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Glossop North End
GNE afc badge.png
Full name Glossop North End Association Football Club
Nickname(s) The Hillmen, The Peakites
Short name Glossop
Founded Feb 1886; 138 years ago (Feb 1886), as Glossop North End
Ground Surrey Street, Glossop
Ground Capacity 1,301 (200 seated)
Chairman David Atkinson
Manager Richard Brodie(caretaker manager)
League Northern Premier League Division One South East
2018–19 Northern Premier League Division One West, 17th of 20

Glossop North End Association Football Club is a football club in Glossop, Derbyshire, England, which compete in the Northern Premier League Division One South East. Their home ground is Surrey Street, which has a capacity of 1,301 (200 seated, 1,101 standing). The club play in blue, and are nicknamed the Hillmen or the Peakites. Between 1899 and 1992 the club was officially known simply as Glossop. Glossop is one of the smallest towns in England to have had a Football League club, and it remains the smallest town whose team has played in the English top-flight.

The club was founded in February 1886 and joined the North Cheshire League four years later. Glossop spent two seasons each in The Combination and the Midland League, before moving to North Road and being elected into the Football League Second Division in 1898. Having been promoted in the 1898–99 season, they spent one season in the First Division. During this period the club was bankrolled by Sir Samuel Hill-Wood, who was later to become chairman of Arsenal. The club retains some connections with Arsenal. Glossop were relegated in 1900 and spent the next fifteen seasons in the Second Division, before exiting the Football League during World War I.

Glossop North End spent 1920 to 1957 in the Manchester League, being crowned champions in 1927–28. They moved from the Lancashire Combination back to the Manchester League in 1966, and then spent four seasons in the Cheshire County League from 1978. Glossop were founder members of the North West Counties League in 1982 and won Premier Division title at the end of the 2014–15 campaign. They were beaten finalists in the FA Vase in 2009 and 2015.

History

Early years

Glossop North End 1899-1900 football First Division (team picture)
Glossop team of 1899–1900
Glossop-1904-05
Glossop team of 1904–05
Glossop-1906-07
Glossop team of 1906–07
Glossop North End 1914-15 White kit
Glossop team of 1914–15
GlossopFC1914
Glossop team of 1915–16
Glossop 1927-28
Glossop team of 1927-28

Glossop North End were founded in 1886, when they played friendly amateur matches. They played at various grounds in the town, including Pyegrove, Silk Street, Water Lane and Cemetery Road before settling at North Road. The club joined the North Cheshire League in 1890, before moving to the Combination in 1894 and turning professional. In their first season in the Combination, 1894–95, they finished as runners-up. After ending the following season, 1895–96, in third, the club moved to the Midland League and in the 1896–97 season finished as runners-up. After a second season in the Midland League, they were elected to the Second Division of the Football League in 1898–99 finishing as runners-up to Manchester City and winning promotion to the First Division. They then changed their name to Glossop (primarily to avoid any confusion with Preston North End) before spending their one and only season in the top flight, 1899–1900 when they finished in last place and were relegated back to the Second Division, having won only 4 matches, all at home, against Burnley, Nottingham Forest, Blackburn and Aston Villa.

They then spent the next fifteen seasons in the Second Division, during which time they reached the quarter-finals of the FA Cup in 1908–09 where they lost to 1–0 to eventual finalists Bristol City in a replay on 10 March 1909. The club's chairman and benefactor at the time was Sir Samuel Hill-Wood, who was later to become chairman of Arsenal. However, the club became perennial strugglers in the Second Division.

The 1913–14 season saw a club record attendance of 10,736 for an FA Cup second round match against Preston North End on 31 January 1914. However, the following season they finished bottom of the league and had to apply for re-election. This was curtailed when the start of World War I meant the Football League closed down. Glossop were then re-formed toward the end of the war by Oswald Partington, but failed to be re-elected back into the Football League. Glossop then joined the Lancashire Combination, playing just one season, 1919–20. Northern Nomads ground-shared with Glossop for several years during this time. The club then dropped out of the Lancashire Combination and into the Manchester League. In the 1920s and 1930s they won the Gilcryst Cup three times and were crowned Manchester League champions in 1927–28. They won the Gilcryst Cup for a fourth time in 1947–48.

