Histon F.C.
Histon Football Club is a football club based in the village of Histon, Cambridgeshire, England. The club are currently members of the and play at Bridge Road in Impington. Nicknamed 'the Stutes', originating from the club's previous name Histon Institute, Histon's crest features a rose, the flower representing the rose-covered field given to the people of Histon & Impington in perpetuity for sporting activities in the community by local firm Chivers and Sons.
History
The club was established in 1904 as Histon Institute, the footballing arm of the Histon Institute formed the previous year with help from John Chivers, the chairman of the major employer in Histon & Impington, the Chivers and Sons jam company. The new club joined the Cambridgeshire League, and had reached the top division by the early 1920s. They were Premier Division runners-up in 1935β36. During World War II they played in the East Anglian League for the 1944β45 season, before returning to the Cambridgeshire League after the war and winning the league title in 1945β46.In 1948 Histon left the Cambridgeshire League to move up to the Spartan League. They were promoted to the league's Premier Division in 1951, and dropped "Institute" from their name the following year. In 1960 the club joined the Delphian League. They finished bottom of the league in 1961β62, and after the league was disbanded at the end of the following season, they joined most other Delphian League clubs in becoming founder members of Division Two of the Athenian League. After finishing bottom of Division Two for two consecutive seasons, the club dropped into the Eastern Counties League.
When the Eastern Counties League gained a second division in 1988, Histon became members of the Premier Division. They won the League Cup in 1990β91, but were relegated to Division One at the end of the 1994β95 season. In 1996β97 the club were Division One runners-up, earning promotion to the Premier Division, starting a run of success that saw them promoted several times. In 1999β2000 they were Premier Division champions and were promoted to the Eastern Division of the Southern League. The 2003β04 saw the club finish as runners-up in the Eastern Division, resulting in promotion to the Premier Division. They also reached the first round of the FA Cup for the first time, losing 3β1 at Woking.
Histon went on to win the Southern League's Premier Division at the first attempt, earning promotion to the Conference South. The 2004β05 season also saw them reach the first round of the FA Cup again, this time defeating League Two club Shrewsbury Town before losing 3β1 at home to Yeovil Town in the second round. In their first season in the Conference South, the club finished fifth, qualifying for the promotion play-offs. After beating Farnborough Town 3β0 in the semi-finals, they lost the final 2β0 to St Albans City. Another FA Cup run saw them defeat Hednesford Town 4β0 in the first round, before losing 2β1 to Nuneaton Borough in the second.
The following season, 2006β07, saw Histon win the Conference South resulting in promotion to the Conference National. In 2008β09 Histon recorded their best-ever FA Cup run; after defeating League One Swindon Town 1β0 in the first round, they were drawn against Leeds United in the second round. The match was shown live on ITV, with Histon winning 1β0 to qualify for the third round, where they lost to Swansea City. In the league, the club finished third in the Conference, entering the play-offs for promotion to the Football League; however, they lost 2β1 on aggregate to Torquay United, losing 2β0 away before winning the home game 1β0.
The 2008β09 season proved to be the high point for Histon as they finished eighteenth the following season and then bottom of the Conference in 2010β11, resulting in relegation to the Conference North. After two seasons of lower-mid table finishes, the club were relegated from the Conference North at the end of the 2013β14 season. Returning to the Southern League Premier Division, they were relegated again in 2015β16, this time to Division One Central. The following season saw the club suffer a second successive relegation, resulting in them returning to the Premier Division of the Eastern Counties League. However, they were promoted to the North Division of the Isthmian League after winning the Eastern Counties League title in 2018β19. At the end of the 2020β21 season they were transferred to Division One Midlands of the Northern Premier League. The 2021β22 season saw Histon finish 18th, subsequently losing the inter-step play-off to Consett and suffering relegation to the Premier Division South of the United Counties League.
Reserve team
Histon's reserve team reached the Premier Division of the Cambridgeshire League in 1949, a year after the first team had moved up to the Spartan League. However, they finished bottom of the table in their first season in the Premier Division. They then switched to Division One of the South Midlands League. In 1952β53 they finished third, earning promotion to the Premier Division. However, they left the league at the end of the 1954β55 season.Following the first team's promotion from the Eastern Counties League in 2000, the reserves joined Division One in 2001. They were runners-up in their first season in the division, earning promotion to the Premier Division. After finishing second-from-bottom of the Premier Division in 2010β11, the reserves withdrew from the league.
They now play in the Cambridgeshire County League.
Ground
The club have played at Bridge Road since their establishment in 1904.Honours
- National League
- *National League South champions 2006β07
- Southern League
- *Premier Division champions 2004β05
- Eastern Counties League
- *Premier Division champions 1999β2000, 2018β19
- *League Cup winners 1990β91
- Cambridgeshire League
- *Premier Division champions 1945β46
- Cambridgeshire Professional Cup
- *Winners 2001β02, 2002β03, 2003β04, 2009β10, 2011β12, 2012β13, 2013β14, 2014β15
- Cambridgeshire Invitation Cup
- *Winners 1977β78, 1979β80, 1984β85, 1996β97, 2000β01, 2003β04, 2004β05
Records
- Best FA Cup performance: Third round, 2008β09
- Best FA Trophy performance: Fourth round, 2000β01, 2004β05
- Best FA Vase performance: Fifth round, 2018β19
- Biggest win: 11β0 vs March Town United, Cambridgeshire Invitation Cup, 15 February 2001
- Heaviest defeat: 0β8 vs Ilkeston Town, Northern Premier League Division One Midlands, 2 October 2021
- Record attendance: 6,400 vs King's Lynn, FA Cup, 1956
- Most appearances: Neil Kennedy, 292
- Most goals: Neil Andrews, Neil Kennedy
- Record transfer fee received: Β£30,000 from Manchester United for Giuliano Maiorana, 1988
- Record transfer fee paid: Β£6,000 to Chelmsford City for Ian Cambridge, 2000