Weston Workers Bears FC
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| Weston Workers Bears FC | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Weston Football Club | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nickname(s) | Bears | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Founded | 1907 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ground | Weston Park | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Capacity | Unknown | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chairman | David Brown | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Manager | Mick Boogaard | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| League | NBN State League | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NBN State League 2006 | 8th | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Weston Workers Bears Football Club are an Australian semi-professional football (soccer) club that participate in the Northern NSW NBN State League.
Three Weston football clubs were formed in 1907; Weston Advance, Weston United and Weston Albions. The Bears are also credited as being founded in 1907, by coalminers who worked at the Hebburn Colliery.
The Bears have spent the majority of their 100 year history in the top flight of local football, and are considered to be one of the most successful football clubs in Northern NSW, winning 13 Grand Finals, 9 Premierships and 9 Club Championships.
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[edit] Club Colours
Weston wear Black and White striped jerseys, with black shorts and black socks with white trimming.
It is thought that Weston chose these colours due to the large number of English coalminers haling from Newcastle-Upon-Tyne who settled in the region and helped to set up Weston Workers Football Club.
Weston's away strip is currently a maroon jersey with sky blue trimming, maroon shorts and sky blue socks.
During the 1980s, Weston famously wore a yellow away strip, which resulted in the fans referring to the team as 'The Canaries' for a short period.
[edit] Home Ground
Weston play their home games at Weston Park (sometimes referred to as Bear Park). Weston Park is located on Government Road, Weston, adjacent to the Weston Workers Club. Weston Park has been home to the Bears since 1955.
Weston's previous homeground was The Homestead Ground, which was also located on Government Road.
[edit] The Main Stand
Weston Park has two grandstands.
The main stand incorporates dressing sheds, club offices, canteen and storage area for training equipment.
The Main Stand can seat several hundred people, and provides a perfect view of the match. The stand was built in the early 1980s, and is one of the better stands in the NBN State League.
There is a small amount of terracing in front of the main stand, where many supporters like to stand and watch the game. The terracing is close to the only beer outlet in the ground, which may be the reason why many supporters prefer to stand there.
The terracing is also close to both dugouts, so fans can see and hear both coaches instructing their team.
[edit] The Members Stand
The Members Stand is a smaller stand located behind the goals closest to the Workers Club.
The Members Stand is the preferred stand for many of the home supporters due to the stand being extremely close to the ground, which allows the fans, who are known for being rowdy, to do their best to disturb the opposition goalkeeper.
The scoreboad side of the ground and the training ground end are usually filled by fans who prefer to sit in their car and watch the action.
[edit] 2006 Season
After qualifying for the semi-finals against expectations in the 2005 season, the 2006 season was always going to be difficult for the Bears.
The losses of Brad Swancott and James Monie to Broadmeadow and Azzurri FC respectively were major blows for Weston, however the fans still held out hope that the young Bears team would be able to compete in the State League.
Weston struggled to string wins together throughout the season. Weston at times started to look like they had hit form, with wins such as the 4-1 victory over South Cardiff in Round 6, however they would often follow up with a lacklustre performance, such as the 7-0 defeat against Azzurri in Round 7.
Three quarters of the way through the season, Weston looked as though they might be about to be dragged into a relegation dogfight with Adamstown Rosebud, however a win against South Cardiff in Round 15 followed by a 2-1 victory against Azzurri in Round 16 ensured the Bears would be in the State League for another season at least. Weston finished the season in 8th position.
The highlight of the 2006 season was the magnificent finals campaign of the Reserve Grade team. After finishing 4th on the table, the Reserves defeated Broadmeadow and Hamilton to qualify for the Grand Final, which they won 5-0 against Azzurri FC.
The Bears U19s team was unlucky not to make the semi-finals, finishing the season in 5th place.
The 2006 season was the last for Bears coach Trevor Morris who decided to step down after 4 years in the top job. Former NSL defender Mick Boogaard is set to take over for the 2007 season.
[edit] NBN State League
The NBN State League is the top football competition in Northern NSW. The competition consists of 10 teams from around the Newcastle area.
The competition takes place over 18 rounds, with each team playing each other at home and away. The team that finishes 1st at the end of 18 rounds is crowned the Minor Premier. The top 4 teams at the end of 18 rounds contest the Finals Series, with the Grand Final winner being crowned the Major Premier.
The 10th placed team each year is relegated to the 1st Division (2HD 1st Division). However, the team which finishes 1st in the 2HD 1st Division must meet certain criteria before being promoted to the NBN State League.
In the 2005 season, Weston's local rivals Cessnock City were relegated to the 1st Division, replaced by Phoenix Rangers.
