Sheffield F.C.
Encyclopedia
Sheffield Football Club is an English
football club from Sheffield
, South Yorkshire
. The club is most noted for the fact that they are the world's oldest club now playing Association football, founded in 1857. They currently play in the Northern Premier League Division One South
.
The team was originally based at various grounds around Sheffield
, including Bramall Lane
, formerly home to Sheffield Wednesday
and now the home of Sheffield United
. They are now based at the Coach and Horses Ground in Dronfield
, Derbyshire
. The club are also noted for participating in the world's oldest footballing rivalry. Sheffield competed against Hallam
in the world's first inter-club match during 1860 - the match is known as the "Sheffield" derby.
The club's finest hour came in 1904 when they won the FA Amateur Cup
, a competition conceived after a suggestion by Sheffield. They also finished as runners up of the FA Vase
in 1977. They have been bestowed with the FIFA Order of Merit
and commemorated by the English Football Hall of Fame
for their significant place in football history.
club organised informal kick-abouts without any official rules. Nathaniel Creswick
and William Prest
formed the Sheffield Football Club.
The inaugural meeting of Sheffield F.C. took place on 24 October 1857 at Parkfield House in the suburb of Highfield. The original headquarters was a greenhouse on East Bank Road lent by Thomas Asline Ward, father of the first club president Frederick Ward, and the adjacent field was used as their first playing ground. Initially, Sheffield FC games were played among club members themselves and took the format of "Married v Singles" or "Professionals v the Rest". The Sheffield club is officially recognised by FIFA
as the oldest football club
in the world.
Creswick and Prest were responsible for drawing up the club's rules of play, which decided upon at the club's AGM on 21 October 1858. They were referred to as the Sheffield Rules
. At the time, before the formation of the Football Association
(FA), many different kinds of football were popular in England. For example, each of the various public schools played football according to their own individual rules, and these varied widely.
The first rules were distinctive. There was no offside rule and was the first to introduce free kicks for foul play. Australian rules football
, which began to develop the following year, resembles the original Sheffield code in various respects.
Sheffield's near neighbour, Hallam
, was formed in 1860 and in the same year the two clubs first played each other in a local derby
which is still contested today. By 1862 there were 15 clubs in the Sheffield area. These rules were later adopted by the Sheffield Football Association
when it was formed in 1867. By this time the club had decided only to play teams outside Sheffield in order to seek a bigger challenge.
They became members of The Football Association
in 30 November 1863 but continued to use their own set of rules.
On 2 January 1865, the club played its first fixture outside Sheffield against Nottingham
, playing eighteen aside under Nottingham Rules. The rest of the season also saw them visit and .
On 31 March 1866, there was a match between a team representing Sheffield and one representing London
clubs, at Battersea Park
. Rules that differed only slightly from the FA rules were used. The game, played as an eleven aside, was won by London by 2 goals and four touchdowns to nil.
However the matter of rules remained a problem with Sheffield continuing to play by their own rules. A number of rule proposals by the club were rejected by the FA in February 1867 and the London Committee were reluctant to commit to further fixtures over Sheffield's refusal to play strictly to FA rules. Sheffield finally adopted the FA rules in 1878.
while on the books of Sheffield F.C. - Charles Clegg who played in the first international game against Scotland
in 1872, John Owen
in 1874 and John Hudson in 1883. All three players made just one appearance .
Charles Clegg also became both chairman and president of the Football Association
.
, Nottingham Forest
and Notts County
.
After the legalisation of professionalism Sheffield Club suggested to the FA the creation of a cup exclusively for amateur clubs. This would become the FA Amateur Cup
and gave Sheffield their first ever cup success in 1904.
in 1949, remaining in that competition until it merged with the Midland League to form the Northern Counties East League in 1982. During their 33-year stay in the Yorkshire League, their only divisional title was the Division Two crown in 1975-76. After joining the new league, initially in the lower divisions, they twice won the Division One title in 1988-89 and 1990–91, and held Premier Division status continuously from 1991 to 2007. In 2006-07, they finished second in the Premier Division, their highest position ever, and because of the latest round of restructuring of the National League System
were accepted into the Northern Premier League
Division One for 2007-08.
