HAMPTON & RICHMOND BOROUGH FC, PAST & PRESENT

The present day Hampton & Richmond Borough FC was formed in 1921 as Hampton Football Club. The formation of the club came about following discussions amongst a number of local football clubs, initiated to start with, by George Marlow but the taken on by Bert Bowell who in 1920 was Secretary of the Philanthropic Society, later a JP and in 1921 elected as a councillor on the Hampton UDC.

The team spent the next 38 years (apart from a break during the Second World War) playing in what is known as `Junior Football`, that is to say, Saturday afternoon Parks Football. The club`s colours were agreed as red and blue, as they still are to this day. The first season saw them play on a pitch at Gloucester Road, then a move to Priory Road and then Mark Hole Rec before settling down at Hatherop Park (the only ground to survive until the modern day). Hampton competed, at various times, in the South West Middlesex League and the Kingston & District League, playing against local sides from Hanworth, Feltham, Staines, Hounslow etc with only a modicum of success. The club had a golden period during the early Thirties winning the championship of the Kingston & District league in 1929/30, 30/31, 31/32 & 33/34. However despite the success, financial problems were never far away. At the AGM held after the 29/30 season, the Chairman Arthur Reed, stated that a loss of £16 10s (£16.50p) was recorded due to a fall off in subscriptions. Members subs totalled £7 7s (£7.35p) and collections at games totalled £24 16s 7d (£24 83p). The prize money for winning the league championship amounted to a princely 3s 9d (19p). Apparently a Mr E J Healy underwrote the season`s loss!. Hampton also had some success in cup finals winning the Blair Cup on several occasions (so raising funds for the Philanthropic Society). In 1932 Hampton won the Middlesex Junior and Middlesex Charity Cups where they defeated BET (6-2) and Wealdstone Reserves (3-1).

Without doubt what was needed was their own private ground, it was not enough to wander around the spectators watching home games rattling a collection tin as one of our regular supporters, Shirley Harrison, did when she was a child. There was one such place within Hampton though, The Beveree, and in 1959 Hampton secured a seven year lease on the facility.

The Beveree and its grounds had long been used for sporting endeavours. Hampton Harriers had used the grounds for athletic events in the 1890s and for many years there was a football pitch marked out for use for local cup finals.

There was also an annual village fete held within the grounds. The House was owned from 1891 until his death in 1948 by Captain Crawford Christie and upon his demise the local council bought the grounds to be used for local sporting recreation. There was talk of building a 28,000 stadium there but in a post war Britain there were never going to be the funds available.. There was talk at the time that Captain Christie had promised the grounds to Hampton FC but this was never proved. Hampton did manage to play at the Beveree in 1948 and used facilities at the back of the ground to change, in Savill`s Timber Yard (now Castle Business Village). Crucially the council decided to offer the pitch out to tender for a seven year lease and it was Twickenham FC who obtained first usage ( the ground was, after all, in the Borough of Twickenham!), Hampton would have to wait another seven years for their opportunity. As for the House it was fenced off from the grounds and became an Old Peoples Home before being converted into Twickenham Prep School, who are still there to this day.

In order to gain the lease of the Beveree, Hampton let it be known that they intended to make an increased offer to the Council for the next seven years lease when it came up in 1959, this might be construed now as `spin`, because Twickenham FC were convinced that they would be outbid and did not even lodge a bid. Hampton`s bid was £250 per annum. With the ground secured Hampton could now make the move into `Senior Football`.

In 1959 Amateur Football still held sway and there was a system of leagues in place (most, seemingly taking Greek names, Parthenon, Athenian, Isthmian etc).

In the South of England they formed a sort of unofficial ladder of importance with the Isthmian League at the crest. Above that was the Southern League, which was a professional league and then came Division 3(South) of the Football League.

The only way to progress up the various leagues was by invitation only, success on the field did not guarantee `a leg up`. The notion of a Non League Pyramid in which success on the field, allied to improved ground facilities, is a relatively new idea.

For the 1959/50 season Hampton entered the Surrey Senior League, competing against teams such as Addlestone, Camberley and Chertsey Town. Facilities at the ground were extremely limited, it took some months to get Twickenham Borough Council to install electric lighting and there were very few facilities for supporters. The club started to issue a regular match day programme, and more importantly could charge admission at the gate, so bringing in much needed funds. Hampton took a few years to settle down in their new surroundings but winning the championship in 1963/64 earned an invitation to join the Spartan League. The spread of teams Hampton were to face increased exponentially. Now the team were expected to travel much further, from Marlow in the west, to Hoddesdon Town in the east and Wood Green in the north. Nothing seemed to faze this team of upstarts because they won the Spartan Championship in their very first season, 1964/65 and by seven points (in those days it was two points for a win, not three).

Meanwhile the facilities at the ground were being improved, new changing rooms and showers and a stand was erected on the half way (now known as the Old Stand). Hampton would go on to win the championship for the next two seasons (65/66 & 66/67).

On 10th May 1967 Hampton played their first match under floodlights against an England Amateur X1, therefore becoming one of the first non league clubs to install floodlighting. Hampton continued to dominate the Spartan League but were frustrated in their desire to move up, however in 1971 Hampton were invited to join the Athenian League and within two seasons had been accepted into the Isthmian League, the top Amateur League in the South of England.

Hampton would remain in the Isthmian League from 1973 until 2007. For many years it seemed that a place in the Isthmian League which included such giants as Enfield, Hendon and Sutton United was sufficient. The Beavers hovered between Division One, and for one season, Division Three and looked to be happy just to make the numbers up.

However the club, under manager Chick Botley embarked on a sudden rise up the league which started in 1991 (Division 3) and ended in 1998 by winning a place in the Premier Division. In order to take their place in the upper echelons more work had to be done at the ground and a new 100 seated stand was built at the club house end of the ground. They surprised themselves, and probably the rest of the league by staying in the Premier Division for five seasons before a lack of money saw relegation back to Division One at the end of the 2002/03 season.

In 1999 the club changed its name from Hampton FC to Hampton & Richmond Borough FC, to reflect its status as the only senior football club in the London Borough of Richmond. Firm action was needed if a return to the lower divisions was to be avoided. The club approached Alan Devonshire, the former West Ham and England player, prised him away from his job as manager at Maidenhead United and the recovery was under way. Promotion back to the Premier Division was achieved in one season, so in 2004 Hampton were back at the highest level of the Isthmian League.

Meanwhile a new structure had been put in place by the Football Association, a proper Pyramid for Non-League Football. In theory a successful club on the pitch, allied to increasing facilities off the pitch it was perfectly possible for a team to rise from Park Football to the Football League.

At the end of the 2006/07 season Hampton won the Championship of the Isthmian League (sponsored by Ryman), it`s greatest honour to date, and so gained promotion to the Blue Square Football Conference South, in theory just two promotions beneath the Football League. The players have performed on the pitch but currently, Hampton`s Beveree ground is not suitable for any upward promotion, even if they finished in a promotion spot.

So, for the moment, Hampton have reached the summit of their ambitions, however there are plans in hand to further develop the ground to the required standard, if finances become available.

Les Rance 6th Feb 2007