Stratford Town

Stratford Town FC 

Ground: The Arden Garages Stadium - Knights Lane

Capacity: 3,000

Club Founded: 1941

League: Southern League Premier Division Central - Step 3/7th Tier (current level)

There's much more to Stratford-upon-Avon than William Shakespeare and the heritage he left behind, as I discovered when I visited Stratford Town FC and delved into their past.

Club History of the Bards

The Early Years

Stratford Town FC was formed by Paul Bartlett in 1941. Originally known as Stratford Rangers, the club changed to its current title eight years later while playing at the Alcester Road Ground. The team competed in the West Midland Alliance under player-manager Len Livingstone. 

Town finished as league runners-up and then champions in 1953-54 thanks to goals from Gordon Hillman, before joining the Worcestershire Combination, which was won in Stratford's third season in the competition. Town were admitted to Division Two of the Birmingham & District League after this success. 

Gradual Progress

The league changed its name to the West Midlands (Regional) League. The club had a short spell under the name of Stratford Town Amateurs before they re-entered the Midland Combination, as the Worcestershire Combination had been renamed. Stratford joined the Premier Division of the Hellenic League for the 1975-76 campaign.

Stratford became Midland Combination champions in 1986-87 before becoming founder members of Midland Alliance in 1994-95 following improvements to facilities at The Ground. The team finished as runners-up in the league at the end of the decade under manager Lenny Derby after the club had been restructured following financial troubles.

A New Home Ground

Town moved into its new Knights Lane facility in the summer of 2008, with the ground being named The DCS Stadium in a sponsorship deal. Several managers had come and gone over the previous few years before the appointment of former player Morton Titterton, who led Town to a top-six finish. 

Carl Adams took Stratford Town to the Midland Alliance title and promotion to Division One South West of the Southern League. Stratford were promoted to the Premier Division for the 2015-16 campaign after defeating Larkhall Athletic in the playoff final.

Recent Seasons

Thomas Baillie took the side to the playoffs in 2018-19, where hopes of promotion were dashed in the semifinal against King's Lynn Town. The team continued to perform at the highest level they had ever played in, with several managers looking to take the club to the next level. 

Former England goalkeeper, Tim Flowers, was among them, before Paul Davis returned for a second spell in charge in November 2024.

My visit

Stratford Town 1 Scarborough Athletic 4 - after extra time

FA Cup Third Qualifying Round Replay  - Tuesday 3rd October 2017

👨‍👨‍👧‍👧 498 🎟️ £10

I’ve been very lucky to be able to travel far and wide to hundreds of football games. Most drift out of memory unless prompted. Every now and again, you know you’ve witnessed something special. This was one of those occasions as a Scarborough fan. I had a sleep after night shift and then headed down to Marylebone station, just knowing it was going to be a good night. 

I don’t know why, but sometimes you get a gut feeling about such things. My pleasant journey necessitated a change at Dorridge, a name which reminded me of how a famous East Anglian city would sound if I had a blocked nose, before heading back south to Stratford-Upon-Avon.

Throughout my travels, I always try, wherever possible, to do more than just go to a football game. It was my first visit to the town, so I wanted to see what it had to offer. It was certainly quaint and very English, with its main thoroughfares leading to the river.

As expected, the town made full use of the name of William Shakespeare, as Stratford is the birthplace of the famous bard. Many Café’s, hotels, and pubs used references to him. I wandered around taking photos and trying to get a feel for the place. To be honest, I’d never read Shakespeare or seen one of his adapted plays.

I had heard of many of the titles, but I wouldn’t have the foggiest of the plots; nor, to be honest, was I likely to in the future. Without sounding ignorant, John Cooper-Clarke appealed more to me than Shakespeare. However, I was in good form, even after sampling half in the Golden Bee Wetherspoons establishment while using the facilities. 

I’d seen what looked like a far more suitable hostelry on the walk from the station. I wasn’t disappointed. As soon as I walked into the Stratford Alehouse Micropub, I felt at home. There was nice background music and a warm welcome from Bill, the joint owner. He only had four different beers, but all proved to be in excellent nick.

Bill was a former regular at Nuneaton Borough and was at the famous 1977 FA Trophy quarter-final replay when Scarborough won 1-0. My Dad went to the game and told me of heroic defending and then having the coach's windows smashed with bricks after the game.

Bill confirmed the details of the game. He’d also been to North Marine Road a year later when Yorkshire played Australia in a three-day game, a match I attended. We were like long-lost friends as some of the regulars sighed and shook their heads. I had lovely chats with the regulars as well as a gent who was taking early retirement at the end of the week. 

The fine ales from the Wye Valley, Stratford-Upon-Avon, Nethergate, and Binghams Breweries and nice music made it time very well spent. Feeling rather relaxed, I opted for a taxi to the ground, passing some stunning detached houses along the way, including a mansion belonging to Premier League goalkeeper Ben Foster. 

On entering the village of Tiddington, we turned down Knights Lane to the stadium. The car park was already very busy, with many using the outside artificial pitches along with the crowd for the main match. I paid my £10 admission and was assured that access to the bar was through the gates. The programme was an additional £2.

It was somewhat of a surprise to find the bar desolate. It was after 7pm. Surely some Boro fans had arrived by now? I was beginning my beer when an official told me that there was another bar through the back where the fans were gathered, and he kindly led me through. It was great to catch up with old faces and regulars. 

It was apparent that a large following had headed to the game. It then dawned on me that I was, to all intents and purposes, back outside the ground. This was not good! Kick-off was delayed because the Boro team were running late. 

