Leiston Football Club is a
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
club based in
Leiston, Suffolk, England. They are currently members of the and play at Victory Road.
History
Established in 1880, the club was initially closely linked to the
Richard Garrett Engineering Works. They reached the final of the
Suffolk Senior Cup
The Suffolk Senior Cup is the second level football cup competition organised by the Suffolk FA after the Suffolk Premier Cup. It is currently open to Suffolk–based clubs competing in Eastern Counties League Division One and the top divisions of ...
in 1892, 1897 and 1904, losing on each occasion, although the club did win the Junior Cup in 1895. In 1894 Leiston joined the North Suffolk League, which they played in until 1909. In 1900 the club also joined the Ipswich & District League (later the
Suffolk & Ipswich League
The Suffolk and Ipswich Football League is a football competition based in Suffolk, England. The league has a total of eight divisions; the Senior Division and Divisions 1–3 for first teams, three divisions (Leagues A, B and C) for reserve te ...
) and were champions in their first three seasons.
[Blakeman, M (2010) ''The Official History of the Eastern Counties Football League 1935–2010, Volume II'' ] In 1904 they transferred to the
South East Anglian League
The East Anglian League was a football league in the East Anglia region of England.
History
The league was established in 1903 as the South East Anglian League. The founder member clubs were Chelmsford City, Colchester Crown, Colchester Town, ...
, but left in 1907 before rejoining in 1911 (when it had been renamed the
East Anglian League
The East Anglian League was a football league in the East Anglia region of England.
History
The league was established in 1903 as the South East Anglian League. The founder member clubs were Chelmsford City, Colchester Crown, Colchester Town, ...
). Between 1912 and 1914 the club also played in the Ipswich & District League.
After
World War I the club was reformed as Leiston Works Athletic and rejoined the Ipswich & District League and the East Anglian League. In 1920 they left the EAL and joined the
Essex & Suffolk Border League. At the end of the 1920–21 season the club left both the IDL and ESBL to join the
Norfolk & Suffolk League
The Norfolk & Suffolk League was a football league covering the counties of Norfolk and Suffolk in England.
History
The league was established in 1897, starting with six clubs, Beccles Caxton, Great Yarmouth Town, Kirkley, Lowestoft Town, Lynn ...
before rejoining the IDL in 1926. After finishing bottom of the table in 1934–35 they were reformed as Leiston and dropped into Division 2B.
[ The club won all seventeen league matches in 1937–38 and were promoted to Division One after defeating Division 2A winners Manningtree Rovers in a play-off.
In 1948 Leiston rejoined the Norfolk & Suffolk League, but transferred back to the Ipswich & District League in 1953. Despite finishing bottom of the Senior Division in 1979–80, the club avoided being relegated as the division was expanded.][Suffolk & Ipswich League 1979–1999 + 2000–2004]
Non-League Matters However, after finishing bottom again in 1981–82 they were relegated.[ They were promoted back to the Senior Division at the first attempt,][ also winning the Suffolk Junior Cup, which they retained in 1983–84. Leiston then spent several years as a ]yo yo club
A yo-yo club is a sporting side that is regularly promoted and relegated. The phrase is most typically used in association football in the United Kingdom, especially in reference to promotion to and relegation from the Premier League.
The name ...
as they were relegated in 1988–89, promoted back in 1989–90, relegated again in 1991–92 and returned to the Senior Division in 1996–96. After finishing third in 2000–01 the club stepped up to Division One of the Eastern Counties League
The Eastern Counties Football League, currently known as the Thurlow Nunn League for sponsorship purposes, is an English football league at levels 9 and 10 of the English football league system. It currently contains clubs from Norfolk, Suff ...
.
The 2003–04 season saw Leiston finish third in Division One, earning promotion to the Premier Division. The club reached the final of the Suffolk Premier Cup The Suffolk Premier Cup is the top level football cup competition organised by the Suffolk FA. It is currently open to clubs competing at the Eastern Counties League Premier Division level and above. Suffolk's only professional football club, Ipswi ...
three times in succession between 2006 and 2008, but lost on each occasion; 3–2 after extra time against Lowestoft Town
Lowestoft Town Football Club is a semi-professional football club from Lowestoft, Suffolk, England. They are currently members of the and play at Crown Meadow.
History
The club was established in 1887 as Lowestoft F.C. by a merger of East Suf ...
in 2006, 8–0 to Ipswich Town reserves in 2007, and on penalties to Needham Market
Needham Market is a town in Suffolk, England. The town of Needham, Massachusetts, was named after Needham Market.
History
It initially grew around the wool combing industry, until the onset of the plague, which swept the town from 1663 to 1665. ...
in 2008. In the same season they beat Brentwood Town
Brentwood Town Football Club is a football club based in Brentwood, Essex, England. They are currently members of the and play at the Brentwood Centre Arena.