Sheffield F.C. are now based at the Coach and Horses Ground in Dronfield
, Derbyshire
, the first ground they have owned themselves. They play in the Northern Premier League Division One South
, which is directly below the Northern Premier League Premier Division
in the National League System
. There are now 2 senior teams, 9 junior teams, 1 women's team (formed by a merger with Norton FC) and 1 disability team.
They have recently started a membership drive, notable members are Sven-Göran Eriksson
, Sepp Blatter
and Michael Vaughan
. They have also enjoyed links with Real Madrid since both clubs received the FIFA Order of Merit
and there were plans to play a match against them to celebrate their 150th Anniversary.
Sheffield FC's opponents for the 150th anniversary match in November 2007 were Italian Serie A
side Inter Milan; Brazilian legend Pelé
was guest of honour and was introduced to the teams and the fans before the game. The match ended 5-2 to Inter, with 18,741 supporters attending the match at Bramall Lane
, Inter's side included World Cup
winner Marco Materazzi
and a young Mario Balotelli
. The day of the anniversary was marked with a church service and gala dinner attended by Geoff Thompson
and Geoff Hurst
among other major figures in the sport. Continuing their celebrations, Sheffield played Ajax
A1 on 13 April 2008, celebrating a 2-0 win. The match was again played at Bramall Lane in front of a crowd of 5,000, with the Premier League's Uriah Rennie
refereeing the match.
win in 1903-04, and a Wembley appearance in the 1976-77 FA Vase
final (although they lost the replay at the City Ground
, Nottingham to Billericay Town
). In the more senior FA Cup
, they have not graced the competition proper since the 1880s, but they did make the quarter finals on three occasions in the 1870s. They have a unique place in FA Cup history, knocking out Shropshire Wanderers
on the toss of a coin in 1873; the only time a tie has been decided in this way.
.
There was much reluctance from the owners of Bramall Lane
to see the pitch be used for football. They didn't relent until a charity match between Sheffield and Hallam was suggested in late 1862. The ground was used by Sheffield F.C. for its more important fixtures but relations with the owners remained strained. They collapsed altogether in 1875 when the club vowed never to play at the ground again.
In 1921, Sheffield settled at the new Abbeydale Park
ground. They moved to Hillsborough Park
in 1988, then to Owlerton Stadium and Don Valley Stadium
before purchasing the Coach and Horses pub and some adjoining land in Dronfield
in 2001 for the purposes of developing a stadium, the first time the club had owned its own ground.
The land was previously used by the Coach and Horses pub team, and was also the home of Norton Woodseats and Dronfield United. It currently has a capacity of 2,000, and is also known as the BT Local Business Stadium for sponsorship purposes, having previously been named the Bright Finance Stadium.
Manager: Mark Shaw
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
football club from Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
, South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire is a metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It has a population of 1.29 million. It consists of four metropolitan boroughs: Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham, and City of Sheffield...
. The club is most noted for the fact that they are the world's oldest club now playing Association football, founded in 1857. They currently play in the Northern Premier League Division One South
Northern Premier League Division One South
Division One South is one of the two second-tier divisions of the Northern Premier League. It is at Step 4 of the National League System, placing it seven divisions below the Premier League...
.
The team was originally based at various grounds around Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
, including Bramall Lane
Bramall Lane
-Cricket at the Lane:Bramall Lane opened as a cricket ground in 1855, having been leased by Michael Ellison from the Duke of Norfolk at an annual rent of £70. The site was then away from the town's industrial area, and relatively free from smoke. It was built to host the matches of local cricket...
, formerly home to Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday F.C.
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club are a football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, who are currently competing in the Football League One in the 2011-12 season, in England. Sheffield Wednesday are one of the oldest professional clubs in the world and the fourth oldest in the...
and now the home of Sheffield United
Sheffield United F.C.
