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| Full name | Germiston Caledonian Society Association Football Club | |
|---|---|---|
| Nickname | Callies | |
| Founded | 1906 | |
| Dissolved | 1978 | |
| Ground | Driehoek stadium,Germiston | |
| Capacity | record crowd was approximately 13,900 | |
| Chairman | At formation of NFL Bill McGarvie, later H.W. Holdsworth | |
Germiston Callies was a South Africanfootball (soccer) club based inGermiston.
Founded by Scottish immigrants (mainly railway men and miners) in 1906. The club's original full name was Germiston Caledonian Society Amateur Football Club, the name was changed when the club turned professional in 1959.
Callies originally played in the amateur Transvaal League and were quite successful. One of their outstanding players during this period wasBerry Nieuwenhuys, who later captained Liverpool in the English First Division. Callies won the Transvaal league at least 6 times and the challenge cup 9 times.
The club joined the professionalNational Football League (NFL) on its inception in 1959, and stayed in that league until its demise in 1977. Although Germiston Callies FC reached theCastle Cup final in 1959,[1] they never really fulfilled expectations. They came third in the league two years running, in 1960 and 1961, and in 1962 won the UTC Bowl but that's as good as it got. Their reliance on local talent was a source of pride, but made it increasingly difficult to compete during the 1960s as the top clubs of the NFL filled their ranks with seasoned professionals from overseas. The Callies usually stayed comfortably clear of relegation, though, until the final NFL season in 1977, when they finished last of the 13 teams.[2]
When the NFL folded, the club joined theNational Professional Soccer League (NPSL) for a single season in1978, playing under the nameImperial Callies.[3]
