South Shore F.C.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
South Shore
South Shore Football Club Badge.png
Full nameSouth Shore Football Club
Nickname(s)The Gallopers, The Ponies
Founded1879; 143 years ago (1879) (as Blackpool South Shore)
GroundCommon Edge Sports Village
ChairmanJason Allen
WebsiteClub website

South Shore Football Club is an English football club based in the South Shore area of Blackpool and were established in 1879.

History[]

The original club was founded as (Blackpool) South Shore in 1879.[1] They entered the FA Cup for the first time in 1882–83, losing 5–2 at .[1] In 1885–86 they reached the quarter-finals of the FA Cup, eventually losing 2–1 to Slough-based Swifts.[2] By the late 1880s, South Shore were the biggest club in Blackpool,[1] and in 1888 they joined the Combination, a league running parallel to the Football League. However, the Combination was run chaotically, being disbanded in April 1889.[1] During the 1888–89 FA Cup the club was drawn away to Chatham Town in the first round, but arrived to discover that the match was played on an open field where no admission was taken to cover their transport costs; after a complaint was filed with the Lancashire County Football Association, the Football Association changed FA Cup entry rules to require clubs to play matches in an enclosed ground.[1]

At the end of the first season of the Football League, a re-election process was held, with the bottom four of the league challenged by applicants for membership in a vote held on 3 May 1889.[1] South Shore applied for election, but received no votes, as all four League clubs were re-elected.[3] While most other unsuccessful applicants joined the Football Alliance, South Shore opted not to join a league, instead playing friendlies and cup matches. This allowed their local rivals, recently-formed Blackpool, who had been playing in the Lancashire League, to become the dominant club in the town.[1] South Shore themselves joined the Lancashire League in 1891.

In 1896, Blackpool applied for Football League membership, and prior to the vote, an agreement was made by the two clubs to amalgamate if Blackpool were successful. However, after Blackpool were voted into the League, South Shore pulled out of the deal.[1] The club finished bottom of the Lancashire League in 1898–99, a season which also saw Blackpool voted out of the league. Both clubs began the 1899–1900 season in the Lancashire League, but in the evening after a local derby between the two clubs on 9 December, an agreement was made for South Shore to merge into Blackpool, with their league record being expunged.[2]

In May 2021, it was reported that South Shore was being reformed as a phoenix club, and its prospective chairman stated his aim for the club to play in the West Lancashire League as early as 2022.[4]

Ground[]

The club initially played on a ground off Lytham Avenue, before later moving to Cow Gap Lane.[1] A 300-seat stand was erected, although the remainder of the ground was largely undeveloped.[1] In October 1899 they moved to Bloomfield Road. When the club merged into Blackpool in December, Blackpool relocated to Bloomfield Road from their Raikes Hall ground.[5]

Records[]

  • Best FA Cup performance: Quarter-finals, 1885–86[2]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Dave Twydell (2001) Denied F.C.: The Football League election struggles Yore Publications, pp144–145
  2. ^ a b c South Shore at the Football Club History Database
  3. ^ Twydell, p11
  4. ^ "Blackpool man in USA bids to reform nineteenth century South Shore club which played part in early history of Seasiders". www.blackpoolgazette.co.uk.
  5. ^ Paul Smith & Shirley Smith (2005) The Ultimate Directory of English & Scottish Football League Grounds Second Edition 1888–2005, Yore Publications, p23 ISBN 0954783042
Retrieved from ""