Sheffield United Football Club is a professional English football club based in the city of Sheffield, South Yorkshire.They were the first sporting team to use the name 'United' and are nicknamed 'The Blades', thanks to Sheffield's worldwide reputation for steel production...
. They are now based at the Coach and Horses Ground in Dronfield
Dronfield
Dronfield is a town in North East Derbyshire in the North Midlands region of England. It comprises the three communities of Dronfield, Dronfield Woodhouse and Coal Aston. It is sited in the valley of the small River Drone, and lies between the town of Chesterfield and the city of Sheffield. The...
, Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
. The club are also noted for participating in the world's oldest footballing rivalry. Sheffield competed against Hallam
Hallam F.C.
Hallam Football Club are a football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, who currently play in the Northern Counties East League Division One...
in the world's first inter-club match during 1860 - the match is known as the "Sheffield" derby.
The club's finest hour came in 1904 when they won the FA Amateur Cup
FA Amateur Cup
The FA Amateur Cup was an English football competition for amateur clubs. It commenced in 1893 and ended in 1974 when The Football Association abolished official amateur status.-History:...
, a competition conceived after a suggestion by Sheffield. They also finished as runners up of the FA Vase
FA Vase
The Football Association Challenge Vase is an annual football competition for teams playing below Step 4 of the English National League System...
in 1977. They have been bestowed with the FIFA Order of Merit
FIFA Order of Merit
The FIFA Order of Merit is the highest honour awarded by FIFA. The award is presented at the annual FIFA congress. It is normally awarded to people who are considered to have made a significant contribution to :association football....
and commemorated by the English Football Hall of Fame
English Football Hall of Fame
The English Football Hall of Fame is housed at the National Football Museum, currently being relocated to Manchester, England. The Hall aims to celebrate and highlight the achievements of the all-time top English footballing talents, as well as non-English players and managers who have become...
for their significant place in football history.
Formation
In 1855, members of a Sheffield cricketCricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
club organised informal kick-abouts without any official rules. Nathaniel Creswick
Nathaniel Creswick
Sir Nathaniel Creswick K.C.B. was a footballer who co-founded Sheffield FC, the oldest football club in the world, in 1857. With William Prest, he established the Sheffield Rules, which were highly influential upon the modern laws of association football...
and William Prest
William Prest
William Prest was a cricketer and footballer born in York. He lived most his life in Sheffield where he went on to become co-founder of Sheffield Football Club and captained Yorkshire at cricket...
formed the Sheffield Football Club.
The inaugural meeting of Sheffield F.C. took place on 24 October 1857 at Parkfield House in the suburb of Highfield. The original headquarters was a greenhouse on East Bank Road lent by Thomas Asline Ward, father of the first club president Frederick Ward, and the adjacent field was used as their first playing ground. Initially, Sheffield FC games were played among club members themselves and took the format of "Married v Singles" or "Professionals v the Rest". The Sheffield club is officially recognised by FIFA
FIFA
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
as the oldest football club
Oldest football club
The history of the formation of the oldest football clubs is of interest to sport historians in tracing the origins of the modern codes of football from casual pastime to early organised competition and mainstream sport. Many early clubs did not use the word "football" in their name...
in the world.
Creswick and Prest were responsible for drawing up the club's rules of play, which decided upon at the club's AGM on 21 October 1858. They were referred to as the Sheffield Rules
Sheffield Rules
The Sheffield Rules were a code of football devised and played in the English city of Sheffield between 1857 and 1877. They were devised by Nathaniel Creswick and William Prest for use by the newly founded Sheffield Football Club. The rules were subsequently adopted as the official rules of...
. At the time, before the formation of the Football Association
The Football Association
The Football Association, also known as simply The FA, is the governing body of football in England, and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. It was formed in 1863, and is the oldest national football association...
