Hendon F.C.
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Hendon Football Club are an English association football club, currently playing in the Isthmian League Premier Division.
In the 2003-04 season they finished fourth in the Isthmian League Premier Division. However, they declined the automatic place in Conference South to which they were entitled and remain in the Isthmian Premier.
After the season ended their manager Dave Anderson and his assistants moved to AFC Wimbledon, which they proceeded to lead to the Isthmian First Division title, while Hendon finished mid-table in the new-look Premier Division. Both sets of Dons—Hendon green and Wimbledon blue—will now face each other in the Isthmian Premier in 2005-06.
History
The current club was originally formed as Christ Church Hampstead in 1908, a year later the club dropped "Christ Church" in favour of becoming Hampstead Town FC. "Town" was then dropped from the title in 1926. Six seasons later another name change saw the club become Golders Green FC after some debate. It was only at the commencement of season 1946/47 that the present name of Hendon was adopted due to the ground lying within the Borough of Hendon. The Borough has long since become the London Borough of Barnet, but as Barnet Football Club already exist, another change is very unlikely. Even now the club is often mistakenly referred to as "Hendon Town", though it has never been called that.
In their early years, the club enjoyed constant success. Joining the local Finchley and District League in 1908, they won the Third Division at the first attempt and were promoted. In the following season the Second Division was won and the hat-trick was complete when a year later the championship was secured to give the club three titles in its first three years of existence. As the club progressed into the Middlesex and London Leagues the title winning went on and then with senior status the club applied to become members of the Athenian League. Accepted in 1914, just six years after their formation, the club had to wait another five years for its debut in the League due to the outbreak of War. At the start of hostilities a temporary league - The London United Senior League - was formed and won.
When football finally resumed in 1919, Hendon finished their long awaited first Athenian season in fourth place. However, they did not have to wait long before the first of three Athenian League championships found their way to Claremont Road. They were also to finish as runners-up five times. Recognised as a major force in senior football, the club was to spend almost 50 successful seasons in the Athenian League.
Hendon become part of the exodus of clubs from the Athenian League into the Isthmian League in 1963. Since then the club have remained ever present in the top division and are the division's longest serving members. The first season in the Isthmian, ended as runners-up to Wimbledon, but twelve months later the championship flag was flying proudly over Claremont Road. In their first eleven seasons in the League, Hendon enjoyed remarkable success, never finishing out of the top six, a level of consistency not since repeated by the club.
In the club's heyday in the 1960s and 70s, Hendon saw remarkable success in cup competitions, with the teams' best ever run in the F.A. Cup and good success in the F.A. Amateur Cup. The club's best run in the F.A. Cup saw them reach the Third Round where they held Newcastle United to a 1-1 draw at St. James' Park before losing the replay at Watford's Vicarage Road ground. Meanwhile, Hendon appeared five times in Amateur Cup Finals at Wembley Stadium, winning on three occasions. The stadium, just five miles west of Claremont Road, was filled to its 100,000 capacity when Hendon met northern giants Bishop Auckland in the 1955 final. Hendon also became the first club to play under floodlights at the stadium when they were invited to try out the new system.
The late 1980s and early to mid 90s saw the side regularly struggling to finish in the top half of the table, and saw some close brushes with relegation, but the team always managed to scrape through and maintain their position in the Premier Division. The club's darkest hour came during this period when in 1994 the receivers were called in after former chairman Victor Green lost interest in the club in favour of Stevenage Borough, but the club was saved at the 11th hour by businessman Ivor Arbiter, at the time owner of distribution rights for Fender in the U.K.
Consistency was found in the last few years of the 20th century and early in the 2000s as the club began to re-establish themselves as a force in the Isthmian League with regular top half finishes culminating in third place in the 2002-2003 season and fourth in 2003-2004 along with a place in the newly formed Conference South division. However, this was turned down and Basingstoke Town were offered their place instead and the club elected to remain in the Isthmian League. The close season saw the whole backroom staff, headed by Dave Anderson, defect to AFC Wimbledon along with four first team players. Of the remainder of the squad only four first team regulars remained, the rest choosing to find other clubs to play for.
The club began the 2004-2005 season with a new manager, Tony Choules, who brought together a new squad that were immediately on the pace, but dropped off it in October and November as a constant flow of red cards saw key players reqularly suspended. Choules resigned on 4 November, 2004, his assistant Gary Farrell immediately taking on the job as manager. Ater just three months in the job, Farrell was sacked as the club languished in 21st place (inside the relegation spots), and popular ex-goalkeeper Gary McCann was appointed in his place. Hendon recovered to finish in mid-table (11th).
Honours
- European Amateur Champions
- Champions 1: 1972/73
- F.A. Amateur Cup
- Champions 3: 1959/60, 1964/66, 1971/72
- Isthmian League
- Champions 2: 1964/65, 1972/73
- Runners Up 3: 1963/64, 1965/66, 1973/74
- Athenian League
- Champions 3: 1952/53, 1955/56, 1960/61
- Runners Up 5: 1928/29, 1932/33, 1947/48, 1948/49, 1951/52
- Inter-League Cup
- Runners Up 1: 1986/87
- F.A. Cup
- 3rd Round 1
- 2nd Round 4
- 1st Round 19
- League clubs beaten 2: Leyton Orient, Reading
- Isthmian League Cup
- Winners 1: 1976/77
- Runners Up 1: 1986/87
- Full Members Cup
- Winners 3: 1994/95, 1997/98, 1998/99
- London Senior Cup
- Winners 2: 1963/64, 1968/69
- Runners Up 5: 1935/6, 1932/3, 1947/8, 1948/9, 1951/2
- Middlesex Senior Cup
- Winners 15: 1933/34, 1938/39, 1955/56, 1957/58, 1959/60, 1964/65, 1966/67, 1971/72, 1972/73, 1973/74, 1985/86, 1998/99, 2001/02, 2002/03, 2003/04
- Runners Up 10: 1924/25, 1930/31, 1944/45, 1946/47, 1956/57, 1960/61, 1970/71, 1974/75, 1977/78, 1983/84
- Middlesex League
- Winners 2: 1912/13, 1913/14
- London League Division 1
- Winners 1: 1912/13
- London Amateur Division
- Winners 1: 1913/14
- Finchley & District League
- Winners 1: 1910/11
- Middlesex Intermediate Cup
- Winners 1: 1964/65, 1966/67, 1972/73
- Middlesex Charity Cup
- Winners 14
- London Intermediate Cup
- Winners 4
- Runners Up 2
- George Ruffell Memorial Shield
- Winners 2: 2001/02, 2003/04
- Runners Up 2: 1998/9, 2002/3
External link
- Official site (http://www.hendonfc.net/)