Chasing Wembley Dreams: Why the FA Trophy Means Everything to Southport

Losing their Football League status in 1978 marked a significant shift for the club and its supporters. For one thing, it meant that Southport could no longer compete in the Football League Cup, which had been the club’s best shot at national cup glory and a coveted final at Wembley. From that point forward the FA Trophy became the most realistic new path to that dream.

The importance of the FA Trophy became even more profound in 1998, when Southport reached the final and faced Cheltenham Town. Over 10,000 Sandgrounders made the journey to London to watch their team compete at the historic Wembley Stadium for the first time.

Although Southport narrowly lost 1-0, the day left an indelible mark on fans, who remember the pride and excitement of seeing their team under the famous Twin Towers.

Fans remember the journey to Wembley as unforgettable. For many, it was a pinnacle moment, the kind of memory that makes the desire to return to Wembley even more intense.

“We lived the dream today”

(Brian Butler, captain of the team that achieved the distinction of the first to represent Southport on the grandest stage of all)

Whilst promotion from Step 1 of the National League system via the play offs would mean a promotion final at Wembley, for clubs at step 2 like Southport, the FA Trophy remains the club’s most realistic opportunity for national cup success and the only opportunity for a return to Wembley – this time under the arch at the new stadium.

With the start of the competition each season the possibility of reaching the final once again stirs the imagination of Southport supporters, who dream of bringing their club back to Wembley for a fresh chapter in their history. Each round brings them closer to that dream, chasing and looking to better the legacy left by the team of ’98.

Beyond nostalgia, the FA Trophy has practical value. Its potential prize money and revenue from each game can help sustain the ambitions of a club at Southport’s level, providing a financial boost that helps to keep them competitive in a challenging non-league landscape.

The FA Trophy, despite the loss in 1998, has become a key part of Southport’s identity. There is a generation of fans who all talk about the day that 70 coaches streamed down the M6 bedecked in Yellow and Black and they remain ever hopeful of that journey on the road to Wembley once again.

View match reports, match program, souvenir booklet and a full match replay of the FA Trophy Final in 1998 here.