Fans have been left gutted this after a much loved club with plenty of history resigns from their league with immediate effect.
Cornish club Porthleven have withdrawn from the South West Peninsula League Premier Division West.
Founded in 1896, the club competed in the South Western League from 1967 to 1977 and again from 1989 until the dissolution of the league in 2007, when they joined the new South West Peninsula League, but now they have had to leave.
Official League Statement
Porthleven withdraw from Premier West
Please see:https://t.co/3iBFaqfGZY@PorthlevenFC pic.twitter.com/Lb7z6T8E4c
— SOUTH WEST PENINSULA FOOTBALL LEAGUE (@swpleague) September 14, 2021
LEAGUE STATEMENT:
Following several days of rumour and conjecture, I can confirm now that Porthleven AFC have informed the South West Peninsula League, in writing, that they are withdrawing from the Step 6 Premier West Division with immediate effect.
We have, with deep regret, accepted the resignation although the club accept that a financial penalty will be imposed under standardised FA Rules.
Porthleven AFC have been long standing members of the NLS having played in the old South Western League and then being founder members of the SW Peninsula in 2007. It is a very sad day for all football followers in the South West and our thoughts are with the current and past stalwarts that maintained NLS football over so many years at Gala Parc.
Porthleven have reasons which are a matter of their internal club structures following resignations of club officers and managers, I am sure they as a club will issue their own statement shortly.
Regarding Cup matches : They were due to play Liskeard Athletic in the FA Vase on the 25th September and I assume that Liskeard will now be awarded a walk-over, in the Walter C Parson Cup, Launceston will receive a walk-over and in the Cornwall Senior Cup they had been given a 1st Rd bye, so CCFA will I assume address that when drawing the 2nd rd in due course.
Stats and league tables etc are being updated, please bear with me as its quite a time consuming task to “un-do” the 7 matches that Porthleven had played this season.
– STATEMENT ENDS –
Porthleven were established in 1896 and were founding members of the Cornwall Combination in 1959, winning the inaugural league title. After winning the Cornwall Combination three more times they moved up to the South Western League for the 1967–68 season. This proved to be a harder competition and, despite finishing in fifth place in their first season, the club were usually found in mid-table. After a poor 1976–77 season the club dropped back down, replacing their reserve side in the Cornwall Combination.
Another twelve-year spell in the Combination followed until, with two league titles and four other top three places behind them, Porthleven moved up again to the South Western League for the 1989–90 season. After seven years of fluctuating fortunes, the club began to enjoy more success from the 1996–97 season onwards. For eight straight years, mostly under the managership of Alan Carey, they finished in the top three. However, the ultimate prize – the league title – eluded them.
Following Carey’s departure at the end of the 2003–04 season the club were forced to rebuild their squad, and consequently finished bottom of the South Western League in 2004–05, with the reserves suffering the same fate in the Cornwall Combination. Having successfully avoided re-election, Porthleven improved on this performance in subsequent seasons, and in 2006–07 finished 9th, high enough to obtain a place in the Premier Division of the newly formed South West Peninsula League. However, Porthleven withdrew their application for a place in the Premier Division for financial reasons, and from 2007 to 2008 they will compete in the South West Peninsula League Division One West.
Porthleven have entered the FA Cup on five occasions, but have only won one tie so far and have never made it through the Preliminary Rounds to the Qualifying Rounds. In the FA Vase success has been more forthcoming, with the club reaching the quarter-finals in 1997–98, becoming only the second Cornish club to reach that stage. They then went on to reach the third round or better in each of the next five seasons.
In June 2012 before the 2012–13 season, the club faced some bad news when the FA refused to allow them to enter any national FA competitions because they do not have toilet facilities in the home and away dressing room, and the referee’s room.
Achievements
– South West Peninsula League Division One west
Runners Up (1): 2007–08
– South Western League
Runners-up (3): 1998–99, 2000–01, 2001–02
– Cornwall Combination
Winners (6): 1959–60, 1963–64, 1965–66, 1966–67, 1978–79, 1988–89
Runners-up (5): 1960–61, 1964–65, 1977–78, 1984–85, 1987–88
LEAGUE HISTORY
