Original Club
It is believed that the original club was formed circa 1920 as West Wellow F.C. and played at the sports field on Lower Common Road - where Wellow & Plaitford Cricket Club still play. They initially played friendly fixtures before joining the Salisbury & District League. In 1927, they joined the newly formed Romsey Division of the Southampton League, remaining there until 1931 when it was merged in with the main Junior Divisions. [1]
The club disbanded during World War II, and did not reform until 1951. Now known as Wellow F.C., they returned to the Southampton League and enjoyed instant success, winning three successive Junior Division titles. Wellow then spent the sixties alternating between the Senior and Junior divisions until leaving the competition in 1974. The Sunday side continued playing until 1982. [2]
Present Day Club
Following the opening of the new Hatches Farm Sports Ground, Wellow F.C. was relaunched in 1987 as a Sunday side and joined the New Forest League. After enjoying much success, they transferred to the larger and more challenging City of Southampton Sunday League, where they climbed up through the divisions.
Wellow switched to Saturday football in 1992 and returned to the Southampton League. Here they enjoyed great success, winning two Junior Division titles as they climbed up through the ranks. [3]
After a spell of consolidation, the new millennium saw Wellow's fortunes again take off. Under the management of Wayne Lockey, they assembled a strong and experienced side, which won a series of promotions to reach the Premier Division. After finishing third in 2006, they carried out some impressive ground improvements and successfully applied to join the Wessex League Division 3. Here they finished third in their debut season, but after the local council rejected an application to install floodlights, the ambitious manager and players departed. [4]
Wellow then joined the Hampshire League 2004 for the 2007/08 campaign, but with a weakened side they struggled and finished bottom. This saw the club return to the Southampton League, but their fortunes did not improve and suffered further relegations down to Junior Division 3.
However, despite the this, the future looks bright as the youth section continue to thrive with numerous teams at various age categories, [5] and the facilities at Hatches Farm are being upgraded. [6]
