Llanelli Town Association Football Club () are a semi-professional Welsh football club that plays in the .
The original club was wound up on 22 April 2013 at the High Court in London following a petition presented by HM Revenue and Customs. They were reformed later that year as Llanelli Town AFC and played in the Welsh Premier League. The club finished 12th in the 2018–19 Welsh Premier League season (bottom of the league), and were relegated after failing to gain a Tier 1 Licence. They played in the Cymru South for the 2019–20 season.
Background
The team is based at Stebonheath Park from 1922, having previously played at the Halfway Park athletics ground.
Formed in 1896, the club's first honour was the Welsh League division one title in 1913–14 with further wins coming in 1929–30 and 1932–33. Llanelli made several attempts to join The Football League, in 1922, 1923, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1947, 1950 and 1951. Despite making an effort to turn professional, the club was not elected. The closest they came was in 1933, where the club received 20 votes compared to 26 for Newport County and 45 for Swindon Town who were re-elected to the Football League Third Division South. Llanelli was a founding member of the Welsh Premier League in 1992, but after only four seasons suffered relegation. Promotion back to the top division was achieved in 1998–99, but 2002–03 saw the team demoted only to return to the top-flight for the 2004–05 season. In 2005 a wealthy business man and his consortium, The Jesco group bought the club. Since then, the club's fortunes have transformed remarkably on the pitch. They have played in Europe for 7 consecutive seasons, they won the Welsh premier league and Loosemores challenge cup in 2008 and won the Welsh Cup in 2011.
2012–13 was difficult financially with three petitions to wind the club up presented by HM Revenue and Customs.Petition presented 17 July 2012, London Gazette 16 August 2012 accessed 21 January 2013Petition presented 2 Oct 2012, London Gazette 7 November 2012 accessed 21 January 2013Petition presented 11 Dec 2012, London Gazette 14 January 2013 accessed 21 January 2013
The club was wound up on 22 April 2013 at the High Court in London following a petition presented by HM Revenue and Customs. The formation of a 'phoenix club' of Llanelli Town AFC meant the town of Llanelli was still represented in Welsh football. The new team started in the Welsh Third Division for the 2013–14 season. In 2014-15 they were crowned Third Division champions and as such gained promotion to the Welsh Second Division. In April 2018 the club was crowned champions of the Second Division. After an appeal to the Football Association of Wales against a decision not the grant the club a Tier 1 licence, the club returned to the Welsh Premier League for the 2018–19 season.
History
The game of Association Football was introduced to the townspeople of Llanelli when workers from Staffordshire migrated to the town to work in the 'newest' of the town industries – the Pottery works – from 1892 to 1920. As they were unfamilar with rugby union, workers founded a team to play friendlies against other teams from the various pottery works which had been set up in Swansea and Neath. However, by 1896 interest had waned due in the main to those initial workers returning home, having successfully instructed their local co-workers in the intricacies of the pottery world. The first playing area had been at 'Cae Blake' in the Furnace area of the town, but when the new Peoples Park in the middle of the town was opened as a recreation area the team had transferred to this new ground. By 1904, with more and more clubs being formed in South Wales, soccer fans decided to resurrect the club under the managership of Bert Andrews, from Ironbridge, Shropshire, who had remained in the town working in an administrative post at the Llanelli Pottery. The club entered the Swansea and District League, and played their home matches first at Tunnel Road and then at Penyfan Fields.
The pre-war era In season 1911–12, after seven years of consolidation, Llanelli AFC became League champions and were also losing finalists in the League Cup. This was the spur that was needed to progress even further and led by another immigrant to the town, W T Morris who hailed from Llanidloes and was a leading entrepreneur in the commercial world of Llanelli, the club decided to become fully professional and applied for membership in both the Southern League and the Welsh League. A further move was necessary to entertain the professional game and Halfway Park some two miles from the town centre was chosen as the new venue. This former cycle stadium was the ideal velodrome for Association Football boasting a grand stand and natural banking, and this was the catalyst, which both league structures sought when sanctioning the club's inclusion in the two participating Leagues. Their first season 1912–13 was an immediate success finishing in 6th position of the Southern League and joint 3rd with Swansea Town in the Welsh League. They were also invited to participate in the FA Cup for the first time, reaching the 3rd Qualifying Round before being beaten by Cardiff City at home. The following season they entered also into the Welsh Senior Cup competition and reached the final at the first time of asking, before losing to Wrexham, the eventual winners in the replay at Oswestry after a 0–0 draw at Pontypridd. It was also during this season that the club achieved its best win to date beating Treharris 17–0 at home in a League game.
