This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 62.171.194.5 (talk) at 10:26, 31 March 2006. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 10:26, 31 March 2006 by 62.171.194.5 (talk)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff) Football club| Bristol City badge | |||
| Full name | Bristol City Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Robins | ||
| Founded | 1897 | ||
| Ground | Trashton Gate, Bristol | ||
| Capacity | 22,500 | ||
| Chairman | Steve Landsdown | ||
| Manager |  Gary Johnson | ||
| League | League One | ||
| 2004-05 | League One, 7th | ||
| |||
Bristol City is a football club in Bristol, England, which plays in Football League One. Its home is Ashton Gate Stadium. Gary Johnson has been the team's manager since 23 September 2005. Well known city financier Rob Illingworth, (you know, a poor man's tim henman)is a huge fan, and was recently considered to be the driving force behind a self financed Take Over
Home colours are presently all red, though for most of the club's history red shirts and white shorts have been the norm. The away kit for 2005-6 is "champagne gold"; in the past a variety of combinations have been used, particularly white shirts and black shorts, but yellow, green-and-purple, all black and all white have also been seen in recent years. The club's nickname is "the Robins", and a robin featured on the club's badge from 1976 to 1994.
City's derby rivals are Bristol Rovers and there is considerable antipathy between the sides and supporters. Even the issue of oldest club is still a matter of contention, Rovers claim to be the oldest professional club in Bristol, however City have enjoyed league status for longer. City draw their main support from the south of Bristol, Rovers from the east. In recent years City have usually finished higher in the league than Rovers, though neither team has enjoyed huge success.
Honours
The team played in the FA Cup final, losing 1 - 0 to Manchester United at Crystal Palace, London, on April 26 1909, and won the Welsh Cup in 1934, defeating Tranmere Rovers 3 - 0.
Their highest finishing position in the League was in the 1906-07 season when the team were runners-up to Newcastle in Division 1.
Minor honours include: Second Division champions 1905-06; Third Division South champions three times; Associate Members' Cup winners 1985-86 (as Freight Rover Trophy); Football League Trophy winners 2002-3 (as LDV Vans Trophy); Anglo-Scottish Cup winners 1977-78.
History
The club was founded in 1897, when Bristol South End F.C. turned professional and changed its name to Bristol City. In 1900 the club merged with local rival Bedminster F.C., which had been founded as Southville in 1887. The side joined the Football League in 1901. They first entered Division 1 in 1906 as Division 2 champions, and as newcomers became known as the "Bristol Babes", a nickname that would last into the thirties. They were runners-up in their first season in the top flight, but couldn't match this performance again, and were relegated in 1911. They would not return for sixty-five years.
The 1920s were a rocky time as City "yo-yoed" between Division 2 and Division 3 South. By the thirties they were solidly stuck in the third division, and stayed that way until after World War II. Harry Dolman became chairman in 1949, a post he would hold for over 30 years. An engineer who had bought out the firm he worked for, he designed the first set of floodlights installed at Ashton Gate in the early 1950s. The late 1950s were a better time for City, with a five year stay in Division 2, a league they returned to for a further spell in 1965. In 1967 Alan Dicks was appointed manager, and he eventually led them back to the top division in 1976 when they were runners-up in Division 2.
Surviving just four seasons in the top division and only managing a peak of 13th position in the 1978-79 season, they were relegated in 1980 and plummeted to Division 4 in straight seasons. The club went bankrupt and was only able to continue playing under the ownership of a new company, BCFC (1982) plc, because eight highly-paid senior players (the "Ashton Gate Eight") accepted redundancy.
City's stay in the basement was short - just two years - since when they have remained in the middle two divisions of the League structure. The late nineties were a period of instability for the club, with five managers in four seasons. Danny Wilson was appointed as manager in June 2000, but left by mutual consent in June 2004 after successive seasons of finishing 3rd but narrowly failing to win the play-offs. Long-serving City midfielder Brian Tinnion became player-manager in his place and led the team to a place just outside the play-offs in his first season.
The summer of 2005 saw a major rebuilding of the squad, bringing in the Premiership strikers Marcus Stewart (who supported City as a boy) and Michael Bridges. Three games into the 2005-2006 season City were one of only two clubs in the entire league without a goal; the drought ended abruptly in their fourth game, with three goals in the first quarter hour of a 4-2 victory over Port Vale. Results remained poor, however, and Tinnion resigned as manager after a 7–1 thrashing by Swansea. He was replaced by Gary Johnson, who was lured from west country neighbours Yeovil Town. A club record of 9 successive defeats was brought to an end with a 2-0 victory at home to Huddersfield on 10/12/2005. Since then, a continuous run of only 3 defeats in 16 games was capped with City beating Gillingham 6-0, With defender Louis Carey scoring a brace. This was City's largest league win since late 1969.
Current squad
(As of 15 March 2006) Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
|
|
- (1) On loan to Brentford
- (2) On loan to Walsall
- (3) On loan to Milton Keynes Dons
- (4) On loan to Port Vale
- (5) On loan to Preston North End
- (6) On loan from Luton Town
- (7) On loan from Fulham
- (8) On loan from Brighton & Hove Albion F.C.
Famous players
- Billy Wedlock
- John Atyeo
- Gus Caesar
- Andy Cole
- Brian Tinnion
- Marcus Stewart
- Dariusz 'Jacki' Dziekanowski
- Ade Akinbiyi
- Shaun Goater
- David Moyes
- Steve McClaren
- Norman Hunter
Managers
- Sam Hollis (1897-99)
- Bob Campbell (1899-1901)
- Sam Hollis (1901-05)
- Harry Thickett (1905-10)
- Sam Hollis (1911-13)
- George Hedley (1913-17)
- Jack Hamilton (1917-19)
- Joe Palmer (1919-21)
- Alex Raisbeck (1921-29)
- Joe Bradshaw (1929-32)
- Bob Hewison (1932-49)
- Bob Wright (1949-50)
- Pat Beasley (1950-58)
- Peter Doherty (1958-60)
- Fred Ford (1960-67)
- Alan Dicks (1967-80)
- Bobby Houghton (1980-82)
- Roy Hodgson (1982)
- Terry Cooper (1982-88)
- Joe Jordan (1988-90)
- Jimmy Lumsden (1990-92)
- Denis Smith (1992-93)
- Russell Osman (1993-94)
- Joe Jordan(1994-97)
- John Ward (1997-98)
- Benny Lennartsson (1998-99)
- Tony Pulis (1999)
- Tony Fawthrop (2000)
- Danny Wilson (2000-04)
- Brian Tinnion (2004-05)
- Gary Johnson (September 2005-Present)
Ashton Gate
Main article: Ashton GateBristol City play at Ashton Gate in the south-west of Bristol, just south of the River Avon. The ground has an all-seated capacity of about 21,500, with an effective capacity (depending on how many away tickets are allocated, and how they are segregated) of around 19,100. It was the home of Bedminster F.C. until the 1900 merger, and the merged team played some games there the following season, but it did not become the permanent home of Bristol City until 1904.
The Wedlock Stand at the south-east end of the ground was the traditional home fans' end until 1994, housed visiting fans from then until 2005 and is about to be redeveloped. The Williams Stand, on the south-west side, which includes the directors' box and press box, was built in 1958. The Dolman Stand, which lies opposite it, was built in 1970. The most recent addition to the stadium is the Atyeo Stand at the north-west end, which was built in 1994 to replace an open terrace, and contains new dressing rooms and a large gymnasium.
External links
- Official website (requires registration)
- Fan's forum