| Full name | Newark Football Club | |
|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | the Trentsiders | |
| Founded | 1868 | |
| Dissolved | 1914 | |
| Ground | Muskham Road | |
Newark F.C. was a football club from the town of Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire. It was one of the first clubs to play association football.
The club was formed in 1868, and its first activity was a match between eleven of the club members on 31 October 1868, under association rules, at the Grove Ground on the London Road. [1]
Its first match against an external side took place in January 1869, under the rugby football code, against Nottingham Forest. Newark had the advantage of Forest not knowing the rugby rules, but the match ended in a draw. [2] For the next season, the club adopted the association code, and its first recorded match under the FA laws was a 3-0 defeat to Notts County in November 1869, the heavier Newark side unable to cope with the speed of the County players; also not helped by Newark playing with 10 men against 12. [3] The club's experimentation with codes continued in December 1869, the club losing to Sheffield F.C. in a match played "to no particular rules", the Sheffield club not requiring strict adherence to the Sheffield code. [4]
The club first entered the FA Cup in 1884-85, beating Spilsby F.C. in the first round (coming from 3-0 down to win 7-3), [5] and losing at Middlesbrough in the second. As the Newark shirts of chocolate and cherry were similar to the Boro shirts of green and cardinal halves, the latter's players tied white handkerchiefs around their arms to aid distinguishing. [6] The following season was the club's second and last entry into the main draw, ending in the first round with a defeat at home to Sheffield F.C. in front of a crowd of just 100, reduced by appalling weather. [7]
The club had not turned professional as the rest of the game did, and played in the Midland League from 1892 to 1896, and 1899 to 1909. The club's best League seasons were in 1903-04 and 1904-05, when the club finished third. [8] By 1909 though the club was struggling, and at the end of the 1908-09 season the club withdrew from the League, an appeal for help from the public having received a poor response. [9]
The club was defunct by 1914, with an overdraft of £78, and with the club's bank suing the guarantors for reimbursement. [10] The role of the town club was taken up by Newark Town F.C. in the 1920s.
The club's original colours were white shirts and red knickerbockers, with blue and red caps. [11] The club retained the red, white, and blue colours until at least 1875. By 1885, [12] the club had changed to chocolate and cherry, probably in halves, [13] and by 1893 were wearing black and white halves. [14] In the 20th century, the club usually wore white shirts and black shorts.
The club originally played at the Grove Ground; in 1870 the club moved to Hunt's Field on Balderton Road, [15] and in 1875 to the Newark Cricket Ground on Kelham Road. [16] By 1889 Newark was playing at Muskham Road, using the facilities of the Midland Hotel. [17]
Wanderers Football Club was an English association football club. It was founded as "Forest Football Club" in 1859 in Leytonstone. In 1864, it changed its name to "Wanderers", a reference to it never having a home stadium, instead playing at various locations in London and the surrounding area. Comprising mainly former pupils of the leading English public schools, Wanderers was one of the dominant teams in the early years of organised football and won the inaugural Football Association Challenge Cup in 1872. The club won the competition five times in total, including three in succession from 1876 to 1878, a feat which has been repeated only once.
Charles William Alcock was an English sportsman, administrator, author and editor. He was a major instigator in the development of both international football and cricket, as well as being the creator of the FA Cup.
Heeley F.C. was an English association football club based in Sheffield, Yorkshire.
The Combination Game was a style of association football based around teamwork and cooperation. It would gradually favour the passing of the ball between players over individual dribbling skills which had been a notable feature of early Association games. It developed from "scientific" football and is considered to be the predecessor of the modern passing game of football. It originated in Britain and its origins are associated with early clubs: Sheffield FC, The Royal Engineers AFC, Queen's Park FC and Cambridge University AFC. Each of these claimants is supported by retrospective accounts from men who were notable in the early history of football. They are considered below in the order of earliest contemporary evidence of "scientific" football playing styles.
Crystal Palace F.C. was an amateur football club formed in 1861 who contributed to the development of association football during its formative years. They were founder members of the Football Association in 1863, and competed in the first ever FA Cup competition in 1871–72.
N.N. Club or N.N. Kilburn—N.N. standing for "No Names" —was an amateur English football club based in the Kilburn district of London.
Wednesbury Strollers F.C. was an English football club based in Wednesbury, Staffordshire which was active in the 1870s and 1880s.
Notts Rangers Football Club was an English football club, founded in 1868 under the name Nottingham St James. They became Nottingham Rangers in 1880 and by 1886 were habitually referred to as Notts Rangers.
Owlerton Football Club was an English football club, founded in 1873. The club was based in the northwest Sheffield suburb of Owlerton.
Staveley F.C. was a football club in Staveley, a village in Derbyshire, England.
Airdrie Football Club was a Scottish association football club based in the town of Airdrie, Lanarkshire.
Park Grange F.C. was an English association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire.
1st Surrey Rifles F.C. was an amateur football club, open to members of the corps, who featured in the early years of the FA Cup from 1872 to 1878. The first reported match played against external opposition was a 1-0 victory against the Lausanne club at the latter's Rosemary Branch ground in 1871.
Pilgrims F.C. was an English association football club based in Clapton, London. During their history they played at various grounds in Tottenham and Walthamstow, but for the most part played home games at Hackney Downs.
Rochester F.C. was an English association football club from Rochester in Kent.
Derbyshire F.C., often referred to as Derby F.C., was an English association football club, based at the Derbyshire County Cricket Ground in Derby, England.
Notts Olympic Football Club was an English football club from the Radford district of Nottingham.
Nottingham Wanderers F.C. was an English association football club from Nottinghamshire.
East Sheen Football Club was an English football and rugby club from Surrey in England.
Jardines F.C. was an English association football club from Nottingham, England.
