[2] Newton-le-Willows is on the eastern edge of St Helens, south of Wigan and north of Warrington, equidistant to Liverpool and Manchester.

In the early 19th century the township saw significant urban development to support the construction of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway.

Earlestown gradually became the administrative and commercial centre of the township, with the historic market and fairs moving to a purpose built square.

Forming part of the historic county boundaries of Lancashire from a very early time, Newton-le-Willows is an ancient town.

The developing industrial town was then created into an urban district under the name Newton in Makerfield.

It is in the east of the Metropolitan Borough of St Helens in Merseyside, near to the border with Wigan in Greater Manchester.

The town is considered as part of the Greater Manchester Built-up Area for statistical purposes despite being situated within Merseyside.

Newton-le-Willows and Earlestown railway stations have a regional service with regular trains running to Liverpool and Manchester, St Helens, Warrington, Chester, West Yorkshire and along the North Wales coast to Llandudno.

The Warrington Guardian, Liverpool Echo, Manchester Evening News and Wigan Post are widely available within the town.

The Old Newton Cup is the world's oldest continually competed for trophy, with a history dating back over 200 years.

played in the local leagues until the 1900–01 season when the club joined the English Combination where they competed for three years.

The team competed in the Lancashire Combination league which at the time (1950s/1960s) was the equivalent of today's Conference North.

Earlestown enjoyed a local rivalry with a number of teams which would go on to national prominence, especially Wigan Athletic.

Earlestown was a very ambitious club who hit the headlines when they signed Wilf Mannion as player manager.

However, falling gates and the cost of a professional squad forced the club into bankruptcy in the mid 1960s.

[7] A number of smaller teams operated in the town, the most prominent being Vulcan Newton who have previously been in the Lancashire Combination and North West Counties League.

The area is very popular for rugby league, with St Helens R.F.C., Warrington Wolves, Widnes Vikings, Wigan Warriors, Salford Red Devils and Leigh Leopards all being local teams.