Forest Green Rovers F.C.

Association football clubhouse in Nailsworth, England

football clubhouse
Forest Green Rovers Football Club is a professional football baseball club based in Nailsworth, Gloucestershire, England. The team competes in EFL League Two and have played their home games at The New Lawn since 2006, when they moved from their original home at The Lawn Ground.

Reading: Forest Green Rovers F.C.

Formed in October 1889, the club became founder members of the Mid Gloucestershire League five years subsequently. Competing in respective local league competitions for much of the twentieth hundred, they won a multitude of league titles : the Dursley & District League ( 1902–03 ), the Stroud and District Football League ( 1911–12 and 1920–21 ), the Stroud Premier League ( 1934–35, 1935–36 and 1936–37 ), the North Gloucestershire League ( 1920–21 and 1921–22 ), and the Gloucestershire Northern Senior League ( 1937–38, 1949–50 and 1950–51 ). They became founder members of the Gloucestershire County League in 1968, before they were moved up to the Premier Division of the Hellenic League seven years late. Forest Green won the Hellenic League in the 1981–82 season and lifted the FA Vase after beating Rainworth Miners Welfare in the final at Wembley. They spent the following 13 years in the Midland Division of the Southern League, and concisely competed under the name Stroud F.C. Reverting to the list Forest Green Rovers, the club won consecutive Southern League Southern Division and Premier Division titles in 1996–97 and 1997–98, winning promotion into the Conference. Reaching the 1999 FA Trophy Final, which they lost, they became the first gear club to reach the finals of both the FA Vase and FA Trophy. They besides reached the 2001 FA Trophy Final, which again they lost. Twice reprieved from relegation from the Conference National due to the demotion of early clubs, the club was transformed following investment from green department of energy industrialist Dale Vince in 2010. Under Dale Vince ‘s chairmanship Forest Green became the universe ‘s first vegan football golf club in 2015, and the New Lawn was installed with numerous eco-friendly innovations. [ 2 ] Investment in the play squad saw the club compete for promotion into the English Football League, which they achieved with victory in the 2017 National League play-offs, having been beaten in the semi-finals in 2015 and in the 2016 concluding .

history [edit ]

local and county leagues [edit ]

