Chesterfield F.C.
Encyclopedia
Chesterfield Football Club (icon) is an English
football club based in Chesterfield
, Derbyshire
. The club currently plays in Football League One
, the third tier of English football. Despite being the fourth oldest Football League club in England, they have spent most of their existence in the lower divisions of the English league and have never played in the top flight. They first joined the Football League in the 1899-1900 season, but failed re-election in 1908-09. They were later founder members of Football League Third Division North
in 1921-22 and have remained in the Football League since.
Chesterfield's most notable successes came in the 1990s, when they won the Division Three playoff final at Wembley in 1995 and reached the FA Cup
semi-finals two years later. They were the first club from outside the top two divisions to reach this stage of the competition since 1984 (Plymouth Argyle
). On 7 May 2011 Chesterfield beat to secure the League 2 title.
Chesterfield play their home games at the 10,300 capacity B2net Stadium, having moved from their old home Saltergate, for the 2010-11 season.
John Sheridan is the current manager having been given a three year contract in June 2009, along with his assistant Tommy Wright.
The first Chesterfield Football Club was formed in the late 1860s, as an offshoot of Chesterfield Cricket Club. The exact date of its foundation is disputed: many sources list the year as 1866, but the current club's official site states that there is no evidence for its existence prior to October 1867, although other club memorabilia and literature carries 1866 as the year of formation. The cricket and football clubs moved to the Recreation Ground at Saltergate in 1871, the same year that they became separate entities. However, a souring of the relationship between the two led to the closure of the football club a decade later, in 1881, when it found itself homeless.
Three years later a new Chesterfield Football Club was formed, again making its home at Saltergate. After changing its name to Chesterfield Town, the club turned professional in 1891 and won several local trophies in the following two seasons, entering the FA Cup
for the first time in 1892. Chesterfield joined the Midland League
in 1896, and successfully applied for a place in the Second Division
of the Football League at the start of the 1899-1900 season, finishing seventh. After finishing bottom of the League three years in a row, the club failed to gain re-election to the League in 1909, returning to the Midland League.
In 1915 Chesterfield Town was put into voluntary liquidation and a new club with the same name formed. It lasted only two years before its management and players were suspended by the FA for illegal payments, and the club shut down. Chesterfield Borough Council formed a new club in April 1919, Chesterfield Municipal F.C., to fill the gap. It was run by the council itself, but the FA forced the club to become independent in December 1920. The club's name was changed to Chesterfield F.C. as a result of the ownership change.
In 1921-22, Chesterfield became a founder member of the new Football League Third Division North
. Following the arrival of new manager Ted Davison in 1926 and chairman Harold Shentall in 1928, the club won the Third Division North title in the 1930-31 season with an 8-1 victory over on the final day, and were promoted to the Second Division. Relegation followed in 1933, but the Third Division North title was again won in 1936.
After the war the club achieved their best League position, finishing fourth in the Second Division in 1946-47. However, the sale of several players at the end of the season reduced their overall quality, and Chesterfield were relegated at the end of the 1950-51 season. They were placed in the Third Division
on its formation at the start of the 1958-59 season; future England international goalkeeper Gordon Banks
made his professional debut in a Third Division game in November 1958, but was sold to for a then-club record £7,000 fee at the end of the season. In 1961 Chesterfield were relegated to the Fourth Division
for the first time.
Chesterfield spent eight seasons in the Fourth Division, earning promotion as champions in 1969-70 under manager Jimmy McGuigan
. The Anglo-Scottish Cup
was won in 1981. The club was relegated in 1983-84, and won the Fourth Division title the following season. Financial difficulties forced Chesterfield Borough Council to bail out the club in 1985 and the club's training ground to be sold. Relegation followed in 1988-89; Chesterfield reached the play-off competition a year later, but were beaten by in the play-off final. The arrival of John Duncan
as manager in 1993 was followed in the 1994-95 season by play-off victories over and to earn promotion to the redesignated Second Division.
