Borough forced to call it a day

HAPPIER TIMES: former Borough chairman Mark Kilgannon (left) is welcomed to Mossley’s Seel Park by Lilywhites director Steve Tague last summer.

OLDHAM Borough Football Club, which started life back in 1964 as George Dew FC, is no more.

The club has resigned from the North-West Counties League and Life President and former chairman Mark Kilgannon has confirmed the clib has folded.

The club’s demise hasn’t come as too much of a shock: Borough has led a nomadic existence since losing its long-held Whitebank Stadium home three years ago. The club spent two years as tenants at Atherton Collieries’ stadium near Wigan before moving to share Mossley’s Seel Park ground.

Kilgannon, whose connection with Borough began as a player in 1985, said: “It’s been an uphill battle these last few years, and in the end its taken its toll. The money simply hasn’t been coming in to cover our costs.

“Moving away from Whitebank is what killed us in the end. We lost players because they couldn’t always commit to getting over to Atherton, and certainly our already small fan base dwindled significantly.

“It’s a sad day for all the officials and particularly former manager Tony Mills who took over from me as chairman last season. He’s been involved for a long time. This is football I guess. It’s a shame and a bit sickening, but there was nothing more we could do.”

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