Paget Rangers F.C.
 | |||
| Full name | Paget Rangers (2011) Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Bears | ||
| Founded | 1938 | ||
| Ground |
Trevor Brown Memorial Ground, Church Road, Boldmere, Sutton Coldfield, England 52°32′30″N 1°50′32″W / 52.54167°N 1.84222°WCoordinates: 52°32′30″N 1°50′32″W / 52.54167°N 1.84222°W | ||
| Capacity | 2,500 | ||
| Chairman | Matthew Dainty | ||
| Manager | Anthony Edmead | ||
| League | Midland Combination | ||
| 2012–13 | Birmingham AFA Division Two, 1st | ||
| |||
Paget Rangers F.C. is an English football club based in Erdington, Birmingham. They have played in the Birmingham AFA since their reformation in 2011 and will play in the Midland Football Combination Division Two for the 2013/14 season.
History
The club was established in 1938 by pupils of Paget Road School in Erdington, Birmingham and was accepted into the Intermediate Division of the Birmingham Juvenile Organisation Committee. In their first two seasons Paget enjoyed instant success, winning the league title on both occasions, however the outbreak of the 2nd World War brought a halt to progress. Following the outbreak of peace, Paget joined the Birmingham Youth and Old Boys AFA, before moving to the Central Amateur League in 1949 and then the Worcestershire Combination (now Midland Combination) in 1950.
In 1951 Paget Rangers purchased a site on Springfield Road in Walmley for a cost of £550. Springfield Road was to be Paget’s home for the next 42 years. The 1950s was a decade of consolidation for The Bears, before experiencing their first major success in 1960 when a unique quadruple was achieved. Paget won the Midland Combination League Title, The Midland Combination League Cup, The Birmingham Junior Cup and the Sutton Coldfield Charity Cup. Paget went on to retain the league title again in 1961. Further success followed in 1967 when Paget Rangers defeated Alvechurch to win the Midland Combination League cup (Alvechurch had beaten Paget in the previous year’s final). In 1970 Paget won the Midland Combination Premier Division for the third time, following that success with a second place finish in 1971.
In 1971 the club erected floodlights at Springfield Road, becoming the first Midland Combination club to have floodlight in the process. The switching on of the lights was marked by a visit of Aston Villa to Springfield Road.
Paget Rangers won their 4th Midland Combination League Cup in 1983 and a 5th success soon followed in 1986, earning Paget Rangers a place in the Southern League for the first time. Unfortunately a mass exodus of players following the departure of manager Eddie Caulfield to local rivals Sutton Coldfield Town undermined the club’s progress and after one season in the Southern League the club was relegated to the West Midlands (Regional) League.
Paget adapted to live in the West Midlands (Regional) League and achieved a top half finish in all but one season between 1988 and 1994. The highest place achieved during this period was a second place finish in 1992, when Gresley Rovers won the title. Success was achieved in the League Cup however in 1992, when Paget Rangers defeated Gresley Rovers in a thrilling final. The club also reached the final of the League Cup in both 1993 and 1994, but finished as runners-up on both occasions.
In 1993 Paget Rangers sold their Springfield Road ground for housing development for a fee believed to be in excess of £1.4million. Whilst a site for a new home was sought Paget Rangers began a groundshare agreement with local rivals Sutton Coldfield Town.[1]
In 1994, following league restructuring, Paget were elected as founder members of the new Midland Football Alliance. Paget won the inaugural championship in 1994/95 by a twelve point margin from Hinckley Athletic to once again achieve promotion to the Southern League Midland Division.
The 1994-95 season was an outstanding season for Paget as in addition to claiming the Midland Football Alliance Championship, they won the Lord Mayor of Birmingham's Charity Cup when beating Moor Green in the final, and finished as runners-up in the Staffordshire Senior Cup to Stoke City. The same season saw them reach the semi-final of the Birmingham Senior Cup, thus enjoying their best ever run in the competition which included a 2–1 victory over Coventry City in the quarter final. However, they were beaten by Aston Villa but not before putting on a spirited performance at Villa Park.
In all, throughout the 1994/95 season, a total of five Southern League Clubs were beaten in various cup competitions. The first season in the Southern League was an instant success, with a 5th place finish, including memorable victories over both Tamworth and run-away leaders Nuneaton Borough. In fact Paget Rangers were top at Christmas, but the sale of star striker Ian Bennett and midfielder David Campbell to Leicester United undermined any hopes of a second successive promotion.
After 5 seasons ground sharing with Sutton Coldfield Town, Paget moved to their new home at Vale Stadium, Castle Vale, for the start of the 1998/99 season. This moved proved to be a disaster. The expected increase in attendances didn’t materialise, the new pitch was prone to flooding and boardroom disagreements due to the inheritance of £1.4m caused the team to struggle both on and off the pitch.
