The George Ruffell Memorial Shield, also known as the Middlesex Super Cup is a cup that has been held every season since 1999 except 2008 between the holders of the Middlesex Senior Cup and the Middlesex Charity Cup. In 2001, because the Middlesex Charity Cup was not completed in the 2000-01 season, the winners of the Middlesex Senior Cup, Uxbridge, played against the previous winners of the Middlesex Charity Cup, Hayes. There was no competition in the calendar year 2005 because the match was moved from the beginning of the season to the end of the season. In 2008, the competition was not played because the Middlesex Charity Cup was not completed.
George Ruffell was a long-standing member of the Middlesex FA. After he died in 1998 the cup was established in his honour and it raises money for Macmillan Cancer Support.
Precursors
Prior to the establishment of this competition, there were two less formal events for which the winners of the Middlesex Senior Cup were invited at the start of the following campaign. The first of these was the Merthr-Middlesex Charity Shield (inaugurated at the start of season 1990/1), and this was superseded by the Melksham-Middlesex Charity Shield. The first of these competitions was promoted by Russell Grant, the television personality and patron of a number of sports clubs in Middlesex. The game was instigated to raise funds for the Harefield Hospital, Middlesex's famous heart hospital, and involved Merthyr Tydfil FC as it came from the area of the UK - South Wales - with one of the highest rates of heart disease, reportedly because of risks associated with the mining industry. This event had disappeared by 1997/8, when the Federation of Middlesex Sport, using a contact in Wiltshire, instigated the successor, which it is believed, was contested only on this single occasion. Neither of these Charity Shield single-match competitions was an official Middlesex County FA event, but both were sanctioned and tacitly supported by the county. As with the Middlesex Super Cup, drawn matches went straight to a penalty shoot-out, without extra time.
The following results are known; it is not known whether any other editions of these were played:
MERTHYR-MIDDLESEX CHARITY SHIELD
11.08.1990 Merthyr Tydfil 2-2 Staines Town (Staines won 3-2 on penalties)
06.08.1994 Merthyr Tydfil 5-1 Staines Town
MELKSHAM-MIDDLESEX CHARITY SHIELD
02.08.1997 Melksham Town 1-2 Staines Town
Related Research Articles
The Football Association Community Shield is English football's annual match contested at Wembley Stadium between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup. If the Premier League champions also won the FA Cup, then the league runners-up provide the opposition. The fixture is recognised as a competitive super cup by The Football Association and UEFA.
The FAW Premier Cup was a Welsh football cup competition, organised annually by the Football Association of Wales from 1997 to 2008. Since the FAW excluded clubs playing in English leagues from playing in the Welsh Cup from 1996 onwards, the FAW needed another competition where the best Welsh teams could compete.
Hendon Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Kingsbury in the London Borough of Brent. They are currently members of the Southern League Premier Division South and play at Silver Jubilee Park in Kingsbury.
Ashford Town (Middlesex) Football Club are a football club based in Stanwell, Surrey, England. The club are currently members of the Isthmian League South Central Division and play at the Robert Parker Stadium in Short Lane. They are affiliated to both the Middlesex FA and the Surrey FA.
Harrow Borough Football Club is an English football club based in Harrow, London. They were founded in 1933 and compete in the Southern League Premier Division South. Harrow Borough's home ground is Earlsmead Stadium, which has a capacity of 3,070. Harrow Borough moved into Earlsmead Stadium in 1934 and have kept it as their home stadium since then. Harrow Borough's colour is red, which is the colour of their home kit. Their crest depicts the coat of arms of the London Borough of Harrow.
Enfield Town Football Club is a football club based in Enfield Town, Greater London, England. Established in 2001 as a fan-led breakaway from Enfield, the club are currently members of the Isthmian League Premier Division and play at the Queen Elizabeth II Stadium. The club badge features the Enfield beast.
Staines Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Staines-upon-Thames, Surrey. Founded in 1892, they currently play in the Isthmian League South Central Division. The club is parented to the Middlesex County Football Association.
Hampton & Richmond Borough Football Club is an English football club based in the suburb of Hampton, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. They were founded in 1921 and formerly known as Hampton FC until 1999 when they changed their name in an attempt to draw a wider support base from around the borough. As of the 2021–22 season, they compete in the National League South, at the sixth tier of English football.
Wimborne Town Football Club is a football club based in Wimborne Minster in Dorset, England. They were established in 1878 and won the FA Vase in 1992. They reached the First Round Proper of the FA Cup in the 1982–83 season for the first time.
Staines Lammas Football Club is a football club based in the town of Staines-upon-Thames. The club is affiliated to the Middlesex County Football Association. They play in the Surrey Elite Intermediate League.
Northwood Football Club is an English football club based in Northwood in the London Borough of Hillingdon. The club is affiliated to the Middlesex County Football Association. They play their home games at The Fenton Civil Engineering Stadium in Northwood Recreation Ground, also known as Chestnut Avenue – the road on which the ground is located. The club are currently members of the Isthmian League South Central Division.
Melksham Town Football Club is a football club based in Melksham, Wiltshire, England. Affiliated to the Wiltshire Football Association, they are currently members of the Southern League Division One South and play at the Oakfield Stadium.
The Middlesex Senior Cup is the most prestigious football cup competition in the historic county of Middlesex, England. The competition is run mainly for non-League clubs in the region, although league clubs have been known to enter the competition, including Brentford, Barnet and Chelsea. In order to be eligible to play in the Middlesex Senior Cup, clubs have to play at step 5 or above of the National League System.
The Middlesex Senior Charity Cup is a knock-out system football competition that has been running since 1901. It was presented in 1901 by C.S. Goldmann, Esq. and was first played for in the 1901–02 season, the first winners being Clapton Orient. The competition is run mainly for non-league clubs in the region, although league sides have been known to enter the competition, such as Barnet, Brentford Chelsea Tottenham Hotspur and Q.P.R. Hayes have won the competition the most times, with 15 wins.
The 1992 FA Charity Shield was the 70th Charity Shield, a football match contested by the winners of the previous season's Football League and FA Cup competitions. The match was played on 8 August 1992 between 1991–92 Football League champions Leeds United and 1991–92 FA Cup winners Liverpool.
Hoffman Athletic F.C. was an English football club based in Stonehouse, Gloucestershire, and was one of the works football teams of the Hoffman's Bearings Company. The team played in the Western Football League for thirteen seasons after World War II, but left in 1959. They also participated in the FA Cup, and were managed by Hoffman's Production Manager and former RAF Bomber Command radio operator, Bill Clark.
Sean Hillier is an English semi-professional footballer who plays as a defender. Hillier began his career at Brentford and made one professional appearance before dropping into non-League football upon his release in 2005. He played the majority of his career for North Greenford United and made over 250 appearances across five spells with the club. He is currently assistant coach of Brentford Women.
The 2018–19 season is the 116th in the history of the Southern League since its establishment in 1894. The league has two Premier divisions at step 3 of the National League System (NLS) and two Division One divisions at step 4 of the NLS.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
