Histon Football Club

Wellcome to the Histon Football Club Thread

Histon Football Club is an English football club based in the twin villages of Histon and Impington, approximately 3 miles (5 km) north of Cambridge, Cambridgeshire. Since the 2007–08 season they have competed in the Conference National, after having won and been promoted from the Conference South in 2006–07, the highest level that the club has ever reached in the English football league system. Their current manager is Steve Fallon.

Histon are nicknamed "The Stutes", originating from the club's previous name Histon Institute, and they play their home matches at Bridge Road in Impington. Histon's crest features a rose, the flower representing the rose-covered field given to the people of Histon & Impington in perpetuity for sporting activities in the community by local firm Chivers. Histon play in red and black, their traditional colours, with red and black striped jerseys, black shorts and black socks.Their current away kit is sky blue shirts, royal blue shorts and sky blue socks.

Histon's traditional rivals used to be Ely City, but the clubs have not met in recent years; Histon consider nearer neighbours Cambridge United as current-day rivals, as the two clubs are now in the same division.

The club was formed in 1904 as Histon Institute F.C. and played for many years in the Cambridgeshire Football League. John Chivers, the chairman of the major employer in Histon & Impington, the jam company Chivers, helped to found the Histon Institute in 1903, from where the football club has its origins.[3] The company donated a field, then covered in roses, for the club to play on, which is commemorated in the rose on Histon's crest.

In 1960 the club (which by now had dropped the "Institute" from their name) joined the Delphian League, but just three years later this league disbanded. Histon, along with most of the other member clubs, joined the Athenian League. In 1966 they switched to the Eastern Counties League, where they were to play for nearly twenty-five years. When the ECL adopted a two-division format, in 1988, Histon were placed in the Premier Division. In the 1989–90 season Histon won the Jewson League Cup, but lost players Lance Key and Shaun Sowden to Sheffield Wednesday and Giuliano Maiorana to Manchester United.

In 1993 a new club committee was formed and the recovery started. They were relegated to Division One in 1995 but were promoted back up two years later. During this time manager Graham Daniels departed for Cambridge City, and this meant the arrival of Simon Allen and once again the standards were raised. He guided the first team back from the Eastern Counties League Division to the Premier Division. The 1997–98 season saw Neil Kennedy establish a club record by scoring 46 senior goals in the season, winning the golden boot for the League, and Histon finished 3rd.[4] The club also won the Fair Play award for the third season running. In the same season, Sean Audley also established a club record by scoring the most goals recorded to date in one season. He scored a record 79 goals in the reserve side, and by doing so he earned himself the golden boot for the League top scorer. The following season produced another manager in Trevor Collins who took over the role and by doing so took the team to 4th in the league. But in the 1999–2000 season they won the Premier Division title under the management of another manager, former Cambridge United player Steve Fallon, and were promoted to the Southern Football League. The title was won on the last day of the season with a 2–1 defeat of Gorleston.[4]

The start of the 21st Century for Histon was slow, and in the first three seasons Histon managed 4th spot twice and a disappointing 10th which momentarily halted the fast rise they had experienced with Steve Fallon up the non-league pyramid. The 2003–04 season saw Histon finish 2nd in the Southern League's Eastern Division to claim promotion to the Premier Division, and they followed this up by winning the Premier Division championship at the first attempt, and with it promotion to Conference South, the highest level at which the club had ever played. In the same season, Histon took on League Two side Shrewsbury Town in the F.A Cup 1st Round Proper, setting up a 2nd Round tie at home to Yeovil Town with a 2–0 victory. They lost to Yeovil in the 2nd Round, but it did not affect their league performances as they clinched the Southern League Premier Division title on the last day of the season.

Bridge Road, viewing back of Main Stand and Red Gate Stand.In their first season at this level Histon finished in 5th place, enough to secure a place in the play offs for promotion to the Conference National. They won their first game away at Farnborough Town 3–0, but lost 2–0 in the play-off final at Broadhall Way against St. Albans City.

