2 weeks Ago
Bradford (Park Avenue) and Harrogate Town have won the West Riding County Cup on numerous occasions, while sides representing Bradford City and Leeds United have lifted the title in the past too. But a new name has been added to the trophy this week, in the form of Bradford underdogs Route One Rovers. Formed as a club just 12 years ago, Rovers only turned semi-pro in 2023 and after coming third-bottom in the North West Counties Football League First Division North this season, they were, on paper, one of the weakest sides in the 2024-25 County Cup.
But they have gone all the way, beating Harrogate Railway Athletic, Armthorpe Welfare, Albion Sports and Campion, before winning Tuesday night’s dramatic final on penalties against Golcar United after a 2-2 draw. Danyal Yasin put Route One in front early on in front of 700 spectators in Woodlesford, only for captain Jonathan Mwembie to limp off injured shortly afterwards. Without him, Rovers conceded twice in four second-half minutes through Alfie Wilkinson and George Doyle, only for Zak Khan to pop up with a last-gasp equaliser to take the game to spot-kicks.
In a dramatic denouement, Dane Byron saved two Golcar penalties, before Route One stalwart Haroon Dad scored his side’s sixth penalty to seal a 4-3 win in the shootout. The Missing Piece 🏆 pic.twitter.
com/He77eviMa2 Rovers chairman Sameel Mahmood told the T&A: “We had a tough season in the league, but this is a real positive. “The shootout was madness because we had three chances to win it, before Haroon, whose been here for nine years, finally scored the deciding penalty.” He added: “I was looking at the trophy and saw names like Bradford City, Leeds United and Halifax Town on there and I couldn’t believe it.
“I didn’t even know all those teams had won it before, so to have our name on the trophy alongside them is an honour.” And the good news keeps coming for Rovers, who have officially been informed that they will not be relegated despite finishing third-bottom in the league, due to a lack of amateur teams available to replace them. They are also leaving Marley to come back to play in Bradford at Myra Shay in BD3, while also expecting their desired lateral move into Division One of the Northern Counties East League to be confirmed soon.
It has therefore ended up being a hugely positive finish to a difficult campaign, with Mahmood saying: “Our managers left at the end of last season, and the new ones couldn’t fully commit, so we had to recruit again. “It ended up being a bit of a stop-gap situation but the guys in charge now have done really well. “I have to give them a mention, because Hassan Ellahi and Aman Munir have done a brilliant job as managers.
“Arshad Mahmood was coaching us at the start of the season, then he came back towards the end of the campaign and really helped us out, so I have to thank him, as well as Yasser Mohammed for his work at the helm too.”.
