Redditch United F.C.
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| Full name | Redditch United Football Club | ||
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| Nickname(s) | The Reds | ||
| Founded | 1891 (as Redditch Town) | ||
| Ground | The Valley, Redditch (Capacity: 5,000 (400 seated)) |
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| Chairman | Chris Swan | ||
| Manager | Graham Hyde | ||
| League | Southern League Premier Division | ||
| 2010-11 | Conference North, 21st (relegated) | ||
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Redditch United F.C. is an English football club based in Redditch, Worcestershire. The club are currently members of the Southern League Premier Division and play at the Valley.
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[edit] History
[edit] Birmingham Combination
Redditch Town were established in 1891 and immediately joined the Birmingham Combination, where they played for a single season. The club achieved its first success by winning the Worcestershire Senior Cup in 1894 and becoming runners-up in 1898. In 1914 they won the Birmingham Combination Championship for the first time and, finally, the Birmingham Senior Cup in 1925. The 1930s were a much more rewarding period for the club and its supporters, starting by winning the Worcestershire Senior Cup and the Birmingham Senior Cup in successive seasons. Reds almost achieved a notable double in 1932–33 when, having won the Combination, they were defeated in the Senior Cup Final.
Apart from an unsuccessful appearance in the Birmingham Senior Cup final just before the World War, Reds moved into a fallow period. In 1953 Redditch regained the Combination Championship and were runners-up in the Worcestershire Senior Cup. This Championship success was repeated in 1955. In 1957 they were runners-up in the Birmingham Senior Cup.
[edit] Southern League
In 1971–72 the club reached the first round of the FA Cup for the first time, losing 6–0 in the replay at Peterborough United after a 1–1 draw at home in front of a crowd of 4,500 . At the end of the season they finished sixth in the West Midlands (Regional) League Premier Division and joined Division One North of the Southern League.
They won the Worcestershire Senior Cup in 1974 and 1975. The following season they won Division One North and were promoted to the Premier Division. In 1978–79 they finished eighth in the league, and became founder members of the Alliance Premier League (now the Football Conference). Howveer, they finished bottom in its first season, and dropped into the Southern League's Midland Division.
After finishing as runners-up in 1985–86, the club were promoted to the Premier Division, where they remained until relegation in 1989. The following season, they reached the first round of the FA Cup, losing 3-1 to Merthyr Tydfil. At the end of the season they beat Northwich Victoria 4-3 over the two-legged final of the Staffordshire Senior Cup.
In 1997–98 the Reds reached two cup finals, the Southern League Cup and the Birmingham Senior Cup. Both were lost, and the cup run caused a large fixture backlog that resulted in the club having to play nine matches in nine days at the end of the season.
In 2003–04 the club won the Southern League Western Division. Due to league reorganisation caused by the establishment of the Conference North and South, the club entered play-offs to be promoted to the new leagues. After beating King's Lynn 1–0 and Merthyr Tydfil 3–0, the club were promoted to the Conference North.
[edit] Conference North
After a ninth-place finish in 2004–05, Redditch struggled in 2005–06, only avoiding relegation on the final day of the season. Although they won the Worcester Senior Cup, beating local rivals Worcester City the following year, they only avoided relegation again after Scarborough received a 10-point penalty for going into administration.
After a very difficult 2010-11 campaign in the Conference North, Redditch were relegated to the Southern League Premier Division.
On 17 March 2011, businessman Chris Swan took over the club,[1] after a previous attempt to purchase Kidderminster Harriers fell through.[2]
[edit] Players
[edit] Current squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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[edit] Honours
- Birmingham Combination
- Champions 1913–14, 1932–33, 1952–53
- Birmingham & District League
- Southern Division champions 1954–55
- Southern League
- Division One North champions 1975–76
- Western Division champions 2003–04
- Birmingham Senior Cup
- Winners 1925, 1932, 1939, 1977, 2005,
- Worcestershire Senior Cup
- Winners 1894, 1930, 1975, 1976, 2008
- Staffordshire Senior Cup
- Winners 1991
- Worcester Royal Infirmary Cup
- Winners 1999
[edit] References
- ^ "Chris Swan completes Redditch United takeover". BBC News (BBC). 2011-03-17. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_conf/9428171.stm. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
- ^ "Chris Swan withdraws new offer for Kidderminster Harriers". BBC News (BBC). 2011-02-03. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/k/kidderminster_harriers/9386796.stm. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
[edit] External links
Coordinates: 52°18′28″N 1°57′06″W / 52.307808°N 1.951551°W
