Rothbury boss praises community support as club approaches 150 years
Rothbury Football Club are celebrating a major milestone this April.
It’s the 150th anniversary of the founding of the Northern Alliance Division One side, making them one of the oldest clubs in the county – and the country.
The Hillmen, playing as Coquet, were beaten 1-0 by local rivals Redesdale in a match played at Horsley near Rochester in 1876 with a man named Hall scoring the winning goal.
The duke’s piper played the sides onto the field and Rothbury’s star performers on that historic day were the captain S. Charlton, R. Carruthers, W. Little, J. Turnbull, M. Thompson and W. Mather.
John Robson from Byrness was the captain of the Redewater team.
Rothbury had long played ‘Border Games’ football against Redesdale at Alwinton and Harehaugh and played an annual Shrove game against Thropton until it was banned in 1867.
Though it is likely that game at Horsley was played under the earlier Border Games rules, the Football Association in London recognised the club’s centenary year in 1977 with a certificate.
Rothbury won a treble in the North Northumberland League that year as they lifted the First Division championship along with the Sanderson and Anderson Cups with what is celebrated as one of the club’s greatest ever teams.
“150 years is a huge achievement for any club, more so now than ever given the ever increasing costs associated with NFA affiliation, ground upkeep and referee costs,” said player manager Tom Macpherson.
The new Association code came to the market town in 1881 and they played their first game against Alnwick in early 1882 with the Ducal town being 4-0 winners.
Alnwick were one of the pioneering sides to take up the Association code in Northumberland in 1880. The oldest strictly Association club in the County was Tyne, who had been formed three years earlier.
The captain and secretary of the Rothbury side was a 28-year-old school teacher from Leeds called Ambrose Benson, who had possibly brought the new code from Yorkshire up to the Coquet valley with him.
“For Rothbury to be running as strong as ever with two sides in men’s football shows the hard work that goes on behind the scenes and probably more importantly the support from the local community,” said the Rothbury boss.