 | |||
| Full name | Erith Town Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname | The Dockers | ||
| Founded | 1959 | ||
| Ground | Bayliss Avenue,Thamesmead | ||
| Chair | Steve O'Boyle | ||
| Manager | Adam Woodward | ||
| League | Isthmian League South East Division | ||
| 2024–25 | Isthmian League South East Division, 14th of 22 | ||
Erith Town Football Club is afootball club based inThamesmead inSouth East London,England. They are currently members of theIsthmian League South East Division and play at Bayliss Avenue.
The club was established in 1959 as aSunday league club under the name Woolwich Town. They initially played in the Metropolitan Sunday League and were Senior Section champions in 1965–66, 1970–71 and 1974–75.[1] In 1989 the club was renamed Woolwich Heathway, but reverted to their original name within a year.[2][1] In 1991 they began playing Saturday football,[1] joining Division Two of theSpartan League.[3] Despite only finishing ninth in their first season in Division Two, the club were promoted to Division One due to league restructuring.[1] In 1994–95 they finished second in Division One, earning promotion to the Premier Division.[4]
In 1996 Woolwich transferred to theKent League, and at the end of the 1996–97 season were renamed Erith Town due to their move to the Erith Stadium.[1][4] They won the Kent League's Premier Division Cup in 2007–08, beatingHythe Town 1–0 in the final.[5] The club reached the final again the following season, losing 3–1 on penalties toCroydon after a 1–1 draw. A proposed merger withDartford Town in the summer of 2010 was abandoned,[6] and the club went on to win the Kent Senior Trophy in 2010–11 with a 3–1 win overTunbridge Wells in the final.[5] In 2013 the league was renamed the Southern Counties East League.[7] In2023–24 they won the League Challenge Cup, beatingCorinthian 5–3 on penalties after a 1–1 draw,[8] as well as winning the Kent Senior Trophy for the second time with a 3–2 win againstCroydon in the final. The club went on to finish league season in fourth place, qualifying for the promotion play-offs. After beatingGlebe 2–1 in the semi-finals, they defeated Corinthian on penalties in the final to earn promotion to the South East Division of theIsthmian League.[9]
During the club's time in Sunday league they played at theWoolwich Barracks Stadium. When they joined the Spartan League, they moved toGreenwich Borough's Harrow Meadow ground.[2] In October 1995 they moved to the Erith Sports Stadium,[1] an athletics stadium. They temporarily returned to Harrow Meadow during the 1998–99 season whilst the Erith Sports Stadium was renovated.[1]
In 2008 the club began groundsharing atThamesmead Town's Bayliss Avenue,[10] before returning to the Erith Sports Stadium the following season.[11] In 2013 they moved toCray Valley PM's Badgers Sports Ground inEltham.[1] In 2016 they returned to theBorough of Bexley, moving toVCD Athletic's Oakwood ground.[1] The club moved back to the Erith Sports Stadium in 2018.[12] They returned to Thamesmead in June 2023 for the following two seasons.[13]
51°25′08″N0°06′36″E / 51.4190°N 0.1100°E /51.4190; 0.1100