(FA), many different kinds of football were popular in England. For example, each of the various public schools played football according to their own individual rules, and these varied widely.
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
, which began to develop the following year, resembles the original Sheffield code in various respects.
Sheffield's near neighbour, Hallam
Hallam F.C.
Hallam Football Club are a football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, who currently play in the Northern Counties East League Division One...
, was formed in 1860 and in the same year the two clubs first played each other in a local derby
Local derby
In many countries the term local derby, or simply just derby means a sporting fixture between two, generally local, rivals, particularly in association football...
which is still contested today. By 1862 there were 15 clubs in the Sheffield area. These rules were later adopted by the Sheffield Football Association
Sheffield and Hallamshire Football Association
The Sheffield and Hallamshire Football Association was formed in Sheffield in 1867 and was the first County Football Association in England. Its teams adopted the Sheffield Rules of football up until 1878 when they were merged with the Football Association's rules...
when it was formed in 1867. By this time the club had decided only to play teams outside Sheffield in order to seek a bigger challenge.
They became members of The Football Association
The Football Association
The Football Association, also known as simply The FA, is the governing body of football in England, and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. It was formed in 1863, and is the oldest national football association...
in 30 November 1863 but continued to use their own set of rules.
On 2 January 1865, the club played its first fixture outside Sheffield against Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
, playing eighteen aside under Nottingham Rules. The rest of the season also saw them visit and .
On 31 March 1866, there was a match between a team representing Sheffield and one representing London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
clubs, at Battersea Park
Battersea Park
Battersea Park is a 200 acre green space at Battersea in the London Borough of Wandsworth in England. It is situated on the south bank of the River Thames opposite Chelsea, and was opened in 1858....
. Rules that differed only slightly from the FA rules were used. The game, played as an eleven aside, was won by London by 2 goals and four touchdowns to nil.
However the matter of rules remained a problem with Sheffield continuing to play by their own rules. A number of rule proposals by the club were rejected by the FA in February 1867 and the London Committee were reluctant to commit to further fixtures over Sheffield's refusal to play strictly to FA rules. Sheffield finally adopted the FA rules in 1878.
Famous players
Three players represented EnglandEngland national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
while on the books of Sheffield F.C. - Charles Clegg who played in the first international game against Scotland
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
in 1872, John Owen
John Robert Blayney Owen
John Robert Blayney Owen was the head teacher at Trent College, who earlier in his life was a promising footballer who made one appearance for England in 1874.-Football career:...
in 1874 and John Hudson in 1883. All three players made just one appearance .
Charles Clegg also became both chairman and president of the Football Association
The Football Association
The Football Association, also known as simply The FA, is the governing body of football in England, and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. It was formed in 1863, and is the oldest national football association...
.
Thursday Wanderers
Thursday Wanderers were a team founded by Sheffield F.C. players who wished to play in the Sheffield Challenge Cup. Sheffield Club had decided not to play in any local matches, so many of their players started playing on Thursdays. The team operated each season from 1876-77 until 1878-79, winning the Cup in their final year. The side was briefly revived in the early 1880s.Decline
Its decline from the top echelon of football began with the introduction of professionalism in July 1885, with the amateurs of Sheffield failing to compete with professional teams, losing heavily that year to Aston VillaAston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
, Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest F.C.
Nottingham Forest Football Club is an English Association Football club based in West Bridgford, Nottingham, that plays in the Football League Championship...
and Notts County
Notts County F.C.
Notts County Football Club are an English professional football club based in Nottingham. They are the oldest of all the clubs in the world that are now professional, having been formed in 1862. They currently play in League One of The Football League, the third tier of the English football system...
.
After the legalisation of professionalism Sheffield Club suggested to the FA the creation of a cup exclusively for amateur clubs. This would become the FA Amateur Cup
FA Amateur Cup
The FA Amateur Cup was an English football competition for amateur clubs. It commenced in 1893 and ended in 1974 when The Football Association abolished official amateur status.-History:...
and gave Sheffield their first ever cup success in 1904.