1950s onwards

During 1955, the club moved from its original home of North Road to their current ground Surrey Street, with the first game played at their new home on 17 September 1955. In 1957 Glossop rejoined the Lancashire Combination, finishing in eighth in 1957–58. They spent nine seasons in the league before dropping back down once more to the Manchester League after the 1965–66 season. They joined the Cheshire County League as founder members of Division Two in the 1978–79 season, finishing in 17th. In 1980–81 they were Division Two runners-up, only losing out on the title on goal difference, but still winning promotion to Division One. After a sixth-place finish in 1981–82, the club became founder members of the newly formed North West Counties Football League in 1982 when the Cheshire County League merged with the Lancashire Combination. In 1986, the club marked their centenary season with a match with sister club Arsenal. They joined Division One, however they struggled in the league for the next six seasons and after finishing bottom in 1987–88 were relegated to Division Two. The 1990–91 season saw the club reach the fourth round of the FA Vase where they lost to Cammell Laird 2–1 in a replay. They also won the North West Counties Football League Division Two Cup, beating Cheadle Town 2–1 in the final. However, the club almost folded in 1990–91 when their then chairman sold the ground to the local council and left the club with large debts. The present board of directors took over in January 1991. After a sixth-place finish in 1991–92 they were promoted back to Division One over higher-placed clubs and after the season the directors reverted the club's name to Glossop North End.

In their first season under the club's original name, they reached the semi-finals of the North West Counties League Cup, before losing to Nantwich Town 5–2 over two legs. They reached the semi-finals of the League's floodlit Cup in 1994–95, losing to Penrith 3–1 over two legs. In the 1996–97 season they beat Trafford in the final of the Manchester Premier Cup at Old Trafford, before winning the competition again the following season, this time beating Radcliffe Borough in the final at Maine Road. They also reached the semi-finals of the North West Counties League Cup, losing to Vauxhall Motors 3–1 over two legs.

2000s onwards

In the 2000–01 season they won the Derbyshire County Football Association Senior Challenge Cup beating Glapwell in a two-legged final, drawing 3–3 away and 2–2 at home before winning 4–2 on penalties. In the league the club struggled to avoid relegation from Division One throughout much of the early 2000s, before finishing ninth in 2006–07, the highest position attained by manager Chris Nicholson in his six seasons at the club. Nicholson announced in March 2007 that he was to step down at the end of the season. As a result, his assistant Steve Young was eventually appointed manager for 2007–08. In the 2008–09 season they reached the final of the FA Vase where they lost 2–0 to Northern League First Division side Whitley Bay at Wembley Stadium, on 10 May 2009. Due to this achievement, Arsenal, with whom they retain connections due to Arsenal chairman Peter Hill-Wood's grandfather Sir Samuel Hill-Wood having owned and bankrolled Glossop during their run in the Football League, invited them to their state-of-the-art London Colney training ground during their stay in London, to prepare for the FA Vase final.

In May 2013 the club appointed Chris Wilcock as first team manager. In his first season the team finished third in the North West Counties League. During the season Glossop produced an unbeaten run in the league of 22 games, with only 5 draws, stretching from November 2013 until they were beaten by Bootle in April 2014.

On 19 April 2015 Glossop beat Nelson to win the North West Counties League Premier Division, earning promotion to Division One North of the Northern Premier League. They also reached two cup finals; the North West Counties League Cup, where they faced Atherton Collieries winning 2–0, and the FA Vase final, in which they played North Shields at Wembley Stadium. In a repeat of the 2009 final, Glossop were beaten 2–1 after extra time.

Glossop began the 2015–16 season in the Northern Premier League Division One North. They also competed in the FA Trophy for the first time since 1986. The club finished fourth and qualified for the playoffs but lost 2–1 to Northwich Victoria in the semi-final. At the end of the 2016–17 season Chris Wilcock resigned as manager, leaving the position after 4 seasons and as the winningest manager in recorded history. On 19 May 2017 the club announced that the joint team of Steve Halford and Paul Phillips would take the reins at Surrey Street On 12 March 2018 the management team left Glossop to join Buxton. Goalkeeper coach Mark Canning took over as caretaker manager, assisted by Andy Bishop. This was made a permanent position at the end of the 2017–18 season. However, after a poor run of results, culminating in a loss to Widnes in mid October, Canning and Bishop were sacked. After a short search the board appointed ex-Mossley duo Peter Band and Lloyd Morrison as joint managers on 14 October 2018.

In an unprecedented move the majority of football activities were ceased mid March 2020 due to the coronavirus, and by the end of March the NPL took the decision along with all step 4 and lower divisions to end the season early and expunge all results with no promotion or relegation taking place. The coronavirus took centre stage again in the 20/21 season, with only a handful of games being played before the season was cancelled in Feb 2021. This was followed in March 2021 by the resignation of manager Pete Band who left to join up with his hometown team Macclesfield FC. The new manager, Stuart Mellish, took charge at the beginning of May ready to start the 2021–22 season in the newly realigned NPL Division One West Division.