The locals were not very happy, but many of us cheered the lads into the ground. They appeared in a very defiant mood. I knew that my vibes were correct about the match. After a quick word, the Stratford secretary, Brian Rose, wrote me out a slip to gain admission. He was a most welcoming bloke as we chatted about how big the game was for both clubs. 

Neither had progressed as far in the competition before. The full realisation that there were around 200 Seadogs in attendance hit home when we went outside and took up position behind the goal on a narrow hard-standing with two roof covers. Confidence seemed to be high, and the fans weren’t hiding it.

The MoodChimp Stadium, as the ground had been rebranded in a sponsorship deal, was decent. The main seated stand had all the facilities down one side, with a smaller seated structure opposite. I’d been told that the first game was a hard, tight encounter, and the replay began in the same fashion. 

The Town players were very functional and stuck to a game plan, while taking ample opportunity to try and influence referee Josh Smith. The catering queue eventually subsided, as I grabbed a much-needed hot dog and warming Bovril. Just as I neared the front of the queue, the home side went ahead through some poor defending from a near-post corner, leading to Jazz Luckie forcing home.

Boro were giving it everything, but getting very little change out of a very organised Stratford backline and midfield. I wasn’t convinced that the long ball down the middle would be productive. They needed to get the ball on the floor. At half-time, we made our way to the other end. It was a pleasure to chat with the directors, several of whom were good mates. 

Chairman Trevor Bull was in the same form I’d known for ten years; friendly, sensible, but kicking every ball. Tommy Taylor was making some very important stops in the Boro goal. The next goal was going to be vital; with Stratford looking the more likely to score, it was, if truth be told, despite a couple of half-chances beginning to open up at the other end.

Emile Sinclair came on to add attacking power, but the big man looked a little off the pace. Max Wright’s wide delivery wasn’t the best, and Michael Coulson had to look for scraps. Ross Daly began to impress in midfield. The equalising goal would come from an unlikely source. Craig Nelthorpe was being used as an emergency fullback because of injuries. 

It’s fair to say that he wasn’t a big fan favourite. His form had been poor. However, he decided to quieten his critics in the best possible way, scoring with a curling free kick from a distance that found home custodian Louis Connor a little too far off his line. The area behind the goal went absolutely wild as Boro gained a lifeline.

The match entered extra time as we swapped ends once again, with my pal Jamie prophesying that the big home side was starting to tire. They weren’t the only ones struggling. There was a delay in play with the ref standing by the home dugout. We saw home manager Carl Adams rush across the pitch. 

We thought he’d been sent off, but keeper Connor told us that the referee had injured himself and was struggling to carry on. Confusion was about to reign. It transpired that referee Smith wanted to abandon the match, but both managers wanted to carry on. It would need a qualified official from the crowd to run one of the lines. Boro secretary Jack Fewster was an obvious choice as a local league referee.

Town had already found someone. It was the club under-9s coach Justin Kearney, while senior linesman Richard Walker took over with the whistle. The situation was far from ideal, especially when £7,500 was going to the winners, but it was the same for both teams. I was impressed by the attitude of Carl Adams and Steve Kittrick.

We headed to the other end of the ground once again for the second period of extra time as Boro gradually had more of the ball. Only five minutes were remaining, and we thought it was certain to go to spot kicks. We were trying to pick out our five penalty takers.

Boro attacked. Sinclair passed to Tom Cadman on the edge of the box. He switched the ball from right to left, and then back again, before firing into the net. Cue absolute bedlam behind the goal. The Stratford players looked absolutely distraught and totally worn out.

Straight from the kick-off, the Seadogs won the ball. It was played forward with Coulson passing to Sinclair, who rolled it into the path of Cadman to score again. The atmosphere was absolutely electric among the travelling support.

To round off an incredible few minutes, another flowing move saw Cadman lay the ball square to Coulson, who took one touch before deftly dinking the ball over Connor and into the empty net before taking the plaudits in front of the delirious support.

It had been a long time since I’d seen such a celebration, highlighting the beauty of terracing rather than all-seater venues as we enjoyed the euphoria of a long-distance midweek away victory. The players and fans saluted each other. Injured skipper Dave Merris even hurdled the barrier into the crowd. The chanting continued as we left the ground, while the locals trudged away. 

I was rather hoping I’d catch sight of the home fan who told me before kick-off that we’d travelled a long way just to get beaten. One of the outstanding things about football supporters of Scarborough, and now Athletic, is how many don’t live anywhere near the town but still try to get to matches. 

One was to be my saviour after the match. My intended route back to North London was a ride with Ian, who lived in Northampton, before I caught the 11.30 train on a pre-booked ticket. The delayed kickoff, extra time, and injury meant this was improbable. Fortunately, Sub, an old mate, was at his first Athletic match with his son Tom and one of his school pals. 

They lived in Witney, Oxfordshire, and offered a solution. We had a good laugh about old times, just how great the night had been, while listening to some top tunes before they dropped me at Thornhill Park & Ride on the edge of Oxford. Before long, an Oxford Tube double-decker bus arrived and took me back to Marble Arch in less than an hour. 

A couple of night buses got me home around 2.20am. I was glad I had the next day off work. I was shattered, but with adrenaline still pumping. I fell asleep in bed at 3.30am. It had been a wonderful night, and I was so happy for the loyal fans who’d endured a torrid time for many seasons, with many keeping the faith over ten years in exile. 

I was also elated for the directors, both old and new, who’d had many stressful days. Scarborough Athletic were to play Hyde United ten days later, with the winners to appear in the First Round of the FA Cup. That, what anybody said, was remarkable.