Maidenhead United F.C.

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Maidenhead United
Maidenhead United FC crest.svg
Full nameMaidenhead United Football Club
Nickname(s)The Magpies
FoundedOctober 1870
Ground York Road, Maidenhead
Capacity4,000 (550 seated) [1]
ChairmanPeter Griffin
Manager Alan Devonshire
League National League South
2024–25 National League, 22nd of 24 (relegated)
Website maidenheadunitedfc.org
Maidenhead United take on Barnet at York Road on 26 August 2024 Maidenhead v Barnet 022.jpg
Maidenhead United take on Barnet at York Road on 26 August 2024

Maidenhead United Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Maidenhead, Berkshire, England. Affiliated to the Berks & Bucks FA, they are currently members of the National League South.

Contents

The club were established in October 1870 and have played at York Road since 1871, making it the 'oldest senior football ground continuously used by the same club'. [2] In 1871–72 they were one of the fifteen clubs to play in the inaugural FA Cup. The club went on to reach the FA Cup quarter finals three times in the 1870s, before becoming founder members of the Southern League in 1894. They subsequently played in the Great Western Suburban League (1904–1922), Spartan League (1922–1939), Corinthian League (1945–1963), Athenian League (1963–1973), Isthmian League (1973–2004), and National League South before returning to the Southern League for a season in 2006–07. They played in the National League from 2017 to 2025, returning to the National League South for the current season.

History

Maidenhead Football Club was established in October 1870, with the club's first match played on 17 December 1870 against Windsor Home Park at Bond's Meadow. [3] They were one of the fifteen clubs to play in the inaugural FA Cup competition in 1871–72, beating Marlow 2–0 in the first round before losing 3–0 at Crystal Palace. [4] The club reached the quarter finals the following season, eventually losing 4–0 to Oxford University. [4] The club were quarter-finalists again in 1873–74 – losing 7–0 at Royal Engineers – and 1874–75, when they were beaten 1–0 at Old Etonians. [4] Maidenhead Temperance and Boyne Hill both merged into the club in 1891. [3]

Maidenhead were founder members of the Southern League in 1894, joining Division Two. They finished bottom of the division in its inaugural season and again in 1898–99 and 1899–1900, before leaving the league in 1902. [4] The club subsequently dropped into the West Berkshire League and the Berks and Bucks League. [3] They won the West Berkshire League at the first attempt and were runners-up in 1903–04, [5] before joining the new Great Western Suburban League alongside Maidenhead Norfolkians in 1904. [6]

Following a meeting in April 1919 Maidenhead Norfolkians merged into the club. The newly-united won the Great Western Suburban League in 1919–20, [6] after which the club was renamed Maidenhead United. [6] The club were runners-up in the Great Western Suburban League in 1920–21, [6] before joining Division One of the Spartan League in 1922. [7] They won the Division One title in 1926–27, before being placed in Division One West in 1928 amidst league reorganisation. The club were Division One West runners-up in 1928–29 before being placed in the Premier Division the following season. [7]

Maidenhead were Premier Division runners-up in 1930–31 and went on to win the league the following season. [7] Although the club finished in the bottom half of the table in 1932–33, they won the Premier Division title for a second time in 1933–34. [6] In 1935–36 they reached the semi-finals of the FA Amateur Cup, losing 4–1 to Ilford at Upton Park. [8] After the outbreak of World War II in 1939, the club joined the Great Western Combination, finishing as runners-up in 1944–45. [9] They then joined the newly formed Corinthian League. [10] The club won the league's Memorial Shield in 1956–57 and were league champions the following season. [5] In 1960–61 they reached the first round of the FA Cup for the first time since the formation of the Football League, losing 5–0 at Colchester United; the club went on to win the Corinthian League for a second time at the end of the season. [8] After winning the league again in 1960–61, they won the league and Memorial Shield double in 1961–62. [5]

Another FA Cup first round appearance followed in 1962–63, ending with a 3–0 defeat at home to Wycombe Wanderers. In 1963 the Corinthian League merged into the Athenian League, with Maidenhead becoming members of the Premier Division. In their first season in the new league the club reached the first round of the FA Cup again, losing 2–0 at home to Bath City. [8] A fourth FA Cup first round appearance in 1971–72 saw them lose 2–0 at Enfield. [8] In 1973 the club joined Division Two of the Isthmian League, which was renamed Division One in 1977. [8] They were relegated to Division Two South at the end of the 1986–87 season, where they remained until finishing as runners-up in 1990–91, earning promotion back to Division One. [8] In 1996–97 the club won the league's Full Members Cup. [5]

