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Ards
FC History
adapted from Ards Football Club -
The Official History
1923-1988 by Robert Magee
In 1902 workers
in a Newtownards factory formed a football team
and they began playing games on a piece of land
that now forms part of Newtownards Airport. In
the early years, the club played in lowly amateur
leagues, until the outbreak of war in 1914. After
the war the club began to develop rapidly and
gained entry to the senior Irish League in 1923.
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| an
early Ards team, year unknown |
In the same year Ards leased
grounds at Castlereagh Park on Portaferry Road
and Viscount Castlereagh opened these on 18
August that year. Ards first senior game
was played in Carrickfergus on Saturday 25th August
against Barn United and the side famously
recorded a 2-1 win.
The following Saturday Ards
played their first home game and beat visitors
Newry Town 1-0. The first season finished with
Ards second from bottom of a 10-team league.
Things steadily improved until
1926/27 when many locals believed this would be
Ards year. A strong early run in the league
saw the side eventually finish 5th, though there
was to be greater success in the Irish Cup as the
side beat Cliftonville in the final to secure the
club's first major trophy. In that team was
outside right Andy Bothwell, the legendary
Northern Ireland international, who had brought
great honour to the club when he represented his
country.
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a
1940s
programme
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The next ten years saw very
inconsistent performances. Although reaching a
few cup finals along the way, the side was
struggling in the league and was forced to apply
for re-election in 1935/36 after finishing bottom.
The club was also suffering financially and but
for a £3000 donation from local businessmen, the
team might have folded. The outbreak of war in
1939 saw an end to senior football and for the
next few Ards played as an intermediate team,
collecting two minor trophies along the way.
Once the war ended Ards set about
trying to regain entry to the Irish League.
Enough funds were eventually raised in time for
the team to begin competing again in 1947. A year
later Ards welcomed their first English visitors
to Castlereagh Park, in the shape of Luton Town
who were defeated 2-1 in a friendly match.
Ards remained an average side with
their final position fluctuating between second
last and sixth over the next few seasons. They
did produce a number of good players though and
several of these including top scorer Norman Case
were transferred to English clubs.
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the Irish Cup winning side of 1951/52 |
Ards again reached the Irish Cup
final in 1952 and in front of a 15000 crowd at
Windsor Park, Ards defeated the league champions
Glentoran. That evening huge crowds filled the
streets of Newtownards as the team paraded the
trophy on board an open-top bus.
After that Ards made probably
their best ever signing by appointing Englishman
George Eastham as player-manger. He also brought
along with him his son George who was to become
one of the best players Ards ever had and was
capped many times by England. In 1953 a player
arrived from Glentoran by the name of Billy
Humphries, a man who now forms part of legend at
Ards FC. Ards were now improving under Eastham's
management and finished third in the league in
1956/57.
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| George
Eastham |
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the
Castlereagh Park stadium in the 1950s |
Part two
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