- Hednesford Town F.C.
Football club infobox
clubname = Hednesford Town
| fullname = Hednesford Town Football Club
nickname = The Pitmen
founded =1880
ground =Keys Park ,Hednesford
capacity = 6,039 (1,011 seated)
manager =
league = UniBond Premier League
season = 2007-08
position = UniBond Premier League, 8th
pattern_la1=_redshoulders|pattern_b1=_whitediagonal|pattern_ra1=_redshoulders
leftarm1=ffffff|body1=000000|rightarm1=000000|shorts1=ffffff|socks1=ffffff
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leftarm2=FF0022|body2=FF0022|rightarm2=FF0022|shorts2=FF0022|socks2=FF0022Hednesford Town Football Club are an association football team based in
Hednesford ,Staffordshire ,England . They play atKeys Park .Hednesford Town - A brief history
The club where formed in
1880 by the merger of two leading Hednesford clubs, the Red & Whites and Hill Top, and after many years in local competitions they joined the Southern League in1984 . They gained promotion to theFootball Conference in1995 , when they won theSouthern League Premier Division , but were relegated again in2001 . The Pitmen celebrated promotion with a move to a purpose built stadium called Keys Park having played all of their games prior on the field behind the Cross Keys pub. They had their best run in theFootball Conference in1995 -96 season, when they finished third in a tight league, although this was before the days of play-offs in theFootball Conference .The club reached the fourth round proper of the
FA Cup in1996 -97, beating Blackpool and York City before losing 3-2 to Middlesbrough. They also reached the final of theWelsh Cup in1992 (in those days selected English clubs were invited to enter), losing only 1-0 atCardiff Arms Park . Hednesford have recorded many famous wins in friendlies and in theStaffordshire Senior Cup defeating, among others, Aston Villa (5-1), Walsall, Birmingham City and Wolverhampton Wanderers. The club also won the2004 FA Trophy , beating Canvey Island 3-2. (Goals coming from Anthony Maguire, Les Hines and then assistant manager Chris Brindley) Manager Barry Powell was sacked after a poor league showing and was replaced by fans favourite Chris Brindley.In his first season in management, Brindley took Hednesford to the playoffs and after beating Merthyr Tydfil on penalties in the semi, and Chippenham Town in the final 1-0, Hednesford were promoted to theConference North .The 2005/06 season saw Hednesford sack manager Chris Brindley and sink to the lowest reaches of the
Conference North - they were relegated on the last day of the league after playing out a 0-0 draw at Vauxhall Motors. They have since been placed in theNorthern Premier League , which is two levels below the highest division in non-league football, theConference National . Their first season in the league saw them finish seventh, despite being second for the majority of the season. The following season saw the Pitmen start well, but a run of inconsistent form saw them finish outside the play-off places again, finishing eighthThere was a strong possibility of
Hednesford moving back to the Southern League for the 2008-2009 season, but Halifax Town's financial problems saw a number of non-league sides revived, leaving the Pitmen with the prospect ofNorthern Premier League football for the forthcoming campaignOn 21st May 2008, the club confirmed that they had parted company with manager
Phil Starbuck and on 27th May 2008, after a morning press conference, it was announced on the club's website that a new football club chairman, Andrew Savva, had been appointed. At the same time it was announced that former Wolverhampton Wanderers, Exeter City and Torquay United player Dean Edwards, had been appointed asPhil Starbuck 's successorAfter a busy first few days, Edwards brought in a succession of new players, and also named his former Torquay team-mate Matt Elliott as the club's new assistant manager
Homes of the Pitmen
Keys Park is situated on Keys Park Road approximately five minutes from Hednesford town centre, and is a purpose-built stadium completed in 1995
The club originally played at a ground called The 'Tins', a patch of land directly behind the Anglesey Hotel in Hednesford Town Centre. It was called the 'Tins' due to large number of metal sheeting that was erected around the ground. A move to the Cross Keys occurred in 1903 after the club fell into debt to the tune of £40. A local councillor agreed to meet the deficit provided the club moved to a patch of land behind the Cross Keys public house and away from the Anglesey
The Cross Keys was a perfect arena for a club of Hednesford's size for many decades. A large wooden stand stood on the site for many years, with a large bank opposite holding over 5,000 spectators. Only the arrival of the fifties, and floodlit football, saw changes at the ground. The banking made way for a large stand along the whole side of the ground, followed by floodlights that were erected in 1953. A friendly against West Bromwich Albion visited the Cross Keys to mark the official switch-on, watched by over 7,000 people
As the club rose from the local leagues to the higher reaches of the football pyramid, the ground was consistently improved. Once the club arrived in the Southern League in the early nineties, a decision was taken to move away from the beloved Cross Keys, now with a capacity of 4,000, but crumbling with every season. In 1994, the club started work on a new stadium, on the site of an old brickworks snapped up just 300 yards away from the Cross Keys
The stadium was completed during the summer of
1995 , with the cost at £1.3 million and was first used in a friendly against Walsall. Keys Park was officially opened bySir Stanley Matthews later that year in a ceremony that included a friendly against Wolverhampton Wanderers. In January 1997, Keys Park saw its highest attendance ever as over 3,000 people witnessed the Pitmen's 1-0 win over York City in theFA Cup Third Round. During the following season the Heath Hayes End was converted into a 1,000 capacity open terrace, whilst the Wimblebury side was turned into a large uncovered terrace and seating was installed at the previously terraced Hednesford End. Despite relegation from theFootball Conference in 2001, the club proceeded with plans to make the stadium covered on all four sides, and installed roofs on each of the uncovered terraces. After being an 'A' graded stadium by theFootball Association for a number of years,Keys Park has been downgraded to a 'B' grade stadiumCurrent first team squad
Hednesford Town Roll of Honour
*Highest
Football Conference Finish
** 3rd place 1995-1996*
FA Cup
**4th Round 1996-1997*
FA Trophy
**Winners 2003-2004* Southern League Premier Division
**Champions 1994-1995
**Play-Off Winners 2004-2005*
Welsh Cup Runners-Up 1991-1992*
West Midlands (Regional) League Premier Division
**Champions 1977-1978*West Midlands (Regional) League Premier Division Cup
**Winners 1983-1984*
Birmingham Combination
**Champions 1909-1910, 1950-1951*
Birmingham Senior Cup
**Winners 1935-1936*Staffordshire Senior Cup
**Winners 1969-1970, 1973-1974*Most Post-War Appearances
**Kevin Foster (470)*Most Post-War Goals
**Joe O'Connor (220)*Record Transfer Fee Paid
**£12,000 to Macclesfield Town for Steve Burr 1992-1993*Record Transfer Fee Received
**£30,000 from Dundee United for Sean O'Connor 1999-2000External links
* [http://www.hednesfordtown.com Official Hednesford Town F.C. website]
* [http://www.pitmenweb.com/ The Pitmenweb - Unofficial Hednesford Town F.C. website]
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