Bristol City F.C.
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Template:Football club infobox Bristol City is a football club in Bristol, England, which plays in Football League One. Its home is Ashton Gate Stadium. As of June 2005, Brian Tinnion is the team's manager, having retired from his capacity as midfielder at the end of the 2004-05 season.
Home colours are presently all red, though for most of the club's history red shirts and white shorts have been the norm. Change colours are all white, though in the past a variety of combinations have been used, particularly white shirts and black shorts, but yellow, green-and-purple and all black have also been used 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. Over the years City have usually finished higher in the league than Rovers, though neither team has enjoyed huge success.
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Honours
The team played in the FA Cup final, losing 1 - 0 to Manchester United at The Crystal Palace, London, in 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 was sacked in June 2004 after repeated failures to win promotion. Long-serving City midfielder Brian Tinnion became player-manager in his place.
Famous players
Billy Wedlock
William John Wedlock (October 28, 1880 - January 25, 1965) also known as "Fatty" or the "India Rubber Man" played for City in 1900-01 and from 1905 until his retirement in 1921. He was a centre-half whose skill outweighed his short and stout stature. He won twenty-six England caps between 1907 and 1914, his only rival for the centre-half position being Charlie Roberts of Manchester United. The East End at Ashton Gate is named the Wedlock Stand in his honour.
John Atyeo
Forward Peter John Walter Atyeo (February 7, 1932 - June 8, 1993) was signed from under the noses of League Champions Portsmouth in 1951. He won six England caps from 1955 to 1957, scoring five goals. Despite offers from Chelsea, Spurs and Liverpool that could have made him the most expensive player in England, he stayed with City throughout his career, making 700 appearances and scoring 395 goals by the time he retired in 1966. The new stand that replaced the Park End at Ashton Gate in 1994 is named the Atyeo Stand after him.
Stadium information
History and arrangement
Ashton Gate is located in the south-west of Bristol, just south of the River Avon. It 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.
Visiting fans are housed in the Wedlock Stand at the south-east end of the ground, which was built as a covered terrace in 1928, converted to seats in the 1990s and was the traditional home fans' end until 1994. The Williams Stand on the south-west side, which includes the directors' box and press box, was built in 1958. The lower part of the stand was a terrace known as the Grand Enclosure until it was converted to seating in the 1990s. The Dolman Stand, which lies opposite it, was built in 1970. At that time it had a small, flat Family Enclosure in front of it, which was later built up and converted to seating. The most recent addition to the stadium is the Atyeo Stand, which was built in 1994 to replace an open terrace, and contains new dressing rooms and a large gymnasium.
In 2005 the club announced that the Wedlock Stand, the oldest part of the ground, would be redeveloped at a cost of £7 million during the 2005-06 season, with some funding from the Football Foundation's Football Stadia Improvement Fund. Football capacity will drop from 19,000 to 15,000 during the work and increase to 21,000 when the new stand opens in the summer of 2006. The new stand will include 5,200 seats, some reserved for long-term debenture holders, 16 corporate hospitality boxes and a new bar.
Travelling to the stadium
By Road: There is limited parking available at the ground, or you can seek on-street parking nearby. The club recommends that you approach via M5 junction 18, then down the Portway (A4) and follow signs for Bristol Airport/Taunton (A38) over the Brunel Way swing bridge. Fork left into Winterstoke Road, and the stadium is on the your left. If arriving from the east, it is also possible to go down the M32 and through the city centre, but there is a danger of congestion.
By Train: Bristol Temple Meads is nearly two miles from the ground. On match days a special bus service runs from Temple Meads to Ashton Gate, departing one hour before kick-off, and returning from Ashton Road, behind the Atyeo Stand.
By Bus or Coach: Bristol Bus Station is also well over a mile from the ground. The match day bus service runs from nearby Haymarket (near the House of Fraser department store).
External links
- Official website (http://www.bcfc.co.uk/) (requires registration)
- Official fan's forum (http://www.otib.co.uk/)
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