In the FA Cup they managed to reach the second round proper after beating Hednesford Town in the first round. The team managed a draw away at Nuneaton Borough but were defeated in the replay at Bridge Road 2–1. They would have played Premier League club Middlesbrough if they had won. The second round replay saw 3,077 people at Bridge Road,[5] the highest attendance of the whole season.[6] The season was also notable for a 5–0 win against local rivals Cambridge United, for many years the "big" club in the region, in the FA Trophy.

The two mainstands under snow cover.On the 14 April 2007, the Stutes beat Welling United 1–0 at Bridge Road to secure promotion to the Conference National for the first time in their history. Adrian Cambridge scored the winner in the 89th minute. Just two days previously, officials from the Conference had passed Bridge Road as fit for Conference football, paving the way for promotion - the club's 4th in 7 years - to the highest point in the football league pyramid reached in the club's history. In the same season striker Neil Kennedy got his 300th goal for the club with a hat-trick against Havant & Waterlooville.

In Histon's first season in the Conference National the Stutes played their first televised game. On 20 September 2007 Setanta broadcast, from Bridge Road, the 1–0 win against Oxford United. Later in the season the club broke their record home attendance when a crowd of 3,721 saw Histon beat local rivals Cambridge United 1–0 on 1 January 2008.In that month's transfer window the club signed Jack Midson from Bishop's Stortford and sold striker Cliff Akurang to Barnet. Histon finished the season in 7th, two places and 9 points away from the play-offs, and bade farewell to the club's record goalscorer, Neil Kennedy. He played his last competitive game against Forest Green Rovers on the last day of the season in a substitute appearance.

Histon's second season of Conference started well, and the Stutes were top of the division during November. In the FA Cup, Histon reached the third round for the first time after beating Leeds United 1–0 at home in the second round, the first time Leeds had lost to a non-league side. They lost 2-1 to Swansea City at home in the third round.

Histon's recent successful period has been under the management of Steven Fallon and John Beck, both former Cambridge United players. Along with bought-in players such as Antonio Murray and John Kennedy, Fallon's team draws its foundations from local players that have risen through the ranks, such as captain Jamie Barker and Neil Andrews.

As of 25 February 2009.

[edit] Current squad

No. Position Player

1 GK Danny Naisbitt

2 DF Craig Pope

4 DF Mat Mitchel-King

5 DF Matt Langston

6 DF Adam Bygrave

7 MF John Kennedy

8 MF Neil Andrews

9 FW Lee Roache

10 FW Antonio Murray

11 MF Jamie Barker

12 FW Jack Midson

13 GK Joe Welch

14 MF Daniel Sparks

No. Position Player

15 MF Tyler Campbell

16 MF Callum Stewart

17 FW Richard Pacquette

18 MF Nathaniel Knight-Percival

19 DF Adam Dalby

20 MF Lee Brennan

21 DF Lanre Oyebanjo

22 DF Marlon Patterson

23 FW Daniel Wright

24 MF Josh Simpson

25 DF Gareth Gwillim

37 DF Patrick Ada

Please put this on the forum links thread!!!(Once edited)

Nice opener.

Thanks!!!!

I'm Histon in the BSP and Watford are my parent club. Henderson and Avinel are good first team loaners from Watford for me BUT the youngster Jordan Parkes (LB/RB) has been sensational.

On the permanent front Bokuma (GK from a French lower league club) and my two Liberians (Dixon and Prince) have been inspired signings. Danny Wright my striker regularly scores hatricks and has been sensational. He's scored 28 goals in 29 starts and it's only Feb/March!

Anyone else have any Histon experiences of any players they may recommened? Looking for promotion to League 2 so suggestions for League1/2 please

dassyboy

Merged into the Histon thread.

dassyboy

Merged into the Histon thread.

Thank you!

My local team (along with Cambridge) but i like histon better, lost a few of their good players irl but make sure you keep ada and murray both have league potential and are stand outs in the conference, also try to keep oyebanjo he develops into a good little player and is in one of the irish under 19 squads!

My local team (along with Cambridge) but i like histon better, lost a few of their good players irl but make sure you keep ada and murray both have league potential and are stand outs in the conference, also try to keep oyebanjo he develops into a good little player and is in one of the irish under 19 squads!

Murray, Ada, Wright and Mitchel-King stayed with me into the FL. Murray stayed with me until I'd spent a season in League 1!