The 1996-97 season saw Chesterfield beat four clubs including Premier League side to reach the semi-final of the FA Cup for the first time. The semi-final match against was drawn 3-3 after extra time; Chesterfield lost the replay 3-0.
The club were relegated to the Third Division in 2000 following a run of 21 games without a win, and chairman Norton Lea was replaced by Darren Brown. The following year, Chesterfield were deducted nine points for financial irregularities after Brown attempted to avoid paying the fee agreed by the FA for Luke Beckett
. Amid mounting evidence of fraud, he relinquished control of the club in March 2001 and ownership passed to a hastily organised fans' group, the Chesterfield Football Supporters Society. Massive debts run up by Brown forced the club into administration, but the team still secured the division's final automatic promotion place. (Brown was later sentenced to four years in prison following a Serious Fraud Office
investigation that led to charges including false accounting, furnishing false information and theft).
The Second Division was renamed to Football League One
for the 2004-05 season. Two years later Chesterfield were relegated to Football League Two
, although they did reach the regional semi-final of the Football League Trophy
and the fourth round of the Football League Cup
in the same year. The following three seasons saw no change in their League status.
On 22 April 2011 Chesterfield were promoted to League One after a 0-0 draw between and confirmed that the former could not catch Chesterfield, who had been top of League Two since the 16th October 2010. On the 7th May 2011 Chesterfield FC were crowned League 2 champions following a 3-1 victory against Gillingham.
in a pre season friendly in which Derby won 5-4. The first goalscorer at the B2net Stadium was Craig Davies. The last game to take place at Saltergate was against AFC Bournemouth on Saturday 8 May 2010. Chesterfield were 1-0 down at half time, but second half goals from Lester 10 minutes from time and Niven in the sixth minute of injury time, saw supporters invade the pitch for the 1st time, meant Saltergate was sent off with an impressive 2-1 win over already promoted AFC Bournemouth. Emotions spilled over at the final whistle as the capacity crowd invaded the pitch for a 2nd time in celebration, and to say goodbye. The club moved to the B2net Stadium in July 2010. Chesterfield suffered their first home league defeat at the B2net Stadium after a 2-1 loss at Burton Albion on 13 November 2010. The highest attendance at the B2net Stadium was 10,089 at home to Rotherham United which they won 5-0 with Jack Lester getting a hat-trick.
(captain)
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
football club based in Chesterfield
Chesterfield
Chesterfield is a market town and a borough of Derbyshire, England. It lies north of Derby, on a confluence of the rivers Rother and Hipper. Its population is 70,260 , making it Derbyshire's largest town...
, Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
. The club currently plays in Football League One
Football League One
Football League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
, the third tier of English football. Despite being the fourth oldest Football League club in England, they have spent most of their existence in the lower divisions of the English league and have never played in the top flight. They first joined the Football League in the 1899-1900 season, but failed re-election in 1908-09. They were later founder members of Football League Third Division North
Football League Third Division North
The Third Division North of The Football League was a tier in the English association football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran parallel to Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to one or the other according to geographical position...
in 1921-22 and have remained in the Football League since.
Chesterfield's most notable successes came in the 1990s, when they won the Division Three playoff final at Wembley in 1995 and reached the FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
semi-finals two years later. They were the first club from outside the top two divisions to reach this stage of the competition since 1984 (Plymouth Argyle
Plymouth Argyle F.C.
Plymouth Argyle Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Plymouth, Devon, that plays in Football League Two.Since becoming professional in 1903, the club has won five Football League titles, five Southern League titles and one Western League title. The 2009–10 season was the...
). On 7 May 2011 Chesterfield beat to secure the League 2 title.
Chesterfield play their home games at the 10,300 capacity B2net Stadium, having moved from their old home Saltergate, for the 2010-11 season.
John Sheridan is the current manager having been given a three year contract in June 2009, along with his assistant Tommy Wright.
