Loughborough F.C.

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Loughborough
Full name Loughborough Athletic and Football Club
Founded 1886
Dissolved 1900
Ground Athletic Ground
Ground Capacity 10,000 (approx)
League Football League Second Division
1899-00 18th (out of 18)
Home colours
Away colours

Loughborough Athletic and Football Club were an English football club based in Loughborough, Leicestershire, that played in The Football League at the end of the 19th century.

History

The club started life as Loughborough Football Club in 1886 from a merger of Victoria and Athletic, the two senior sides in the town, using the latter's ground then called Bromhead or Hubbard Cricket Ground. November 1887 saw merger with the local athletics club to form Loughborough Athletic and Football Club. The club is often incorrectly referred to as Loughborough Town at this time although there is no documented evidence for the name.

1891 gave the team its first league competition with entry to the Midland League. In 1895 the club were crowned champions, and elected to the Second Division of the Football League.

The club struggled in the Second Division, never finishing higher than 12th (out of 16). In 1900 the club finished bottom of the League, conceding 100 goals in 34 games, winning only a single game and collecting only 8 points of a possible 68, arguably the worst record in the history of the League - only Doncaster Rovers have an equally low points record, set in 1904-05, but they had a somewhat better goal average. This season saw their record League defeat, 12-0 at Woolwich Arsenal; due to financial constraints the team consisted of four professionals and seven amateurs and their travelling expenses were paid for by Arsenal.

After failing to gain re-election to the League in 1900, the club applied for acceptance back into the Midland League, but failed to turn up for the fixtures meeting on 9 June. On 29 June a meeting was held when it was decided that the club was defunct.

Successor clubs

Several clubs have since represented the town of Loughborough:

  • Loughborough Corinthians emerged c. 1903 and became founder members of the Leicestershire League, which they won twice before the outbreak of World War I. In 1925, after some good FA Cup runs the team stepped up to the Midland League where they played until their demise in 1933.
  • Loughborough United were formed c. 1960 and were elected to Midland League in 1961. The Sixties were a good time for the club as they were league champions in 1963 and twice reached the 1st Round proper of the FA Cup. However the success was short lived and after some difficult seasons they left the league in 1973 after finishing bottom for the second successive season.
  • A second Loughborough FC came into existence in 1988, when Loughborough J.O.L. (formerly Thorpe Acre Hallam) changed their name to Loughborough FC. The club competed in the Central Midlands League, but left and apparently folded in 1990.
  • A third Loughborough FC appeared when Loughborough Athletic dropped the "Athletic" suffix in 2001. The club were members of the Midland Football Combination, but resigned from the league in the summer of 2006, stepping down to the North Leicestershire Football League, at level 13 of the English football league system.
  • Loughborough Dynamo were founded in 1955 and were promoted to their present league, the Northern Premier League Division One South, in 2008.
  • Loughborough Emmanuel FC. A Christian Football Club based from Emmanuel Church, Loughborough. Formed in the late 1890s and played at William Street, Loughborough. Founder members of Loughborough and District Football League in 1897. Loughborough and District Charity Cup in 1898. Loughborough and District Football League Champions 1900-01, 1903-04. Lecicestershire FA Junior Cup (North) Winners 1989-99 v Hathern Victoria 3-2. Loughborough and District Charity Cup Winners 1989 v. Quorn Havelock 2-0. Currently have a two senior teams. One playing in The North Leicestshire League Div 3 and a 2nd team playing in The Derby Churches League. The club also have several junior sides.

See also

Sources

External links

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