League history since World War II
Sheffield joined the Yorkshire LeagueYorkshire Football League
The Yorkshire Football League was a football competition founded in 1920 which existed until 1982 when it merged with the Midland League to become the Northern Counties East League.-Original League:...
in 1949, remaining in that competition until it merged with the Midland League to form the Northern Counties East League in 1982. During their 33-year stay in the Yorkshire League, their only divisional title was the Division Two crown in 1975-76. After joining the new league, initially in the lower divisions, they twice won the Division One title in 1988-89 and 1990–91, and held Premier Division status continuously from 1991 to 2007. In 2006-07, they finished second in the Premier Division, their highest position ever, and because of the latest round of restructuring of the National League System
National League System
The National League System comprises the seven levels of the English football league system immediately below the level of the Premier League and The Football League. It contains 91 league competitions and more than 1,600 clubs. It comes under the jurisdiction of The Football Association...
were accepted into the Northern Premier League
Northern Premier League
The Northern Premier League, is one of the regional English football leagues which sits directly below the Football Conference featuring semi-professional and amateur clubs. Geographically, the league covers all of Northern England, and the northern areas of the Midlands. Originally just one...
Division One for 2007-08.
150th anniversary onwards
Dronfield
Dronfield is a town in North East Derbyshire in the North Midlands region of England. It comprises the three communities of Dronfield, Dronfield Woodhouse and Coal Aston. It is sited in the valley of the small River Drone, and lies between the town of Chesterfield and the city of Sheffield. The...
, Derbyshire
Derbyshire
Derbyshire is a county in the East Midlands of England. A substantial portion of the Peak District National Park lies within Derbyshire. The northern part of Derbyshire overlaps with the Pennines, a famous chain of hills and mountains. The county contains within its boundary of approx...
, the first ground they have owned themselves. They play in the Northern Premier League Division One South
Northern Premier League Division One South
Division One South is one of the two second-tier divisions of the Northern Premier League. It is at Step 4 of the National League System, placing it seven divisions below the Premier League...
, which is directly below the Northern Premier League Premier Division
Northern Premier League Premier Division
The Premier Division is the top division of the Northern Premier League. It is at Step 3 of the National League System, placing it six divisions below the Premier League...
in the National League System
National League System
The National League System comprises the seven levels of the English football league system immediately below the level of the Premier League and The Football League. It contains 91 league competitions and more than 1,600 clubs. It comes under the jurisdiction of The Football Association...
. There are now 2 senior teams, 9 junior teams, 1 women's team (formed by a merger with Norton FC) and 1 disability team.
They have recently started a membership drive, notable members are Sven-Göran Eriksson
Sven-Göran Eriksson
Sven-Göran Eriksson , in Sweden commonly referred to just by his nickname Svennis, is a Swedish ex-football manager. From October 2010 to October 2011 he managed Football League Championship side Leicester City....
, Sepp Blatter
Sepp Blatter
Joseph S. Blatter , commonly known as Sepp Blatter, is a Swiss football administrator, who serves as the 8th and current President of FIFA . He was elected on 8 June 1998, succeeding João Havelange. He was re-elected as President in 2002, 2007, and 2011...
and Michael Vaughan
Michael Vaughan
Michael Paul Vaughan OBE is a retired cricketer who represented Yorkshire and England. A classically elegant right-handed batsman and occasional off-spinner, Vaughan was ranked one of the best batsmen in the world following the 2002/3 Ashes, in which he scored 633 runs, including three centuries...
. They have also enjoyed links with Real Madrid since both clubs received the FIFA Order of Merit
FIFA Order of Merit
The FIFA Order of Merit is the highest honour awarded by FIFA. The award is presented at the annual FIFA congress. It is normally awarded to people who are considered to have made a significant contribution to :association football....
and there were plans to play a match against them to celebrate their 150th Anniversary.