The Club continued to battle on valiantly in the Southern League Western Division for two more seasons before the seemingly inevitable relegation occurred at the end of the 2000–01 season. As the season was drawing to a close, a mass exodus of players due to the withdrawal of any financial support saw several youth team players see action. Their spirit and effort was not enough to help Paget avoid relegation to the Midland Alliance, but four wins from their final six games meant Paget avoided bottom spot.
Paget's first season back in the Midland Football Alliance saw further off field tribulations affect the composition of the team. Once again youth featured prominently as the Bears attempted to stabilise in new surroundings. Paget achieved a solid mid-table position in their first season back in the Midland Alliance, however the club resigned at the end of the season and subsequently folded. The club’s final game was at home to Barwell on 23 April 2002. Paget won the game 3–1.[2]
In 2011 lifelong Paget Rangers supporter Matthew Dainty set about reforming the club with the ambition of returning Paget to the Midland Alliance as quickly as possible. After 18 months of planning Paget’s application to the Midland Combination for the 2012/13 season was rejected, thus meaning the Bears had to join the Birmingham AFA where they were placed in Division 2. Again, much like the original club Paget enjoyed instant success winning the Birmingham & District AFA Senior Cup at the first attempt, Paget defeating Athletic Sparkhill in a thrilling final 6–5.[3] In total three Premier Division clubs were defeated in the competition. Paget also came top of their league, pipping second-place Aston Reserves by a few points, to secure the AFA Division 2 title, and a double haul in their first season back.
Ground
For the 2012–13 season Paget played home games at "The Gas Ground", Hollyfields Sports and Social, just off Paget Road in Erdington where the original club was formed. For the 2013–14 season Paget Rangers have agreed a ground share with Boldmere St Michaels. Originally named Church Road, the ground was renamed in 2004 after former Boldmere St Michaels chairman Trevor Brown. The ground's facilities have been upgraded since the mid-nineties to Southern League standard.[4]
Honours
The club has the following honours:[5]
- Midland Football Combination
- Champions 1959–60, 1960–61, 1969–70, 1970–71
- Midland Football Alliance
- Champions 1994–95
- West Midlands (Regional) League
- Runners-up 1991–92
- B.Y.C. Intermediate League
- Champions 1938–39, 1940–41
- Midland Youth Floodlit League
- Champions 1999–2000
- Birmingham & District AFA Division 2
- Champions 2012-13
Cups
- Birmingham AFA Senior Cup
- Winners 2013
- West Midland League Cup
- Winners 1992
- Runners-up 1993, 1994
- Midland Football Combination Cup
- Winners 1960, 1967, 1971, 1983, 1986
- Birmingham Senior Cup
- Semi Finalist 1994
- Birmingham Junior Cup
- Winners 1960, 1970
- Lord Mayor of Birmingham Charity Cup
- Winners 1995
- Walsall Senior Cup
- Winners 1986
- Staffordshire Senior Cup
- Finalist 1995
- Semi Finalist 1994
- Tony Alden Memorial cup
- Winners 1971, 1973, 1984, 1987
- Sutton Coldfield Charity Cup
- Winners 1958, 1960, 1966, 1968, 1999
Club records
- Best league performance: 5th in Southern League Midland Division, 1995–96
- Best FA Cup performance: 3rd qualifying round, 1994–95
- Best FA Trophy performance: 2nd round proper 1998–99
- Best FA Vase performance: 4th round, 1988–89[6]
First-team squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
|
|
References
- ↑ "Gone But Not Forgotten series". Soccer-books.co.uk. Retrieved 2013-05-06.
- ↑ "Paget Rangers History - Paget Rangers (2011) F.C". Pitchero.com. Retrieved 2013-05-06.
- ↑ Master, Web (2013-04-25). "Paget win Senior Cup in dramatic style - Paget Rangers (2011) F.C". Pitchero.com. Retrieved 2013-05-06.
- ↑ "Home Ground Location - Paget Rangers (2011) F.C". Pitchero.com. 2013-04-29. Retrieved 2013-05-06.
- ↑ "Paget Rangers F.C Honours - Paget Rangers (2011) F.C". Pitchero.com. 2013-04-29. Retrieved 2013-05-06.
- ↑ "Football Club History Database - Paget Rangers". Fchd.info. Retrieved 2013-05-06.
- ↑ "1st Team - Players & Coaches - Paget Rangers (2011) F.C". Pitchero.com. 2013-04-29. Retrieved 2013-05-06.
- "Paget Rangers Archive - Paget Rangers (2011) F.C". Pitchero.com. Retrieved 2013-05-06.
External links
| |||||||||||