Belper Town F.C.
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| Full name | Belper Town Football Club | ||
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| Nickname(s) | The Nailers | ||
| Founded | 1883 | ||
| Ground | Christchurch Meadow, Belper | ||
| Capacity | 2,400 (500 seated) | ||
| Chairman | Alan Benfield | ||
| Manager | Charlie Palmer | ||
| League | Northern Premier League Division One South | ||
| 2014–15 | Northern Premier League Premier Division, 24th (Relegated) | ||
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Belper Town F.C. are a football team based in Belper, Derbyshire, England. The club plays in the Northern Premier League Division One South.
History
They were established in 1883 and joined the Midland League in 1961. After the 1981–82 season, Belper Town joined the Northern Counties East League Premier Division, winning the title in 1984–85. After a second-place finish in 1996–97, they were promoted to the Northern Premier League First Division.
Although the establishing year of 1883 appears on the club badge, the team has folded three teams through lack of finance. The current, fourth incarnation of the club, was formed in 1951. The first club played Sheffield Wednesday at home in the First Round of the FA Cup in 1887, losing 3-2. It is the only time that a side from Belper has ever progressed beyond the Preliminary Rounds. The current team has reached the 4th (and final) Qualifying Round on four occasions but the long overdue 1st Round appearance remains tantalisingly out of reach. In 1994–95, they reached the semi-finals of the FA Vase, losing to Oxford City.
In 2007, Belper Town competed in the inaugural season of the Northern Premier League Division One South.
In 2008, they won the Derbyshire Senior Cup beating Alfreton Town 4-3 on aggregate.
They finished 8th in the Northern Premier - First Division South in its inaugural year in 2007-08, then after finishing 2nd in 2008/2009, they lost in the playoff final by 1-0 to Stocksbridge Park Steels. The following season they just missed out on the playoffs, finishing 6th. Then 14th in 2010-11, and 6th again in 2011-12.
Belper finished the 2012-13 season in 3rd place and missed out in the playoffs, beaten by Stamford Town who went on to gain promotion.
Belper finally gained promotion to the Northern Premier League Premier Division in the 2013-14 season. Finishing 4th on 81 points, to claim a place in the Northern Premier League Division One South play-offs. The semi-final tie was played away against Leek Town, Belper beating them 2-0 to set up an all Derbyshire final against Mickleover Sports in which they won 1-0.
However the following 2014-15 season saw Belper finish bottom on 32 points, suffering relegation back to the Northern Premier League Division One South for the 2015-16 season. In September 2015, the club confirmed that it had relieved Jimmy Albans of his responsibility as Manager, replacing him with Charlie Palmer who begun with a 2-0 win over Daventry Town on 11th October.
Stadium
The club originally played at the Acorn Ground before moving to their current residence at Christchurch Meadow in 1951 when they were reformed for the fourth time. The freehold to the ground was bought by Belper Town in 1986 for £6,000.
Major refurbishments to the stadium including the changing rooms, clubhouse and conferencing suite were completed in 1999 at a cost of £250,000. In 2003, more than £200,000 was spent on constructing a new 500-seater stand so the ground could meet league standards. There is also covered standing for a further 300 spectators. In 2014 the club also spent £80,000 on new floodlights partly paid for by a grant from The Football Stadia Improvement Fund .
The record attendance for a Belper Town home match is 3,600 who turned up to see them play Ilkeston Town in 1951, the year the club were reformed.
Current squad
- As of 04/02/2016.[1]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Honours
- Midland Counties League
- Champions: 1980
- Northern Counties East League
- Champions: 1985
- Central Alliance League
- Champions: 1959
- Northern Premier League President's Cup
- Winners: 2010
- Derbyshire Senior Cup
- Winners: 1959, 1961, 1963, 1980, 2008
- Northern Counties East League Presidents Cup
- Winners: 1996
- Northern Premier - First Division South
- Play-Off Winners: 2014
References
- ^ "First Team". Belper Town F.C. Retrieved 4 February 2016.