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Post by taylov on Sept 15, 2018 11:08:14 GMT
Back in 1985 we were still playing in the Hampshire League, a reminder of how far we've come in the last 30 years. Here's a typical 8-page programme from that season. Dick Donohoe was Manager, Don Broomfield was the Match Secretary and Gary Day was the programme editor.
Here's the team line-up for the game against Southampton "A", the Saints 3rd side regularly played in the County League, along with the Fareham Town and Waterlooville reserve sides. Note that Dave Merrington was the Saints A team boss.
The real shocker is the size of the "crowds" at Hampshire League games in 1984/85. The highest attendance for a league game before the visit of Saints "A" was the local derby game with Sholing Sports FC (not related to the present Sholing club) which attracted 114 fans. The next highest was 69 for the visit of AFC Totton.
By March 1985 no less than SIX Eastleigh home games had attracted less than 30 !!! hardy souls (22 was the lowest, 2 saw 23 and then one each of 26, 27 and 28); attendance at two matches were only in the 30s and two more in the 40s.
These days we usually know the name of the players - back then you probably knew the name of all the fans, too.
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Post by michaelefc on Sept 15, 2018 11:12:44 GMT
Back in 1992 when I started following Eastleigh home crowds ranged from about 60 to 120. Away support could often be counted on the fingers of two hands. Where we are now, compared to those days is astonishing. Even now I sometimes have to pinch myself.
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Post by taylov on Sept 15, 2018 11:57:18 GMT
Yes, 2-figure attendances continued well into the Wessex League days, and according to Gary and Ray's book on the club, average attendances were still only 175 in the promotion season of 2002/3.
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Post by nobadspitfire on Sept 15, 2018 17:41:46 GMT
I'm sure a lot of us have the book, Tony, but it's good to have these sorts of posts from you. With your wealth of knowledge and archive of programmes, it would be good to have more like this post from you on a regular basis, even if it's for teams other than Eastleigh. Maybe something about the team we're playing next week, if you have anything interesting about them.
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Post by horseymchorseface on Sept 15, 2018 22:25:47 GMT
Yes, a pint of beer in 1985 was 80p, a load of bread 30p, a litre of fuel 50p and a house 30k. Great, that helps us a lot in the next week.
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Post by boyatthood on Sept 16, 2018 7:13:16 GMT
Dick Donohoe was also the PE teacher at Bellemoor Boys Secondary school in Southampton back then. Teaching a young Francis Benali as well as Eastleigh. Very different times.
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Post by spitfiresteve on Sept 16, 2018 7:24:32 GMT
The Yes, a pint of beer in 1985 was 80p, a load of bread 30p, a litre of fuel 50p and a house 30k. Great, that helps us a lot in the next week. The irony of bigging up the National Trust over football and then dissing people for reminiscing about the past is not lost 😂😊 |
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Post by taylov on Sept 16, 2018 9:04:21 GMT
Martin, I won't bore people on a regular basis about our opponents as you suggest, but will offer you an explanation about why many thousands of London non-league football fans have such a problem over the recent history of D&R.
Once upon a time (1950/51) there was a minor amateur club called Dagenham FC playing in the old Metropolitan League against a mixture of works teams and the "A" (third XI) of league clubs including Brighton & Hove Albion. The programme sheet below is for a league game in 1950/51 against the side from the paper mills near Hemel Hempstead.
In the more serious world of non-league football in NE London there were a number of long established clubs - Ilford FC and Leytonstone FC in the Isthmian League and Walthamstow Avenue in the Athenian League. In the pre-war and immediate post war era they each used to get 10,000+ crowds.
As support dwindled a series of mergers took place, the first forming Leytonstone/Ilford FC in 1979 who later adsorbed the Avenue when the latter lost its ground to developers in 1988. In 1992 the clubs became Redbridge Forest FC but as they were sharing Dagenham's ground having sold off no less than 3 separate football grounds for development, the name was changed to the present D&R title. A rather sad story of what can happen to long established clubs (all 3 casualties had been formed over 100 years earlier).
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Post by nobadspitfire on Sept 16, 2018 16:05:22 GMT
Not really sad, Tony, just the way things go. Change is inevitable & some clubs embrace it to move forward. Others don't, and maybe fall by the wayside. No different to the business world.
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Post by tenacres on Sept 16, 2018 19:19:30 GMT
175 in the 2002/2003 season
2003/2004 Dr martens eastern - 252
2004/2005 Ryman league - 338
2005/2006 Conf South - 416
2006/2007 Conf South - 710
the next few years in the conf South crowds stayed at 500-750 and then have jumped up to 1800-2200 for our time in the conference national.
Currently we are averaging around 1600 but I think that will go up with bigger gates against the likes of Aldershot, Leyton Orient etc to come
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Post by bomber on Sept 17, 2018 11:05:00 GMT
The Yes, a pint of beer in 1985 was 80p, a load of bread 30p, a litre of fuel 50p and a house 30k. Great, that helps us a lot in the next week. The irony of bigging up the National Trust over football and then dissing people for reminiscing about the past is not lost 😂😊  Mugged right off! |
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Post by christhomas on Sept 17, 2018 15:24:41 GMT
Interesting that 2 of the Saints players are now established Championship managers..
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Mugged right off!