

Another great thing about the stadium was all the different bar areas, the spacious modern looking hospitality suite which wouldn't look out of place much higher up the pyramid was stunning and was serving up some delicious looking food and overlooked the pitch on the opposite side of the new main stand, there was also another outdoor fan zone with a bar and food and next to this was a huge marque that housed another bar.

As well as the clubhouse in the main stand, these facilities offer a great source of income for the club, and Carl informed us that later that evening, three of these areas were all booked out for private functions.

Carl also pointed out that you could do a pub crawl around the stadium, and he wasn't wrong!

The supporters of South Shields set up a Supporters' Alliance Group and Kenneth Buzzard kindly gave us his time to explain what it entails.

We managed to catch a chat with supporter Craig Seago who still wears his 2017 FA Vase-winning scarf with pride. This also highlights the club's success in the last 8 years, bearing in mind the chaos of Covid, they have risen from the 5th Step to Step 2 and are looking at possible Step 1 status next season!

The match itself wasn't the result Shields were looking for and saw their unbeaten home run come to an end this season, but fair play to a very impressive Kidderminster side whose physicality seemed to be the difference as they went on to win 2-1, it was refreshing to watch two sides who like to play football and no doubt both of these sides will be fighting for promotion come the end of the season that is shaping up to be a very tight league at the top.

We have to give a mention to the spectacular colour-coordinated floodlights that looked amazing in the club colours as the evening drew in!

It was also a joy to see so many youngsters on the day and especially the smiling faces of the mascots when they received their replica shirts!

And a special mention to a fan called Stevie who showed us his homemade beer holders that took pride of place up on the balcony!

FINAL THOUGHTS

What a fantastic day, at a well-run, well-respected football club. The set-up is excellent, and what they have managed to achieve in the last 10 or so years should be admired by many.

The welcome Carl gave us and the time he spent with us was great and it was also lovely to meet Geoff, the Chairman who gave us his time as well.

We want to wish South Shields all the best this season, and as a page, we will be keeping a keen eye on their progress and wish them every success.

The people of the North East should be very proud of South Shields FC.

Thanks again for a wonderful day!

Here are the match highlights courtesy of the Media team at The Mariners.