Bognor Regis Town F.C.

Bognor Regis Town
Nickname(s) The Rocks
Founded 1883 (as Bognor F.C.)
Ground Nyewood Lane, Bognor Regis
Ground Capacity 4,500 (350 seated)
Chairman Dominic Reynolds
Manager Jamie Howell
League Isthmian League Premier Division
2015–16 Isthmian League Premier Division, 2nd

Bognor Regis Town Football Club are an English football club based in Bognor Regis, West Sussex. The club is an FA Chartered Standard Community club affiliated to the Sussex County Football Association.[1] They currently compete in the Isthmian Premier Division.

History

Bognor F.C. were founded in 1883 and the club became founding members of the West Sussex Football League in 1896, joining the Senior Division.[2] They won the championship of this league for five successive years in the early 1920s, after which they joined the Brighton & Hove District League in 1926. Just one year later, however, they joined the Sussex County League where they were to remain until 1972. The club became Bognor Regis F.C. in 1929 after King George V added the suffix 'Regis' to the seaside resort.

The club won the Sussex County Division One championship in the 1948–49 season. At the end of that season, they added "Town" to their name so as not to be confused with the local rugby club.

At the end of the 1969–70 season they were relegated, but won Division Two at the first attempt. The club won the Division One championship title the following season and were promoted to Division One South of the Southern League. In 1972–73 they reached the first round of the FA Cup for the first time, losing 6–0 at Colchester United. In 1976 Jack Pearce became manager at the age of just 26, and went on to hold the position until 2007.

In 1981 the club were transferred to Division One of the Isthmian League, and were promoted at the end of the 1981–82 season after finishing second. In 1984–85 they reached the first round of the FA Cup again, beating Swansea City 3–1 in a replay after a 1–1 draw at the Vetch Field. In the second round they lost 6–2 at Reading. They reached the second round again the following season, beating Enfield in the first round, before losing 6–1 at Gillingham. They went on to reach the first round again in 1986–87 (losing 1–0 in a replay to Slough Town) and 1987–88 (losing 3–0 at home to Torquay United). In 1988–89 they beat Football League opposition again, defeating Exeter City 2–1, before losing to Cambridge United.

In 1991–92 Bognor finished in the relegation zone, but were reprieved after Dagenham and Redbridge Forest merged. However, the following season they finished bottom of the Premier Division, and were relegated to Division One. In 1995–96 they reached the second round of the FA Cup for a fourth time, before losing 4–0 at Peterborough United.

In 2002–03 they finished second in Division One South, and were promoted back to the Premier Division. After finishing tenth the following year, the club were placed in the newly established Conference South. They were relegated back to the Isthmian League Premier Division at the end of the 2008–09 season, and were relegated again the following season.

Season 2010–11 saw the club compete in the Isthmian League Division One South and they missed out on promotion back to the Premier Division by the tightest of margins. Having finished with a club record total of 96 points, they lost out in the title race to Metropolitan Police on goal difference by just one goal, having led the table by two points, going in to the last fixture. As a result, they found themselves having to participate in the end-of-season play-offs, where they lost at home to Dulwich Hamlet who had finished 31 points behind.

In 2011–12 they again finished second in Division One South. They won the end-of-season play-offs, defeating Godalming Town in a thrilling semi-final, before beating Dulwich Hamlet 1–0 in the final, and thus gaining promotion to the Premier Division. The 2012-13 season saw them finish in 14th place in the Ryman Premier. The 2013-14 season started slowly with just one point from the opening four matches. However they soon rose up the table, eventually finishing in third place and qualified for the end of season play-offs, although this ended in defeat in the semi-final at home to Lowestoft Town.

Stadium

The club play at Nyewood Lane, Bognor Regis, PO21 2TY. The ground has a capacity of 4,000, of which 350 are seated. There is covered accommodation on three sides. The ground's first set of floodlights were bought from Wembley Stadium and fitted onto telegraph poles. In the 1970s the current floodlight pylons were added, with four along each touchline, before two of these were removed on each side in the early 1990s.

On 15 August 2008 a fire destroyed the clubhouse, and was suspected to be arson.[3] Work on a new social club, named 'Seasons', commenced during the summer of 2009 and opened in November the same year.

The playing surface is arguably one of the finest in non-league football and won an award for the best in all three divisions of the Conference in 2008. Season 2010/11 also saw the pitch win an award, this time voted the best in all three divisions of the Isthmian League, in a poll of referees. The club also won an award two seasons running – 2007/08 and 2008/09, for the best canteen, as voted by supporters of rival Conference South clubs.

