 | |||
| Full name | Heanor Town Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Lions | ||
| Founded | 1883 | ||
| Ground | Town Ground,Heanor | ||
| Capacity | 2,700 (100 seated)[1] | ||
| Chairman | Geoff Clarence | ||
| Manager | Glen Clarence | ||
| League | United Counties League Premier Division North | ||
| 2023–24 | United Counties League Premier Division North, 10th of 18 | ||
Heanor Town Football Club is afootball club based inHeanor,Derbyshire, England. They are currently members of theUnited Counties League Premier Division North and play at theTown Ground.
The club was established in 1883 in a meeting at the Rays Arms Hotel.[2] In 1890 they were founder members of theMidland Amateur Alliance.[3] The club reached the first round of theFA Cup in1891–92, losing 4–1 atAston Villa.[3] When the league folded in 1893 they joined theDerbyshire Senior League, winning it at the first attempt,[4] also reaching the first round of the FA Cup again, this time losing 1–0 atNottingham Forest. The club then moved up to theMidland League, where they played for three seasons, with another FA Cup first round appearance in1896–97 ending with a 1–0 defeat toSouthampton St Mary's in a replay.[3]
After dropping out of the Midland League in 1897, Heanor returned to the league in 1898. The1898–99 season saw another FA Cup first round appearance, this time ending with a 3–0 defeat at home toBury.[3] Despite finishing sixth in 1899–1900, the club left the Midland League again.[3] In 1921 they joined theCentral Alliance.[5] When the league folded in 1925 they rejoined the Derbyshire Senior League,[5] before returning to the Midland League in 1926.[3] However, in 1928 the club dropped back into the Derbyshire Senior League.[4] They were runners-up in 1928–29 and again in 1932–33,[4] after which the club joined theCentral Combination.[6]
Heanor were Central Combination runners-up in 1933–34 and went on win the league the following season.[6] When the league folded in 1936, the club joined the Notts Amateur Combination.[2] FollowingWorld War II they did not reform until 1951, when a team was entered to the Derby & District Amateur League.[2] They moved up to theNotts Alliance the following season after moving to the Sir John Warren Ground inLoscoe, and after merging with the financially strickenHeanor Athletic in January 1953, Town took Athletic's place in Division One of the Central Alliance for the 1953–54 season.[2][7][8] League reorganisation in 1956 led to the league being split into regional first divisions, with Heanor winning Division One North in 1956–57 and 1957–58.[6] Thefollowing season saw their first appearance in the first round of the FA Cup in the 20th century, with a record crowd of 6,511 seeing the club lose 5–1 at home toCarlisle United.[3][9] They were Division One North runners-up in 1959–60, before rejoining the Midland League in 1961.[6][3] Another FA Cup first round appearance in1963–64 ended with a 3–1 defeat atBradford Park Avenue.[3]
Heanor finished as runners-up in the Midland League in 1967–68 and 1968–69, before leaving to join the Premier Division of theWest Midlands (Regional) League in 1972.[3] They were Premier Division runners-up in their first season in the league, but returned to the Midland League after two seasons.[3] When the league merged with theYorkshire League to form theNorthern Counties East League in 1982, Heanor were placed in the Premier Division.[3] However, in 1986 they left the league to join the new Supreme Division of theCentral Midlands League.[3] They were Supreme Division runners-up in 1989–90, 1990–91 and 1992–93 before winning the league in 1994–95 and again in 1996–97.[3]
In 2008 Heanor were founder members of theEast Midlands Counties League. They were league champions in2011–12, earning promotion to the Premier Division of the Northern Counties East League. After three seasons back in the league, the club were transferred to the Premier Division of the newMidland League in 2014.[3] At the end of the2017–18 season they took voluntary demotion to the East Midlands Counties League despite finishing in mid-table. In 2021 the club were promoted to the Premier Division North of theUnited Counties League based on their results in the abandoned2019–20 and2020–21 seasons.
Heanor Town F.C. traditionally wearsyellow and black as their primary club colours. Theirhome kit consists of ayellow shirt,black shorts, andyellow socks, reflecting the club’s long-standing identity. Theaway kit varies from season to season but often features alternative colours such as white, blue, or red. The yellow and black colours are symbolic of the club’s heritage and are well recognized within Derbyshire non-league football.
After reforming in 1951, the club initially played at a field on Midland Road, which was shared with Park Street Methodist FC.[7] In 1952 they moved to the Sir John Warren Ground inLoscoe, enabling a move up to the Notts Alliance, before relocating to theTown Ground in 1953 after merging with Heanor Athletic, who were already based at the ground.[10]
53°00′42″N1°21′22″W / 53.0116°N 1.3560°W /53.0116; -1.3560