Historical kits

  • 0000-0000 years used
  • 0000/0000 football season used
Home and away kits (if known)
1896/97
1898–1900
1904/05
1905/06
1906/07
1907–10
1910–14
1914/15
1915/16
1927/28
1966
1970's
1980/81
1981-84
Crystal Sportswear
1984/85
Crystal Sportswear
1985/86
Crystal Sportswear
1986/87
Crystal Sportswear
1987-90
Crystal Sportswear
1990-92
Glossop Builders Marchants
1992-94
Davis Blank Furniss
1994-96
Davis Blank Furniss
1996-98
Davis Blank Furniss
1998–2000 Davis Blank Furniss
2000-03
Davis Blank Furniss
2003–07
Davis Blank Furniss
2007–09
Davis Blank Furniss
2009/10 Speedwell
bus
2010/11
The Hillmen
2011/12
2012/13
JJ Training Ltd
2013/14
JJ Training Ltd
2014/15
2015–17
JJ Training Ltd
2017/18
2018/19
The Star Inn
2019-22
Victoria Vets
2022-24
Prosthetic Records

Grounds

North Road football and cricket ground circa 1900
Glossop's North Road ground

Glossop played at a variety of grounds, including Pyegrove, Silk Street, Water Lane and Cemetery Road before settling at North Road. The ground was originally used for cricket, but became home to Glossop North End in 1898 when the club were elected to the Second Division of the Football League. The football ground was located in the south-east corner of the site, with a seated stand was constructed on the northern side of the pitch and raised earth embankment on a triangular space in the south-east corner and eastern sides. During the football season a temporary wooden seated stand was erected behind the western goal, but removed for the cricket season. The first League match played at North Road was on 3 September 1898, with Glossop defeating Blackburn Rovers 4–1 in front of 4,000 spectators. The last Football League match at North Road was played on 17 April 1915, with just 500 spectators watching a 1–1 draw with Stockport County.

New Clubhouse
Glossop's new clubhouse

During 1955, the club moved from its original home to the club's home ground Surrey Street. The first game was played on Saturday 17th September 1955 against Radcliffe Borough FC.

Floodlights were installed in 1992.

During the off-season of 2010 the Supporters' Club funded and helped build the new team benches, replacing the aged and basic ones with new spacious dugouts. In the summer of 2011 the club upgraded more of the facilities at Surrey Street. The new clubhouse, dressing rooms, refreshment bar and hospitality room were completed in a relatively short amount of time being ready for the first pre-season game of 2011–12. By March 2012 the ground had achieved the FA Ground Grading grade of E which is required for football clubs to participate at step 4 of the National League System.

During the off season of 2014 season Glossop were approved a grant from the Football Foundation to replace the aged pitch perimeter fence with a new sports rail with mesh panel infill. With that and a few other improvements they achieved the FA Ground Grade of D which was required to remain at step 4 of the National League System. In the summer of 2018 new floodlights were installed.

Attendances

Average league attendances:

GNE attendances
average league attendances
Season Average Highest Lowest +/– %
2023–24
2022-23 381 1015 186 +31.9
2021-22 305 505 171 +29.4
2020–21 238 333 176 +4.1
2019–20 228 324 139 -5.1
2018–19 240 498 127 -20.8
2017–18 303 604 170 -20.1
2016–17 379 741 191 -2.9
2015–16 390 529 275 +15.4
2014–15 338 914 183 +61.0
2013–14 210 445 105 +41.9
2012–13 148 180 78 –18.2
2011–12 181 243 116 –2.2
2010–11 185 374 104 –21.6
2009–10 236 658 142 +19.2
2008–09 198 455 70 +46.7
2007–08 135 231 86 –10.0
2006–07 150 1219 64 +54.6
2005–06 97 140 55 –15.7
2004–05 115 184 88 –7.3
2003–04 124

Players

Current squad

As of 1 May 2023

Notable former players

Players who have international playing experience or top division experience who have played for Glossop include:

  • Wales Thomas Bartley 1897–1899
  • Scotland Thomas Clifford 1898–1899
  • England John Goodall 1900–1903
  • Scotland George Badenoch 1901–1903
  • Scotland Bob Jack 1902–1903
  • England Edwin Bardsley 1903
  • England Fred Spiksley 1904–?
  • Ireland Archie Goodall 1904–1905
  • England Thomas Callaghan 1905–1907
  • Scotland David Copeland 1907–?
  • Scotland John Robertson 1907–1909
  • England Leslie Hofton 1908–1910
  • Scotland Thomas Fitchie 1909–1911
  • England Billy Herbert 1910–1911
  • England Harry Bamford 1912-1914
  • England Alec Campbell 1909–1914
  • England James Montgomery 1915
  • England Albert John 'Jack' Allen 1914–1915
  • England Billy Fitchford 1923–?
  • England Joe Frail
  • England Bert Maddlethwaite
  • England Irvine Thornley
  • England Frank Booth
  • England Lee Martin 1998–1999
  • British Virgin Islands Ben Chapman 2016
  • Saint Kitts and Nevis Zephaniah Thomas 2017

Ladies' team

The club have a ladies team, Glossop North End Ladies, which was established in 1998. In 2014–15 the team reached the final of the Derbyshire Girls & Ladies League Challenge Cup, losing 2–1 to Mackworth St Francis.

