Whyteleafe F.C.

Whyteleafe
Full name	Whyteleafe Football Club
Nickname(s)	The Leafe
Founded	1946
Ground	Church Road; Whyteleafe; Surrey; (Capacity: 2,000)
Chairman	Mark Coote
Manager	Stuart Massey
League	Isthmian League; Division One South
2008–09	Isthmian League,; Division One South, 18th
Home colours	Away colours

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search

Whyteleafe F.C. are a semi-professional football club based in Whyteleafe, Surrey, England. The club was established in 1946 and joined the Athenian League in 1981. They are currently members of the Isthmian League Division One South. Whyteleafe's manager is former Crystal Palace and Oxford United player Stuart Massey who replaced Dave Swindlehurst at the end of the 2007/08 season. This is Massey's second spell in charge of the team.

[edit] History

Whyteleafe F.C. was formed in 1946, replacing another club, Whyteleafe Albion, which had existed before World War II. The new club initially played junior football in such local leagues as the Thornton Heath & District League, before gaining senior status and joining the Surrey Senior League in 1958, at which time they moved to the Church Road ground where they play to this day.

Whyteleafe were Surrey Senior League champions on at least one occasion in the 1960s ^[2] before switching to the London Spartan League in 1975. In 1981 they switched to the Athenian League and then in 1984 to the Isthmian League. In 1989 they were promoted to Division One, a level at which they have played ever since (albeit with league reorganisations placing the team in Division One South from 2002 to 2004 and again in 2006). In 1999, they reached the First Round Proper of the FA Cup for the first time in their history and held Chester City to a 0-0 draw before losing the replay.

[edit] Club records

Best league performance: 5th in Isthmian League Division One South, 2002-03 ^[1]
Best FA Cup performance: 1st round proper, 1999-00 ^[1]
Best FA Trophy performance: 4th round, 1998-99 ^[1]
Best FA Vase performance: 5th round, 1980-81 and 1985-86 ^[1]

[edit] Ground

The site of Church Road was formerly farmland, and the farm's existing buildings were converted into the clubhouse and dressing rooms. The club originally planned to add a running track and cricket pitch to the complex, but these plans were abandoned. Floodlights were added in the early 1980s and a new main stand added in 1999 for the club's first round FA Cup match against Chester City, which saw a record attendance of 2,164. ^[2]