History
A Brentwood Football Club was established in the 19th century, and played ...
on penalties to win the East Anglian Cup. In the 2008–09 FA Cup
The 2008–09 FA Cup (known as The FA Cup sponsored by E.ON for sponsorship reasons) was the 128th season of the world's oldest football knockout competition; the FA Cup. A record 762 clubs were accepted for the competition; one club, South Nor ...
the club reached the first round of the FA Cup for the first time; drawn at home to Conference North club Fleetwood Town
Fleetwood Town Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Fleetwood, Lancashire. Established in 1997, the current Fleetwood Town F.C. is the fourth incarnation of the club; it was originally formed in ...
, they drew 0–0 in front of a record crowd of 1,250, before losing the replay 2–0.Fleetwood Town 2–0 Leiston
BBC Sport, 18 November 2008
In 2010–11
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
Leiston won the Eastern Counties League Premier Division, earning promotion to Division One North of the Isthmian League
The Isthmian League () is a regional men's football league covering Greater London, East and South East England, featuring mostly semi-professional clubs.
Founded in 1905 by amateur clubs in the London area, the league now consists of 82 tea ...
. In 2011–12 they won Division One North, achieving back-to-back promotions and moving up to the Isthmian League Premier Division. They finished fifth in the Premier Division in 2017–18, going on to lose 1–0 in the play-off semi-finals to Dulwich Hamlet
Dulwich Hamlet Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in East Dulwich in south-east London, England. They are currently members of and play at Champion Hill.
History
The club was formed in 1893, by Lorraine 'Pa' Wilson. T ...
. The club were transferred to the Premier Central division of the Southern League at the end of the 2017–18 season as part of the restructuring of the non-League pyramid.
Ground
Leiston initially played at the old Recreation Ground, today known as Park Hill,[ with players changing in the White Horse Hotel or at the Works Hall. In 1921 they moved to their current ground on Victory Road, then known as the Leiston Works Athletic Association, after Garretts bought the ground. It was later renamed the Leiston Town Athletic Association.
]
Current squad
''The Southern Football League
The Southern League is a men's football competition featuring semi-professional clubs from the South and Midlands of England. Together with the Isthmian League and the Northern Premier League it forms levels seven and eight of the English fo ...
does not use a squad numbering system.''
Management and coaching staff
Boardroom
Current staff
Managerial history
Honours
*Isthmian League
**Division One North champions 2011–12
*Eastern Counties League
**Premier Division champions 2010–11
**Division One Cup winners 2001–02
*Suffolk & Ipswich League
**Champions 1900–01, 1901–02, 1902–03
**Division 2B champions 1937–38
*East Anglian Cup
**Winners 2007–08
*Suffolk Premier Cup
**Winners 2017–18, 2018–19
*Suffolk Junior Cup
**Winners 1894–95, 1982–83, 1983–84
Records
*Best FA Cup performance: First round, 2008–09[
*Best ]FA Trophy
The Football Association Challenge Trophy, commonly known as the FA Trophy, is a men's football knockout cup competition run by and named after the English Football Association and competed for primarily by semi-professional teams. The compet ...
performance: Fourth round, 2022–23[
*Best ]FA Vase
The Football Association Challenge Vase, usually referred to as the FA Vase, is an annual football competition for teams playing in Steps 5 and 6 of the English National League System (or equivalently, tier 9 or 10 of the overall English footbal ...
performance: Quarter-finals, 2010–11[
*Record attendance: 1,250 v ]Fleetwood Town
Fleetwood Town Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Fleetwood, Lancashire. Established in 1997, the current Fleetwood Town F.C. is the fourth incarnation of the club; it was originally formed in ...
, FA Cup first round, 8 November 2008[
*Most league goals: Lee McGlone 60][Mike Williams & Tony Williams (2012) ''Non-League Club Directory 2013'', p561 ]
*Most league appearances: Gareth Heath, 201
See also
*Leiston F.C. players
Leiston ( ) is an English town in the East Suffolk non-metropolitan district of Suffolk, near Saxmundham and Aldeburgh, about from the North Sea coast, north-east of Ipswich and north-east of London. The town had a population of 5,508 at the ...
*Leiston F.C. managers
Leiston ( ) is an English town in the East Suffolk non-metropolitan district of Suffolk, near Saxmundham and Aldeburgh, about from the North Sea coast, north-east of Ipswich and north-east of London. The town had a population of 5,508 at the ...
References
External links
Official website
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Football clubs in England
Football clubs in Suffolk
Association football clubs established in 1880
1880 establishments in England
Leiston
Suffolk and Ipswich Football League
East Anglian League
Norfolk & Suffolk League
Essex and Suffolk Border Football League
Eastern Counties Football League
Isthmian League
Southern Football League clubs