 | |||
| Full name | Canvey Island Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Gulls, The Islanders, Yellows | ||
| Founded | 1926 | ||
| Ground | Park Lane,Canvey Island | ||
| Capacity | 4,100 (500 seated)[1] | ||
| Chairman | John Batch | ||
| Manager | Brad Wellmen | ||
| League | Isthmian League Premier Division | ||
| 2023–24 | Isthmian League Premier Division, 14th of 22 | ||
| Website | canveyislandfc.com | ||
Canvey Island Football Club is afootball club based inCanvey Island,Essex, England. They are currently members of theIsthmian League Premier Division and play atPark Lane.
The club was established in 1926 and initially played in the Southend & District League.[1] They later joined the Thurrock Combination, winning the League Cup in 1952–53 and the league and League Cup double in 1955–56.[2] In 1957 the club joined theParthenon League, finishing bottom of the league in their first season.[3] The following season saw them finish sixth and win the League Cup,[2] and in 1959–60 they were league runners-up.[3] In 1963 they switched to theLondon League, joining the reformed Division One.[4] In 1964 the league merged with theAetolian League to form theGreater London League, with the club placed in the A division.[4] In1967–68 they were Division One champions and won the League Cup, retaining both titles thefollowing season.[2]
In 1971 the Greater London League merged with theMetropolitan League to form theMetropolitan–London League, with Canvey Island placed in Division One.[4] When the league merged with theSpartan League in 1975 they joined theEssex Senior League. They were runners-up in 1978–79 and won the League Cup the following season.[2] They won the league for the first time in 1986–87.[4] After winning the league and League Cup again underJeff King in 1992–93, a season which also saw the club reach the semi-finals of theFA Vase, they moved up to Division Three of theIsthmian League in 1994.[4] Theirfirst season in Division Three saw them finish as runners-up, earning promotion to Division Two. The club went on to win Division Two thefollowing season, resulting in promotion to Division One.[4] They also reached the first round of theFA Cup for the first time, eventually losing 4–1 toBrighton in a replay.[4]
Although Canvey Island were relegated back to Division Two at the end of the1996–97 season, they were Division Two champions in1997–98 and Division One champions in1998–99 as successive promotions saw them reach the league's Premier Division.[4] In2000–01 they finished as league runners-up, and also reached the second round of theFA Cup; the first round saw them beatSecond DivisionPort Vale 2–1 in a replay atVale Park after a 4–4 draw at Park Lane. In the second round the club were drawn at home to near-neighbours Third DivisionSouthend United; in a game switched to Southend'sRoots Hall, they lost 2–1.[4] However, the club's biggest success came in theFA Trophy, where they reached the final atVilla Park after beating three teams from theFootball Conference.[5] In the final the club beat favouritesForest Green Rovers 1–0,[6] becoming the first team from the Isthmian League to win the competition for 20 years.[5] Thefollowing season saw them finish as Premier Division runners-up again, as well as reaching the third round of theFA Cup. After winning 1–0 against Football League clubsWigan Athletic andNorthampton Town in both the first and second round, they lost 4–1 atBurnley in the third round.[4]
In2002–03 Canvey Island finished as Premier Division runners-up for a third consecutive season, but thefollowing year saw them win the division to earn promotion to theConference National.[4] The season had also seen them reach the FA Cup first round for a third time; again drawn to face Southend, they lost 3–2 in a replay at Park Lane after a 1–1 draw at Roots Hall and theFA Trophy final, where they lost 3–2 toHednesford Town.[4] Another first round appearance in 2004–05 ended in a 4–0 defeat toAldershot Town.[4] After two seasons at the fifth level, King decided the poor attendances did not justify continued investment in the club and they took voluntary demotion to Division One North of the Isthmian League.[7][4] In2007–08 they finished fifth in the division, qualifying for the promotion play-offs. After defeatingAFC Sudbury 3–2 in the semi-finals, they beatRedbridge 5–4 on penalties in the final after the match had ended 1–1 and were promoted back to the Premier Division.[8]
Canvey Island were relegated back to the (renamed) North Division at the end of the2016–17 season after finishing third-from-bottom of the Premier Division. Thefollowing season saw them finish sixth in the North Division, qualifying for the play-offs. After beatingBowers & Pitsea 2–0 in the semi-finals, they lost 3–1 toHaringey Borough in the final. In2020–21 the club reached the first round of the FA Cup again, winning 2–1 atBanbury United,[9] before losing 3–0 toBoreham Wood in the second round. The2021–22 season saw the club finish as runners-up in the North Division, going on to beatFelixstowe & Walton United 3–1 in the play-off semi-finals before winning the final againstBrentwood Town 4–1 on penalties, earning promotion to the Premier Division. The club finished third in the Premier Division thefollowing season before being beaten byAveley in the play-off semi-finals.
Upon formation, the club played at The Paddocks on Long Road on the island, before moving to Furtherwick School. FollowingWorld War II, Canvey Island returned to The Paddocks. In 1955, the club moved a short distance to Poplar Road. Whilst in the Parthenon League, the club moved to Park Lane in 1962.[10][11] It currently has a capacity of 4,100, of which 500 is seated and 827 covered.[1] In the summer of 2018, it was announced that the club would also be hosting the home matches ofBenfleet.
51°30′59″N0°36′56″E / 51.51639°N 0.61556°E /51.51639; 0.61556
