Its first two finals were both against Everton, and a 1–0 win at Hawthorne Road in 1885 in front of over 4,000 (with 700 fans travelling on a special train), the goal coming from a scrimmage which bundled goalkeeper Lindsay over the line, saw the Cup go to Earlestown for the only time.

[3] The power of the resources available to clubs in the new Football League however was quickly demonstrated - in 1889–90, Earlestown met Everton in the semi-final, and was hammered 13–2.

[9] The match was never re-played; Earlestown was expelled before season end for not fulfilling its fixtures,[10] with the club only ahead of Rossendale at the time.

Despite its early prominence, Earlestown did not enter the FA Cup until 1900–01, and in its first entry it reached the fourth qualifying round, the penultimate stage; the match at home to Nantwich was considered to be a foregone conclusion, but the visitors won 3–2.

However the costs and standard proved too much for the club, and Earlestown disbanded in October[16] due to lack of support, with a debt of £200, albeit that was eventually cleared.