Sheffield FC's opponents for the 150th anniversary match in November 2007 were Italian Serie A
Serie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
side Inter Milan; Brazilian legend Pelé
Pelé
However, Pelé has always maintained that those are mistakes, that he was actually named Edson and that he was born on 23 October 1940.), best known by his nickname Pelé , is a retired Brazilian footballer. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time...
was guest of honour and was introduced to the teams and the fans before the game. The match ended 5-2 to Inter, with 18,741 supporters attending the match at Bramall Lane
Bramall Lane
-Cricket at the Lane:Bramall Lane opened as a cricket ground in 1855, having been leased by Michael Ellison from the Duke of Norfolk at an annual rent of £70. The site was then away from the town's industrial area, and relatively free from smoke. It was built to host the matches of local cricket...
, Inter's side included World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
winner Marco Materazzi
Marco Materazzi
Marco Materazzi , is an Italian footballer who plays as a defender, and is currently a free agent.At the beginning of his career, Materazzi played with various Italian teams in Serie B and Serie C, and with Premier League side Everton. He spent two periods with Perugia and signed for...
and a young Mario Balotelli
Mario Balotelli
Mario Balotelli is an Italian footballer who plays as a striker for English team Manchester City and the Italian national team.He started his professional football career at Lumezzane and only played for the first team twice before having an unsuccessful trial at FC Barcelona, and subsequently...
. The day of the anniversary was marked with a church service and gala dinner attended by Geoff Thompson
Geoff Thompson (football)
Geoffrey "Geoff" Thompson OBE is the former chairman of the Football Association, and a vice-president of both UEFA and FIFA. He has long been associated with football especially in South Yorkshire, having previously been general manager of Doncaster Rovers and held senior positions in the...
and Geoff Hurst
Geoff Hurst
Sir Geoffrey Charles Hurst MBE is a retired England footballer best remembered for his years with West Ham. He made his mark in World Cup history as the only player to have scored a hat-trick in a World Cup final. His three goals came in the 1966 final for England in their 4–2 win over West...
among other major figures in the sport. Continuing their celebrations, Sheffield played Ajax
Ajax Amsterdam
Amsterdamsche Football Club Ajax , also referred to as AFC Ajax, Ajax Amsterdam or simply Ajax , is a professional football club from Amsterdam, Netherlands...
A1 on 13 April 2008, celebrating a 2-0 win. The match was again played at Bramall Lane in front of a crowd of 5,000, with the Premier League's Uriah Rennie
Uriah Rennie
Uriah D. Rennie is a retired English football referee.-Career:He began refereeing in 1979 in local leagues, then operated in the Northern Premier League until 1994, at which time he was appointed to the Football League List of referees.He was given his first Premiership appointment on 23 August...
refereeing the match.
F.A. Competitions
The club have had their fair share of success in national competitions, with an FA Amateur CupFA Amateur Cup
The FA Amateur Cup was an English football competition for amateur clubs. It commenced in 1893 and ended in 1974 when The Football Association abolished official amateur status.-History:...
win in 1903-04, and a Wembley appearance in the 1976-77 FA Vase
FA Vase
The Football Association Challenge Vase is an annual football competition for teams playing below Step 4 of the English National League System...
final (although they lost the replay at the City Ground
City Ground
The City Ground is a football stadium in the West Bridgford area of Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England, on the banks of the River Trent. It has been home to Nottingham Forest Football Club since 1898, and has a capacity of 30,602 ....
, Nottingham to Billericay Town
Billericay Town F.C.
Billericay Town Football Club are an English football club based in Billericay, Essex, who currently play in the Isthmian League Premier Division....
). In the more senior FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
, they have not graced the competition proper since the 1880s, but they did make the quarter finals on three occasions in the 1870s. They have a unique place in FA Cup history, knocking out Shropshire Wanderers
Shropshire Wanderers F.C.