A third-place finish in Division One in 1999–2000 saw Maidenhead promoted to the Premier Division. In 2003–04 they finished twelfth in the Premier Division, earning a place in the new Conference South. However, after finishing bottom of the division in 2005–06, the club were relegated to the Premier Division of the Southern League. The following season saw them reach the FA Cup first round for the first time since the 1970s, losing 2–0 at Stafford Rangers in a replay; [8] they also finished fourth in the Premier Division qualifying for the promotion play-offs; the club went on to defeat King's Lynn 1–0 in the semi-finals before beating Team Bath by the same scoreline in the final to secure promotion back to the Conference South. Another FA Cup first round appearance in 2007–08 ended with a 4–1 defeat at Horsham. They reached the first round again in 2011–12 (losing 2–0 to Aldershot Town in a replay) and 2015–16 (losing 3–1 at home to Port Vale in another replay). [8]

In 2016–17 Maidenhead won the renamed National League South, earning promotion to the National League. [8] [11] In their first season in the division, another FA Cup first round appearance saw them lose 2–0 at Coventry City. [12] They reached the first round again in 2019–20, losing 3–1 at home to Rotherham United. [13] The 2019–20 National League season was officially curtailed on 31 March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, requiring the outcome of the final table to be decided on a points per game basis. [14] [15] Maidenhead were narrowly spared from relegation to the National League South after Ebbsfleet United were relegated by 0.002 of a point. [16]

After finishing third-from-bottom of the National League in 2024–25 Maidenhead were relegated to the National League South.

Colours

The club's original colours were red and black hooped jerseys. [17] [18] In 1919, after the merger with Norfolkians, the club colours were changed to black and white. [3]

Ground

A plaque at York Road commemorates its recognition by The Football Association as the oldest football ground in continuous use by the same senior club. YorkRoadplaque.jpg
A plaque at York Road commemorates its recognition by The Football Association as the oldest football ground in continuous use by the same senior club.
York Road Maidenhead United FC Maidenhead v Sutton 011.jpg
York Road Maidenhead United FC
The Railway Stand at York Road Maidenhead v Fylde 003.jpg
The Railway Stand at York Road

The club played their first home match at Bond's Meadow, before moving to York Road in 1871, with the first match at the new ground played on 16 February 1871 against Marlow. [3] York Road had been a cricket ground from the late eighteenth century, and is acknowledged as the 'oldest senior football ground continuously used by the same club'. [2] The freehold of the ground was bought in 1920. [3] The club's record attendance of 7,920 was set for an FA Amateur Cup quarter-final against Southall on 7 March 1936, [19] with Maidenhead winning 1–0. [8]

Women

Maidenhead United Women were formed in 2008. Following two promotions, the club have operated at Tier 4 of women's football in England since 2015, competing in FA Women's National League Division 1 South West.

Juniors

Maidenhead United Juniors was founded in 2019 and currently runs more than 60 teams providing football football for youngsters between the ages of 6 and 18 across various local leagues in Berkshire and Buckinghamshire.

Players

Current squad

As of 2 September 2025 [20]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.Pos.NationPlayer
1 GK Flag of England.svg  ENG Harvey Collins
2 DF Flag of England.svg  ENG Ryan Bartley
3 DF Flag of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.svg  VIN Jordan Ragguette
4 DF Flag of England.svg  ENG Will de Havilland
5 DF Flag of England.svg  ENG Miles Welch-Hayes
7 FW Flag of Guyana.svg  GUY Callum Harriott
9 FW Flag of England.svg  ENG Corie Andrews
10 MF Flag of Ireland.svg  IRL Kane Ferdinand
11 MF Flag of England.svg  ENG Jayden Mitchell-Lawson
12 MF Flag of England.svg  ENG Matt Robinson
14 MF Flag of England.svg  ENG Harry Pritchard
15 FW Flag of England.svg  ENG Josh Umerah
No.Pos.NationPlayer
17 FW Flag of England.svg  ENG Liam Dulson
19 DF Flag of England.svg  ENG Owen Cochrane
20 DF Flag of France.svg  FRA Remy Clerima
22 GK Flag of the Netherlands.svg  NED Jordi van Stappershoef
23 MF Flag of England.svg  ENG Josh Popoola
25 MF Flag of England.svg  ENG Sam Barratt
27 MF Flag of England.svg  ENG Kai Yearn (on loan from Coventry City)
28 DF Flag of England.svg  ENG Josh McMenemy
29 MF Flag of England.svg  ENG Jadyn Dundas
30 DF Flag of England.svg  ENG Manny Onariase
33 FW Ulster Banner.svg  NIR Noah Stewart

