Beeston Football Club - also known as Beeston Town[1] - was an association football club from Beeston, then a village near Nottingham, active in the late 19th century.
| Full name | Beeston Football Club | |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1873 | |
| Dissolved | 1896 | |
| Ground | Victoria Hotel | |
| Secretary | Henry Orton | |
|
| ||
History
editThe club claimed a foundation date of 1873, but it had a fitful existence for the 1870s and 1880s, playing mostly friendly matches.[2] The club had a major boost in 1889, when several amateur players seceded from Nottingham Forest after the Reds turned professional. The club duly entered the 1889–90 FA Cup qualifying rounds, its first entry to the competition, but lost 3–2 to Notts Rangers in the first round; seven of the players were former Forest players.[3]
It also entered the Nottinghamshire Senior Cup in 1889–90, and drew Forest at home in the first round; as Forest had a Football Alliance match at home on the same day, it sent a third XI to the tie, which Beeston won, but in the face of the rival attraction in the town, the crowd was a mere 200.[4] Beeston went all the way to the final, at Forest's Gregory Ground, and won the trophy for the only time, thanks to a 3–1 win Newark.[5]
Newark complained about biased refereeing,[6] and had a chance for revenge in the 1890–91 FA Cup qualifying rounds as the clubs were drawn together in the second round, Beeston having had a bye. Newark looked as if it had indeed gained a modicum of revenge, reversing the final score on its own patch,[7] but Beeston successfully protested that Newark had fielded an ineligible player, and Beeston was put through to the third round instead.[8] Beeston duly lost 6–1 at Rotherham Town at the next stage, a result which "came as glad tidings to Newark".[9]
Beeston last entered the FA Cup in 1892–93, and scored its only win, beating Gedling Grove 4–1 in the first qualifying round; Beeston had been drawn at home, but its ground was flooded, so it was switched to the Nottingham Town ground, and "no-one attended".[10] In the second round, the club played well in the first half at Kettering, but "fell to pieces" in the second[11] and lost 6–1.
The club never disbanded as such, but petered out, as it did not join a league, which even town rival Beeston St John's managed to do; it was noted in January 1893 that it had not played for 8 weeks,[12] and the blame was put on the accession of Nottingham Forest to the Football League, as that meant local football fans could see League football most weekends.[13]
The club finished the 1894–95 season as runner-up in the Mansfield Charity Cup, going down 3–0 to Mansfield in the final,[14] and also lost in the final (2–1 to Newstead Byron) in 1895–96,[15] but that was the club's only fixture of note in 1896, and it does not seem to have played again.
Colours
editThe club's colours were a Corinthian white and navy blue, probably referring to a plain jersey.[16]
Ground
editThe club originally used the cricket ground, next to Beeston railway station, and the Victoria Hotel opposite provided facilities.[17] In 1893 it found a new ground on the Chilwell side of the Midland Railway line.[18]
Notable players
edit- Walter Luntley (goalkeeper) and George Lutin (centre-forward), brother and brother-in-law respectively of England international Ted Luntley, both of whom left Forest for Beeston in 1889[19]
References
edit- ^ "More football gossip". Athletic News: 6. 2 September 1889.
- ^ "Beeston v Board School Teachers". Nottinghamshire Guardian: 12. 14 December 1877.
- ^ "Beeston beaten". Athletic News: 6. 28 October 1889.
- ^ "Notts Senior Cup". Nottingham Evening Post: 3. 4 January 1890.
- ^ "Notts Cup - Final Tie". Nottingham Evening Post: 3. 5 April 1890.
- ^ "Football, Athletic, and other notes on sport". Newark Herald: 5. 11 October 1890.
- ^ "Sports and pastimes". Nottingham Evening Post: 4. 29 October 1890.
- ^ "The Football Association". Derby Daily Telegraph: 4. 11 November 1890.
- ^ "Football, athletics, and other notes on sport". Newark Herald: 5. 22 November 1890.
- ^ "Nottingham Gedling Grove v Beeston Town". Nottingham Evening Post: 3. 15 October 1892.
- ^ "Our local clubs column". Football News (Nottingham): 3. 5 November 1892.
- ^ "Beeston". Nottingham Evening Post: 4. 28 January 1893.
- ^ "Beeston". Football News: 2. 3 September 1892.
- ^ "Mansfield Charity Cup - Final". Hucknall Morning Star and Advertiser: 3. 5 April 1895.
- ^ "Mansfield Charity Cup - Final". Sheffield Independent: 8. 27 April 1896.
- ^ Alcock, Charles (1891). Football Annual. London: Wright & Co. p. 170.
- ^ Alcock, Charles (1890). Football Annual. London: Wright & Co. p. 164.
- ^ "Beeston Town". Football News (Nottingham): 6. 1 September 1894.
- ^ "Ted Luntley". England Football Online. Retrieved 8 June 2024.