Bromley F.C.

Bromley Football Club is a professional football club based in Bromley, South London, England. They are currently members of the National League, the fifth tier of English football, and play at Hayes Lane.

Bromley
Full nameBromley Football Club
Nickname(s)The Ravens, The Lillywhites
Founded1892 (1892)
GroundHayes Lane, Bromley
Capacity5,000 (1,300 seated)[1]
ChairmanRobin Stanton-Gleaves
ManagerNeil Smith
LeagueNational League
2019–20National League, 13th of 24
WebsiteClub website

History

Established in 1892,[2] Bromley initially played in the South London League,[1] before becoming founder members of the Southern League in 1894, joining Division Two.[3] However, after finishing bottom of Division Two in 1895–96 they left to become founder members of the London League, also joining Division Two.[3] They won the division at the first attempt, and were promoted to Division One.[4] They switched to the Kent League for the 1898–99 season, but after finishing bottom of the league, they returned to Division One of the London League.[3] During the 1899–1900 season the club withdrew from Division One, taking over their reserves' fixtures in Division Two.[4] They withdrew from Division Two at the end of the 1900–01 season.[4]

In 1907 the club were founder members of the Spartan League and went on to become its inaugural champions.[3] They joined the Isthmian League for the following season, and won back-to-back titles in 1908–09 and 1909–10. In 1910–11 the club won the FA Amateur Cup, beating Bishop Auckland 1–0 in the final.[3] The season also saw them finish seventh in 1910–11,[3] the club returned to the Kent League and were placed in Division One.[5] They remained in the league until World War I,[5] but joined the Athenian League when football resumed in 1919.[3] The club were Athenian League champions in 1922–23. In 1937–38 they reached the first round of the FA Cup for the first time. After beating King's Lynn in the first round, they lost 4–1 at Scarborough in the second.[3] They also reached the final of the FA Amateur Cup again, beating Erith & Belvedere 1–0.[3] The club repeated the feat the following season, this time playing Football League opposition for the first time as they lost 8–1 at Lincoln City in the second round.[3] In 1945–46 another second round appearance resulted in a 4–2 aggregate defeat to Watford.[3] In 1947–48 they held Reading to a 1–1 draw in the first round, before losing the replay at Elm Park 3–0.[3]

The club won another Athenian League title and the FA Amateur Cup in 1948–49, with the following season seeing another FA first round defeat, this time 2–1 to Watford. In 1950–51 the club won their third Athenian League title; the season also saw them lose 1–0 to Aldershot in the FA Cup first round. Going straight into the first round the following season, they lost 3–2 at Torquay United.[3] In 1952 they rejoined the Isthmian League, and after finishing as runners-up in their first season back in the league, they were champions in 1953–54.[3] They won the league for a fourth time in 1960–61.[3]

After finishing bottom of Division One in the 1974–75 season Bromley were relegated to Division Two. In 1976–77 the club appeared in the FA Cup first round for the first time in over twenty years, losing 7–0 at Swindon Town. Division Two became Division One in 1977, and the club were promoted to the Premier Division after finishing as runners-up in 1979–80.[3] They were relegated to Division One again in 1984–85, but returned to the Premier Division as Division One runners-up in 1985–86. Another relegation followed in 1989–90, but was followed by an immediate return to the Premier Division as Division One runners-up in 1990–91.[3] In 1996–97 they qualified for the FA Cup first round again, but were beaten 3–1 at home by Enfield.[3]

Bromley were relegated to Division One again at the end of the 1998–99 season. A fourth-place finish in 2004–05 saw them qualify for the promotion play-offs, and after defeating Metropolitan Police on penalties in the semi-finals, they beat Horsham 3–1 in the final to earn promotion to the Premier Division.[6] In 2006–07 they finished as runners-up in the Premier Division, again qualifying for the promotion play-offs. A 1–0 win over AFC Wimbledon in the semi-finals and a victory against Billericay Town on penalties in the final saw them promoted to the Conference South. The season had also seen them reach the FA Cup first round again, eventually losing 4–1 at Gillingham. Further appearances in the first round were achieved in 2009–10 (against Colchester United), 2011–12 (Leyton Orient), 2012–13 (Fleetwood Town) and 2014–15 (Dartford), but they were beaten on each occasion.[3]

In 2014–15 Bromley won the Conference South, earning promotion to the renamed National League,[3] where they have remained since. Another FA Cup first round appearance in 2017–18 saw them defeated by Rochdale. The season also saw them reach the final of the FA Trophy, where they lost 5–4 on penalties to Brackley Town after the match had ended in a 1–1 draw.[7]

Ground
Main article: Hayes Lane

The club initially played at the Queensmead Recreation Ground, before moving to Glebe Road.[8] Seven years later they moved to the Plaistow Cricket Club ground when Glebe Road was bought for use as housing.[8] However, the crickets club's ground was also obtained for housing in 1904, leading to the football club (and the other sports club using the ground) to move to a site on Hayes Lane. The new ground was opened on 3 September 1904.[8]

In 1938 the club moved to the current Hayes Lane ground. The record attendance of 10,798 was set during a game against a Nigeria XI in September 1948.[8] The ground currently has a capacity of 5,000, of which 1,300 is seated and 2,500 is covered.[1]