History
Three years later a new Chesterfield Football Club was formed, again making its home at Saltergate. After changing its name to Chesterfield Town, the club turned professional in 1891 and won several local trophies in the following two seasons, entering the FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
for the first time in 1892. Chesterfield joined the Midland League
Midland Football League
There have been at least two different football competitions in England which used the name Midland Football League.One existed until 1982 before merging with the Yorkshire League to form the Northern Counties League....
in 1896, and successfully applied for a place in the Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
of the Football League at the start of the 1899-1900 season, finishing seventh. After finishing bottom of the League three years in a row, the club failed to gain re-election to the League in 1909, returning to the Midland League.
In 1915 Chesterfield Town was put into voluntary liquidation and a new club with the same name formed. It lasted only two years before its management and players were suspended by the FA for illegal payments, and the club shut down. Chesterfield Borough Council formed a new club in April 1919, Chesterfield Municipal F.C., to fill the gap. It was run by the council itself, but the FA forced the club to become independent in December 1920. The club's name was changed to Chesterfield F.C. as a result of the ownership change.
In 1921-22, Chesterfield became a founder member of the new Football League Third Division North
Football League Third Division North
The Third Division North of The Football League was a tier in the English association football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran parallel to Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to one or the other according to geographical position...
. Following the arrival of new manager Ted Davison in 1926 and chairman Harold Shentall in 1928, the club won the Third Division North title in the 1930-31 season with an 8-1 victory over on the final day, and were promoted to the Second Division. Relegation followed in 1933, but the Third Division North title was again won in 1936.
After the war the club achieved their best League position, finishing fourth in the Second Division in 1946-47. However, the sale of several players at the end of the season reduced their overall quality, and Chesterfield were relegated at the end of the 1950-51 season. They were placed in the Third Division
Football League Third Division
The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
on its formation at the start of the 1958-59 season; future England international goalkeeper Gordon Banks
Gordon Banks
Gordon Banks, OBE is a retired English football goalkeeper. The IFFHS named Banks the second best goalkeeper of the 20th century – after Lev Yashin and ahead of Dino Zoff ....
made his professional debut in a Third Division game in November 1958, but was sold to for a then-club record £7,000 fee at the end of the season. In 1961 Chesterfield were relegated to the Fourth Division
Football League Fourth Division
The Fourth Division of The Football League was the fourth-highest division in the English football league system from the 1958–59 season until the creation of the Premier League prior to the 1992–93 season...
for the first time.
Chesterfield spent eight seasons in the Fourth Division, earning promotion as champions in 1969-70 under manager Jimmy McGuigan
Jimmy McGuigan
James "Jimmy" McGuigan was a Scottish professional football player and manager.-Playing career:McGuigan, who played as a wing half, played junior football with Bonnyrigg Rose Athletic, before turning professional in 1946 with Hamilton Academical...
. The Anglo-Scottish Cup
Anglo-Scottish Cup
The Anglo-Scottish Cup was a tournament arranged for teams in the English and Scottish football leagues during the summer for several years during the 1970s...
was won in 1981. The club was relegated in 1983-84, and won the Fourth Division title the following season. Financial difficulties forced Chesterfield Borough Council to bail out the club in 1985 and the club's training ground to be sold. Relegation followed in 1988-89; Chesterfield reached the play-off competition a year later, but were beaten by in the play-off final. The arrival of John Duncan
John Duncan (footballer)
John Pearson Duncan is a Scottish footballer and football manager.-Playing career:He played as a centre-forward for Dundee, Tottenham Hotspur, Derby County, Scunthorpe United and the Scottish Football League....
as manager in 1993 was followed in the 1994-95 season by play-off victories over and to earn promotion to the redesignated Second Division.
The 1996-97 season saw Chesterfield beat four clubs including Premier League side to reach the semi-final of the FA Cup for the first time. The semi-final match against was drawn 3-3 after extra time; Chesterfield lost the replay 3-0.
