| Full name | Bitterne Guild Football Club | |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1896 | |
| Dissolved | 1915 | |
| Ground | Veracity Ground, Sholing, Southampton | |
Bitterne Guild were an amateur football club, based in Bitterne - an eastern suburb of Southampton, Hampshire. They disbanded during World War I and did not reform once the conflict was finally over.
Bitterne Guild F.C. were established circa 1896 and spent their early days playing friendlies before joining a variety of short lived local Leagues. [1]
The club took up residence at The Veracity Ground on Sholing Common, and in 1905 they joined the Hampshire League and also began entering national cup competitions. [2]
In these days, it was not uncommon for teams to play in more than one league in the same season, and in 1908 Bitterne Guild became founder members of the Southampton Football Association - winning the inaugural Senior League title and retaining it a year later. Further success arrived in 1911 when they won the Southampton Senior Cup (3-0 against Eastleigh Athletic at The Dell, Southampton), after reaching the two previous finals. [3]
In order to attract wider support, the club was re-branded as Woolston F.C. in 1912 and again won the Senior League title. Two years later they again won the Southampton Senior Cup (2-1 against Rifle Depot, again at The Dell) before the Great War stopped them playing, sadly never to reform. [4]
| Season | Division | Position | Significant events |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1905/06 | South Division | 4/8 | as Bitterne Guild |
| 1906/07 | South Division | 3/10 | |
| 1907/08 | South Division | 4/8 | |
| 1908/09 | South Division | 3/10 | |
| 1909/10 | South Division | 7/9 | |
| 1910/11 | South Division | 4/8 | |
| 1911/12 | South Division | 5/8 | |
| 1912/13 | South Division | 2/8 | as Woolston |
| 1913/14 | County Division | 5/9 | Left competition |
| Season | Round | Opponents | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1908/10 | 1st Qualifying Round | H v Farnham Town | W 5–0 |
| 2nd Qualifying Round | H v Winchester City | W 7–1 | |
| 3rd Qualifying Round | H v Royal Engineers | W 2–0 | |
| 4th Qualifying Round | A v Leyton | L 1–9 |
Bitterne Guild played at the original Veracity Ground, Sholing Common, Southampton. The land was originally owned by the Chamberlayne family - close to the present day site off Spring Road, which is known by the same name. [6]
The pitch was enclosed with a stand and frequently hosted large crowds. In 1919 Thornycrofts (Woolston) moved in and also enjoyed success, [7] until the site was closed in 1926 and sold for housing.
The club had many fine players, most notably Arthur Dominy, [8] [9] George McGhee [10] and Arthur Draper [11] who all later played for Southampton
With there being so many teams in the area, there were a number of local rivals such as Peartree Green, Itchen Sports and Sholing Athletic.
In later years, both Bitterne Sports and Bitterne Nomads played with great success in the same competitions. [12]
