Clapton F.C.
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| Full name | Clapton Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Tons | ||
| Founded | 1878 | ||
| Ground | The Old Spotted Dog Ground, London | ||
| Capacity | 2,000 (100 seated)[1] | ||
| Chairman | Vince McBean | ||
| Manager | Chris Wood | ||
| League | Essex Senior League | ||
| 2012–13 | Essex Senior League, 18th | ||
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Clapton Football Club is an English association football club based in Forest Gate, in the London Borough of Newham. The club are currently members of the Essex Senior League and play at the Old Spotted Dog Ground.
History
The club were established in 1878 as Downs Football Club and were initially based in Downs Road in Hackney. They originally played in dark blue shirts and white shorts.[2] The following year the club adopted its current name.[2] They initially played on Hackney Downs, with its headquarters at the Downs Hotel.[2] In 1880 they moved to a pitch adjacent to Lea Bridge Road in Leyton, but moved on again shortly afterwards to a ground at Elm Farm. In 1888 the club moved to the Old Spotted Dog after it was vacated by St Bartholomew's Hospital. The first game at the new ground was watched by over 4,000 spectators and saw the club beat Old Carthusians 1–0.[2]
They began competing in the FA Cup in 1888–89,[3] and in 1890 they became the first club from Great Britain to play in continental Europe, beating a Belgian XI 7–0.[2] In 1894 the club became founders members of the Southern League,[1] and were placed in Division One. They finished eighth in a nine-club league, and were forced to play test matches to avoid relegation, defeating Sheppey United 5–1. The following season saw them finish eighth again. Despite winning the test matches against 1st Scots Guards, the club left the league at the end of the season as several of the other clubs were turning professional.[2]
In 1904–05 the club reached the final of the FA Amateur Cup, but lost 3–2 to West Hartlepool. In 1905 the club were founder members of the Isthmian League, finishing as runners-up in its first season. The following season they won the Amateur Cup, defeating Stockton 2–1 in the final. In 1908–09 they won the Amateur Cup again, defeating Eston United 6–0. In 1910–11 they won the Isthmian League title for the first time, and in 1914–15 won the Amateur Cup for a third time with a 1–0 win over Bishop Auckland.[3]
In 1922–23 the club won the Isthmian League again, and in 1923–24 they won their fourth Amateur Cup after defeating Erith & Belvedere 3–0. They retained the Cup the following season, and in 1925–26 they qualified for the first round of the FA Cup. After beating Norwich City and Ilford in the first and second rounds, they lost 3–2 at home to Swindon Town in the third round, a match that was played at West Ham's Boleyn Ground. The club reached the first round of the FA Cup again in 1926–27, 1927–28 and 1957–58, losing to Brentford, Luton Town and QPR respectively.[3]
In 1975–76 the club finished bottom of Division One of the Isthmian League, and were relegated to Division Two, which was renamed Division One in 1977. In 1981–82 they were relegated to Division Two, but returned after a single season as Division Two champions. The club won the Essex Senior Cup for a third time in 1984, but were relegated again at the end of the 1984–85 season and placed in Division Two North. In 1991 they were placed in Division Three after league reorganisation, which later became Division Two due to further league reorganisation. In 2005–06 the club finished bottom of the league for the second consecutive season,[3] and subsequently joined the Essex Senior League after Division Two was disbanded.
Honours
- Isthmian League
- FA Amateur Cup
- Winners 1907, 1909, 1915, 1924, 1925
- London Senior Cup
- Winners 1889, 1909, 1911
- Essex Senior Cup
- Winners 1891, 1925, 1926, 1955, 1984
- Middlesex Senior Cup
- Winners 1889
- Essex Senior Trophy
- Winners 1989
- Essex Thames Side Trophy
- Winners 1983, 1984
- AFA Invitational Cup
- Winners 1966, 1971
- London Charity Cup
- Winners 1899, 1900, 1902, 1903, 1924
- West Ham Charity Cup
- Winners 1890, 1903, 1904, 1907, 1908, 1925
- London Junior Cup
- Winners 1888, 1893, 1908
- London County Amateur Cup
- Winners 1909
Notable players
England players
In 1924–1925, three Clapton players were selected for the England national team.[4]
- William Bryant
- Stan Earle (later played for West Ham United)
- Vivian Gibbins (selected twice)
Other international players
- Sam Gillam made his final international appearance for Wales on 24 March 1894 while on the books of Clapton.[5]
- Benjamin Odeje was the first black footballer to represent England at any level.[6] He played in five schoolboy internationals, making his debut against Northern Ireland at Wembley in 1971.
Records
- Best FA Cup performance: Third round, 1925–26
- Best FA Trophy performance: Second qualifying round, 1980–81, 1983–84
- Best FA Vase performance: Second round, 1989–90, 1992–93, 2003–04
- Attendance: 12,000 vs Tottenham Hotspur, FA Cup, 1898–99[1]
- Acknowledged by the Football Association as being the first English club to play on the continent when they beat a Belgian XI 7–0, at Antwerp in 1890.
See also
- Clapton F.C. players
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Mike Williams & Tony Williams (2012) Non-League Club Directory 2013, p658 ISBN 978-1-869833-77-0
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Club History Clapton Football Club History
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Clapton at the Football Club History Database
- ↑ Club Affiliations – Clapton England Football Online
- ↑ "Appearances of players of Clapton F.C.". National Teams. www.eu-football.info. Retrieved 18 December 2011.
- ↑ Ashdown, Marc (24 May 2013). "First black England player revealed to be Benjamin Odeje". BBC London News. Retrieved 25 May 2013.
External links
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