Northampton Spencer F.C.
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| Northampton Spencer | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Full name | Northampton Spencer Football Club | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Nickname(s) | The Millers | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Founded | 1936 (as Spencer School Old Boys) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ground | Kingsthorpe Mill Studland Road Northampton NN2 6NE United Kingdom (Capacity 2,000) |
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| Manager | Steve Jelley | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| League | United Counties League Premier Division |
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Northampton Spencer F.C. is a football club based in Northampton, England. They are members of the United Counties Football League Premier Division. Their ground is Kingsthorpe Mill, in Northampton.
[edit] History
Northampton Spencer FC can trace its history back to 1936 when Spencer School Old Boys were formed. The team was based on members of the old school team and at the beginning entered the Northants Lower Junior League. In the early days the club wore black and green quarters and did not have to wait long for their first item of silverware, winning the Pinner Cup in their first season. Just prior to the outbreak of the Second World War the club clinched the Division Three championship in the 1938 - 1939 season.
At the end of the hostilities the club reformed and soon got back to form, winning the much prized Gorrel Barnes Cup in 1947. In the early 1950's the club began to struggle and were nearly relegated, but after a couple of poor seasons the clubs fortunes changed for the better. During the 1950's - 1960's the club captured the Daventry Charity Cup as well as the League title and also the Towcester Charity Cup.
By the end of the 1966 - 1967 season the club had won almost all the trophies on offer that term, so they began to look for a new challenge. With the town situated in the heart of the UCL area they made an application to join the league, but this was turned down and the club was not successful until 1968 when their application was accepted. In their first season in the UCL the club finished in second place and were promoted along with Bletchley Reserves and in their progress they amassed 123 goals from only 36 games played.
The club proved its worth in the top flight, finishing in a creditable sixth place. The following season the club moved from their base at Dallington Park to Duston High School, where they stayed for a season and a half before moving to the present ground at Kingsthorpe Mill. In the beginning the ground had no proper approach road and only had pedestrian access. The changing rooms were originally some old church rooms from Long Buckby and had to be modified to their present shape. Over the years the facilities have been upgraded to meet the UCL ground regulations, with floodlights being added in 1988 and a new changing room complex officially opened by Nottingham Forest in 1993.
In the seventies the club turned in some mediocre seasons and found the going tough in the top flight before being relegated at the end of the 1980 - 1981 campaign. The following season saw the club reach an all time low, but the arrival of John Petts as Manager saw an upturn in results and after four seasons in the lower division, the club regained its Premier Division status, when they won the championship in 1984 - 1985.
Following the departure of Mr Petts, Gary Sargent took over the reigns and began to guide the club to new heights. In 1987 - 1988 the club were runners - up in the League Knockout Cup, losing to Arlesey, but the following season they went one better, when they captured their first major trophy since joining the UCL, winning the League Knockout Cup 5 - 1 against Ramsey Town. In the 1990 - 1991 season Spencer climbed to fifth spot in the Premier Division and also captured the Daventry Charity Cup, defeating Southern League outfit Rushden Town 2 - 1 in the final. The following season Spencer completed their most successful campaign when they captured the UCL Premier Division title for the first time in the clubs history and in the process became the first club to record over a 100 points in a season. They also won the Benevolent Cup, defeating Division One champions Harrowby United.
In 1992 - 1993 the club finished in runners - up position and the following season in third place, but it was in the cup that the club grabbed the headlines by progressing through to a second Northants Senior Cup final and also lifting the League Knockout Cup by defeating Raunds Town 5 - 1. In 1994 - 1995 the club secured fifth place and this was followed up with 13th in the next two seasons 1995 - 1996 and 1996 - 1997, with the Daventry Charity Cup and League Knockout Cup finals also being reached. In 1997 - 1998 the club had arguably its most successful season since winning the championship when they finished in runners - up spot in the Premier Division scoring over a 100 goals and also appearing in their fifth Knockout Cup final. the 1998 - 1999 season saw the club finish in fourth place, with the reserves winning the Reserve Division Cup, defeating Burton Park Wanderers in the final. In the 1999 - 2000 season Spencer had its best run in the FA Cup before bowing out to Grantham and finished the season in fifth position. Season 2000 - 2001 was dominated by the bad weather, with the club having to play nearly half their fixtures in the final 6 weeks. A good run in saw the club climb to finish in 8th place. Season 2001 - 2002 saw the club under achieve and finish in the lowest position since returning to the top flight and it also saw the departure of long serving Gary Sargent as Manager who had guided the club through one of there most successful periods. Under the guidance of new manager Bob Tansley the next two seasons saw the team have good runs at the end of the seasons to climb to a creditable 12th place and then finish in 18th place. The 2004 - 2005 season saw Bob Tansley still with a reasonably young side and although they were gaining in confidence they had a poor season and with only a few games left Bob Tansley resigned as manager and left the club.
Steve Jelley took over the reins at the start of the 2005 - 2006 season. A former Spencer player and local to the area, Steve had been successful managing local Sunday team Duke of York, helping them to national success in the FA Sunday Cup, and had also managed Spencer's Under 18s two seasons earlier, culminating in winning the Jaymann Shield. Steve brought back a couple of the players who had defected to other UCL clubs, and brought in one or two other local players, and guided them to success not seen at the club for many years. Jostling for the top spot the whole season, and still in contention going into the final game, Spencer's young team finished third in the UCL Premier, and won the Hillier Northants FA Senior Cup against Southern League Corby Town.
[edit] External links
| Blackstones | Boston Town | Bourne Town | Cogenhoe United | Daventry Town | Deeping Rangers | Desborough Town | Holbeach United | Long Buckby | Newport Pagnell Town | Northampton Spencer | Potton United | Raunds Town | Rothwell Corinthians | St Ives Town | St Neots Town | Sleaford Town | Stewarts & Lloyds Corby | Stotfold | Wellingborough Town | Yaxley | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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