Current squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
England GK Lewis Boughton
England GK Grant Smith
Wales DF James Crane
Egypt DF Sami El-Abd
England DF Chad Field (on loan from Portsmouth)
England DF Jamie Horncastle
Norway DF Snorre Nilsen (on loan from Portsmouth)
England DF Craig Robson
England DF Lloyd Rowlatt
England DF Harvey Whyte
England DF Daryl Wollers
No. Position Player
England MF Dan Beck
England MF Stuart Green
England MF Ben Johnson
England MF Connor Tighe (on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion)
England MF Doug Tuck
Wales FW Chike Kandi (on loan from Brighton & Hove Albion)
England FW Alex Parsons
England FW Ollie Pearce
England FW Jason Prior
England FW Alfie Rutherford

Club management

As of 13 July 2013

Position Name
General Club Manager Jack Pearce
Head Coach Darin Killpartrick
1st Team Manager Jamie Howell
Goalkeeping Coach Lee Conway
Fitness Coach/Kit Manager Neil Cockroft
Physiotherapist Alan 'Fish' Robertson
Physiotherapist Rachel Rees
Under 18s Coaches Luke Cooper & Dan Cox

Managers

As of 1 May 2012. Statistics below are League matches only (Sussex County/Southern/Isthmian/Conference South).

NameNationalityPeriodGWDLWin %
Darin KillpartrickEnglandJanuary 2009–Present14369383648.25%
Jamie HowellEnglandJune 2009–Present12464332751.61%
Mick JenkinsEnglandJune 2008 – January 20092327148.70%
Michael BirminghamEnglandOctober 2007 – May 2008309101130%
Jack PearceEnglandJune 1994 – October 200756622714419540.10%
Mick PullenEnglandJune 1992 – May 19948420244023.81%
Jack PearceEnglandMarch 1976 – May 199267225416325537.78%
Derek EdwardsEnglandJune 1970 – March 197620886507241.35%

Honours

League honours

Cup honours

Club records

Team colours

The club's home strip consists of green and white, of which in the past, combinations have varied including green and white striped shirts, green and white halved shirts, green and white quartered shirts and plain green shirts with white shorts. Following King George V's decision to add the suffix 'Regis' to the town's name in 1929, the club wore a blue and gold strip for a period in the 1930s, before reverting to green and white some time later that decade. Since the mid-1970s, the strip has mostly consisted of white shirts, green shorts and white socks, as is the case in 2014. Like most clubs, away colours have varied over the years, although blue shirts (various shades) have been worn since 1998. Navy and yellow are the club's change colours for the 2014–15 season.

Shirt sponsors and manufacturers

Season Kit ManufacturerMain Shirt Sponsor
1979–1980 Adidas Hago Plastics
1980–1981 Umbro
1981–1983 No Shirt Sponsor
1983–1985 Hamilton Lines
1985–1987 New Olympic West Sussex Contractors
1987–1989 Puma Butlins (FA Cup ties only)
1989–1991 New Olympic Adcocks Suzuki
1991–1992 Hall Signs
1992–1993 Bukta Spindlers Lamps & Lights
1993–1994 Diadora Reynolds Furniture Store
1994–1995
1995–1996 ICIS
1996–1997 Esprit Accountants
1997–1998 Butlins Bognor Regis
1998–1999 Vandanel Sports Competitive Cleaning
1999–2000 Reynolds Furniture Store
2000–2001 Spall Finest Windows
2001–2002 Express Printing
2002–2003 Wayne Windows
2003–2005 GX Aldersmead
2005–2006 homes2buy.co.uk
2006–2007 KFC
2007–2008 VRV Autos
2008–2009 Apogee Corporation
2009–2010 Erreà
2010–2011 Keith Jay Carpets
2011–2012 Chestnut Tree House
2012–2013 Havant Motor Factors
2013–2014 Viessmann
2014–2015 FRH Machinery
2015–2016 Gilbert & Cleveland

See also

Category:Bognor Regis Town F.C. players

References

  1. "FA Charter Standard Clubs Roll of Honour". Sussex County Football Association. 2013-01-16. Retrieved 2013-01-30.
  2. 1 2 "Shoreham F.C. – Early football in Shoreham and the 'Glory Years". Shoreham History Portal. Retrieved 2013-04-16.
  3. Fire hits Bognor Regis Town Portsmouth.co.uk
  4. "R.U.R. Cup Final Results – Sussex County Football Association". Sussexcountyleague.com. Retrieved 2012-11-11.

External links

Coordinates: 50°47′13.16″N 0°41′24.84″W / 50.7869889°N 0.6902333°W / 50.7869889; -0.6902333

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