A week later, Shirebrook Swifts put 13 past the Mansfield goalkeeper without reply, the worst defeat ever suffered by the club in a competitive match.
Mansfield took advantage of this new-found freedom from the church by moving up into the Notts and District League, where they finished in a respectable 6th position in their first season.
Local lad Jack Needham was the star, picking up 46 goals in 35 games - earning himself a move to Birmingham FC - as Wesley finished 4th in the table.
Both the chairman, Fred Abraham, and the club secretary, James Marples, resigned after committing the heinous offence of signing a player on the Sabbath.
Wesley entered the FA Cup for the first time in their history, participating in six matches before losing to the Mechanics (again) in a Second Qualifying Round Replay.
At the end of the season the Central Alliance decided to shut down until the conclusion to the war, and Mansfield Town soon followed suit.
Stags' captain Staniforth missed a crucial penalty which would have given Town the lead in the first half, although Arsenal later scored two goals to win.
Short up front in 1938–39, Mansfield managed only 44 goals, finishing 16th in the last season before football was abandoned for World War Two.
The club made another brilliant run in the FA Cup, beating non-league Walthamstowe Avenue and Chelmsford City, Second Division Swansea and Sheffield United to make the fifth round.
In second place, and two points clear of Bristol City with two games left, the Stags eventually missed out on goal average.
West Ham were standing sixth in the First Division and their side featured England's World Cup winners Bobby Moore, Martin Peters and Geoff Hurst along with youngsters Billy Bonds and Trevor Brooking.
They progressed to the quarter-final stage where they were unlucky to lose to Leicester City, being stopped from scoring by young keeper Peter Shilton.
Under manager Dave Smith, they claimed the Division Four title in 1974–75, with new signing Ray Clarke scoring 30 goals out of a team total of 100.
This was after a season of some extraordinary games, including a 3–3 draw with Tottenham Hotspur which featured two hat-tricks – Glenn Hoddle and Dave Syrett.
By April of the following year, Mansfield were in the Division Three relegation zone, however a good run of form at the end of the season helped them to finish 18th.
Disaster struck as two Mansfield players were sent off and Chesterfield scored three times to win 6–3 and reach the final, where they beat Bury to get promoted.
Good results between New Year and Easter meant the Stags were two points off a play-off place with five games left, although they just missed out.
In the first game, away to Cheltenham, Chris Greenacre scored an incredible goal, in open play, from the edge of the centre circle, lobbing the 'keeper.
On Easter Monday, in tragic circumstances, referee Mike North collapsed and died of a heart attack during the Stags' game with Southend United.
A poor 3–1 defeat away at York City followed, meaning Mansfield had to win and hope Cheltenham dropped points at champions Plymouth for the Stags to get promoted.
The result of this failure to get promoted again was that several key players, including leading scorer Liam Lawrence, left the club before the 2004–05 season.
On a brighter note, striker Richard Barker signed for the club midway through the season, and quickly became a fan favourite with his gritty, determined, and never-say-die attitude.
The highlight of the club's season was an FA Cup third round tie against Newcastle United at St. James' Park, a game they eventually lost 1–0.
Despite this, they had a FA Cup run, beating League One side Brighton & Hove Albion with a 2–1 victory at the Withdean Stadium.
A freak goal for Rotherham in Mansfield's last home game of the season left the club's fate in other teams' hands.
After Holland was deposed, Billy McEwan took over, although his tenure only lasted five months and he was sacked in December 2008, with Mansfield hovering just above the relegation places in 20th position.
David Holdsworth made a fantastic impact in his start at the Stags, winning the majority of his games, instantly guiding the club away from their relegation worries.
He shored up the Mansfield defence and with the new signings of Alan Marriott, Scott Garner and Paul Mayo the team broke the club record of five consecutive home clean sheets with six, against Crawley Town, Rushden & Diamonds, York City, Kettering Town, Lewes, finally beating the record with a 1–0 victory over Forest Green Rovers.
Under Russell, the Stags made a memorable run in the FA Trophy and on Saturday 19 March 2011, reached the final by defeating Luton Town F.C.
Following a poor showing in the 2010–2011 league campaign, Russell was told his contract as manager would not be renewed,[20][21] with Paul Cox later announced as his replacement.