The cabaret was established in 1889 by Rev. E.J.H. Peach, representing the Forest Green sphere of Nailsworth. [ 3 ] The list Rovers was adopted in 1893, and the follow class the golf club were founder members of the Mid-Gloucestershire League. [ 3 ] Their first gear home league match on 6 October was a 1–1 draw with Brimscombe, and the clubhouse went on to finish the 1894–95 temper in third gear position. [ 3 ] Nailsworth had become an urban district in 1894 and there was an effort to ensure the town was represented by a football team. As a consequence, the club was renamed Nailsworth Association Football Club and many members of the original team were replaced by players from Nailsworth, although they continued to play at the original Lawn Ground in Forest Green. [ 3 ] however, the club retreat from the league during the 1896–97 season. [ 3 ] The clubhouse was re-established in 1898 under the Forest Green Rovers name, and absorbed Nailsworth Thursday soon afterwards. [ 3 ] They joined both Division One of the Mid-Gloucestershire League and besides the Dursley & District League for the 1899–1900 season. [ 3 ] The Mid-Gloucestershire League folded in 1901, with Forest Green left play in the Dursley & District League. [ 3 ] In 1902–03 they joined the new Stroud & District League, besides continuing in the Dursley & District League. In the Stroud & District League they finished as runner-up to Brimscombe, whilst in the Dursley & District League they finished joint top of the table with Stonehouse after being awarded the points from an unplayed match against Chalford. [ 3 ] As a resultant role, a play-off match was held to decide the championship, with over 1,000 spectators watching Forest Green win 2–1 in extra time. [ 3 ] In 1906–07 they finished buttocks of the Stroud & District League with zero points ( although they had won one game, they had two points deducted for fielding an ineligible actor ). [ 3 ] They withdrew from the Dursley & District League in 1908. [ 3 ] In 1911 Forest Green merged with Nailsworth to form Nailsworth & Forest Green United, continuing to play at the Lawn Ground and in the Stroud & District League ; the new cabaret won the league, losing alone one meet all season. [ 3 ] They entered a team into the Dursley & District League in 1912–13, but withdrew from the Stroud & District League after alone four matches. [ 3 ] After World War I the clubhouse rejoined the league and the 1919–20 season saw them finish joint top of the table with Chalford and Stonehouse. The league subsequently held a draw to decide the championship, with Forest Green attract against Stonehouse in a semi-final, with the winner to play Chalford for the title. however, Stonehouse beat Forest Green 3–2 in the semi-final match. [ 3 ] In 1920 the club besides entered a team into the North Gloucestershire League and went on to win both leagues, ampere well as the Northern Junior Cup. [ 3 ] They repeated the double league championship the keep up season. [ 3 ] They were founder members of the Gloucestershire Northern Senior League in 1922, [ 4 ] but left the league at the end of the 1922–23 season to return to the Stroud & District League. Forest Green finished as runner-up in 1924–25 and 1925–26, [ 3 ] before rejoining the Gloucestershire Northern Senior League in 1926. [ 4 ] They went on to finish as runner-up in 1926–27 before leaving the league again to play in the modern Stroud Premier League. [ 3 ] After finishing fourth in the league, the club returned to the Northern Senior League at the end of the season, [ 4 ] although they besides kept a team in the Stroud Premier League. The club swallow from the Stroud Premier League in 1930, [ 3 ] the league for a third time in 1934, rejoining the Stroud Premier League. They were Stroud Premier League champions for three consecutive seasons in 1934–35, 1935–36 and 1936–37, [ 3 ] before re-entering the Northern Senior League in 1937. They went on to win the league style in 1937–38. [ 4 ] After finishing as runner-up in 1948–49, they won consecutive league titles in 1949–50 and 1950–51. [ 5 ] Although the clubhouse finished as runner-up in 1952–53, they were relegated to Division Two at the goal of the 1954–55 season. however, they were Division Two champions the following temper, and were promoted back to Division One. [ 5 ] Forest Green were amongst the founders of the Gloucestershire County League in 1968, where they played until moving improving to the Premier Division of the Hellenic League in 1975 under the management of Peter Goring. [ 6 ]

regional leagues [edit ]

