Basing Rovers F.C.

Basing Rovers F.C.
Full nameBasing Rovers Football Club
Founded1886
Dissolved2001
GroundRecreation Ground, Old Basing

Basing Rovers F.C. were a long running amateur football club based in Old Basing – a village located to the east of the town of Basingstoke in north Hampshire.

History

Basing Rovers were founded in 1886 and spent their early days playing friendly fixtures [1] before becoming founder members of the Basingstoke & District League in 1905.[2] They spent many years playing in the competition, enjoying much success along the way before progressing on the North Hants League in the late seventies.[3]

In 1984, Basing Rovers won the title and made a successful application to join the Hampshire League Division 3 where they quickly settled. Sizeable crowds were regularly attracted to their home games and this warranted the formation of a Supporters Club.[4]

Two years later, when a vast number of the competitions top clubs left en masse to create the Wessex League, Basing Rovers were then placed in a restructured Division 2, and a fifth place final placing was rewarded with an unexpected promotion to the top-flight.[5]

The 1987/88 campaign was the most successful in the club's long history. They finished runners-up in Division 1 and won the Hampshire Intermediate Cup. However, the manager and players then left and they were relegated the following season.[6]

Basing Rovers then became a steady Division 2 side, until 1996 when they finished rock-bottom and were relegated. The club continued to struggle in Division 3 and eventually withdrew midway through the 1999/00 season.[7]

Basing Rovers continued to play, retaining their Reserves position in the Basingstoke & District League until financial problems forced them to disband in 2001. A phoenix club was later formed, simply called Old Basing but the venture was short-lived.

Honours

Hampshire League record 1984–2000

Ground

Basing Rovers played their home games at the Recreation Ground, The Street, Old Basing, Hampshire. RG24 7DA.

The venue very much remains in use today. Owned by Old Basing & Lychpit Parish Council, it has two football pitches, a large modern pavilion with ample parking. The ground is now used by Basing Royals youth football club and by Old Basing Cricket Club.[9]

During the 1993/94 season, Basing Rovers temporarily played at the Camrose Ground, home of Basingstoke Town F.C. [10] whilst their pavilion was being refurbished.

Local rivalries

During their existence, Basing Rovers enjoyed a long running local rivalry with a number of clubs in the area. These mostly included Sherbourne St John, Hadleigh, Bramley United and Hook.

Successor club

The village is now represented by Basing Royals – a successful youth club founded in 2018.[11]

Affiliated to the Hampshire Football Association, they are an Accredited Club and run numerous teams at various age groups. The club are ambitious to launch an adults side.

References

  1. ^ Association Football in Hampshire until 1914 by Norman Gannaway
  2. ^ Basingstoke Football League Centenary by Norman Gannaway
  3. ^ Hampshire Football Association Centenary History 1887–1987 by Norman Gannaway
  4. ^ Basing Rovers FC 1986/87 season matchday programme (A Fox)
  5. ^ A History of the Hampshire League 1896–1996 by Norman Gannaway
  6. ^ A Tabulated History of the Hampshire League by Stephen Farmery
  7. ^ https://fchd.info/lghist/hants2000.htm
  8. ^ Hampshire Football Association Yearbook 2015/16
  9. ^ https://www.oldbasing.gov.uk/clubs-and-societies-sport/
  10. ^ Basing Rovers FC 1993/94 season matchday programme (A Fox)
  11. ^ https://basingroyalsfc.co.uk/
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.