Berwick Rangers F.C.

Berwick Rangers F.C. is a football team based in the English town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, but currently playing in the Scottish Football League. They are currently managed by Sandy Clark.

History

Formed in 1881 they had a nomadic existence before eventually settling down at Shielfield Park in 1919. Eventually they gained admittance to the Scottish Football League in 1955. Since then they have been a continuous member of the league, despite low attendances and often struggling financially.

Despite winning the second division title in 1979, their greatest success was beating Rangers 1–0 in 1967 in the Scottish Cup, a result which sent shockwaves around Scottish football. It was also their greatest attendance of 13,365.

They are one of a handful of teams in the world to be based in one country but play in another's league where both countries have their own fully professional competitions. Although three Welsh clubs (Cardiff City, Wrexham, Swansea City) play in the English Football League, the League of Wales is mainly a semi-professional competition, with only one club (TNS) having a full-time playing staff. The exception is the New Zealand Knights, an Auckland-based team in the Australian A-League. New Zealand has recently started up their own professional league. Derry City of Northern Ireland currently play in the Football League of Ireland, the league of the Republic of Ireland.

The reason for this unusual circumstance is that the most northern teams in the English league, Sunderland and Newcastle United, have a difficult time constantly travelling to the south and they lie far to the south of Berwick, which is located right on the Scottish border. Berwick is also a far poorer club and the constant travelling to southern England would not just be inconvenient for them but possibly also impossible due to the huge expense.

Honours

Second Division:(1) 1978/79

Club Records

Biggest league win: 8–1 .v. Forfar Athletic F.C.(1965)Vale of Leithen F.C.(1966)

Biggest league loss: 1–9 .v. Hamilton F.C. in 1980

Biggest home attendance: 13,365 .v. Rangers F.C., 1967

External link

• Berwick Rangers Online