The history of Bristol Rovers F.C., an English football club based in Bristol, England, covers their entire history from their formation in 1883 as the Black Arabs until the present day.
The early years (1883–1892)
Teacher training establishments were considered a nursery of footballing talent and the teaching profession played a major but under-recognised role in the founding and rapid growth of association football with teachers spreading enthusiasm and organising school teams and local clubs. In September 1883, in a meeting organised by school teacher Bill Somerton at the Eastville Restaurant on Stapleton Road in Bristol, the foundation was laid for the team that would go on to be known as Bristol Rovers.
The area was at the time a rugby stronghold, and this led the fledgling club to be named after the local rugby side. The Black Arabs season 1883–84 was the first played by the team. This was the only season that they used the name Black Arabs, the name being changed to Eastville Rovers for the following season. The Black Arabs were founded by W.E. Braund, and were captained by Henry Martin.Byrne & Jay (2003), p.9 The team originally wore a predominantly black kit, from which they took their name.Byrne & Jay 2003, p. 27. A gold sash was later added to the black shirts,Byrne & Jay 2003, p. 29. and the black and gold colour scheme went on to become a recurrent theme in the team's away kits in the 21st century.
Black Arabs F.C. were not part of a league, and only played friendly matches during their first season.Byrne, S & Jay, M (2003): Bristol Rovers Football Club, The Definitive History 1883–2003. There is no record of the goalscorers from this season, and some match results have also been lost over time. The Black Arabs played their home games on Purdown in Bristol, but found fixtures hard to come by in their early days due to a dearth of association football teams in the Bristol area.Jay 1987, p. 9. A total of ten fixtures were eventually arranged for the inaugural season: two against Wotton-under-Edge, two against Warmley, four against Bristol Wagon Works and Two against Right & Might. The club's first fixture was played on 1 December 1883 when the Black Arabs took to the field in a friendly match against Wotton-under-Edge, a team based in Gloucestershire. The game ended in a 6–0 defeat for the Bristolians, and although no team line-ups or detailed match reports have survived,Byrne 2009, p. 162. a brief paragraph describing the game appeared in the Dursley Gazette two days later.
During that first season the team came to be known by the nickname The Purdown Poachers, after the location of their home pitch, and despite the fact they only played there for a single season the moniker stuck for some time.
In November 1884 the name of the club was changed to Eastville Rovers, giving them an identity in their own right, rather than being named after a rugby club. The change in name to one based on a geographical location came about in an effort to broaden the appeal of the club and to draw players from a wider area. The team also moved to a new pitch for the 1884–85 season. Known as Three Acres, the open field with no changing facilities was in the Ashley Down area of Bristol. The precise location of the ground is not known, but it is thought to have lain somewhere between Muller Road and the County Cricket Ground.Byrne & Jay 2003, p. 30. The team moved to a third new home in as many seasons when they began the first of two spells playing at Durdham Down in 1885, remaining here for six seasons.Byrne & Jay 2014, p. 10.
It was not until 14 January 1888 that Eastville Rovers took part in a formal competition for the first time. In a meeting between Rovers and fellow Bristol-based football teams Clifton Association, Globe, Southville, St George, St Agnes and St Simon held in September 1887 the Gloucestershire Cup was established, a single-elimination knockout tournament open to teams in the Bristol and Gloucestershire area. The competition began the following January and Rovers took to the field against Clifton Association at Bell Hill, St George. Unfortunately for Rovers, they lost a player to injury just two minutes into the game, and in the era before the introduction of substitutes they were forced to play almost the entire match with ten men. They lost the game 4–1, with outside-left Bill Bush taking the honour of becoming Eastville Rovers' first goalscorer in a competitive match.Byrne & Jay 2014, pp. 11–12.
The following season, on 6 April 1889,Byrne & Jay 2003, p. 31. Rovers won their first ever trophy by beating Warmley in the final of the second running of the Gloucestershire Cup. A single goal by Bill Perrin, scored during the second half, was enough to earn Rovers the silverware.Byrne & Jay 2014, p. 12.
Eastville Rovers continued to play mainly friendly matches for the next few years, as well as taking part in the Gloucestershire Cup each year. In 1890, Rovers again reached the final of this competition, losing 7–2 to Clifton Association in a game that was refereed by noted cricketer W. G. Grace.
Rovers moved to their fourth home in 1891, having negotiated a fee of £8 a year to allow them to play at the Schoolmasters Cricket Ground, Horfield. The deal also meant that the football club would be responsible for the upkeep of the fencing at the ground and they also had to provide a groundsman.
