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| Full name | Hemel Hempstead Town Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname | The Tudors | ||
| Founded | 1885 | ||
| Ground | Vauxhall Road,Hemel Hempstead | ||
| Capacity | 3,152 (300 seated)[1] | ||
| Chairman | David Boggins | ||
| Manager | Lee Allinson | ||
| League | National League South | ||
| 2024–25 | National League South, 12th of 24 | ||
| Website | hemelfc.com | ||
Hemel Hempstead Town Football Club is a semi-professionalfootball club based inHemel Hempstead,Hertfordshire, England. Affiliated to theHertfordshire County Football Association, they are currently members of theNational League South and play at Vauxhall Road.
The club was established in 1885 as Apsley End.[2] They joined the West Herts League in 1891 and were renamed Apsley Football Club two years later. The club were league champions in 1894–95 and 1897–98,[3] and in 1898 they were founder members of theHertfordshire Senior County League. They went on to win the league in its second season, 1899–1900.[4] The league was split into two divisions in 1901, with Apsley placed in the Western Division. They were divisional champions in 1902–03 and won the championship play-off against Northern Division champions St Albans Amateurs. The club had continued playing in the West Herts League and won the title for a third time in 1904–05.[3] After winning the Western Division of the Hertfordshire Senior County League again in 1906–07, they defeated Northern Division Champions Hitchin Union Jack 5–3 in the championship play-off.[4]
In 1922 Apsley left the Hertfordshire Senior County League to join Division Two of theSpartan League.[5] They were Division Two runners-up in 1923–24, after which league reorganisation saw them placed in Division Two A. They were Division Two A runners-up in 1926–27, but were demoted to Division Two West following further league reorganisation in 1928.[5] More reorganisation in 1930 saw the club moved into Division One for the 1930–31 season.[5] The club were Division One runners-up in 1931–32, earning promotion to the Premier Division. Although they were relegated back to Division One at the end of their first season in the Premier Division, the club were Division One champions and League Cup winners in 1933–34, earning an immediate return to the Premier Division.[5][3]
Apsley were relegated to Division One again at the end of the 1935–36 season.[6] In 1938–39 they reached the first round of theFA Cup for the first time, losing 2–1 atBromley.[4] FollowingWorld War II the club were placed in the Western Division for the 1945–46 season and finished bottom of the table.[6] They were subsequently placed in Division One West and the club's name was changed to Hemel Hempstead. They were Division One West runners-up in 1947–48 and again in 1950–51,[3] after which they were promoted back to the Premier Division. However, after a single season in the Premier Division the club left to join theDelphian League.[6][7]
In 1955 the club was renamed Hemel Hempstead Town.[8] They were Delphian League runners-up in 1961–62, and when the league was dissolved in 1963, they following most other Delphian League clubs into the new Division Two of theAthenian League.[8] They were promoted to Division One at the end of the 1964–65 seasons, and were Division One runners-up the following season, earning promotion to the Premier Division.[8] However, after finishing bottom of the Premier Division in 1967–68, the club were relegated back to Division One. A second successive relegation followed in 1968–69 when they finished second-from-bottom of Division One.[8]
In 1971 the club merged with Hemel Hempstead United from theSouth Midlands League to form Hemel Hempstead Football Club.[8] The new club took Hemel Hempstead Town's place in Division Two of the Athenian League, but moved to Hemel Hempstead United's Vauxhall Road ground. The club remained in the Athenian League until joining Division Two of theIsthmian League in 1977.[7] League reorganisation in 1984 saw them placed in Division Two North, where they remained until further reorganisation in 1991 led to them playing in Division Two. They finished bottom of Division Two in1996–97 and were relegated to Division Three, but won the Division Three title thefollowing season to earn promotion back to Division Two at the first attempt.[7]
In 1999 the club was renamed Hemel Hempstead Town for a second time.[7] They won Division Two in1999–2000 but were denied promotion due to their ground failing to meet the necessary criteria. They were moved to Division One North in 2002, and a sixth-place finish in2003–04 was enough to secure promotion as the creation of theConference North andSouth led to many clubs moving up the leagues. At the same time the club were transferred to theSouthern League and placed in its Premier Division.[8] Thefollowing season saw the club finish in the relegation zone, resulting in relegation to Division One West. However, a fourth-place finish in2005–06 meant the club qualified for the promotion play-offs; after beatingSwindon Supermarine 3–0 in the semi-finals, they won the final againstBrackley Town 3–2 to earn an immediate return to the Premier Division.[8]
In2006–07 Hemel Hempstead finished fifth in the Southern League Premier Division, qualifying for the play-offs, in which they lost 3–1 toTeam Bath. Another fifth-place finish in2008–09 led to another play-off campaign that saw them lose 4–3 on penalties toFarnborough in the semi-finals.[8] The club finished fourth in2012–13; in the play-offs they won 2–0 againstChesham United in the semi-finals, before losing 5–4 on penalties toGosport Borough in the final. Thefollowing season saw the club win the Southern League Premier Division title, earning promotion to theConference South.[8] In2014–15 they reached the first round of the FA Cup, eventually losing 3–1 atBury.[8] A fifth-place finish in2017–18 saw the club qualify for the play-offs. However, they were beaten 3–2 in a penalty shoot-out byBraintree Town in the qualifying round.
The crest featuresKing Henry VIII, who features inthe town's history. The town was part of the monastery's estates until the King initiated theReformation and break-up ofAshridge in 1539, as part of thedissolution of the monasteries. In that same year, the town was granted aroyal charter by Henry VIII to become abailiwick with the right to hold a Thursday market and a fair onCorpus Christi Day. Henry VIII andAnne Boleyn are also reputed to have stayed in the town at the time.[9] The association with Henry VIII is why the club is nicknamedthe Tudors.
Apsley End initially played at Salmon Meadow inApsley, which was named after 'The Salmon', a nearby pub that was also used as the changing rooms.[10] AfterWorld War I the club moved to the Apsley Club & Institute, which featured a small stand. However, they were forced to leave at the end of the 1927–28 season due to an expansion of the adjacent mill.[10] The club then played at Gee's Meadow inBourne End for the 1928–29 season, with the stand from Salmon Meadow dismantled and brought to the new ground.[10] In 1929 the club moved to Crabtree Lane.[10] Located in the town centre, the ground had a large grandstand.[11] The club's record attendance was set in January 1962 when 3,500 saw the team lose 3–1 toTooting & Mitcham United in theFA Amateur Cup.[2]
Following the merger in 1972, Crabtree Lane was sold for housing and the new club played at Hemel Hempstead United's Vauxhall Road,[12][2] which had been opened in May 1948 as the Greenhills Club.[10] The clubhouse and changing rooms burnt down in 1992 and the club had to use temporary facilities for five years. The ground has seated stands on both sides of the pitch, and in the early 2000s covered terrace stands were built behind both goals.[11] The ground currently has a capacity of 3,152, of which 300 is seated and 900 covered.[1]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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| Position | Staff |
|---|---|
| Manager | Lee Allinson |
| Assistant Manager | Chris Winton |
| Goalkeeping Coach | Dmitri Kharine |
| Physio | Grace Wellstood |
| Physio | Kelly Joyce |
| Kit Manager | Andy King |
| Assistant Kit Manager | Chris Humphries |
| Assistant Kit Manager | Mick Stanbridge |
51°45′13.96″N0°26′39.92″W / 51.7538778°N 0.4444222°W /51.7538778; -0.4444222
