| |
Chairman: | Secretary: | Treasurer: | |
| Trevor Wright | Brian Penny | Malcolm Dick | ||
| 3 Queens Mews | 4 Hill House Cottages | 7 Green Square | ||
| Rye Road, Hawkhurst | Sparrows Green Road | Wadhurst | ||
| Cranbrook, Kent | Wadhurst, East Sussex | East Sussex | ||
| TN18 4EZ | TN5 6SS | TN5 6BU | ||
| Tel (01580) 753103 | Tel (01892) 783782 | Tel (01892) 782486 |
Wadhurst United Club History (2010)
Official records show Wadhurst FC to have established in 1890, although some sources say their existence was as early as 1873. The amalgamation of Wadhurst with village rival team Toc-H in 1973 formed the club we know today as Wadhurst United FC.
Having played for a number of years within the East Sussex League, Wadhurst were invited to join the Sussex County League (Division II) for the 1964/65 season. By the end of the 66/67 season, Wadhurst were Division II champions & promoted into the top tier of the County League. However the clubs fortunes changed at the turn of the decade. 1970 brought relegation back to Division II, and three years later came non-election into the County League for the 1972/73 season. This was due to the notorious end-to-end slope on the clubs home ground (Washwell Lane) being deemed too excessive.
The club joined the Southern Counties Combination League for that season, and continued to figure prominently within this league until the late 1980’s. The highlights of this period included a 2-1 defeat of APV to claim the Sussex Intermediate Cup in the 1975/76 season, and winning the league title four years later.
ESFL Domination & County League
After the break-up of the Southern Counties Combination League, Wadhurst
rejoined the East Sussex League for the 1988/89 season, where they have since
won four Premier Division titles, three of these in the space of six seasons
(1997/98, 2000/01, 2002/03), as well as winning and retaining the League Cup
for those six consecutive seasons. There has also been league success for the
clubs second & third teams in the last decade. A second spell in the Sussex
County League followed after the first team (relocated to play at Sparrows
Green) were elected into Division III for the 2003/04 season. The club enjoyed
three competitive seasons at the higher level, achieving respectable league
places along the way.
Rebuilding the club
Unfortunately this success could not be sustained, which resulted in the
club regrettably dropping out of the County League ahead of the 2006/07 season,
effectively dissolving the first team. Since then a period of rejuvenation
and rebuilding of the club has occurred. The new-look first team returned to
play at their original home on the Washwell Lane slope, and have gone from
the 4th tier of the East Sussex League to regain their place within the Premier
Division in 4 years.
The “Double-Double”
Last season (2009/10) must surely be heralded as one of the most successful
in Wadhurst United Football Club’s history, with both teams winning a
league and cup double. The first team won the highly acclaimed Sussex County
Junior Cup after defeating Worthing Leisure (a strong powerful team from the
Worthing League packed full of experienced county league players) 3-0 in the
final held at County HQ in Lancing. They were also crowned East Sussex League
Division One champions, making it back-to-back titles following the Second
division title in 2009 (also a double winning season with victory in the Hastings
FA Junior Cup), and promotion in three successive seasons.Wadhurst
United’s second team were the East Sussex football league division 6 ‘invincibles’ during
the 2009/10 season, winning the title on their last game of the season and
going through the league campaign undefeated (P16, W14, D2, L0), only conceding
10 goals. This was followed up with a tense penalty shoot-out victory over
Catsfield in the League cup final at the Saffrons.
The 2010/11 season sees Wadhurst United retain two teams competing in the East Sussex Leagues (Premier Division & Division 5), Sussex County & Hastings FA Cup competitions.
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Your local team needs you!
If you would like to play for Wadhurst United Football Club, please come along
to our training evening held every Tuesday at Washwell Lane at 19:00. Once
we move into October, we move our training indoors to the Uplands Community
College hall, again at 19:00.
If you are happier just watching, we would like to see you at Washwell Lane to
cheer on the club and hope that, with your support, we will have a successful
football club.
If you would like to know more about the club, please contact Brian Penny on
01892 783 782 or Malcolm Dick on 01892 782 486 or by e-mail
To follow the progress of Wadhurst United FC (or any other team in the East Sussex League) throughout the season, please click below to the East Sussex Football League website. The site contains the results of all games played this season, fixtures for the forthcoming month, as well as up to date league tables.