 | |||
| Full name | Dereham Town Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Magpies | ||
| Founded | 1884 | ||
| Ground | Aldiss Park, Dereham | ||
| Capacity | 2,500 (150 seated) [1] [2] | ||
| Chairman | Jason Lawson | ||
| Manager | Tom Parke | ||
| League | Eastern Counties League Premier Division | ||
| 2023–24 | Eastern Counties League Premier Division, 5th of 19 | ||
| Website | derehamtownfc.co.uk | ||
Dereham Town Football Club is a football club based in Dereham, Norfolk, England. They are currently members of the Eastern Counties League Premier Division and play at Aldiss Park.
The club was founded as Dereham Football Club in 1884, spending many of its early years in the Dereham & District League. In 1891–92 the club reached the final of the Norfolk Senior Cup, losing to CEYMS. [3] By 1910 the club were playing in the Norwich & District League and had been renamed East Dereham. [4] In 1920 they adopted their current name and in 1935 they joined the Norfolk & Suffolk League, which had lost several clubs to the newly established Eastern Counties League. When the Norfolk & Suffolk League merged into the Anglian Combination, the club were placed in the Senior B Division. They won the division at the first attempt and were promoted Premier Division. They were renamed Dereham Hobbies United in 1986 after a local Sunday league team merged into the club. The club were relegated from the Premier Division at the end of the 1988–89 season, but made an immediate return to the Premier Division as Division One champions. In 1991 they returned to the name Dereham Town. [4]
In 1997–98 Dereham won the Anglian Combination Premier Division, earning promotion to Division One of the Eastern Counties League, also winning the Don Frost Memorial Cup. In 2001–02 the club finished second in Division One, beating Stanway Rovers 1–0 on the final day to overtake them and earn promotion to the Premier Division. The club won the Norfolk Senior Cup in 2006, defeating Norwich United 1–0 in the final, and again in 2007 when Wroxham were beaten 1–0 in the final. In 2012–13 they won the Eastern Counties League Premier Division, earning promotion to Division One North of the Isthmian League. [5] The club won the Norfolk Senior Cup for the fourth time in 2015–16, defeating Norwich United 2–0 in the final. [6] A fifth Senior Cup was won in 2018–19, when Dereham beat Thetford Town 2–1 in the final. [7]
In 2022 Dereham were transferred to Division One Midlands of the Northern Premier League. After finishing fourth-from-bottom of the division in 2022–23 they were relegated back to the Premier Division of the Eastern Counties League.
After the club were promoted to the Isthmian League, the reserve team joined Division One of the Eastern Counties League, moving up from the reserve division. They left the league at the end of the 2016–17 season. [8]
Prior to World War II the club played at Bayfields Meadow, after which they moved to the Recreation Ground. However, the council owned the ground and there was no scope for upgrading it. [4] In 1991, the club purchased a 10.2-acre (41,000 m2) site on the outskirts of the town in order to build a new £750,000 stadium.
The club moved to the new ground at Aldiss Park in December 1996. At the start of 2000–01 season Norwich City visited Aldiss Park for a pre-season friendly and although the club lost 9–0, a new record attendance of 1,800 was set. Norwich City visited for another friendly match in July 2001, with a new record of 3,000 being set.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
|
|
The Eastern Counties Football League, currently known as the Thurlow Nunn League for sponsorship purposes, is an English football league at levels 9 and 10 of the English football league system. It currently contains clubs from Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Cambridgeshire, eastern Hertfordshire, southern Lincolnshire, and north and east London. The league is a feeder to Division One North of the Isthmian League, but may also see sides promoted to the Northern Premier League Midlands Division.
Bury Town Football Club is a semi-professional football club, based in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England. The club are currently members of the Isthmian League North Division and play at Ram Meadow.
Wroxham Football Club is a football club based in Wroxham, Norfolk, England. They are currently members of the Isthmian League North Division and play at Trafford Park.
Diss Town Football Club is a football club based in Diss, Norfolk, England. Affiliated to the Norfolk County FA they are currently members of the Eastern Counties League Division One North and play at Brewers Green Lane.
Gorleston Football Club is a football club based in Gorleston, Norfolk, England. They are currently members of the Isthmian League North Division and play at the Wellesley Recreation Ground in Great Yarmouth.
Leiston Football Club is a football club based in Leiston, Suffolk, England. They are currently members of the Southern League Premier Division Central and play at Victory Road.
Lowestoft Town Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Lowestoft, Suffolk, England. They are currently members of the Southern League Premier Division Central and play at Crown Meadow.
Newmarket Town Football Club is a football club based in Newmarket, Suffolk, England. Affiliated to the Suffolk County FA, they are currently members of the Isthmian League North Division and play at Cricket Field Road.
Norwich United Football Club is a football club based in Blofield, Norfolk, England. Affiliated to the Norfolk County FA, they are currently members of the Anglian Combination Premier Division and play at Plantation Park.
Ipswich Wanderers Football Club is a football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They are currently members of the Isthmian League North Division and play at Humber Doucy Lane in Rushmere.
Needham Market Football Club is a football club based in Needham Market, Suffolk, England. They are currently members of the National League North and play at Bloomfields.
Fakenham Town Football Club is a football club based in Fakenham, Norfolk, England. Affiliated to the Norfolk County Football Association, they are currently members of the Eastern Counties League Premier Division and play at Clipbush Park.
Thetford Town Football Club is an English football club based in Thetford, Norfolk. The club are currently members of the Eastern Counties League Premier Division and play at Mundford Road. The club is affiliated to the Norfolk County FA.
Norwich CBS Football Club was a football club based in Norwich, England. They were last members of the Eastern Counties League Division One North and played at the Football Development Centre in Bowthorpe until April 2024. On 12 May 2024 the club announced that they would be folding due to issues with finding a new ground.
Watton United Football Club is an English football club based in Watton, Norfolk. The club are currently members of the Anglian Combination Premier Division and play at Watton Sports Centre.
Norwich Church of England Young Men's Society Football Club, commonly called Norwich CEYMS, is a football club based in Swardeston, near Norwich, in Norfolk, England. They are currently members of the Anglian Combination Premier Division, having previously played in the Eastern Counties League. It has been suggested that the world's oldest football song, "On The Ball, City", was used for CEYMS before being adopted by Norwich City.
The 2012–13 season was the 71st in the history of Eastern Counties Football League a football competition in England.
Mulbarton Wanderers Football Club is a football club based in Mulbarton, Norfolk. The men's first team are currently members in the Eastern Counties League Premier Division and play at Mulberry Park.
University of East Anglia Football Club is a football club based in Norwich, England, and are the football team of the University of East Anglia. They are currently members of the Anglian Combination Premier Division and play at Aldiss Park, groundsharing with Dereham Town.
The 2022–23 season was the 80th season in the history of the Eastern Counties Football League, a football competition in England. Teams are divided into three divisions, the Premier Division at Step 5, and the geographically separated Division One North and Division One South, both at Step 6 of the English football league system.
