Cambridge City FC Embarks on New Era with Inaugural Match at New Stadium

A city football club, established 116 years ago, is poised to begin a new chapter in its history with its first match at a recently constructed stadium. Cambridge City FC is scheduled to play its inaugural game at the new FWD/IP Community Stadium in the nearby village of Sawston on Saturday, having previously shared grounds with both St Ives and Histon since the 2012-13 season. Neil Harvey, 60, the club historian and a former player, commenced his research into the Isthmian League team’s past successes and challenges after he began supporting City upon leaving school at 18. He stated, “Officially, it’s our 24th venue since the club was set up in 1908,” though he clarified that the high number of locations was primarily due to the team playing at various different venues before World War One. Regarding the new stadium, as it prepares to host Tilbury in the Isthmian’s Northern Division, which is positioned in tier eight of the English football league pyramid, Mr Harvey remarked, “It’s like, wow, is this really our football club?” Mr Harvey explained, “It was the nearest club to where I grew up on the north side of Cambridge and in the early 1980s I was working in Shire Hall with a former player called Brian Holmes, who played for the club in the 1950s.” Beyond his archival research, he regularly attended matches and even had the opportunity to play for his team. Mr Harvey recounted, “I’d gone to watch the reserves one Saturday afternoon, and not long before kick-off I was asked if I had my kit with me as one of the subs hadn’t turned up.” “I joined the bench for the match and with 15 minutes to go, playing Harlow Town reserves at Milton Road, I came on and made my first appearance.” A group of Edwardian, middle-class residents founded the club, initially naming it Cambridge Town – the university settlement was not granted city status until 1951. Following World War One, the club established a permanent base at Milton Road, where it remained for 91 years. Mr Harvey noted that the club proudly maintained its amateur status during the inter-war period, developing an intense rivalry with Ipswich Town FC, but opted not to become professional alongside the Suffolk club in 1936. The club secured victory in the Spartan League competition three times between the conclusion of World War Two and 1950. It also successfully applied to change its name to Cambridge City, preceding its rival Abbey United, which subsequently adopted the name Cambridge United. Further achievements emerged from the late 1950s, with the team becoming Southern League champions in the 1962-63 season and maintaining its position at the top of the division until its relegation in 1968. Mr Harvey, who is employed by an education consultancy and now resides in Girton, commented: “City had the highest attendances of non-league football, regularly attracting gates of 3,500 fans, beating United – sometimes even attracting 10,000 packed into our tiny Milton Road ground.” City utilized its original pitch until 1984, at which point it relocated to the adjacent site. The club departed Milton Road in 2013, concluding its tenure there with a 1-0 victory against Redditch, after the land was sold for residential development. Supporters are now prepared to move past a decade without a dedicated home ground. Mr Harvey stated: “There’s certainly masses of interest in this first game and I wouldn’t be surprised if we pushed 1,000 fans on Saturday.” “I think the team will push on, we can hopefully get into play-offs this season – and who knows after that?” News from Cambridgeshire can be followed on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram, and X. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC disclaims responsibility for the content of external websites. Information regarding our external linking policy is available.