Andover F.C.
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| Full name | Andover Football Club |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Lions |
| Founded | 1883 |
| Dissolved | 2011 |
| Ground | Portway Stadium, Andover |
| Capacity | 3,000 |
Andover Football Club was an association football club based in Andover, Hampshire, established in 1883. Since the 2007–08 season, Andover had been a member of the Southern League Division One South and West at Step 4 of the National League System (i.e. four divisions below the English Football League). The club played at this level for 29 of its 128 years of existence, and played its thousandth game in this league in 2008. Compared with earlier periods, the ten years from 1998 to 2008 were relatively successful for Andover, seeing them win a number of league and cup honours as well as registering their biggest ever win.
In the 2010–11 season, the club finished twenty-first out of twenty-one teams, and was dissolved in July 2011 due to continuing financial constraints. In a statement announcing the matter, club secretary Graham Cousins expressed a hope that the club could "be resurrected to play at a more appropriate level" in the future. A new club, Andover Lions F.C. was subsequently formed and play in the Hampshire Premier League.
Andover Football Club was formed in 1883 and played their first game on 27 October at Stride's Field, Weyhill Road, a friendly match against Basingstoke Mechanical Engineers. Three years later they moved to the Walled Meadow, where they played their home matches for the next 96 years. For most of the next thirty years, the club competed in three separate small leagues which were run side-by-side during the space of each season; the Hampshire League, the Salisbury and District League, and the North Hants May League. During this time, Andover won the Salisbury League eight times, the North Hants May League five times and reached the Hampshire Junior Cup final twice.
Andover competed in the first Hampshire Senior Cup in 1888, but became involved in controversy after they were knocked out of the competition by Woolston Works. During this match, a Glasgow–based player called J. Kesson played for Woolston in their victory. Andover protested that Kesson should be disqualified on the grounds of residency—although he had played for Woolston Works earlier that season, he had since moved back to Glasgow. Woolston's appeal rested on the fact that Kesson had left some items of clothing at his lodgings in Woolston, and this should be interpreted as his intention to return. The Hampshire FA upheld the appeal, allowing Woolston to progress through to the next round and eventually win the inaugural competition.
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