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| Full name | Merstham Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname | The Moatsiders | ||
| Founded | 1892 | ||
| Ground | Moatside,Merstham | ||
| Capacity | 2,500 (174 seated)[1] | ||
| Chairman | Paul Glasgow | ||
| Manager | Jamie Decruz | ||
| League | Isthmian League South East Division | ||
| 2024–25 | Isthmian League South East Division, 5th of 22 | ||
| Website | http://www.mersthamfc.com | ||
Merstham Football Club is afootball club based inMerstham,Surrey,England. Affiliated to theSurrey FA, they are currently members of theIsthmian League South East Division and play at Moatside.
The club was established in 1892.[2] In 1897 they were founder members of the Redhill & District League.[3] In 1926–27 the club were Redhill & District League champions, and in 1929–30 they won the East Surrey Junior Cup.[3] Merstham won back-to-back titles in 1934–35 and 1935–36 and again in 1949–50 and 1950–51, after which they moved up to theSurrey Intermediate League, going on to win the league at the first attempt.[3] In 1965 the club moved up to theSurrey Senior League.[4] They were champions in 1971–72, but left the league in 1978 to join theLondon Spartan League,[4] largely composed of clubs to the north of London. Their first season in the league saw them win its Challenge Cup and the Surrey Senior Charity Cup, before winning the East Surrey Charities Cup in 1979–80.[3]
In 1984 Merstham transferred to the Surrey-centredCombined Counties League to reduce their travelling.[3] They were runners-up in1987–88 and1989–90, a season that also saw them win the Elite Cup.[5] When the league gained a second division in 2003, Merstham became members of the Premier Division. After winning the Premier Challenge Cup in2004–05 and finishing as runners-up in the Premier Division in2005–06 and2006–07 (also winning the Premier Challenge Cup and theSouthern Combination Challenge Cup),[5][3] the2007–08 season saw the club win the Premier Division title, the Premier Division Cup and theSurrey Senior Cup.[5]
Winning the Combined Counties League title resulted in Merstham being promoted to Division One South of theIsthmian League. In2014–15 they finished fourth in the division, qualifying for the promotion play-offs. After beatingFaversham Town 5–4 on penalties in the semi-finals, they defeatedFolkestone Invicta 3–0 in the final to earn promotion to the Premier Division.[4] They finished the season by winning the Surrey Senior Cup for a second time. In2016–17 the club reached the first round of theFA Cup for the first time, losing 5–0 at home toOxford United in front of a record crowd of 1,920.[6] They won the Surrey Senior Cup again in 2017–18.[7] The2018–19 season saw them finish fifth in the Premier Division. In the subsequent play-offs, they beatCarshalton Athletic 2–1 in the semi-finals before losing the final 2–0 toTonbridge Angels. In2021–22 the club finished bottom of the Premier Division and were relegated to the South Central Division. At the end of thefollowing season they were transferred to the South East Division.
The club originally played at Limeworks Meadow, a pitch based in the Merstham Lime Works.[3] Players initially had to change in nearby hedges before being allowed to use the nearby Jollieffe Arms pub.[3] In the early 1910s the club temporarily relocated to the Weir ground.[3] They moved to Moatside in the early 1920s.[3] Changing rooms were built in 1960 and a 90-capacity stand opened in 1974.[3]
Floodlights were erected during the 1990–91 season and were inaugurated with a friendly match againstCrystal Palace.[3] A record attendance of 1,587 was set on 9 November 2002 for a league match againstAFC Wimbledon. This was broken in 2016 when 1,920 watched the club's FA Cup first round match against Oxford United.[6]
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Places listed are articlesnotable as settlements, arranged bypost town The two principal towns are emboldened TheM23 motorway follows approximately a boundary and is chiefly included for its regional importance. | ||||||||||||||||
51°15′29″N0°8′48″W / 51.25806°N 0.14667°W /51.25806; -0.14667
