Richmond Town

Richmond Town FC

Ground: Dave Clark Arena

Capacity: 1,000

Club Founded: 1945

League: Wearside League Premier Division – Step 7/11th Tier (current level)

Richmond Town FC, from the market town in North Yorkshire, eventually had to move from one of the country’s most picturesque grounds to somewhere more functional in the name of progress. Here’s their story.

Match Action at Earls Orchard
Image taken from an online source

A Brief Club History

For the first forty years or so of their history, Richmond Town competed in local league football at their stunning Earls Orchard, nestled by Richmond Castle. The pavilion was officially opened in 1975 by Jack Charlton, then manager of Middlesbrough.

Richmond advanced to the Teesside League and soon became an established club in the competition. The 2011-12 season saw the league title being won and the MacMillan Bowl lifted, leading to promotion to the Wearside League, with third place achieved in their debut season.

Dave Clark Arena
Image taken from an online source

Ground grading regulations meant that the first team needed to move from Earls Orchard to retain its status in 2021. Richmond arranged to use the artificial surface of the Dave Clark Arena on the edge of town as they continued to maintain decent league finishes.

My visits

Earls Orchard 

Saturday 6th April 1991

While I never went inside the ground or saw a game there, some fellow travelling Scarborough fans and I played a small part in one pre-match warm-up on our way to a game at Darlington.

We stopped to cheer somewhere around here!
Image from Google Maps

Rather than risk the attention of local ne'er-do-wells around Feethams, we stopped for beers in the pubs around Richmond Market Square. Leaving town, we somehow passed Earls Orchard when someone on board mentioned Eastfield FC; one of our local teams was playing away to Richmond Town.

Sure enough, down below us, the teams were traipsing out for their early kick-off. Some baffled players looked up at a gaggle of blokes singing “Scarborough, Scarborough”. I would imagine it would have been mentioned in the pub after their game!

At Stokesley Sports Club

Richmond Town 0 Scarborough Athletic 2

North Riding Senior Cup Quarter Final - Wednesday 25th January 2017

👨‍👨‍👧‍👧 165 🎟️ £4

Because Richmond Town's Earls Orchard home at the time didn't have floodlights, they used the facilities at Stokesley Sports Club to host Scarborough Athletic in the county cup. My visit to the northeast kicked off six days of football in different places as I used up the remainder of my annual league. 

My day had been fun-packed in improving weather as I headed north on the train to Darlington, where I obtained a £7.80 one-day bus ticket and visited the home grounds of Darlington, Darlington Railway Athletic, Shildon, Bishop Auckland, West Auckland Town, Crook Town, and Willington football clubs.

After a quick look at Bishop’s old home at the Kingsway Cricket Ground, I took a train to Middlesbrough, where I grabbed some food before catching the 28A bus through the Cleveland Hills to Stokesley.

The ground's floodlights were visible as we approached the town. I alighted, so I never got a look at the town or its pubs, which in hindsight may have been an error. Instead, I headed straight to the ground and paid the very fair £4 admission along with a programme for another quid.

It was my first time at the ground, so I wasn’t aware that the clubhouse and bar were outside the entrance. The kind lady at the gate let me back out so I could head for the warmth on what was becoming a very cold evening.

The clubhouse was neat and tidy, even though there was no real ale. I plumped for a bottle of Newcastle Brown after a warming cuppa as the room began to fill up with Boro fans. The travelling support supplied the majority of the crowd.

Once back inside the venue, I took in the scene. There was a neat seated stand down the near side with two low covers behind the goal by the entrance. The rest of the ground consisted of open flat grass and concrete standing areas.

It was lovely to catch up with old friends: Boro directors Nick and Andy, along with Col, who was giving me a ride to Scarborough after the game, and Nigel, along with the unpredictably entertaining Steve Dixon.

This turned out to be my only Boro game of the season. I really should have made more of an effort, but I didn’t want to attend a home game. This was because I didn't want to test my emotions too far. Queensgate in Bridlington, where Boro were still tenants, was the last place I’d gone to a game with my dad before he died.

Naturally enough, I was unfamiliar with the Boro team and was interested to see what Steve Kittrick’s outfit had to offer. At the time, they were in a mid-table berth. Their opponents were riding high in the Wearside League.

It turned out to be a very testing evening for the Seadogs as underdogs Richmond flew into challenges and were not prepared to leave anything out on the pitch. Callum Robinson came close for Boro after sixteen minutes, but his drive was saved by Karl Latcham.

The visitors suffered an injury blow shortly after when full-back Scott Brown was poleaxed with a shocking challenge. He departed with a suspected broken leg. Scott Ryan was proving a handful up front for Town. He twice got round the back of the visiting defence but couldn’t score.

Richmond’s no-nonsense approach was rattling the Boro team, not to mention the supporters. Dan Caisley forced a good save out of Seadogs keeper Jordan Porter from distance. Boro replied with efforts from debutant Matt Lucid, Dave Merris, and Jacob Hazel.

At the break, it was time to head back to the warmth of the clubhouse before returning to enjoy the excellently priced catering. A Bovril was only 80p, while an excellent cheeseburger with onions was great value at £2.

We stood in the shelter behind the goal in the second period. Some of the stuff coming from the away support had to be heard to be believed. Referee Wood was having a weak game, but I still think some fans in red and white were watching a different game.

Merris had a free kick turned over the bar, while Hazel saw a volley deflected inches wide of the post. There was an amusing incident when home keeper Latcham began to limp. A teammate took over the gloves, but no substitute came on. Latcham reappeared a few minutes later, having been to the loo to relieve himself!

The match was showing all the signs of ending goalless and going to penalty kicks. Latcham wasn’t the same keeper after his adjournment, as he flapped at crosses. Boro piled on the pressure without breaching the Richmond defence.

As the game entered its final minutes, Boro went ahead when forward Benny Igiehon glanced a header towards goal. Latcham should have saved it, but he could only parry the ball into the corner of the net. It was well deserved after a period of positive football.

Home forward Ryan was shown a second yellow card as Town were reduced to ten men. Jason Newall then fouled Boro’s star man, Robinson, in the box. Hazel stepped up to score from the spot and secure a passage into the semi-final.

Richmond had played their part, if at times in an aggressive fashion. Their fans went home disappointed, but proud of their team.

After the game, my mate drove as marvellously as ever, and I was checking into the Premier Inn in Scarborough around midnight, ready for a good sleep. I needed it for what the next few days had in store, as a weekend trip to Germany lay ahead.

After a very pleasant morning and lunch in the town, including magnificent fish and chips at Mother Hubbard's, I headed down to Hull for the second match of my extravaganza: the EPL Cup semi-final between Hull City and Manchester United.