Caernarfon Town F.C.

History

The early years

The first known football club in the town of Caernarfon was Caernarvon Athletic, formed in 1876 and playing at various locations in the town before settling at the club's present ground, The Oval, in 1888.

Athletic went out of existence in 1893 but a new club, Caernarvon Ironopolis, was formed two years later reaching the semi finals of the Welsh Cup in 1900 and 1902 before disbanding following a dispute with the North Wales Coast League in 1903. Former players of the 'Nops' formed two new clubs, Caernarvon Colts and Caernarvon Royal Welch Fusiliers which came together in 1906 to form Caernarvon United.

After the Great War, United players came together to reform Caernarvon Athletic and the club enjoyed great success in the North Wales League as well as a famous victory over Darlington in the first round of the FA Cup in 1929. In 1930 the Club went into liquidation and, despite resurfacing a few years later, it soon disappeared again.

Caernarfon Town

In 1937 a group of football fans formed Caernarfon Town and, following many successful seasons in the Welsh League North, the club was granted permission by the Football Association of Wales to apply for membership of the Lancashire Combination in 1980. The Canaries won the Championship in 1981 before the league merged with the Cheshire County League to form the North West Counties Football League. In 1985 Caernarfon Town were runners up in the First Division of the North West Counties League and were elected to the Northern Premier League. The 1986–87 season saw the Canaries enjoy their best ever season when, under manager, John King, they defeated Stockport County and York City in the FA Cup, before going out to Second Division Barnsley following a third round replay. Caernarfon finished third in the Northern Premier League for consecutive seasons, arguably their best ever standing.

In 1995, the Caernarfon Town board of directors voted to join the recently-formed League of Wales. In 1999–2000 the Canaries were relegated but they bounced straight back winning the Cymru Alliance the following season.

2013–present

On 13 April 2013, Caernarfon Town made their way to Latham Park, Newtown, to face Kilvey Fords FC of Swansea in the 2012–13 FAW Trophy Final. They won the match 6–0 and it was their first FAW Trophy since 1978. The victory against the Swansea Senior League outfit is the biggest final winning-margin in the competition's 123-year history. They also gained promotion to the Huws Gray Cymru Alliance during the 2012–13 by finishing top of the Welsh Alliance, taking 66 points from 28 games. On 24 September 2022 Caernarfon Town and The New Saints were invited to play in the Scottish SPFL Trust Cup, they would be drawn away to Clyde FC but were beaten 1–0 at New Douglas Park. On 18 May 2024 Caernarfon Town secured European football for the first time in their history by defeating Penybont FC in the Cymru Premier Play-offs final to secure spot in 2024–25 UEFA Europa Conference League. The team entered in the first qualifying round and played against Crusaders from Northern Ireland. After a 2–0 home win in the first leg, Caernarfon lost 1–3 after extra time in the return leg, leading to a 3–3 aggregate. Caernarfon advanced to the next round by winning the penalty shootout 8–7. In the second qualifying round, Caernarfon faced Legia Warsaw from Poland, losing 0–6 away and 0–5 at home, resulting in a 0–11 aggregate and their elimination from the competition.

For the 2025/26 season, Caernarfon temporarily played their home games at Maesdu Park, the home ground of JD Cymru North team Llandudno F.C., whilst their stadium The Oval was given a major renovation.

Rivalries

Caernarfon Town's main rivalries are with Porthmadog, Bangor City and Rhyl.

European record

;Notes

• 1Q: First qualifying round
• 2Q: Second qualifying round

Current squad

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References

References

1. [http://www.wfda.co.uk/welsh_cup.php?id=23 Welsh Cup results 1899/1900] at ''WFDA''
2. [http://www.wfda.co.uk/welsh_cup.php?id=25 Welsh Cup results 1901/1902] at ''WFDA''
3. [http://www.soccerbase.com/cup2.sd?competitionid=58 FA Cup results 1929/30] at ''www.soccerbase.com''
4. "Legia Warszawa vs Caernarfon".
5. "Caernarfon vs Legia Warszawa".
6. Spridgeon, by Dale. (2025-05-20). "Upgrade of Caernarfon's Oval football pitch backed by planners".
7. (2025-04-02). "The infamous slope at Caernarfon ground could be consigned to history".