Players

Current squad
As of 23 January 2021[9]

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

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  ENG Mark Cousins
2 DF  ENG Joe Kizzi
4 MF  ENG Billy Bingham
5 DF  ENG Chris Bush
6 DF  ENG Jack Holland (Captain)
7 MF  ENG Luke Coulson
8 MF  ENG Frankie Raymond
9 FW  ENG Michael Cheek
10 FW  ENG James Alabi
11 FW  IRL Courtney Duffus
12 MF  ENG Tom Purrington
13 GK  LBN Tarek Najia
No. Pos. Nation Player
14 DF  ENG Kory Roberts
15 MF  ENG Taylor Maloney
16 MF  ENG Liam Trotter
17 DF  ENG Byron Webster
18 FW  ENG Ben Williamson
19 MF  ENG Harry Forster (on loan from Watford)
20 MF  ENG Jude Arthurs
21 MF  ENG Ollie Tanner
22 DF  ENG Liam Vincent
23 MF  ENG Charlie Wakefield
24 MF  ENG Jack Bridge
25 GK  ENG Kameron Edwards

Coaching staff
Role Name
Manager Neil Smith
Academy coach Mark Hammond
U23s manager Roger Johnson
Player-Coach Alan Dunne
Goalkeeping coach Andy Little
Fitness Coach Ben May
Physiotherapist Rich Sterling
Performance Analyst Ronan Howard
Kit Man Paddy Gray

Club personnel

As of 5 August 2019[10]

Role Name
Chairman Robin Stanton-Gleaves
Vice-Chairman Jon Plassard
Director of Football Jeremy Dolke
Assistant Director of Football Matt Hall
Vice President Paul Greenwood
Director David Waller

Honours
  • National League
    • National League South champions 2014–15
  • Isthmian League
    • Champions 1908–09, 1909–10, 1953–54, 1960–61
  • Athenian League
    • Champions 1922–23, 1948–49, 1950–51
  • Spartan League
    • Champions 1907–08
  • London League
    • Division Two champions 1896–97
  • FA Amateur Cup
    • Winners 1910–11, 1937–38, 1948–49
  • London Senior Cup
    • Winners 1909–10, 1945–46, 1950–51, 2002–03, 2012–13[2]
  • Kent Senior Cup
    • Winners 1949–50, 1976–77, 1991–92, 1996–97, 2005–06, 2006–07[2]
  • London Challenge Cup
    • Winners 1995–96[2]
  • Kent Floodlit Trophy
    • Winners 1978–79[2]
  • Kent Amateur Cup
    • Winners 1907–08, 1931–32, 1935–36, 1936–37, 1938–39, 1946–47, 1948–49, 1950–51, 1952–53, 1953–54, 1954–55, 1959–60[2]

Records
  • Best FA Cup performance: Second round, 1937–38, 1938–39, 1945–46[3]
  • Best FA Trophy performance: Finalists, 2017–18[3]
  • Record attendance: 10,789 vs Nigeria XI, 24 September 1948[8]
  • Biggest victory: 13–1 vs Redhill, Athenian League, 1945–46[1]
  • Heaviest defeat: 11–1 vs Barking, Athenian League, 1933–34[1]
  • Most appearances: George Brown (1938–1961)[1]
  • Most goals: George Brown, 570 (1938–1961)[1]
  • Record transfer fee received: Undisclosed sum from Portsmouth for Reeco Hackett-Fairchild, January 2020[11]

See also
  • Bromley F.C. players
  • Bromley F.C. managers

Lifelong fan Dave Roberts has written several books on his experiences following Bromley FC: The Bromley Boys (2008),[12] 32 Programmes (2011) [13] and Home and Away (2016).[14] The Bromley Boys has also been made into a film available on DVD and via streaming, starring Martine McCutcheon, Alan Davies and Jamie Foreman.[15]

References
  1. Mike Williams & Tony Williams (2013) Non-League Club Directory 2013: 35th Edition TW Publications, p273
  2. Bromley vs Whitehawk Bromley F.C.
  3. Bromley at the Football Club History Database
  4. London League 1896-1910 Non-League Matters
  5. The 'original' Kent League 1894-1922 Non-League Matters
  6. 2004-05 Isthmian League Football Club History Database
  7. FA Trophy final: Brackley Town beat Bromley 5-4 on penalties after 1-1 draw BBC Sport, 20 May 2018
  8. Bromley Pyramid Passion
  9. [http://www.bromleyfc.tv/site/2020-21-squad-numbers-confirmed/
  10. Who's who Bromley F.C.
  11. Hackett-Fairchild joins Portsmouth Bromley F.C.
  12. Roberts, Dave (2008). The Bromley Boys. London: Portico. ISBN 9781906032241.
  13. Roberts, Dave (2011). 32 Programmes. London: Bantam Books. ISBN 9780593067376.
  14. Roberts, Dave (2016). Home and Away : Round Britain in Search of Non-League Football Nirvana. London: Bantam Books. ISBN 9780593076804.
  15. The Bromley Boys at IMDb
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