SEASON LEAGUE P W D L F A P POS 1959-60 CORN C 22 16 3 3 92 39 35 1/12 1960-61 CORN C 26 18 2 6 88 48 38 2/14 1961-62 CORN C 24 14 3 7 94 50 31 3/13 1962-63 CORN C 26 14 4 8 62 41 32 4/14 1963-64 CORN C 26 22 0 4 95 29 44 1/14 1964-65 CORN C 26 19 3 4 82 36 41 2/14 1965-66 CORN C 28 25 2 1 107 23 52 1/15 1966-67 CORN C 30 27 0 3 88 28 54 1/16 1967-68 SW 28 17 4 7 71 40 38 5/15 1968-69 SW 32 14 3 15 69 64 31 11/17 1969-70 SW 34 9 8 17 50 72 26 15/18 1970-71 SW 34 15 8 11 90 60 38 8/18 1971-72 SW 34 11 6 17 71 79 28 11/18 1972-73 SW 32 13 4 15 64 73 30 8/17 1973-74 SW 30 12 12 6 60 43 36 6/16 1974-75 SW 36 15 8 13 80 73 38 10/19 1975-76 SW 35 12 5 18 52 92 29 14/19 1976-77 SW 34 5 6 23 28 75 16 16/18 1977-78 CORN C 28 20 3 5 61 38 43 2/15 1978-79 CORN C 32 26 5 1 95 28 55 * 1/17 1979-80 CORN C 32 12 7 13 58 49 29 * 10/17 1980-81 CORN C 34 19 4 11 80 61 42 5/18 1981-82 CORN C 36 11 11 14 53 68 33 11/19 1982-83 CORN C 36 24 6 6 109 49 54 3/19 1983-84 CORN C 36 20 7 9 86 42 47 6/19 1984-85 CORN C 38 27 6 5 90 46 60 2/20 1985-86 CORN C 36 19 4 13 68 64 42 5/19 1986-87 CORN C 36 24 5 7 106 49 47 * 6/19 1987-88 CORN C 34 22 8 4 103 28 52 2/18 1988-89 CORN C 34 25 7 2 99 34 57 1/18 1989-90 SW 32 5 7 20 53 91 17 16/17 1990-91 SW 32 11 2 19 52 72 24 13/17 1991-92 SW 34 14 8 12 77 69 36 8/18 1992-93 SW 32 9 7 16 69 82 25 13/17 1993-94 SW 34 16 6 12 71 66 54 6/18 1994-95 SW 34 16 9 9 84 54 57 6/18 1995-96 SW 34 13 5 16 62 66 44 11/18 1996-97 SW 30 20 6 4 70 28 66 3/16 1997-98 SW 30 20 6 4 88 24 66 3/16 1998-99 SW 32 22 7 3 102 36 73 2/17 1999-00 SW 34 23 9 2 91 41 78 3/18 2000-01 SW 36 25 8 3 90 26 83 2/19 2001-02 SW 36 27 4 5 105 32 85 2/19 2002-03 SW 36 23 5 8 95 48 74 3/19 2003-04 SW 34 19 5 10 68 46 62 3/18 2004-05 SW 32 3 2 27 30 108 11 17/17 2005-06 SW 34 12 5 17 50 62 41 10/18 2006-07 SW 36 16 7 13 61 64 55 9/19 2007-08 SWP-1W 30 22 5 3 98 30 71 2/16 2008-09 SWP-1W 32 19 2 11 95 59 59 6/17 2009-10 SWP-1W 30 11 6 13 64 67 39 11/16 2010-11 SWP-1W 30 14 7 9 53 48 49 6/16 2011-12 SWP-1W 32 13 2 17 55 82 41 12/17 2012-13 SWP-1W 30 11 3 16 40 65 36 11/16 2013-14 SWP-1W 30 8 7 15 54 70 31 11/16 2014-15 SWP-1W 30 10 5 15 68 74 35 11/16 2015-16 SWP-1W 32 5 5 22 35 92 20 16/17 2016-17 SWP-1W 34 12 7 15 56 63 43 12/18 2017-18 SWP-1W 32 18 6 8 74 51 60 6/17 2018-19 SWP-1W 28 17 3 8 83 45 54 3/15 2019-20 SWP-W 23 9 5 9 43 46 32 ABAND 2020-21 SWP-W 13 5 1 7 18 29 16 ABAND
Fans are gutted after seeing that the much loved club resigns from their league…
@WeAreGodolphin: Having been not so far away from this ourselves, we sympathise and we wish you all the best. Hopefully you will bounce back stronger.
@StBlazeyAFC: A sad day for Cornish football. All the best to all at @PorthlevenFC
@torpointafc: We’re saddened to hear about the withdrawal of Porthleven from the @swpleague. An historic member of Cornish football and we hope for their swift return. Gala Parc should be hosting Step 6 football.
@FCBodminTown: Very sorry to hear this news, all the best to everyone connected with @PorthlevenFC and hope to see you back in the near future.
@phildurrant93: That’s not a like. Bloody awful news- good memories of Gala Parc in 90s/00s . Come back stronger hey Port?
@J0len: Sad to see, hopefully the club bounce back! Great club in a fantastic location.
@DevonMints: @PorthlevenFC are a great club. Enjoyed playing them when I was with Newquay. Very friendly, good humoured and a sad loss to the league.
@ould_andy: What a shame, enjoyed my visits to Gala Parc over the years.
@robhornby: Really sad to hear this news and hope they bounce back soon, always treated me and my family well on our visits when on holiday..such a lovely club, my best wishes to them
@andrewp538: Very sad to hear, hope they are able to bounce back at some point in the future.
@DanielEngland98: So sad will you be back in the south west peninsula league next season or will your reserves be the first team next season and play your football in step 7 and your club is in a strong position with funding you should of got last season with the other step 3-6 clubs aren’t there
@poundchasers: They have their reasons, but very bizarre. Can’t remember a public call for help or assistance, unlike @MillbrookAFC who sought help, people responded, and look where they are now. If they went public, I’m sure the footballing community would have saved them from withdrawing
@TamarSports: If the Port were nearer I’d love to help in any way possible. What a great away day lost. Are there really no football people in west Cornwall who could not have helped keep Porthleven affloat. Come back soon to Step 6 & @swpleague
@_Jenks__: Just shows how good a job @GrahamBlake20 was doing..
@roberthichens1: The problems ran deeper than Blakey. He is still at the club. The club has made some hard choices over the last week. We are now in a great position to start again. We are in a healthy place on and off the pitch than a week ago. Port will fight back.
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