Rotherham Town F.C. (1878)
Former association football club in England
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Rotherham Town F.C. was a football club based in Rotherham, England. The club was a member of the Football League between 1893 and 1896.
| Full name | Rotherham Town Football Club | |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1878 (as Lunar Rovers) | |
| Dissolved | 1896 | |
| Ground | Clifton Grove | |
|
| ||
History
The original club was founded in 1878 as Lunar Rovers, becoming Rotherham in 1882, and eventually Rotherham Town.[1] In 1889 the club became a founder member of the Midland League. They were champions in 1892 and 1893, and were subsequently elected to the Second Division of the Football League in 1893.
The club lost the Wharncliffe Charity Cup in 1889–90 in unusual circumstances; the final with Staveley ended 1–1, and Staveley could not play extra-time because of travel difficulties, so Town was told to walk the ball into the goal to claim the match. Somehow, Town managed to miss and there was nobody to take the subsequent goal-kick.[2] The game was eventually replayed with Staveley winning.
The club's League tenure lasted just three seasons, finishing in 14th, 12th and 15th place (out of 16). At the end of the 1895/96 season they failed to apply for re-election and subsequently folded.[3]
The club played at Clifton Lane and Clifton Grove.
Arthur Wharton, the man widely regarded as the first ever black professional footballer, played for the club from 1889 to 1894.[4] Liverpool Football Club played their first ever fixture against Rotherham Town on 1 September 1892 in a friendly fixture, Liverpool won 7–1, the first ever opponent to score at Anfield was Rotherham striker Charlie Leatherbarrow.[5]
A second Rotherham Town formed in 1899, going on to merge with Rotherham County in 1925 to form Rotherham United.
League and cup history
| Rotherham Town League and Cup history[6][7][8][9] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Division | Position | FA Cup |
| 1883–84 | 2nd Round | ||
| 1884–85 | 1st Round | ||
| 1885–86 | 1st Round | ||
| 1886–87 | 2nd Round | ||
| 1887–88 | 2nd Round | ||
| 1888–89 | 2nd qualifying round | ||
| 1889–90 | Midland League | 3rd/11 | 4th qualifying round |
| 1890–91 | Midland League | 7th/10 | 4th qualifying round |
| 1891–92 | Midland League | 1st/11 | 3rd qualifying round |
| 1892–93 | Midland League | 1st/13 | 3rd qualifying round |
| 1893–94 | Football League Division 2 | 14th/15 | 1st qualifying round |
| 1894–95 | Football League Division 2 | 12th/16 | 1st qualifying round |
| 1895–96 | Football League Division 2 | 15th/16 | 4th qualifying round |
Colours
As Lunar Rovers, the club played in navy blue and white. From 1882 to 1892 it wore various combinations of chocolate and light blue, and as a League club settled on red jerseys with navy knickers.[10]
Ground
The club's original ground was on Clifton Lane, and in 1891 it moved a short distance to a new ground it called Clifton Grove - indeed the club took its covered seated stand with it from the old to the new ground.[11]
Honours
- Midland League
- Champions: 1891–92, 1892–93
Records
- Best league performance: 12th, Football League Division 2
- Best FA Cup performance: Second round, 1883–84, 1886–87, 1887–88