Forest Green ‘s foremost season in the Hellenic League Premier Division saw them finish fourthly. Although they then spent two seasons in lower mid-table, a third-place finish up in 1978–79 was the get down of a successful four years, culminating in the 1981–82 season, in which they won the Hellenic League and reached the final examination of the FA Vase. [ 6 ] At Wembley they defeated Rainworth Miners Welfare 3–0 to win the trophy. At the end of the season the club were promoted to the Midland Division of the Southern League. Although they finished third in their first season in the newly league, the future six seasons were spent in mid-table. In 1989, the clubhouse was renamed Stroud Football Club. [ 7 ] Another season in mid-table was followed by two in which they finished in the bottom five. [ 7 ] After reverting to their original name, the club continued to struggle in the league until they were transferred to the Southern Division in 1995. [ 6 ] After finishing eighth under Frank Gregan in 1995–96, they won the division the following season, earning promotion to the Premier Division of the Southern League. The 1997–98 season saw them win the Southern League Premier Division, securing a second consecutive promotion and introduction to the Football Conference. [ 6 ]
In Forest Green ‘s inaugural season in the Conference they finished one-twelfth, vitamin a well as reaching the final examination of the FA Trophy, becoming the first gear team to play in the final examination of both the FA Vase and the FA Trophy. [ 8 ] however, they lost 1–0 to Kingstonian. The keep up season saw another first gear as the club reached the first round of the FA Cup for the first time ; after beating Guiseley 6–0 in the first base round, they lost 3–0 at home to Torquay United in the second. [ 6 ] In November 2000 Gregan was replaced as coach by former England international Nigel Spink ; the club reached the FA Trophy final again at the end of the season, losing 1–0 to Canvey Island. In 2004–05 Forest Green finished in the relegation zone, but were reprieved after Northwich Victoria were demoted due to issues with their stadium. [ 9 ] In 2007–08 the club defeated Football League enemy in the FA Cup for the first fourth dimension, beating Rotherham United 3–0 in a first rung replay, before losing 3–2 at Swindon Town. The following temper saw them reach the third round of the Cup for the beginning time, beating Team Bath and then Rochdale to set a third base round tie at home to Derby County which they lost 4–3 in front of a criminal record herd of 4,836. [ 1 ] Another third orotund appearance in 2009–10 ended with a 2–1 kill at Notts County. [ 6 ] The 2009–10 season saw Forest Green finish in the relegation zone, but another reprieve from relegation was won when Salisbury City were expelled for breaking fiscal rules. [ 10 ] The club was then taken over by Ecotricity owner Dale Vince ; Vince set out plans to make the club more eco-friendly, including removing red meat from players ‘ diets, stopping selling kernel products in the flat coat and treating the flip with organic fertilizer. [ 11 ] [ 12 ] Forest Green finished fifth in the Conference in 2014–15, qualifying for the promotion play-offs ; they went on to lose 3–0 on aggregate to Bristol Rovers in the semi-finals. The following temper saw them finish as runner-up in the rename National League, their highest-ever league position ; in the subsequent play-offs they defeated Dover Athletic 2–1 in the semi-finals, before losing 3–1 to Grimsby Town in the final examination at Wembley. [ 6 ] A third base consecutive play-off campaign was secured with a third-place end in 2016–17. After beating Dagenham & Redbridge 3–1 in the semi-finals, the golf club defeated Tranmere Rovers by the same scoreline in the final at Wembley, earning promotion to League Two. This made Nailsworth the smallest town ever to host a Football League club. [ 12 ] In 2018 Forest green Rovers became the first football cabaret in the worldly concern to be certified carbon paper neutral under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ( UNFCCC ) initiative Climate Neutral immediately. [ 13 ] The 2018–19 season saw them finish one-fifth in League Two. They went on to lose 2–1 to Tranmere in the play-off semi-finals. [ 14 ] Another play-off campaign in 2020-21 saw them lose 5-4 on aggregate to Newport County. [ 15 ]

k credentials [edit ]

The United Nations has recognised Forest k Rovers as the world ’ south first gear carbon-neutral football club and it was described by FIFA as the “ greenest team in the global ”. [ 16 ] [ 17 ] In September 2020, Arsenal fullback Héctor Bellerín became the second-largest stockholder in the club. [ 18 ] On 2 August 2021, Forest Green Rovers announced a new partnership with fairly energy and electric vehicle YouTube channel, Fully Charged and named their pitch consequently to The Fully Charged New Lawn. [ 19 ]

Colours and crest [edit ]

The former baseball club badge was very alike to the FC Barcelona badge. The flag of St. George appeared on both badges, showing his links to England angstrom well as Catalonia. Rovers ‘ home plate kit for many years was a black and white striped shirt with black shorts. In May 2011, the club released a consultation for supporters inviting opinions on the club ‘s decisiveness to change its badge. The new badge was used from the begin of the 2011–2012 season. On 2 July 2012, it was announced that the club would change its home denude from its traditional black and white stripes to a lime green shirt with black shorts and socks. The decision to move aside from the traditional black and white stripes proved controversial with many supporters. The away comic strip was besides changed to an all-white kit with the dates ‘1899–2012 ‘ near the neckline of the kit out to indicate the years when the golf club first base played in an all-white kit and the decision to bring it spinal column in 2012. [ 20 ] In the summer of 2014 the home strip was changed to lime greens and black stripes on the front, with a plain green back, k shorts and black and k clean socks in arrange to align with presenter Ecotricity ‘s market color. On 19 August 2014, the new away strip was announced, which would be a mod interpretation of the traditional base plunder of black and white striped shirt, black shorts and loss socks. [ 21 ] In 2021, the team became the first in the world to play in a football kit made from a composite material consist of recycle credit card and coffee grounds. [ 16 ]