Honours

Records

Managerial history

As of 5 May 2025. 'Caretaker managers' in italics.
NameFromToPWDLWin %
Charles Barley 1946194720441220
Selection Committee19471950
Charles Barley 19501951542582146.3
Kenneth Andrew Millar Inglis1951195219401521.05
Edgar Woodford195219547628113736.84
Len Townsend 19541959214125325758.41
Jimmy Price19591964233140336060.09
Len Townsend 19641969257103599540.08
Ken Holmes19691969311061532.26
Stan Payne1969197025661324
Maurice Williams1970197215073314648.67
Mike Hall1973197512952294840.31
George Harris 1975197712928346721.71
Geoff Anthony1977198013875243954.35
Ian Bath & Mick Chatterton19801981521992436.54
John Dempsey 198119827520154026.67
Brian Caterer & Colin Lippiatt1982198616967336939.64
Tim Smith19861987622083432.26
Jimmy Kelman19871988321381140.63
Derek Jones19881988842250
Martyn Spong & Cliff Jones1988198829881327.59
Martyn Spong1988199112761313548.03
Brian Caterer 19911991201110
Gary Goodwin19911992341171632.35
John Clements199219924113131531.71
John Watt1992199617954537230.17
Alan Devonshire & Martyn Busby 19961997411571936.59
Alan Devonshire 199720033481537412143.97
John Dreyer 200320047929153536.71
Richie Goddard & Brian Connor 20042004621333.33
Dennis Greene 2004200529781424.14
Carl Taylor200520065011152422
Richie Goddard200620064400100
Johnson Hippolyte 200620154451609419135.96
Alan Devonshire 2015Present49718811119838.71

See also

References

  1. Maidenhead United Football Ground Guide
  2. 1 2 Country's 'oldest' football ground in Maidenhead gets plaque Archived 6 December 2020 at the Wayback Machine BBC News, 13 October 2012
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 History Archived 19 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine Maidenhead United F.C.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Maidenhead at the Football Club History Database
  5. 1 2 3 4 Honours Maidenhead United F.C.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Great Western Suburban League 1904–1931 Non-League Matters
  7. 1 2 3 Spartan League 1907–1934 Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine Non-League Matters
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Maidenhead United at the Football Club History Database
  9. Great Western Combination 1939–1964 Archived 23 June 2015 at the Wayback Machine Non-League Matters
  10. Corinthian League 1945–1963 Non-League Matters
  11. "National League South Table & Standings". Sky Sports. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
  12. "Coventry City 2–0 Maidenhead United". BBC Sport. 5 November 2017. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  13. "Maidenhead United 1–3 Rotherham United". BBC Sport. 9 November 2019. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  14. "National League 'indefinitely suspends' season due to coronavirus outbreak". The Guardian. 31 March 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
  15. "Barrow promoted back to English Football League after National League vote". BBC Sport. 17 June 2020. Archived from the original on 19 June 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
  16. "Ebbsfleet United: National League club call off relegation legal challenge". BBC Sport. 14 July 2020. Archived from the original on 28 August 2023. Retrieved 28 August 2023.
  17. Alcock, Charles (1872). Football Annual. London: Virtue. p. 58.
  18. Alcock, Charles (1876). Football Annual. London: Ward, Lock, & Tyler. p. 136.
  19. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Mike Williams & Tony Williams (2016) Non-League Club Directory 2017, Tony Williams Publications, p132 ISBN   978-1869833695
  20. "FootballSquads - Maidenhead United - 2022/2023".
  21. Further Honours Archived 29 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine Maidenhead United F.C.