Games from the past
31 Mar 2006

The following is an extract from the
Barton-le-cley church monthly

Dated January 1899.

Another venture was the Football Club, which is now in full swing, and bids fair to flourish. The following matches have already been played :-

Oct. 8th At Barton, 3 goals; Toddington ,2 goals.

Oct. 29th At Toddington, 3 goals; Barton, 2 goals.

Nov. 12th At Silsoe, 2 goals; Barton, 2 goals.

Several more fixtures have been made, and we trust that the January list will show somewhat different results. The members of the Club take the present opportunity of thanking Mr. W. Hill for the use of his field.

The History of Barton Rovers Football Club
06 Sep 2008

Barton Rovers have their home in Barton-le-Clay, a village of some 5000 people just north of Luton. Formed in 1898 the club played in inter-village football for the first 50 years until 1946 when they reformed and joined the Luton & District League.
Progress was such that in 1954 they were accepted into the South Midlands League. They enjoyed only limited success until 1964 when former Leicester City and Luton Town defender Barry Reed joined the club as manager. After winning promotion to the Premier Division in 1964-65 the club was never out of the top three until leaving the league in 1979, winning the title eight seasons out of nine and making a clean sweep in their final season - the Premier Division title, the Senior Section Challenge Trophy, the Reserve Division title and the Reserve Section Challenge Trophy - the only time this has been achieved to date. In 1976 the club entered the FA Vase for the first time and went to the quarterfinals before losing to Farnborough Town. The following year it was one step better with a Semi-final appearance against Sheffield. 1978 saw the pinnacle reached with a crowd of 16,391 watching the Final at Wembley where Barton Rovers lost 1-2 to Blue Star of Newcastle.

In 1979 The Rovers gained election to the then Isthmian League. In their first season they finished a credible 8th. In 1980-81 this was improved to fourth and the same position was repeated in 1981-82, when the club also enjoyed another good Vase run reaching the Rainworth MW 1-2 on aggregate. At the end of the 1982-83 season Barry Reed retired having achieved the clubs highest position of 3rd. He had also fulfilled his greatest wish - to see Barton Rovers play in the First Round proper of the FA Cup, which was achieved in 1980 when the Rovers lost 0-2 to Torquay United at Plainmoor.

The club had to settle for mid-table obscurity as three managers guided the Rovers through a transitional period in the mid 80's. In season 1990/91, Rovers qualified for the new Division Two, for Manager Mick Huckle that was his final game in charge after five years, as he retired to step up to General Manager. After an unspectacular 1991/192 season with firstly Ray Brandon and then Tony Dumigan in charge a new man was appointed in May 1992 he was Brian Williams who had been one of the most successful non-league managers in the area. Unfortunately his success was limited to cup competitions with the Rovers having their best FA Vase run for seven years, eventually
falling to, Wembley finalists Tiverton Town from the Great Mills Western League in The 4th Round. The semi-final of the Bedfordshire Premier Cup was also reached but the most notable success came in the Isthmian Associate Members Trophy where the Rovers reached the final of an Isthmian League competition for the first time in their history. Despite a 3-1 extra-time defeat against Northwood it was an achievement that lit up the reins, retaining Gordon Brown as his coach. Together these two steered the Rovers clear of the relegation threat that had hung over the club all season, securing their Division Two status in the penultimate league match with a 2-2 draw at Withal Town.

More to follow