Baldock Town Football Club is a football club based in
Baldock
Baldock ( ) is a historic market town and unparished area in the local government district of North Hertfordshire in the county of Hertfordshire, England, where the River Ivel rises. It lies north of London, southeast of Bedford, and north n ...
, Hertfordshire, England. Having originally been established in 1905, the current version of the club was established in 2003. They are currently members of and groundshare with
Arlesey Town
Arlesey Town Football Club is a football club based in Arlesey, Bedfordshire, England. Affiliated to the Bedfordshire County Football Association, they are currently members of the and play at Hitchin Road.
History
The club was established ...
at their Hitchin Road ground.
History
The club were founded in 1905 as Baldock Football Club,Baldock The Lilywhite and joined the Northern Division of the
Herts County League
The Hertfordshire Senior County League is a football competition based in Hertfordshire, England. Founded in 1898, there are currently two divisions at senior level and two divisions at reserve and development level. Sitting at step 7 of the Nati ...
for the 1905–06 season. They won the division in 1920–21 and finished as runners-up in the championship play-off. In 1921 they were renamed Baldock Town, and league reorganisation saw them placed in the North Eastern Division.Hertfordshire County League 1898–1927 Non-League Matters The league was reduced to a single division in 1923, and the 1924–25 season saw the club finish as runners-up. However, the league was disbanded at the end of the season, and the club joined Division One of the Bedfordshire & District County League (later renamed the
South Midlands League
The South Midlands League was a football league covering Bedfordshire and some adjoining counties in England. It was founded in 1922 as the Bedfordshire County League and merged with the Spartan League in 1997 to form the Spartan South Midland ...
), with the reserves playing in Division Two.South Midlands League 1922–1950 Non-League Matters They won the league in 1927–28, and although they finished bottom of Division One in 1929–30, they avoided being relegated to Division Two. They remained in Division One until
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
.
After the war Baldock rejoined the Herts County League, finishing bottom of Division One in 1946–47. They then switched back to the South Midlands League, winning Division Two in 1947–48 and earning promotion to Division One; the reserves subsequently joined Division Two. The club won Division One in 1949–50 and were promoted to the Premier Division. After finishing as runners-up in 1953–54, they left the league, switching to the
Parthenon League
The Parthenon League was a football league covering Greater London and the surrounding area.
History
The league was formed in 1951 with 11 clubs, nine of which had come from the Middlesex Senior League.Parthenon League 1951–1966 Non-League Matters They remained in the league for five seasons, before joining the Senior Division of the London League, finishing bottom of the division in 1959–60. However, after four seasons they rejoined the Premier Division of the South Midlands League. They subsequently won the league in 1965–66, 1967–68 and 1969–70.
In 1983 Baldock switched to the Premier Division of the
United Counties League
The United Counties League (also known after its sponsor as the ''Uhlsport United Counties League'') is an English football league covering Northamptonshire, Rutland and Bedfordshire and most of Leicestershire as well as parts of Buckinghamshi ...
, finishing as runners-up in their first season. After finishing as runners-up again in 1986–87, they were promoted to the Southern Division of the Southern League. They remained in the division until the end of the 1994–95 season, which saw them finish as runners-up, earning promotion to the Premier Division. However, they were relegated back to the Southern Division at the end of the 1996–97 season. In 1999 the club was transferred to the Eastern Division when the league was restructured. After the 2000–01 season they left the league and folded.
In 2003 the club was reformed as Baldock, with the team composed of former members of the Baldock Town youth team.History Baldock Town F.C. They joined Division One of the North Hertfordshire League. After finishing third in 2004–05, they were promoted to the Premier Division. The club were founder members of the North & Mid Herts League in 2006, and were placed in the Premier Division. During the year the club was renamed Baldock Town. After finishing as runners-up in the Premier Division, they were promoted to Division One of the Herts County League. They won the division at the first attempt, earning promotion to the Premier Division. In 2008 they were renamed again, this time becoming Baldock Town Letchworth following a move to playing home matches in Letchworth. However, they reverted to being Baldock Town in 2011 after returning to Baldock.
The club won the Premier Division in 2011–12 but were denied promotion due to their ground failing the necessary ground grading. After finishing as runners-up the following season, they were promoted to Division One of the Spartan South Midlands League after agreeing a groundshare in nearby Hitchin.
Ground
The original club played at Elmswood Manor on William Road, Walls Common on Penthouse Lane, Elm park and then an enclosed ground at Bakers Close until 1981, when they moved to the Norton Road ground.Peter Miles (1997) ''The Non-League Football Grounds of Hertfordshire'', p6 A 250-seat grandstand was built in 1983 at a cost of £8,000; two covered terraces were erected on either side of the grandstand, which became known as 'Charlie's Cowshed'. Another stand with bench seating was built on the other side of the pitch, with uncovered terraces behind both goals.
After reforming in 2003 the club played at Knights Templar Sports Centre and Bakers Close. However, following their Herts County League Division One title in 2007–08, the club moved to the County Ground in
Letchworth
Letchworth Garden City, commonly known as Letchworth, is a town in the North Hertfordshire district of Hertfordshire, England. It is noted for being the first garden city. The population at the time of the 2011 census was 33,249.
Letchworth ...
. In 2011 they returned to Baldock to play at Norton Road, which had been renamed the North Herts Arena.
The club were denied promotion in 2012 due to the
3G pitch
Artificial turf is a surface of synthetic fibers made to look like natural grass. It is most often used in arenas for sports that were originally or are normally played on grass. However, it is now being used on residential lawns and commerc ...
and perimeter fence not meeting the grading requirements for the Spartan South Midlands League. As a result, the club agreed a groundshare with
Hitchin Town
Hitchin Town Football Club is an English semi-professional football club based in Hitchin, Hertfordshire. They are currently members of the . Founded in 1865 and known as 'The Canaries', Hitchin Town have been based at Top Field since their fou ...
to play at Hitchin's Top Field ground. In May 2015, the club announced they would move to
Stotfold
Stotfold is a small town and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England.
Stotfold is thought to have gained its name from the northern drovers breaking their journey south at this point on the A1 Great North Road and penning their horses (stot ...
Arlesey Town
Arlesey Town Football Club is a football club based in Arlesey, Bedfordshire, England. Affiliated to the Bedfordshire County Football Association, they are currently members of the and play at Hitchin Road.
History
The club was established ...
*South Midlands League
**Champions 1927–28, 1965–66, 1967–68, 1969–70
**Division One champions 1949–50
**Division Two champions 1947–48
*Herts County League
**Premier Division champions 2011–12
**Division One champions 2007–08
**Northern Division champions 1920–21
*Herts Senior Centenary Trophy
**Winners 2012–13, 2017–18
*Anagram Records Trophy
**Winners 2011–12, 2012–13
Records
*Highest league position: 18th in the Southern League Premier Division, 1994–95
*Best
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
performance: Fourth qualifying round, 1991–92, 1999–00
*Best FA Trophy performance: Second round, 1998–99
*Best FA Vase performance: Fifth round, 1983–84
Baldock Town F.C. managers
Baldock ( ) is a historic market town and unparished area in the local government district of North Hertfordshire in the county of Hertfordshire, England, where the River Ivel rises. It lies north of London, southeast of Bedford, and north ...