Holbeach United Football Club is a football club based in Holbeach, Lincolnshire, England. They are currently members of the Eastern Counties League Division One North and play at Carters Park.
Full name | Holbeach United Football Club | ||
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Nickname(s) | The Tigers | ||
Founded | 1929 | ||
Ground | Carters Park, Holbeach | ||
Capacity | 4,000 (200 seated)[1] | ||
Chairman | Des Ford | ||
Manager | Danny Clifton | ||
League | Eastern Counties League Division One North | ||
2021–22 | United Counties League Premier Division North, 18th of 18 (relegated) | ||
Website | Club website | ||
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The club was established in 1929 and joined the King's Lynn League, before playing in the Spalding and Boston leagues. They joined Division Two of the Peterborough & District League in 1936,[2] and were promoted to Division One in 1938. They were Division One runners-up in 1945–46 and moved up to the United Counties League.[3] When the league gained a second division in 1950, Holbeach became members of Division One and were runners-up in 1953–54.[3]
In 1955 Holbeach were one of four clubs to apply for the three vacant places in the Eastern Counties League; although they were the one to miss out in the vote, another club resigned from the league and a further vote on Holbeach's candidacy saw member clubs vote 11 to 5 to accept them.[2] After seven seasons on the league the club joined the Midland League in 1962. However, after finishing second-from-bottom of the league in 1962–63, they were not re-elected in dropped back into Division One of the United Counties League.[4] The club were runners-up in their first season back in the league and won the League Cup in 1964–65.[4] They were runners-up again in 1968–69. Division One was renamed the Premier Division in 1972, and the club were runners-up again in 1973–74.[3]
The 1982–83 season saw Holbeach reach the first round of the FA Cup for the first time; drawn at home to Third Division Wrexham, the match was moved to London Road in Peterborough, with the visitors winning 4–0.[3] In 1989–90 they won the Premier Division for the first time, also winning the League Cup and Benevolent Cup, the first time a club had won all three UCL trophies in a single season.[2] However, only two seasons later they finished second-from-bottom of the division.[3] They were Premier Division runners-up in 2001–02 and won the division the following season.[3] The club won the Lincolnshire Senior Trophy in 2011–12,[1] and the following season saw them retain the Trophy and win the league for a third time. They won the Trophy again in 2017–18.[5]
Holbeach have played at Carters Park since their establishment. The site was bequeathed to the town in the mid-1920s by a man named Carter.[2] The ground was originally shared with the local cricket club, meaning that it only had three permanent sides. However, after the cricket club folded, the fourth side was fenced off. A stand was built in the late 1930s and a covered area to its left was also built and later became known as the "pig pen". Covered standing areas were built using Anderson shelters.[6] However, both were later demolished. A new seated stand was opened in 2005.[6] The ground currently has a capacity of 4,000, of which 200 is seated and 450 covered.[1]
The ground's record attendance of 4,094 was set on 28 September 1955 for an FA Cup first qualifying round replay against local rivals Wisbech Town.[2]
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