The club were relegated to the Third Division in 2000 following a run of 21 games without a win, and chairman Norton Lea was replaced by Darren Brown. The following year, Chesterfield were deducted nine points for financial irregularities after Brown attempted to avoid paying the fee agreed by the FA for Luke Beckett
Luke Beckett
Luke John Beckett is an English professional footballer who plays as a striker and is currently without a club. Beckett played in the Football League for ten years notably appearing for Sheffield United, Huddersfield Town and Oldham Athletic, having also played for Chester City, Chesterfield,...
. Amid mounting evidence of fraud, he relinquished control of the club in March 2001 and ownership passed to a hastily organised fans' group, the Chesterfield Football Supporters Society. Massive debts run up by Brown forced the club into administration, but the team still secured the division's final automatic promotion place. (Brown was later sentenced to four years in prison following a Serious Fraud Office
Serious Fraud Office
The Serious Fraud Office may refer to:*Serious Fraud Office *Serious Fraud Office...
investigation that led to charges including false accounting, furnishing false information and theft).
The Second Division was renamed to Football League One
Football League One
Football League One is the second-highest division of The Football League and third-highest division overall in the English football league system....
for the 2004-05 season. Two years later Chesterfield were relegated to Football League Two
Football League Two
Football League Two is the third-highest division of The Football League and fourth-highest division overall in the English football league system....
, although they did reach the regional semi-final of the Football League Trophy
Football League Trophy
The Football League Trophy, currently known as the Johnstone's Paint Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is an annual English association football knock-out competition open to the 48 clubs in Football League One and Football League Two, the bottom two divisions in the four fully professional top...
and the fourth round of the Football League Cup
Football League Cup
The Football League Cup, commonly known as the League Cup or, from current sponsorship, the Carling Cup, is an English association football competition. Like the FA Cup, it is played on a knockout basis...
in the same year. The following three seasons saw no change in their League status.
On 22 April 2011 Chesterfield were promoted to League One after a 0-0 draw between and confirmed that the former could not catch Chesterfield, who had been top of League Two since the 16th October 2010. On the 7th May 2011 Chesterfield FC were crowned League 2 champions following a 3-1 victory against Gillingham.
Stadium
Chesterfield now play their home games at the new £13 million B2net Stadium. The first match at the B2net Stadium was against Derby CountyDerby County F.C.
Derby County Football Club is an English football based in Derby. the club play in the Football League Championship and is notable as being one of the twelve founder members of the Football League in 1888 and is, therefore, one of only ten clubs to have competed in every season of the English...
in a pre season friendly in which Derby won 5-4. The first goalscorer at the B2net Stadium was Craig Davies. The last game to take place at Saltergate was against AFC Bournemouth on Saturday 8 May 2010. Chesterfield were 1-0 down at half time, but second half goals from Lester 10 minutes from time and Niven in the sixth minute of injury time, saw supporters invade the pitch for the 1st time, meant Saltergate was sent off with an impressive 2-1 win over already promoted AFC Bournemouth. Emotions spilled over at the final whistle as the capacity crowd invaded the pitch for a 2nd time in celebration, and to say goodbye. The club moved to the B2net Stadium in July 2010. Chesterfield suffered their first home league defeat at the B2net Stadium after a 2-1 loss at Burton Albion on 13 November 2010. The highest attendance at the B2net Stadium was 10,089 at home to Rotherham United which they won 5-0 with Jack Lester getting a hat-trick.
Honours
- Midland Football LeagueMidland Football LeagueThere have been at least two different football competitions in England which used the name Midland Football League.One existed until 1982 before merging with the Yorkshire League to form the Northern Counties League....
Champions: 1909/10, 1919/20 - Third Division (North) Champions: 1930/31, 1935/36
- Third Division Play Off Winners (Currently known as Football League TwoFootball League TwoFootball League Two is the third-highest division of The Football League and fourth-highest division overall in the English football league system....
): 1994/95 - Fourth Division Champions (Currently known as Football League TwoFootball League TwoFootball League Two is the third-highest division of The Football League and fourth-highest division overall in the English football league system....