The interwar period In the 1919–20 season the reformed club's formats of pre-war years The 1st team squad played in both leagues, and the club's reserve team participated in the Swansea Senior League. By 1922 it was obvious that a new stadium near the town centre would be needed to join the Football League. A piece of ground in the Stebonheath area of the town was purchased, and plans were made to move the entire club there from Halfway. This was achieved just in time for the 1922–23 season, and Bridgend Town were the first visitors. Later in the season the new ground was formally opened, despite the club's financial problems. After the formal opening, Tottenham Hotspur (the previous season's FA Cup winners) were invited to play, and were even defeated by the home side by 2–1. Later, Burnley and Charlton Athletic were also invited play at Stebonheath Park. They won their matches.
At the end of the successful playing season, the club made its first application, together with Pontypridd Town, to join the Football League, Third Division (South). However, both their applications failedjust failed, and instead both the member clubs up for re-election, Southend United and Exeter City, were re-elected. Over the next three years. Llanelli AFC built up a reputation as one of the leading non-league clubs in Wales.
In 1925 they were the only club to contest every round in the FA Cup from Preliminary to Qualifying and to progress the equivalent of what is now the third round proper: they met Fulham at Craven Cottage and lost by the odd goal. However, by the end of the season the club had built up a large debt, and could not meet their financial obligations to their players The two respective management committees of both teams were forced to resign, and the club's activities temporarily ceased.
By 1928, after three years in the wilderness, the town's football fans decided to resurrect the club. They were supported by the groundsman/caretaker of Stebonheath Park, Jack Goldsborough, who had joined the club in 1922 as a player/trainer. They succeeded in taking over the fixtures of Aberdare Athletic in the Welsh League. Aberdare had also been in financial difficulties and had had to resign from the Welsh League.
Their first season was naturally one of consolidation. They succeeded in gaining a place in the Southern League for the following season. For the next five seasons the club were once again on a high, winning trophies once more and just failing on three other occasions to gain a place in the Football League.
However, attendances were falling and costs were rising, including spending on imported players. They were forced to withdraw from the Southern League for the 1934–35 season. They continued to play in the Welsh League 1st Division, where they remained until the outbreak of World War II. However, they were thrashed many times, including their record defeat by 0–12 by the now defunct Lovells Athletic on Boxing Day 1934.
Post-war At the end of World War II, with league football returning to normality, Llanelli AFC returned to the 1st Division of the Welsh League for 1945–46 season and continued in this vein until the 1950 season when with the boom of returning fixtures to a nation starved of highly charged competitive football Llanelli AFC once again gained a place in the prestigious Southern League, together with an influx of Scottish League footballers including one John (Jock) Stein who was to find fame with Glasgow Celtic as a player and manager and a respected manager of both Leeds United and the Scottish National team. Their immediate impact was again one of success gaining FA Cup prowess verses Bristol Rovers in a Third round tie replay in 1950–51 season and before losing in a second replay and a Second Round encounter with Colchester United in 1952–53 season and Northampton Town in the next, but as ever problems were to beset the club once more. Falling gates, indifferent seasons meant fewer people through the turnstiles and by 1958 they had to seek re-election to both the Southern and Welsh League. They were granted a stay in the Southern League whilst had to be relegated in the Welsh League Division II (West). But a shock to the system was to be suffered when the Welsh FA refused to sanction their stay in the Southern League and they were left in limbo with an all-time low for their future for the 1958–59 season. Under the astute managership of Wilf Grant an England B International, promotion was gained in that season and at least they were back in the higher echelon of Welsh League football. Despite their achievements and an upsurge in their finances and an open door to Southern League once again the Welsh FA spurned their pleas after being accepted and they remained 'in situ' in this league until the advent of the League of Wales in 1992–93 season when they became founder members.
League of Wales era