Kendal Town were first brought to life in 1919 in the beautiful
Cumbrian town of
Kendal, on the very edge of the
Lake District. They were originally known as Netherfield AFC, a name that they would keep for most of their long history, and the reason that hardcore supporters still refer to them as The Field.
They were formed after the First World War when employees at the town's K shoe factory decided that they fancied a slightly more organised kickabout than their usual lunchbreak shufflings. Their 2400 capacity Lakeland Radio Stadium ground remains on the site near the factory - although obviously it wasn't called that when it was first built. Their first sniff at silverware was in 1925 when they won the Westmorland County Cup, and they truned semi-pro in 1945 when they joined the Lancashire Combination, winning it four years later. A handful more Combination and Combination Cup wins led to their invitation to become one of the founder members of the Northern Premier League in 1968. It is now the seventh level on the Pyramid, and it is where they still play their football today.
In 1980, Netherfield broke a record that is likely to remain unbeaten. Their FA Trophy match with Bridlington Trinity set the record for the number of replays played in an English cup tie. The two clubs played a total of seven matches before a winner was decided, and kendal ran out 2-0 winners. Such a feat is unlikely to happen again after the rules about replays were changed by the FA.
It wasn't until 1998 that the club finally decided to change their name. the town of Kendal was expanding, so they wanted people from outside of the town to have more of an idea of where they were from, so changed their name to Netherfield Kendal. This name didn't last anywhere near as their first one, and they changed it again two years later to Kendal FC - the label they go by today.
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