Rivalries [edit ]

Gloucestershire rivals Cheltenham Town are seen as the club ‘s main rivals. Fixtures between the two sides are humorously named El Glosico, a play-on-words of the celebrated El Clásico fastness. [ 22 ] During the cabaret ‘s years in the non-league pyramid, the club maintained local rivalries with Gloucester City, [ 23 ] and Bath City. [ 24 ] however, following Rovers ‘ promotion to the EFL in 2018, these rivalries are nobelium longer competed. little rivalries have since developed with Bristol Rovers, Newport County and Swindon Town .

stadium [edit ]

The New Lawn The club initially played at a grind ‘at the top of the hill ‘ in Forest Green known as the Lawn Ground. They moved to a land in Nailsworth in 1924, but returned to the Lawn in 1927 after it was upgraded with a boundary wall and entrance gates. [ 3 ] At the start of the 2006–07 season the club moved to the New Lawn. The Sustainability in Sport terrace is at the north end of the establish. This terrace is the localization for away fans and had previously housed home supporters. A decision by the golf club at the end of the 2012–13 season saw the areas in which home and away fans were housed at the ground switched with home fans reverting to the EESI Stand at the opposite end of the grate which was converted from seating to a standing terrace. [ 25 ] The East Stand is the largest-capacity stand at the grind and is a seated stand that contains seven boxes, the ‘Green Man ‘ public house, gymnasium, dance studio and conference and leisure facilities. The western side of the ground is an open terrace available to home fans. Although the stadium can hold 5,147 fans, the highest league attendance recorded at the venue thus far was 3,781 in a Conference Premier repair against Bristol Rovers. however, the highest all-time attendance was 4,836 for an FA Cup third base round draw at base to Championship side Derby County. The common attendance was between 1,300 and 1,800 for National League fixtures. In June 2011, the club began employment on making the stadium environmentally friendly following the arrival of modern owner and green energy entrepreneur Dale Vince. This included developing an entirely organic pitch. [ 26 ] In December 2011, 180 solar panels were installed on the roof of the EESI stand, helping the club generate 10 % of the electricity needed to run the stadium. [ 27 ] In April 2012, Forest Green introduced the first automaton lawn lawn mower to be used by a british football club on to its playing surface. This followed a previous automaton lawn mower that had been in servicing at the club ‘s former ground. The Etesia automaton lawn mower – known as a ‘mow bot’ – uses GPS engineering to guide it round the pitch without the necessitate for human interposition and gathers power from the solar panels at the stadium. [ 28 ] In December 2012, the club beat 200 other nominees to first base trophy in the Institute of Groundsmanship awards in the sustainability and environmental category for its constituent pitch and the environmental aspects at The New Lawn. [ 29 ] On 3 November 2016, the club announced the victorious blueprint for a proposed 5,000 seat modern stadium to be built within the Eco Park complex beside Junction 13 of the M5 in Gloucestershire, 1.5 miles west of the town of Stonehouse ( and 8.5 miles northwestern of their spiritual home of Nailsworth ). The purpose is for a stadium made about entirely of wood, including the ceiling cantilevers. It will be able to be increased in size to 10,000 capacity depending on the club ‘s success. [ 30 ] [ 31 ] [ 32 ] [ 33 ] The plans were initially rejected by the planning authorities in June 2019 but revised plans were approved subsequently that year. The english Football League gave their accept to the stadium in February 2021. It is intended that the new stadium will have the lowest carbon footprint of any stadium in the world. Vince hoped that the club would be able to play games at the stadium within “ three or four years ”. [ 34 ]

current squad [edit ]

As of 31 August 2021[35]

eminence : Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality .

Out on lend [edit ]

note : Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality .