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GEDLING MINERS WELFARE - HISTORY
The Club was formed in 1919, at the same time as the Notts Alliance Football league resumed playing football again after the First World War. In their first Season they finished 3rd in the League and won the League Cup by defeating Sneinton FC (now Carlton Town FC) 1 - 0.
At the end of the 1929-30 Season the Club change its name and became known as Mapperley St. Judes and enjoyed moderate success during this period. During the Second World War they reformed as Gedling Miners Welfare FC and with the restart of football for the 1945-46 Season they went on to win both the Notts Alliance League and Notts Alliance Senior Cup. This was repeated on numerous occasions and this success spilled over into the 1950s, which was the most successful period of the Club. We won the Notts Alliance League and Cup double many times and at one point remained unbeaten for three Seasons.
In the FA Amateur Cup they entertained two of the top sides of the time. Pegasus were the visitors to Plains Road in 1954 and temporary stands were erected all around the Ground to house a crowd of 7,000 plus. Two Seasons later Bishop Auckland visited and the Police put a limit of 10,000 on the Gate. We saw Gedling lose 4 - 1 to the best amateur team in the country, having missed a penalty at a crucial time of the game. The ‘Bishops’ had six amateur England Internationals on show and the most famous being Bob Hardisty who was the Captain of England. The staggering record attendance at Plains Road, will surely never again be surpassed by a Nottinghamshire amateur Club
These were the good times at Plains Road and unfortunately the Club have not had the same degree of success since then. The lowest point came at the end of the1998-99 Season when we had been relegated to Division 2 of the Notts Alliance FL. Only three Committee Members remained with only half a Kit, half a Team and no money, but the next Season saw us bounce back and under the guidance of Vic Hulme, Gedling won the League, Intermediate Cup and were semi- finalists to Retford United in the Notts FA County Cup. The next Season saw us apply and to become members of the CMFL. Vic has now stepped aside as Manager and taken up the post of Chairman of the Club. This left the way open for the appointment of Duncan Broad and Mark Allison as the management team for the start of the 2002-03 Season. They have the task of building a team to match the ambitions of the Club and there is now a buzz about the changing rooms and a mood of optimism.
The Ground has seen a remarkable transformation from virtually a ‘Parks Pitch’ three years ago to what is now probably the best amateur Ground in the area. Last Season we staged two Notts FA Cup Finals and the CMFL representative game against Cambridgeshire, which speaks for itself. The floodlights, fencing and hard standing were installed at the beginning of last season and this had a profound effect on the Club. We now feel that our facilities are starting to match those of local teams like Arnold Town, Carlton Town and Gedling Town and we are attracting high calibre Players.
This is Gedlings fifth Season in the Central Midlands Football League. We gained promotion to the Supreme Division in our first Season, which was far better than anticipated. Unfortunately, last Season we fell away a little, by finishing fifth from the bottom of the League and nowhere in the Cup competitions. In this closed season, we have tried to rectify the situation by virtually signing on a brand new team. Everyone at the Club is looking forward to the coming Season and we are very optimistic.
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