Our summer study of the new clubs joining us in National League North for 2024/25 continues and today we’re turning our focus on a team playing at this level for the first time.
How did they get here?
Marine achieved a glorious promotion to National League North in style with a hard-fought win over fancied Macclesfield Town in the Northern Premier League Play-Off Final.
The Mariners secured their elevation to the fifth tier thanks to goals from Finlay Sinclair-Smith and Jack Bainbridge as they held on for victory over The Silkmen in front of 5,329 fans.
It’s certainly been dramatic for followers of Marine in recent years, a club which gained nationwide attention back in 2022 when they hosted Spurs in the Third Round of the FA Cup.
The club was relegated from the Premier Division of the NPL for the first time in 40 seasons in 2019 but they returned to the top flight in 2022 after beating Runcorn Linnets in the Play-Off Final in a campaign which also saw them lift the Liverpool Senior Cup.
Their promotion means that they will now play in the sixth tier for the first time in the club’s history.
Where do they play?
The Mariners currently play at Marine Travel Arena, previously known as Rossett Park, which has been their home since 1904.
It boasts a capacity of just over 3,000, though The Mariners have recently announced plans to push forward with their drive to move to a new purpose-built stadium in the coming years.
Who is in charge?
Neil Young has been the man in charge at Marine since 2018 and the success of last season means he has now enjoyed an impressive seven promotions during his managerial career.
The Mariners kept faith with Young following relegation in 2019 and were rewarded for that loyalty when he led them back to the Northern Premier League Premier Division in 2022.
Previously boss at Stockport County and Altrincham, Young engineered three consecutive league championships during his time in charge of Chester.
His playing career was cut short by injury when he was just 24, prompting him to begin his coaching journey which began with spells in local football with Queen’s Park and Poulton Victory before he was named as Assistant Manager at Rhyl in 2004.
Young was also Head of Scouting at FC Halifax Town for a short time and took temporary charge of the First Team in 2018 before landing his current role at Marine.
When did we last meet?
Moors and Marine locked horns twice in the FA Cup last season, when the Liverpool outfit came out on top with a 2-1 replay win in Second Round Qualifying at The Marine Travel Arena following a 2-2 draw at The Brewery Field.