The following season saw them the Challenge Cup, defeating Castle Donnington Ladies 4–1. On 11 May they won the Derbyshire Girls & Ladies League Division One title.
They retained the league title the following season, after which they transferred to Division One of the Cheshire WFL.

Honours

Derbyshire Girls & Ladies League

  • Division One: 2015–16, 2016–17

Derbyshire Ladies Challenge Cup

  • Winners: 2015–16

Youth teams

Glossop North End AFC Juniors was established in 1989. They have teams of both boys in age groups from 6 years old right to Under-21, and girls in age groups from Under-9 to Under-16. They were accredited to the FA Charter standard Award in 2004, and in 2015 were awarded Derbyshire FA Charter Standard Community club of the year.

Club management

Coaching positions

Name Role
Caretaker Manager England Richard Brodie
Assistant Manager England
Goalkeeper Coach England
Physiotherapist England Leah Bird

Managerial history

Based on win % in all competitive matches

Name Managed Record
From To P W D L %
Richard Brodie 10/2023 - -- -- -- --.--
Michael Worthington 05/2023 10/2023 -- -- -- -- --.--
Stuart Mellish 05/2021 05/2023 88 24 22 42 27.30
Peter Band 08/2020 04/2021 11 3 2 6 27.27
Peter Band / Lloyd Morrison 11/2018 08/2020 75 18 19 38 24.00
Mark Canning / Andy Bishop 03/2018 11/2018 27 4 7 16 14.81
Steve Halford / Paul Phillips 05/2017 03/2018 40 16 6 18 40.00
Chris Willcock 05/2013 04/2017 232 143 32 57 61.64
Paul Williams / Garry Brown 12/2012 05/2013 21 5 5 11 23.81
Paul Colgan 05/2011 12/2012 81 37 15 29 45.68
Terry Hincks 04/2011 05/2011 10 3 4 3 30.00
Steve Young 05/2007 04/2011 215 108 39 68 50.23
Chris Nicholson 06/2001 04/2007 301 95 54 152 31.56
Syd White 02/2001 05/2001 16 2 1 13 12.50
Mickey Boyle 06/1999 02/2001 91 27 18 46 29.67
Syd White 1996 1999 171 70 33 68 40.94
Ged Coyne 1993 1996 154 64 33 57 41.56
Pete O'Brien 1993 1993 6 1 0 5 16.67
Gordon Rayner 1993 1993 20 7 7 6 35.00
Roy Soule 1991 1993 106 41 23 42 38.68
Brent Peters 1990 1991 56 25 15 16 44.64
Jim Royle / Barry Walton 1988 1990 82 19 14 49 23.17
John Birchall 1986 1988 72 10 12 50 13.89
Tony Webber 1984 1986 76 15 21 40 19.74
Brian Grundy 1980 1984 152 53 50 49 34.87
D.Partridge 1978 1980 68 20 13 35 29.41
George Allman 1974 1975
David Wilde 1974 1974
George Allman 1970 1971
Ted Burgin 1966 19??
Alex Mcintosh 1955 19??
Archie Goodall 1904 1905

Italic - denotes Caretaker Manager

  • Stats correct as of 18 September 2022

Honours and achievements

Glossop North End AFC NWCFL Champions 2015
Glossop North End NWCFL Champions 2015

Football League Second Division (2nd tier)

  • 2nd place promotion: 1898–99

North West Counties League Premier Division (9th tier)

  • Champions: 2014–15

Manchester League

  • Champions: 1927–28
Glossop North End
Glossop North End League Challenge Cup winners 2015

North West Counties League League Challenge Cup

  • Winners: 2014–15

North West Counties League Division Two Cup

  • Winners: 1990–91

Gilcryst Cup

  • Winners: 1922–23, 1929–30, 1934–35, 1948–49

Manchester FA Premier Cup

  • Winners: 1996–97, 1997–98

Derbyshire County FA Senior Challenge Cup

  • Winners: 2000–01; runners-up: 2013–14

FA Vase

  • Runners-up: 2008–09, 2014–15

Manchester FA Fair play Award

  • Winners: 2014–15
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