Halesowen Town F.C.

Football club infobox
clubname = Halesowen Town


fullname = Halesowen Town Football Club
nickname = The Yeltz
founded = 1873
ground = The Grove
Halesowen
capacity = Approx 5,000
chairman = flagicon|England Martin Kearns
manager = flagicon|England Morell Maison
league = Southern League Premier Division
season = 2007-08
position = Southern League Premier Division, 3rd
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leftarm1=0000FF|body1=0000FF|rightarm1=0000FF|shorts1=0000FF|socks1=0000FF
pattern_la2=_whiteflareatshoulder|pattern_b2=_collarwhite|pattern_ra2=
leftarm2=FF0000|body2=FF0000|rightarm2=FF0000|shorts2=FF0000|socks2=FF0000

Halesowen Town are an English association football club formed in 1873, currently playing in the Southern League Premier Division. They are nicknamed The Yeltz.

History

Halesowen Town FC were formed in 1873, making them one of the oldest clubs in the Midlands, and initially played in the Birmingham Combination. In 1946 they joined the Birmingham and District League and were champions in their very first season. The 1960s saw them consistently finish high in the league, but by contrast the 1970s saw them struggle, finishing bottom of the table on two occasions.

In the 1980s saw a sudden reversal of the Yeltz' fortunes, with four successive championship titles between 1983 and 1986, as well as three appearances at Wembley Stadium in the final of the FA Vase. The 1983 final saw the club lose 1-0 to VS Rugby, but in 1985 they returned to Wembley and beat Fleetwood Town 3-1 to lift the Vase, before retaining it the following year with a 3-0 win over Southall.

In 1983 the club also beat Heybridge Swifts in the final of the Thorn EMI six-a-side tournament at the Alexandra Stadium and won a £20,000 set of floodlights for their ground.

In 1986 the club's successes in the newly-named West Midlands (Regional) League were rewarded with promotion to the Southern League, with promotion to the Premier Division following in 1988/1989 when they were crowned Midland Division champions.

The early nineties were dominated by players leaving The Grove to join league clubs. Amongst those leaving were Dean Spink (Aston Villa), Stuart Cash (Nottingham Forest), Andy Pearce, Tim Clarke, Sean Flynn (all Coventry City) and Evran Wright (Walsall).

For their first eight seasons at this level Halesowen never finished outside the top 10, including being narrowly pipped to promotion by Rushden and Diamonds in 1996. Financial difficulties, however, led to a slump which culminated in relegation in 2001. Although they bounced back in style, winning the Western Division championship at a canter, they were relegated once again in 2003. The club failed to return to tier two of the non-league pyramid the following season finishing fourth and missing out on the new Nationwide Conference North Division.

New manager Paul Holleran led the club to the FA Cup first round in 2005, losing out to Yeading in a closely fought contest, but the club failed to make any impact in league competitions in the next eighteen months and Holleran was shown the door.

The club appointed the former Walsall and Birmingham City captain Martin O'Connor as manager in late 2006. They came close to gaining promotion in 2006–07 when they lost to Hitchin Town in the last game of the season, which meant they missed the playoffs.

In October 2007, the club was sold to an unidentified new owner who then brought in new manager Morell Maison. On October 18, former Manchester United manager Ron Atkinson was appointed as a consultant to the new manager.

Ground

Infobox Stadium
stadium_name = The Grove
nickname =


fullname =
location = Old Hawne Lane, Halesowen
coordinates =
broke_ground =
built =
opened = 1871
renovated =
expanded =
closed =
demolished =
owner = Halesowen Town
operator = Halesowen Town
surface = Grass
construction_cost =
architect =
structural engineer =
services engineer =
general_contractor=
project_manager =
main_contractors =
former_names =
tenants =
Halesowen Town
seating_capacity =
dimensions =According to the club's records they have played at The Grove ever since their formation in 1873. The ground was originally a cricket pitch and was therefore a three sided stadium. In the 1930s a small wooden stand was constructed along the perimeter of the James Grove Button Factory (now housing).

During the 1950s the Old Hawne Lane end was constructed along with changing rooms, built on the site of former tennis courts. During this time sides had to change in the Waggon and Horses public house on Stourbridge Road.

In the 1980s three sided ground was converted to four with the addition of the uncovered terracing along the Recreation Park side of the ground. In 1987 the 420 seater Harry Rudge Stand was completed on the site of the 1930s vintage wooden cover, whilst at the same time the rest of the ground received a face lift. The stand was extended in 1998 and again in 2000.

The floodlights which the club won in 1983 lasted until 2001 when a new set were installed and officially inaugurated at a friendly against Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Club records

*Best league performance: 2nd in Southern League Premier Division (then Level 6), 1995/96
*Best FA Cup performance: 1st round on nine occasions
*Best FA Trophy performance: 3rd round, 1994/95, 1999/2000, 2002/03
*Best FA Vase performance: Winners, 1984/85, 1985/86

Players

Current squad

References

*fchd|name=Halesowen Town|id=HALESOWT

External links

* [http://www.halesowentownfc.co.uk Official website]