Matlock Town F.C.

Matlock Town Football Club is a football club based in Matlock, Derbyshire, England. Nicknamed ‘the Gladiators’, they are currently members of the Northern Premier League Premier Division and play at Causeway Lane.

Matlock Town
Full nameMatlock Town Football Club
Nickname(s)The Gladiators
Founded1878 (1878)
GroundCauseway Lane, Matlock
Capacity2,400[1]
ChairmanBryn Apperley
ManagerPaul Phillips
LeagueNorthern Premier League Premier Division
2019–20Northern Premier League Premier Division (season abandoned)

History

The club was established in 1878 as Matlock Football Club.[2] They began entering the FA Cup in 1885, but did not win a match in the competition until 1890.[2] In that year the club were founder members of the Derbyshire Senior League and went on to win the title in the league's inaugural season.[3] After winning the league again the following season,[3] they joined the Midland Amateur Alliance in 1892. However, the league was disbanded at the end of the 1892–93 season and Matlock returned to the Derbyshire Senior League.[4][3] They subsequently joined the Midland League in 1894; after finishing bottom of the league in their first season, the club lost all 28 league matches in 1895–96 and left the league,[4] again returning to the Derbyshire Senior League.[3] They finished bottom of the league in 1897–98.[3]

After World War I the club was renamed Matlock Town. They joined the Central Alliance in 1924, but the league folded at the end of the 1924–25 season and the club rejoined the Derbyshire Senior League,[5] in which they were runners-up in 1926–27.[3] In 1933 they joined the new Central Combination, but left after two season.[6] After World War II the club played in the Chesterfield & District League for the 1946–47 season,[7] before the Central Alliance was re-established in 1947, with Matlock becoming members again.[8] When the league gained a second division in 1950, they became members of Division One. Despite finishing bottom of the division in 1951–52, the club were not relegated.[8]

In 1955–56 Matlock finished bottom of Division One again.[8] The league was then reorganised, with the club placed in Division One North.[8] They won the division in 1959–60, also reaching the first round of the FA Cup, losing 1–0 to Crook Town in a replay.[9] After retaining the league title the following season,[8] the club moved up to the reformed Midland League, which they won the at the first attempt. They were Midland League champions again in 1968–69, subsequently joining the Northern Premier League.[9] They reached the first round of the FA Cup again in 1974–75, losing 4–1 at home to Blackburn. In the FA Trophy the club reached the final at Wembley Stadium, in which they defeated Scarborough 4–0 to win the trophy;[9] three Matlock players in the final were brothers, the only occasion on which three brothers have played for the same team in a Wembley final.[10] The following season saw them automatically qualify for the first round, but they lost 4–1 at Wigan Athletic.[9]

Matlock were drawn against Wigan in the first round of the FA Cup again in 1976–77, this time winning 2–0. They went on to beat eventual Third Division champions Mansfield Town in an incredible 5–2 away from home, marking the first time the club had defeated Football League opposition.[2] In the third round they lost 5–1 at Carlisle United.[9] The club won the Northern Premier League's Challenge Cup and the Peter Swales Shield in 1977–78. In 1979 they entered the Anglo-Italian Cup, finishing second in the English section.[11] The 1983–84 season saw them finish as runners-up in the Northern Premier League. When the league gained a second division in 1987 the club became members of the Premier Division. Another FA Cup first round appearance in 1989–90 ended in a 4–1 defeat at Scunthorpe United. After finishing bottom of the division in 1995–96, they were relegated to Division One.[9]

In 2003–04 Matlock were Division One runners-up, earning promotion to the Premier Division. They won the league's Challenge Cup the following season. A fifth-place finish in the Premier Division in 2007–08 led to the club qualifying for the promotion playoffs, in which they lost 4–2 to Witton Albion in the semi-finals.

Ground
The club's home ground, photographed during the summer while development work was going on
Main stand and bar/function area at far end. Riber Castle can be seen in the top right.
Matlock (green shirts) in action against Leek Town in 2007

The club originally played at Hall Leys, before moving to Causeway Lane, which is shared with the local cricket club, with temporary railing installed on one side of the pitch at the end of the cricket season.[10] A wooden stand was built on one side of the pitch in 1920 and was later named the Cyril Harrison Stand.[10] Another wooden stand was built on the other side of the pitch in 1959, with seats installed in the late 1960s.[10]

Floodlights were erected in 1970 and a new terrace installed next to one of the stands prior to the FA Cup first round match against Blackburn in 1974, which attracted a then-record attendance of 5,123.[9] More seats were installed in 1975 and that year saw a new record attendance of 5,123 set for an FA Trophy semi-final match against Burton Albion.[10] A covered terrace was built at the Town End of the ground in the 1980s.[10]

Current squad
As of 8 January 2021[12]

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

Pos. Nation Player
GK  ENG Jon Stewart
DF  ENG Sam Egerton
DF  ENG Reece Kendall (on loan at Guiseley)
DF  ENG Kelvin Lugsden
DF  ENG Ryan Qualter
DF  ENG Lewis Turner
DF  EIR Declan Walker
DF  ENG Adam Yates
MF  ENG Alex Byrne
MF  ENG Callum Chippendale
MF  ENG Joe Coveney
Pos. Nation Player
MF  ENG Callum Dolan
MF  ENG Spencer Harris
MF  ENG Adam Kimberley
MF  SCO Craig King
MF  ENG Mark Lees
MF  ENG Louis Potts
MF  ENG Nathan Valentine
FW  NGA Chib Chilaka
FW  ENG Ben Edgson
FW  ENG Ross Hannah
FW  ENG Liam Hughes (on loan at Kettering Town)

Honours
Matlock Town after winning the Derbyshire Senior Cup in 2015, beating Gresley 7–0.
  • FA Trophy
    • Winners 1974–75
  • Northern Premier League
    • Challenge Cup winners 1977–78, 2004–05
    • Shield winners 1978–79
  • Midland League
    • Champions 1961–62, 1968–69
  • Central Alliance
    • North Division champions 1959–60, 1960–61
  • Derbyshire Senior League
    • Champions 1890–91, 1891–92
  • Derbyshire Senior Cup
    • Winners 1974–75, 1976–77, 1977–78, 1983–84, 1984–85, 1991–92, 2003–04, 2009–10, 2014–15, 2016–17[13]
  • Evans Halshaw Floodlit Cup
    • Winners 1988–89, 1990–91[13]

Records

See also
  • Matlock Town F.C. players
  • Matlock Town F.C. managers

References
  1. Beginners Guide To MTFC Matlock Town F.C.
  2. History boys – Matlock Town and their run to FA Cup Third Round in 1977 Matlock Town F.C.
  3. Derbyshire Senior League 1890–1938 Non-League Matters
  4. Matlock at the Football Club History Database
  5. Central Alliance 1911–1925 Non-League Matters
  6. Central Combination 1933–1937 Non-League Matters
  7. Mike Williams & Tony Williams (2016) Non-League Club Directory 2017, Tony Williams Publications, p184 ISBN 978-1869833695
  8. The Central Alliance 1947–1962 Non-League Matters
  9. Matlock Town at the Football Club History Database
  10. Matlock Town Pyramid Passion
  11. Anglo-Italian Cup 1979 RSSSF
  12. "First Team". matlocktownfc.co.uk. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  13. Club History Archived 6 January 2018 at the Wayback Machine Matlock Town F.C.

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