Bromsgrove Sporting F.C.
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| Full name | Bromsgrove Sporting Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Rouslers | ||
| Founded | 2009 | ||
| Ground | Victoria Ground Bromsgrove | ||
| Capacity | 3,500 (2017 Limit) 4,893 | ||
| Owner | Bromsgrove Sporting Supporters' Trust (2009–present) | ||
| Chairman | Mike Burke | ||
| Manager | Brendan Kelly | ||
| League | Southern League Premier Division Central | ||
| 2023–24 | Southern League Premier Division Central, 17th of 21 | ||
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Bromsgrove Sporting F.C. is a football club based in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, England. The club was founded in 2009 and played their first season, 2010–11, in Midland Football Combination Division Two where they ended third. The club currently play in the Southern League Premier Division Central.
History
Bromsgrove Sporting club was founded in 2009 as a supporters consortium with the plan to buy Bromsgrove Rovers and take them out of administration. When another owner was found for Rovers it was decided to create a new club instead. On 2 June 2010 Sporting were offered the lease of the Victoria Ground after they had promised to make the ground available for Bromsgrove Rovers fixtures too.[1] However in August 2010, Bromsgrove Rovers were expelled from the Southern League, thus allowing Sporting sole use of the Victoria Ground. The Rovers club was subsequently dissolved.
For season 2012–13 Bromsgrove Sporting were promoted to the Midland Football Combination Premier Division due to a reorganisation of that league.[2]
On 10 May 2014, in front of a crowd of 414 at the Victoria Ground, Bromsgrove, Sporting's first team lifted their first piece of silverware, recording a 4–1 victory over Paget Rangers in the final of the Smedley Crooke Memorial Charity Cup with goals by Danny Ludlow (2) & Billy Russell (2).
As of season 2014–15 the league was rebranded Midland Football League (MFL) after the Midland Football Combination merged with the Midland Alliance. Sporting played that season in the First Division of the MFL.
Bromsgrove gained a reputation for being the perennial bridesmaids, finishing 2nd for three consecutive years prior to 2016–17 in a league that offers just the one promotion place. However the 2016–17 season saw the club finish as champions and thus gaining promotion to the MFL Premier Division at last, becoming 'invincibles' in the process as the side remained unbeaten in the league. Sporting also reached the semi finals of the F.A. Vase, before being edged out 2–1 on aggregate by Cleethorpes Town one game from Wembley. Season 2017–18 saw Sporting become champions of the MFL Premier Division at their first attempt, thus achieving back to back promotions and securing a place in the Southern League Division One Central for season 2018–19. The club also won The Worcestershire FA Senior Urn for the second successive season.
Attendances
Being the in-spirit replacement of Bromsgrove Rovers, Sporting had a much higher average attendance than the other teams in the Midland Football League. Their inaugural season had a home average attendance of 293 and their average for 2016–17 was 671. This increased again in 2017–18 (league and cup combined) to 721.
Sporting's record home attendance was on 11 March 2017 where 3,349 attended the FA Vase Semi-Final first leg match against Cleethorpes Town. The return leg a week later at Cleethorpes attracted a crowd of 1,154. Sporting's record home league attendance at the Victoria Ground to date was on 10th April 2018 when a crowd of 1,423 saw them beat ground tenants Worcester City 2–1 in the Midland Football League Premier Division. The away fixture against Worcester on 26 December 2017 (also played at the Victoria Ground) attracted 1,672 fans. Before the Cleethorpes match the best attended match Sporting had been involved in away from the Victoria Ground was 550 in the final of the Les James Challenge Cup on 6 May 2015 at Bescot Stadium, where they beat Southam United 3–2, with "The Rouslers" taking approximately 450 fans to Walsall.[citation needed]. In 2017–18 the Worcestershire FA Senior Urn final against Lye Town at Kidderminster's Aggborough Stadium, won by Bromsgrove on penalties, attracted 642 spectators.
In 2016–17 Sporting played at step six of the non-league pyramid, and had the highest average league attendance of any team at that level in the country. This achievement was repeated in 2017–18 at pyramid step five level with home league attendances averaging 777. The club was the 49th best-supported team in Non-League football.
Current first team squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Forward Jason Cowley holds the club's all-time competitive goals record with 75 in 89 appearances, and defender Aaron Roberts holds the record for the most competitive appearances for the club, with 210 to date.(As at 30 April 2018).
Seasons
| Season | ∆ | Division | Pos | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | FA Cup | FA Vase | Other Cups | Notes | Manager |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010–11 | 12 | Midland Football Combination Division 2 | 3rd | 30 | 20 | 4 | 6 | 82 | 27 | +55 | 64 | R1,R1 | Inaugural season. Promoted to Division 1 after league reorganisation | Myles Day / Stewart Brighton | ||
| 2011–12 | 11 | Midland Football Combination Division 1 | 3rd | 34 | 19 | 8 | 7 | 94 | 44 | +50 | 65 | R2,Final, R2, SF | Promoted to Premier Division after league reorganisation | Stewart Brighton / Keith Draper | ||
| 2012–13 | 10 | Midland Football Combination Premier Division | 6th | 34 | 18 | 6 | 10 | 73 | 54 | +19 | 57 | R3,SF, R3, SF | Keith Draper / Graham Scott | |||
| 2013–14 | 10 | Midland Football Combination Premier Division | 2nd | 34 | 23 | 3 | 8 | 92 | 35 | +57 | 72 | R1 | SF, SF, Won | Graham Scott / Adrian Mander | ||
| 2014–15 | 10 | Midland Football League Division 1 | 2nd | 38 | 27 | 5 | 6 | 121 | 41 | +80 | 86 | PR | R3 | Won, | Adrian Mander / Paul Smith | |
| 2015–16 | 10 | Midland Football League Division 1 | 2nd | 38 | 29 | 4 | 5 | 102 | 41 | +61 | 91 | PR | R1 | R2 | Paul Smith | |
| 2016–17 | 10 | Midland Football League Division 1 | 1st | 38 | 33 | 5 | 0 | 132 | 23 | +109 | 104 | PR | SF | R1 | Promoted to Midland Football League Premier Division | Paul Smith |
| 2017–18 | 9 | Midland Football League Premier | 1st | 42 | 31 | 5 | 6 | 110 | 50 | +60 | 98 | PR | R5 | R2 | Promoted to Southern Football League Division One Central | Paul Smith / Brendan Kelly |
Management
Current technical staff
| Name | Nationality | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Brendan Kelly |  Ireland |
First Team Manager |
| Andy Mason |  England |
Assistant Manager |
| Kevin Barry | England |
First Team Coach |
| Emma Waters | England |
Sports Therapist/ Physio |
| Alan Horton | England |
U18 Youth Team Manager |
| Dave Smith | England |
U21 Manager |
| Jon Daniels | England |
U21 Assistant Manager |
Current club officials
| Name | Nationality | Role |
|---|---|---|
| John Teece | England |
book keeper |
| Dave Stephens | England |
Football Secretary |
| Phil Baker | England |
PR & Liaison Officer |
| Mike Burke | England |
Chairman |
| David 'Shep' Sheppherd | England |
Apprentice Groundsman |
| Stephen 'The Rev' Levett | England |
Club chaplain |
Previous managers
See alsoReferencesExternal links |