Honours Gloucestershire Cup — 1888–89
The Western League era (1892–1899) Eastville Rovers league recordSeasonLeaguePosition1892–93Bristol & District League6th of 91893–94Bristol & District League9th of 101894–95Bristol & District League6th of 121895–96Western League Division 1=2nd of 111896–97Western League Division 15th of 9 Bristol Eastville Rovers league record1897–981897–98Birmingham & District LeagueWestern League Professional Section3rd of 165th of 81898–991898–99Birmingham & District LeagueWestern League Professional Section4th of 194th of 5 1892 was a major landmark in the history of the club, with Eastville Rovers joining an organised league for the first time. Rovers became a founding member of the Bristol & District League (later to become the Western Football League), and their first league game was played on 1 October 1892 against Mangotsfield F.C.. Although it was officially a home game for Rovers, the game was played at Mangotsfield and Rovers were defeated by 3 goals to 1. This first season ended with Rovers placed sixth of the nine teams in the league, with six wins, two draws and eight defeats from the sixteen games played.
The 1893–94 season was a poor one, with Rovers finishing 11th out of 12 teams, with only Mangotsfield F.C. below them in the league. Things improved in 1894–95 however with a 6th-place finish. This season saw Rovers move to their fifth home, locating themselves at a ground referred to sometimes as Rudgeway and at other times as Ridgeway in the Fishponds area of the city. On 22 September 1894 the first meeting of the two teams that went on to become Bristol Rovers and Bristol City took place. Bristol South End beat Eastville Rovers 2–1 at St. John's Lane in Bedminster.
For the 1895–96 season the Bristol & District League had renamed itself the Western League and had expanded to two divisions. Eastville Rovers were allocated two places in the league, one in the Division One for the first team and one in Division Two for the second XI. Rovers' first game in the Western League, like their first game in the Bristol & District League three years earlier, was against Mangotsfield. This time, however, the result was a win to Rovers, with the game finishing 4–0. Rovers ended the season tied for second place in the league with Staple Hill, and after a play-off game between them ended in a 2–2 draw the teams were declared joint runners-up.
5 October 1895 saw the first appearance in the FA Cup, although this ended in a 2–0 defeat at the hands of Warmley, and on 25 January 1896 the first competitive match between Eastville Rovers and Bristol South End took place, with Rovers winning 4–0 in the Gloucestershire Cup. In the 1896–97 FA Cup, after having beaten Newbury and Bristol St. George, Rovers were drawn away to Royal Artillery Portsmouth. Rovers decided though that they had no hope of winning the game and decided to save the travel expenses by withdrawing from the competition. During the 1896–97 season, Rovers purchased the Eastville ground from Bristol Harlequins rugby club on 26 March 1897 and on 3 April played their first game there against Aston Villa. This would remain their home for almost 100 years.
During the last few years of the 19th century, Eastville Rovers had gradually become known as Bristol Eastville Rovers, and on 7 February 1899 the club officially changed its name to Bristol Rovers.
The Southern League years (1899–1920) SeasonLeaguePosition1899–1900Southern League Division 111th of 151900–01Southern League Division 17th of 151901–02Southern League Division 19th of 161902–03Southern League Division 15th of 161903–04Southern League Division 13rd of 181904–05Southern League Division 11st of 181905–06Southern League Division 18th of 181906–07Southern League Division 114th of 201907–08Southern League Division 16th of 201908–09Southern League Division 15th of 211909–10Southern League Division 113th of 221910–11Southern League Division 116th of 201911–12Southern League Division 117th of 201912–13Southern League Division 116th of 201913–14Southern League Division 117th of 201914–15Southern League Division 116 of 201919–20Southern League Division 117th of 22
For the 1899–1900 season the newly renamed Bristol Rovers were admitted to the Southern League. During this first season in the Southern League, Rovers faced a Sheppey United team that featured future Huddersfield Town and Arsenal manager Herbert Chapman.
On 17 November 1900 Rovers faced Weymouth in an FA Cup qualifying match. With the score 5–1 at half time, Rovers went on to score ten goals in the second half, recording a 15–1 victory, a club record for the biggest win in a competitive first team match that still stands today. That win helped Jack Jones towards a total of nine goals in the 1900–01 FA Cup campaign, which is the most FA Cup goals scored by a Rovers player in a single season.
During the 1902–03 season Rovers won the Gloucestershire Cup for the second time after beating Bristol City 4–2 in the second replay.
Another landmark was reached during 1904–05 when Jack Lewis was called up to the Welsh national team, becoming the first Bristol Rovers player to receive an international cap while still at the club. 1904–05 was a successful campaign for Rovers, the season providing the first league title and third Gloucestershire Cup for the club.
Only six league seasons were played during this decade due to World War I. 1909–10 marked the beginning of a disappointing run of league performances, with the team never finishing better than 13th in the Southern League in the six seasons before the war. During the 1909–10 FA Cup campaign Rovers were drawn at home to Barnsley after having previously beaten Grimsby Town, but Barnsley offered Rovers £500 to switch the tie to Oakwell where Barnsley won 4–0. On 27 April 1910, in a match against New Brompton (now known as Gillingham), Fred Corbett scored his 50th Southern League goal for Rovers, becoming the only player to score 50 goals in the Southern League for the club.
Although one season of league football was played after the outbreak of war, the 1914–15 would be the last season of competitive football played by Rovers until 1919.
Honours Southern League Division 1 — 1904–05 Gloucestershire Cup — 1902–03 and 1904–05 Gloucestershire Cup — 1913–14
The 1920s