| Full name | Association Football Club Sportsman Rovers | |
|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Pockets, Town Athletic |
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| Founded | pre-1885 (as Mexborough) | |
| Ground | Hampden Road, Mexborough Doncaster (Capacity: 2,500) |
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| League | Doncaster and District Senior League | |
| 2010–11 | Doncaster and District Senior League, 1st (Champions) | |
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A.F.C. Sportsman Rovers is an English association football club from Mexborough, in South Yorkshire founded prior to 1892. The club have a prominent history in Yorkshire non-league football, being founding members of some of its most long standing competitions. However, the club are currently playing in the Doncaster and District Senior League.
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Founded as Mexborough Football Club prior to 1885, They went on to win Sheffield and Hallamshire Senior Cup, one of the oldest football cups in the worldm in 1885–6 season (subsequently winning it another four times). The club were founding members of the Sheffield Football League, during the 1892–93 debut season, they finished runners-up in their debut season.[1] The following season they won Division Two of the same league.
By 1896–97 they had joined the Midland League (which was just seven seasons old at the time), they beat out Doncaster Rovers to be crowned league champions during their second season in it. At the same time Mexborough competed in an early version of the Yorkshire Football League; it only contained 9 other teams so they were able to play in both, they finished as runners-up in its first season.
The mid-1920s was a good time for the club; they won the Midland League again in 1925–26 and in the following season reached the First Round of the FA Cup, Mexborough lost 2–1 to Chesterfield at the Recreation Ground. The club changed their name to Mexborough Athletic in 1926 but were less successful for the rest of the decade through to the 1930s, they left in league in 1936.
Mexborough were going under the Mexborough Town name in the 1960s and were playing in the Yorkshire Football League. They finished as runners-up of Division Two in 1962–63, and then runners-up in Division One (top level of the Yorkshire League) the following season.[2] Mexborough were runners-up again in 1968–69, this time to Farsley Celtic.
Finally, the club were able to capture the championship in 1972–73, that season was very good all round for the club as they also reached the Third Round of the FA Trophy, going out to eventual winners Scarborough, 3–1 at home.
Mexborough returned to the Midland League in 1974 as Mexborough Town Athletic, the team performed consistently well in their first six years back in the league, they occupied one of the top 6 positions each season; the best of which was in 1978–79 when they finished 3rd.[3]
In 1982 some parts the non-league football system were re-organised in England, the Midland and Yorkshire Leagues were merged to create the Northern Counties East Football League. For three seasons the club struggled in the bottom half of the league's Premier Division before being relegated to Division One in 1985.
Mexborough changed their name back to Mexborough Town in 1987 and continued on in the league until they were relegated in 1990–91. For the 1990s, the club played in the Central Midlands League Premier Division; they changed their name again a couple of times; first to Mexborough Athletic Oakhouse in 1994, Mexborough Athletic in 1997 and then Mexborough Town Athletic in 1999.
The club were relegated from the league in 2000–01 after winning only two games that season, they are currently playing in the Doncaster and District Senior League and had been using the Athletic name again from 2004 until 2008 when they changed name again to Mexborough Pocket. The club changed their name again in 2010 to their present name.