): 1969/70, 1984/85, 2010/11 - Anglo-Scottish CupAnglo-Scottish CupThe Anglo-Scottish Cup was a tournament arranged for teams in the English and Scottish football leagues during the summer for several years during the 1970s...
winners: 1980/81.
Minor Honours
- Bass Charity VaseBass Charity VaseThe Bass Charity Vase is a football tournament founded in 1889 in Burton Upon Trent. It has played in all but 2 years since 1890.The Bass Charity Vase most successful club is Burton Albion as teams from Burton formed to create Burton Albion therefore there combined amount of titles totals 26. But...
Winners: 1900/01 - Derbyshire Senior CupDerbyshire Senior CupThe Derbyshire Senior Cup is a local county football cup for teams based in the county of Derbyshire. It's final is traditionally held at Derby County's Pride Park Stadium....
winners: 1898/99, 1920/21, 1921/22, 1924/25, 1932/33, 1936/37 - Derbyshire F.A. Centenary Cup winners: 1994/95, 2000/01, 2001/02, 2009/10
- Banner Jones Middleton CupBanner Jones Middleton CupThe Banner Jones Middleton Cup is an annual pre-season friendly cup competition contested between Chesterfield F.C. and Matlock Town F.C. in Matlock, Derbyshire, England. The competition was founded at the beginning of the 2002/03 season and is always held at Matlock's Causeway Lane...
winners: 2003/04, 2004/05, 2005/06, 2006/07, 2007/08, 2008/09, 2009/10, 2010/11, 2011/12
- Derbyshire Senior Cup is competed by all registered Derbyshire FA clubs. Until season 2010/11, Chesterfield and Derby County did not enter clubs and in turn competed in their own competition called the Derbyshire FA Centenary Cup. Both Chesterfield and Derby County will field reserve sides in the Derbyshire Senior Cup from season 2010/11.
Youth Honours
- North & Midlands East Conference Winners: 2005/06, 2008/09, 2010/11
- FA Youth CupFA Youth CupThe Football Association Youth Challenge Cup is an English football competition run by The Football Association for under–18 sides. Only those players between the age of 15 and 18 on 31 August of the current season are eligible to take part...
Runners Up: 1955/56
Player records
- Most League Appearances: 617 Dave BlakeyDave BlakeyDavid "Dave" Blakey is an English former professional footballer who played as a centre half. Blakey spent his entire career with Chesterfield, making 617 appearances in the Football League. His number of appearances is a club record.-References:...
(1948–1967) - Most League Goals: 162 Ernie MossErnie MossErnest "Ernie" Moss is an English former footballer. He is most associated with his home town club, Chesterfield, where in three separate spells spanning nearly twenty years he made 539 appearances, scoring a club record 192 goals. He was later voted PFA Fans' Favourites and cult hero number one...
(1968–1975, 1979–1981, 1984–1986) - Youngest Player: Dennis Thompson - 16 Years 159 Days
- Oldest Player: Billy KiddBilly Kidd (footballer)Billy Kidd is a former professional footballer who played for Chesterfield F.C. for the whole of his professional career. He was born in Pegswood.-External links:**-References:...
- 40 Years 232 Days
Club records
- Best League position: 4th in Division 2 (level 2), 1946–47
- Best FA CupFA CupThe Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
performance: Semi-final replay, 1996–97 - Highest Attendance (Saltergate/Recreation Ground): 30,561 v Tottenham Hotspur 12 February 1938 (previously quoted record figure of 30,968 (against Newcastle UnitedNewcastle United F.C.Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, and has played at its current home ground, St James' Park, since the merger...
Division Two, 7 April 1939) is now recorded as only having been 28,636) - Highest Attendance (B2Net Stadium): 10,089 v Rotherham UnitedRotherham United F.C.Rotherham United Football Club are an English professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, who compete in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. The club's colours have traditionally been red and white, although these have evolved through history...
