Ashton United F.C.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Full name | Ashton United Football Club | ||
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| Nickname(s) | The Robins | ||
| Founded | 1878 (as Hurst FC) | ||
| Ground | Hurst Cross, Ashton-under-Lyne (Capacity: 4,500) |
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| Chairman | David Aspinall | ||
| Manager | Danny Johnson | ||
| League | NPL Premier Division | ||
| 2008-09 | NPL Premier Division, 9th | ||
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Ashton United Football Club is an English football club, based in Ashton-under-Lyne, Greater Manchester but historically within Lancashire.
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[edit] History
The club was originally founded in 1878 as Hurst F.C. and the earliest known match report dates back to March 1879. By 1880 the club were playing at Hurst Cross, their current ground. This makes their home one of the oldest football grounds in the world. The club first entered the FA Cup in 1883 and Hurst Cross became the first ground in Manchester to host a home FA Cup tie as Hurst beat Turton in reaching the 2nd round at their first attempt. In 1885 Hurst beat Newton Heath (forerunners of Manchester United) 3-0 in the inaugural Manchester Senior Cup Final.
The club's first league was the Ashton & District League and, after a period of inactivity, in 1909 Hurst joined the Manchester League. The club finished joint top in 1910 (losing a play-off for the title to Salford United) then won the Championship outright in 1912 before joining the Lancashire Combination the following season. The club switched leagues again in 1923, joining the Cheshire County League.
Just prior to World War II Hurst signed one of the star players of the period, Dixie Dean, but the outbreak of hostilities ended his spell at the club. The club resumed playing after the war and changed their name to Ashton United in 1946 before re-joining the Lancashire Combination in 1947. The 1950s brought success in various cup competitions with four Manchester Challenge Cup wins and a Manchester Intermediate Cup triumph allied to two appearances in the first round of the FA Cup in 1952 and 1955. In 1959 a young Alan Ball made his Ashton debut at the start of a long and glorious career. The club won the Lancashire Combination Second Division in 1961 before moving to the Midland League in 1964 then back to the Lancashire Combination in 1966. Ashton returned to the Cheshire County League once more in 1968 and remained members until the league folded after the foundation of the North West Counties League in 1982. In 1988 Ashton won the 2nd Division of the North West Counties League and in 1992 lifted the Championship of the 1st Division, earning a place in the Northern Premier League (1st division) for the first time in the club's history. After a decade of near misses Ashton finally won promotion to the Premier Division of the NPL in 2002 - in the same season Ashton's Gareth Morris scored the fastest FA Cup goal, registered at four seconds against Skelmersdale United. In 2004 Ashton scraped into the final available place for the restructured Conference North, but their stay lasted just one season before returning to the Northern Premier League in 2005. Danny Johnson was appointed manager in April 2007 and led the club to a 10th place finish in 2008, ensuring the club celebrated their 130th anniversary with their highest-ever finish in the NPL, a mark which was then bettered with a 9th placed finish in 2009.
[edit] Current squad
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[edit] Stadium
The club initially played at Holebottom on Smallshaw, then at Rosehill both of which were close to the their current ground. Hurst Cross became the club's home in 1880, making it one of the oldest football grounds in the world. The current capacity is 4,500.
[edit] Records
- Best league position: 14th in Northern Premier League, Premier Division (then level 6), 2003-04
- Best FA Cup performance: 2nd Round, 1883-84 and 1885 -86
- Best FA Trophy performance: quarter-final, 1996-97
- Best FA Vase performance: 4th round, 1992-93
- Record victory: 13-1 v Marple (Lancashire Combination), 22/02/1919
- Record attendance: 7,474 v Halifax Town (FA Cup 1st Round Replay) 1951/52
(The attendance for the Cheshire League match with Ashton National on 06/04/1928 was recorded as 6,969 plus members making a crowd of nearly 8,000)
[edit] External links
- Ashton United at the Football Club History Database
Coordinates: 53°30′04.61″N 2°04′46.99″W / 53.5012806°N 2.0797194°W