The teams that will contest the 2006 NBN State League Season are:
- Adamstown Rosebuds
- Azzurri FC (formerly Highfields Azzurri)
- Broadmeadow Magic
- Edgeworth Eagles
- Hamilton Olympic
- Lake Macquarie
- Phoenix
- South Cardiff
- Toronto Awaba
- Weston
Weston last won the Minor Premiership in 2004, when they finished on 42 points, 1 point ahead of Edgeworth. Weston defeated Edgeworth 5-0 in the Major Semi Final at Bear Park in one of the best performances seen in recent years by the Bears.
Weston faced Broadmeadow in the Grand Final, with a large crowd on hand, many of whom were supporting Weston. However, Broadmeadow were too good on the day and ran out 3-1 winners. Referee Nathan Rice copped plenty of criticism from Weston fans who felt that he made numerous bad decisions which went against the Bears.
[edit] Recent Seasons
Weston's performances in recent seasons of the NBN State League:
- 2005: 4th place on 28 points. Defeated 3-0 in Minor Semi Final by South Cardiff at Ulinga Oval
- 2004: 1st place on 42 points. Defeated 3-1 in Grand Final by Broadmeadow at Wanderers Oval
- 2003: 3rd place on 36 points. Defeated by Edgeworth in Semi Final
- 2002: 6th place on 22 points.
- 2001: 6th place on 16 points.
- 2000: 11th place on 12 points. (NBN State League contained 12 teams from 1998 until the 2000 season)
- 1999: 7th place on 22 points. (NBN State League contained 12 teams from 1998 until the 2000 season)
- 1998: 10th place on 28 points. (NBN State League contained 12 teams from 1998 until the 2000 season)
- 1997: 5th place on 28 points.
- 1996: 1st place on 48 points.
- 1995: 3rd place on 38 points.
- 1994: -
- 1993: 6th place on 30 points.
- 1992: 6th place on 28 points.
[edit] Teams
Weston currently has 5 teams; 1st Grade, Reserve Grade, U19s, U15s and U14s.
Weston's 1st Grade, Reserves and 19s all play in the NBN State League, while the 14s and 15s play in the Inter-District A Grade.
Weston had youth teams in the NNSW Federation Youth League until the 2000 season. In the 2001 season many clubs were replaced by Association teams. As a result, Weston, Adamstown, Cardiff, Wallsend and Belmont-Tingira lost their places in the league.
[edit] Rivalries
Weston's biggest rival is Cessnock City. Both clubs have enjoyed success at the top of local football over their histories, however Cessnock were relegated back to the 1st Division at the end of the 2005 season.
To a lesser extent, Maitland are also considered to be a local rival, however Maitland have been in the 1st Division for quite a few seasons now, so the rivalry is starting to die down.
West Wallsend and Adamstown are also clubs that Weston enjoy defeating. Westy, Adamstown and Weston were top clubs during the 80s and early 90s, with the 3 clubs dominating the league. West Wallsend have been yo-yoing between the State League and 1st Division in recent seasons, while Adamstown have been struggling in the State League in recent seasons.
[edit] International Players
Weston Workers have produced a number of representative players over the years who have gone on to represent their region, state and country.
One of the most recent Weston players to represent Australia is Richard Johnson. Johnson left Weston at 15 years of age and spent 15 years playing in England with teams such as Tottenham, Middlesbrough, QPR, Stoke City and also Watford, where he played 1 season in the English Premier League.
Other players to represent Australia while playing for Weston are Jimmy McNab, James Wilkinson, J Avis, J Gilmore, J Harris, J McCoarey, J Harden, J Manion, T Oliver, P Coppock, R Austin, W Lonegran, W Halverson, P Murray, Stuart Musialik and Nigel Boogaard.
[edit] Honours
- Grand Finals: 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1977, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1989, 1990, 1993, 1995
- Premierships (now known as Minor Premiership since the introduction of Grand Finals): 1931, 1936, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1977, 1980, 1996, 2004
- Club Championships: 1974, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1996, 2004
- The club has also won the numerous State and Local Cups that have been in existence over the years, including the Stevenson Cup, Ampol Cup, Hemmings Cup, BP Cup, State Cup, Alcan Cup, Gardiner Cup, Kerr Cup, Tycon Cup and Shehan Cup.
[edit] References
| NNSWF : 2006 NBN State Soccer League | ||
|---|---|---|
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Adamstown Rosebuds | Azzurri FC | Broadmeadow Magic | Edgeworth Eagles | Hamilton Olympic | Lake Macquarie Roosters | Phoenix Rangers | South Cardiff | Toronto Awaba | Weston Workers Bears FC |
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