Shropshire Wanderers F.C. were an amateur association football club based in Shrewsbury, England. They were active during the 1870s.They entered the FA Cup competition in each of the years from 1873-74 to 1877-78. Their greatest success came in 1874-75, when they reached the Semi-finals where they...
on the toss of a coin in 1873; the only time a tie has been decided in this way.
Grounds
Sheffield club have played at a number of grounds around Sheffield. Initially they played at Strawberry Hall Lane Park. However, like all of the early grounds they played at, it wasn't owned by the club. In the following years they would play at Newhall Athletic ground, Old Forge ground and a ground near Hunters Bar on Ecclesall RoadEcclesall Road
|thumb|200px|right|Ecclesall Road South, which runs through a large part of the Hallam Constituency, the second wealthiest in the UK.Ecclesall Road is a road in Sheffield that runs for about 3.5 miles south-west from Sheffield's city centre under the number A625...
.
There was much reluctance from the owners of Bramall Lane
Bramall Lane
-Cricket at the Lane:Bramall Lane opened as a cricket ground in 1855, having been leased by Michael Ellison from the Duke of Norfolk at an annual rent of £70. The site was then away from the town's industrial area, and relatively free from smoke. It was built to host the matches of local cricket...
to see the pitch be used for football. They didn't relent until a charity match between Sheffield and Hallam was suggested in late 1862. The ground was used by Sheffield F.C. for its more important fixtures but relations with the owners remained strained. They collapsed altogether in 1875 when the club vowed never to play at the ground again.
In 1921, Sheffield settled at the new Abbeydale Park
Abbeydale Park
Abbeydale Park is a sports venue in Dore, South Yorkshire, England. It is unusual in having hosted home games for two different county cricket teams.-History:...
ground. They moved to Hillsborough Park
Hillsborough Park
Hillsborough Park is a large parkland area in Hillsborough, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The park was created in 1897 by the Dixon Family, who built Hillsborough Hall. It is now owned by Sheffield City Council and the hall is used as a library....
in 1988, then to Owlerton Stadium and Don Valley Stadium
Don Valley Stadium
The Don Valley Stadium is a stadium in Sheffield, England and is the home of Rotherham United F.C.. The stadium is an athletics stadium which has hosted major UK Athletic events and the 1991 World Student Games. Sheffield Eagles RLFC and Parramore Sports FC also use the stadium. It was designed by...
before purchasing the Coach and Horses pub and some adjoining land in Dronfield
Dronfield
Dronfield is a town in North East Derbyshire in the North Midlands region of England. It comprises the three communities of Dronfield, Dronfield Woodhouse and Coal Aston. It is sited in the valley of the small River Drone, and lies between the town of Chesterfield and the city of Sheffield. The...
in 2001 for the purposes of developing a stadium, the first time the club had owned its own ground.
Current squad
As of 26 September 2011.Manager: Mark Shaw
Honours
- FA Amateur CupFA Amateur CupThe FA Amateur Cup was an English football competition for amateur clubs. It commenced in 1893 and ended in 1974 when The Football Association abolished official amateur status.-History:...
- Winners 1903–04
- FA VaseFA VaseThe Football Association Challenge Vase is an annual football competition for teams playing below Step 4 of the English National League System...
- Runners-up 1976-77
- Yorkshire LeagueYorkshire Football LeagueThe Yorkshire Football League was a football competition founded in 1920 which existed until 1982 when it merged with the Midland League to become the Northern Counties East League.-Original League:...
- Division Two champions 1976–77
- League Cup winners 1977–78
- Whitbread Trophy
- Winners 1987–88
- Northern Counties East LeagueNorthern Counties East Football LeagueThe Northern Counties East Football League is an English football league that was founded in 1982 by the merger of the former Yorkshire League and Midland League. The league has two divisions at present; The Premier Division and Division One which stand at the ninth and tenth levels of the football...
- Division One champions 1988–89, 1990–91
- League Cup winners 2000–01, 2004–05
- Sheffield and Hallamshire Senior Cup
- Winners 1993–94, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2007–08, 2009–10