THERE was unbounded joy for home fans at Throstle Nest on the last Saturday of April as Farsley Celtic completed a double-winning season but supporters were left stunned in mid-May when the management team quit.

There were so many highs throughout the campaign as the Celts won the West Riding County Cup and then the promotion play-off final, but there were a few lows as they lost out on the Evo-Stik Division One North title by just one point.

It was an ultimately successful season and a very rewarding one. The last thing anyone expected was the departure of joint manager John Deacey, just a day after the Celts enjoyed their end-of-season awards evening.

The day after Deacey HAD walked away, the club announced that Neil Parsley had left following a meeting with the club’s board.

The pair had brought silverware and steered Farsley into the Evo-Stik Premier Division – step three on the football pyramid.

It was a long haul through a 62-game season in which there were just 13 defeats, and draws were also rare with only seven stalemates.

That meant Farsley Celtic tasted victory 42 times in what was a remarkable season.

Ten of their defeats came in the league but the one that ended up costing them the title was a 2-0 home loss to Ossett Town in the penultimate fixture of the regular season.

Farsley exacted the perfect revenge when they beat Ossett 4-2 after extra-time in the play-off final at Throstle Nest, with the Celts having home advantage as they finished runners-up.

Farsley’s season was so protracted because of their good cup runs, as they also had good pay-days in the FA Cup and FA Trophy and reached the Evo-Stik League Cup third round, as well as winning the County Cup.

The League Cup run ended with a 3-2 defeat at Ashton United in mid-February, while, after winning through three rounds without conceding a goal, Farsley were knocked out of the FA Cup following a 1-0 home defeat to Bishop Auckland.

In the Trophy, Farsley beat National North high fliers Tamworth 4-0 in a replay in the Midlands, following a 2-2 draw at home, in the third qualifying round.

The Celts were drawn at home in the first-round proper to Tamworth’s rivals Southport but were beaten 4-0 in early December.

Farsley won one cup competition, beating holders Bradford Park Avenue in the semi-finals and National League outfit Guiseley in the quarter-finals prior to defeating Tadcaster Albion on penalties, and were only knocked out of three others by higher-ranking clubs.

FINAL LEAGUE POSITION: Evo-Stik Div One North 2nd

LEAGUE RECORD: P42 W26 D6 L10 F100 A50 GD50 Pts84