Harrogate Railway Athletic have celebrated the club's 85th anniversary by unveiling a special kit ahead of the start of the 2020/21 Toolstation NCEL campaign.

The Rail were established in 1935 by workers at the London and North Eastern Railway depot in the Starbeck area of the town, winning the British Railways National Cup in 1946.

They also took part in the West Yorkshire League, Harrogate District League and Yorkshire League before they became one of the founder members of the NCEL when it was born from the merger of the latter competition with the Midland Counties League in 1982.

They were Division Two North champions in 1984, League Cup winners in 1987, lifted the Division One title in 1999 and then the Presidents Cup trophy in 2003 before their promotion to the Northern Premier League in 2006.

They returned to the NCEL in 2016 and so are preparing for their 29th season with us, this time hoping for promotion from Division One.

During their first spell in the NCEL, they recorded their biggest attendance when 3,500 watched their FA Cup Second Round tie against Bristol City in 2002 at Station View, their only home during their long existence.

Their landmark campaign begins with a Buildbase FA Vase game at home to Cleator Moor Celtic next Saturday (19th) and they host North Ferriby in their opening league match three days later.

The kit is sponsored by Kitching Plant Hire who are based in Harrogate.


The Rail also have a brand new away kit that is sponsored by NE Security, a company formed in 1995 by a team of security professionals who, between them, possess many years of experience in the security industry.


This article was originally published on 13th September, 2020, with details about the club's away kit added on 14th September, 2020.