The Third Division North of the Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to one or the other according to geographical position. Some clubs in the English Midlands shuttled between the Third Division North and the Third Division South according to the composition of the two leagues in any one season.
The Third Division South had been created in 1921 from the Third Division formed the previous year made up of 22 teams drawn mostly from the Southern League. It was decided that this gave the Football League overall too much of a southern bias, so the Third Division North was created in 1921–22 to redress the balance. Stockport County had finished bottom of the Second Division at the end of the 1920–21 season, and they were relegated into this new division, where they joined Grimsby Town who had spent a season in the Third Division after relegation from the Second Division in 1919–20. As there was no northern equivalent of the Southern League, the remaining 18 teams came from several regional leagues: the Midland League, the Central League, the North Eastern League, the Lancashire Combination and the Birmingham & District League.
Only one promotion place was available each season from the Third Division North to the Second Division, which made it very difficult to win promotion. Eight teams, Accrington Stanley, Barrow, Crewe Alexandra, Halifax Town, Hartlepools United, Rochdale, Southport and Wrexham, were ever-present in the division for the 30 years of its existence. Of the teams that played in Third Division North, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Derby County were later English football champions.
Its final season was 1957–58, after which the North and South sections were merged to form a single Third Division and the Fourth Division. The top 12 clubs in Division Three North, except for the Champions Scunthorpe United, went into the new Third Division, and the bottom 12 clubs went into the Fourth Division.
From the 1954-55 season until the 1957–58 season, there was a series of games between teams representing the Third Division North and the Third Division South.
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The Third Division North of the Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958 It ran in parallel with the Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to one or the other according to geographical position Some clubs in the English Midlands shuttled between the Third Division North and the Third Division South according to the composition of the two leagues in any one season Football League Third Division NorthOrganising bodyThe Football LeagueFounded1921Folded1958CountryEnglandOther club s fromWalesNumber of teams20 1921 1923 22 1923 1950 24 1950 1958 Level on pyramid3Promotion toSecond DivisionDomestic cup s FA CupLeague cup s Third Division North Cup 1933 1939 1945 1946 Last championsScunthorpe United 1957 58 Most championshipsDoncaster Rovers Lincoln City 3 titles The Third Division South had been created in 1921 from the Third Division formed the previous year made up of 22 teams drawn mostly from the Southern League It was decided that this gave the Football League overall too much of a southern bias so the Third Division North was created in 1921 22 to redress the balance Stockport County had finished bottom of the Second Division at the end of the 1920 21 season and they were relegated into this new division where they joined Grimsby Town who had spent a season in the Third Division after relegation from the Second Division in 1919 20 As there was no northern equivalent of the Southern League the remaining 18 teams came from several regional leagues the Midland League the Central League the North Eastern League the Lancashire Combination and the Birmingham amp District League The original 20 teams were Stockport County Darlington Grimsby Town Hartlepools United Accrington Stanley Crewe Alexandra Stalybridge Celtic Walsall Southport Ashington Durham City Wrexham Chesterfield Lincoln City Barrow Nelson Wigan Borough Tranmere Rovers Halifax Town and Rochdale The division was extended by a further two teams in 1923 to take the total to 22 and for the 1950 51 season the division was expanded to 24 clubs with Scunthorpe amp Lindsey United and Shrewsbury Town joining 1 2 Only one promotion place was available each season from the Third Division North to the Second Division which made it very difficult to win promotion Eight teams Accrington Stanley Barrow Crewe Alexandra Halifax Town Hartlepools United Rochdale Southport and Wrexham were ever present in the division for the 30 years of its existence Of the teams that played in Third Division North Wolverhampton Wanderers and Derby County were later English football champions Its final season was 1957 58 after which the North and South sections were merged to form a single Third Division and the Fourth Division The top 12 clubs in Division Three North except for the Champions Scunthorpe United went into the new Third Division and the bottom 12 clubs went into the Fourth Division Contents 1 Tournaments between Third Division North and South 2 Past champions 3 See also 4 ReferencesTournaments between Third Division North and South EditFrom 1934 to the outbreak of World War II there was a short lived knockout competition Football League Third Division North Cup From the 1954 55 season until the 1957 58 season there was a series of games between teams representing the Third Division North and the Third Division South Past champions EditMain article List of winners of English Football League One and predecessors Season Champions1921 22 Stockport County1922 23 Nelson1923 24 Wolverhampton Wanderers1924 25 Darlington1925 26 Grimsby Town1926 27 Stoke City1927 28 Bradford Park Avenue1928 29 Bradford City1929 30 Port Vale1930 31 Chesterfield1931 32 Lincoln City1932 33 Hull City1933 34 Barnsley1934 35 Doncaster Rovers1935 36 Chesterfield1936 37 Stockport County1937 38 Tranmere Rovers1938 39 Barnsley1939 40 League abandoned due to World War II1940 46 League suspended due to World War II1946 47 Doncaster Rovers1947 48 Lincoln City1948 49 Hull City1949 50 Doncaster Rovers1950 51 Rotherham United1951 52 Lincoln City1952 53 Oldham Athletic1953 54 Port Vale1954 55 Barnsley1955 56 Grimsby Town1956 57 Derby County1957 58 Scunthorpe UnitedSee also EditFootball League Third Division South Football League Third DivisionReferences Edit Four new clubs for the Football League The Coventry Evening Telegraph 3 June 1950 p 11 Retrieved 8 May 2019 via British Newspaper Archive Bigger English League Belfast Telegraph Belfast 3 June 1950 p 5 Retrieved 8 May 2019 via British Newspaper Archive Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Football League Third Division North amp oldid 1106998658, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