18 March 2011
Current squad
- As of 16 June 2011.
(captain)
Out on loan
Notable former players
For a list of notable Chesterfield players in sortable-list format see List of Chesterfield F.C. players.Managers
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Alec Campbell (footballer) Alistair Kenyon Campbell was a professional footballer who played nearly 200 games for Southampton in the first quarter of the twentieth century, before briefly becoming manager at Chesterfield.... (1927) Teddy Davison Teddy Davison was an English footballer and manager who had a long and successful association with the football clubs of Sheffield, playing for Sheffield Wednesday for 18 years and later managing Sheffield United for 20 years. His fairness and diplomacy earned him the nicknames of "The George... (1927–1932) Bill Harvey William "Bill" Harvey was an English association football player and manager.-Playing career:Harvey played for Sheffield Wednesday, Birmingham and Southend United... (1932–1938) Norman Bullock Norman Bullock was the manager of Leicester City from 1949 to 1955. He also managed Bury for two four-year spells.He was born in Monton, Eccles, Lancashire.... (1938–1945) Bob Brocklebank Bob Brocklebank was an English footballer and manager.He played for Aston Villa and Burnley, where he was top goalscorer in 1937-38 before becoming a manager, at Chesterfield, Birmingham City, Hull City and Bradford City.... (1945–1948) Bobby Marshall (footballer) Robert Samuel Marshall was a professional footballer who played for Sunderland, Manchester City and Stockport County.... (1948–1952) Doug Livingstone Dugald Livingstone was a Scottish football player and manager.He played fullback for Parkhead, Ashfield, Celtic, Dumbarton Harp , Everton, Plymouth Argyle, Aberdeen and Tranmere Rovers during an illustrious playing career before hanging up his boots and going into management.During his managerial... (1958–1962) Jimmy McGuigan James "Jimmy" McGuigan was a Scottish professional football player and manager.-Playing career:McGuigan, who played as a wing half, played junior football with Bonnyrigg Rose Athletic, before turning professional in 1946 with Hamilton Academical... (1967–1973) Joe Shaw (Sheffield United) Joseph "Joe" Shaw was an English footballer who played for Sheffield United between 1945 and 1966. He also worked as a manager, being in charge of York City from 1967–1968 and Chesterfield from 1973-1976.-Football career:... (1973–1976) Arthur Cox (footballer) Arthur Cox is a former English football manager.Cox has managed a number of clubs including Chesterfield, Newcastle United, where he won promotion to the First Division and introduced future international players such as Peter Beardsley and Chris Waddle... (1976–1980) |
John Duncan (footballer) John Pearson Duncan is a Scottish footballer and football manager.-Playing career:He played as a centre-forward for Dundee, Tottenham Hotspur, Derby County, Scunthorpe United and the Scottish Football League.... (1983–1987) Kevin Randall Kevin Randall is a former footballer and manager and currently chief scout at Queens Park Rangers.-Managerial record:-External links:*... (1987–1988) Paul Hart Paul Hart is an English football manager and former football defender, who is currently Academy Director at Charlton Athletic. The son of Johnny Hart, a football inside forward and manager, Hart had five-year spells with both Blackpool and Leeds United, while also playing for Nottingham Forest and... (1988–1991) John Duncan (footballer) John Pearson Duncan is a Scottish footballer and football manager.-Playing career:He played as a centre-forward for Dundee, Tottenham Hotspur, Derby County, Scunthorpe United and the Scottish Football League.... (1993–2000) Dave Rushbury David Graham Rushbury is an English former footballer and manager. Rushbury made over 400 Football League appearances for eight different clubs.-Early playing career:... (2002–2003) Roy McFarland Roy Leslie McFarland is an English football manager who was also a player, notably at Derby County where he played 434 league games helping him to earn 28 caps for England.-Playing career:... (2003–2007) Lee Richardson (footballer) Lee James Richardson is a former professional footballer and until 6 May 2009 he was manager of Chesterfield... (2007–2009) |