Great Bentley Football Club

1st team - Players Player IAN MORTON - Managers Player JIM SMITH - Committees Player I MORTON/J SMITH Res - Players Player & Committees Player NEIL FRENCH - Managers Player TOM JACK - 'A'team - Players Player & Committee Player MARK DONEGHAN - Managers Player TOBY DOYLE Join our Facebook Group!! Dont Forget use the club shop feature on the site and earn the club cash££££.

Club History

A Brief History of Great Bentley Football Club

1895 – 1896 Club formed with HQ at the Victory Inn, and a pitch on the South side of the Green.
1901 – 1902 Affiliated to ECFA and played first competitive game in Essex Junior Cup, losing 3 – 0 to Parkeston Athletic.
1903 – 1904 Joined Colchester & District League, Division 2.
1905 – 1906 Switched to Clacton & District League.
1906 – 1907 Played in both leagues.
1907 – 1908 Withdrew from Colchester League, but when Clacton League was too late in affiliating Bentley were forced to play friendlies, and lost several of their best players. Continued to play friendlies and cup games until 1 st World War.
1912 – 1913 Moved HQ across the road to the Plough Inn, where the dressing room was in the old stable.
1919 – 1920 Joined the Tendring Hundred League. Started a Reserve side, which later played in the Tendring Hundred League and then the Brightlingsea and District League.
1924 – 1925 1 st Team won the Tendring Hundred League.
1925 – 1926 Joined the Border League, Division 2, Section B, and have enjoyed unbroken membership of the League ever since.
1928 – 1929 Won Division 2.
1930 – 1931 Runners-up in Division 2.
1931 – 1932 Won Division 2.
1935 – 1936 Runners-up in Division 2. Reserves joined Border League, Division 3 until 2 nd World Ward.
1936 – 1937 1 st Team won Division 2.
1946 – 1947 Reserves joined Tendring Hundred League.
1947 – 1948 1 st Team won Division 1. Runners-up in Division 1 KO up.
1948 – 1949 Runners-up Division 1 KO Cup.
1949 – 1950 Reserved joined Colchester & East Essex League.
1950 – 1951 1 st Team were runners-up in Division 1.
Sept 1951 The club played its first game on the current prepared pitch near the Mill House.
1952 – 1953 Runners-up in Division 1.
1953 – 1954 Reserves rejoined the Tendring Hundred League until its demise.
1957 – 1958 1 st team won Division 1 KO Cup on an 11 – 3 aggregate again Hedingham United.
1959 – 1960 Opened new dressing rooms, built on the site of an old war-time Nissen hut. These were much nearer the pitch than the Plough, where both teams had to change in the same room, round a full-size billiard table.
1967 – 1968 Reserves joined Colchester & East Essex League until 1975 – 1976 when they joined the Border League.
1977 – 1978 1 st Team were runners-up in Division 1, but their facilities were not good enough for promotion.
1980 – 1981 Runners-up in Division 1 again, and this time promoted.
1983 – 1984 Relegated after spending their only three seasons ever in the Premier Division.
1984 – 1985 Relegated from Division 1, after finishing bottom.
1987 – 1988 Reserves failed in bid for re-election after coming bottom of Division 3, four times in a row, and have played in the Colchester League since then.
1989 – 1990 Third place good enough for 1 st Team to be promoted to Division 1.
1991 – 1992 Relegated to Division 2, where they still play.
1994 – 1995 Runners-up in the Tommy Thompson Cup.

2005-06 Season.
Area Finalists in the Essex Junior Cup finished 3rd and promoted to the Border Premier League

Some of Great Bentley’s Leading Lights over the Years

P Z Clark, founder member of the Club, who had spells as Captain, Secretary and Chairman, before becoming a referee.
Joe Syrett, larger than life Secretary, whose enthusiasm helped to rejuvenate the Club’s ailing fortunes prior to World War 1.
George A Cowell, a Club Member since 1900, Mr Cowell went on to hold the key positions of the Secretary and then Treasurer, right up to his death in 1947.
George Seaman, long-serving player from 1919 – 1920, captained the side to success in the Tendring Hundred League and the Border League. George held office as Secretary, then after the 2 nd World Ward, Vice-Chairman and Treasurer, until 1957.
David Plummer, began as a player in 1932 and elected as Vice-Chairman in 1948, Chairman in 1951, and Secretary in 1959, until he stood down in 1967.
Pat Hynes, Secretary from 1946 to 1959, Pat was a key figure in Bentley’s move to a new pitch, and later, new dressing rooms.
Richard Morton, in more recent times, has been Chairman for the last twenty years, taking on the position when the club was going through turbulent times, and helping to steer them into much calmer waters.

A Brief History of Great Bentley Football Club

1895 – 1896 Club formed with HQ at the Victory Inn, and a pitch on the South side of the Green.

1901 – 1902 Affiliated to ECFA and played first competitive game in Essex Junior Cup, losing 3 – 0 to Parkeston Athletic.

1903 – 1904 Joined Colchester & District League, Division 2.

1905 – 1906 Switched to Clacton & District League.

1906 – 1907 Played in both leagues.

1907 – 1908 Withdrew from Colchester League, but when Clacton League was too late in affiliating Bentley were forced to play friendlies, and lost several of their best players. Continued to play friendlies and cup games until 1 st World War.

1912 – 1913 Moved HQ across the road to the Plough Inn, where the dressing room was in the old stable.

1919 – 1920 Joined the Tendring Hundred League. Started a Reserve side, which later played in the Tendring Hundred League and then the Brightlingsea and District League.

1924 – 1925 1 st Team won the Tendring Hundred League.

1925 – 1926 Joined the Border League, Division 2, Section B, and have enjoyed unbroken membership of the League ever since.

1928 – 1929 Won Division 2.

1930 – 1931 Runners-up in Division 2.

1931 – 1932 Won Division 2.

1935 – 1936 Runners-up in Division 2. Reserves joined Border League, Division 3 until 2 nd World Ward.

1936 – 1937 1 st Team won Division 2.

1946 – 1947 Reserves joined Tendring Hundred League.

1947 – 1948 1 st Team won Division 1. Runners-up in Division 1 KO up.

1948 – 1949 Runners-up Division 1 KO Cup.

1949 – 1950 Reserved joined Colchester & East Essex League.

1950 – 1951 1 st Team were runners-up in Division 1.

Sept 1951 The club played its first game on the current prepared pitch near the Mill House.

1952 – 1953 Runners-up in Division 1.

1953 – 1954 Reserves rejoined the Tendring Hundred League until its demise.

1957 – 1958 1 st team won Division 1 KO Cup on an 11 – 3 aggregate again Hedingham United.

1959 – 1960 Opened new dressing rooms, built on the site of an old war-time Nissen hut. These were much nearer the pitch than the Plough, where both teams had to change in the same room, round a full-size billiard table.

1967 – 1968 Reserves joined Colchester & East Essex League until 1975 – 1976 when they joined the Border League.

1977 – 1978 1 st Team were runners-up in Division 1, but their facilities were not good enough for promotion.

1980 – 1981 Runners-up in Division 1 again, and this time promoted.

1983 – 1984 Relegated after spending their only three seasons ever in the Premier Division.

1984 – 1985 Relegated from Division 1, after finishing bottom.

1987 – 1988 Reserves failed in bid for re-election after coming bottom of Division 3, four times in a row, and have played in the Colchester League since then.

1989 – 1990 Third place good enough for 1 st Team to be promoted to Division 1.

1991 – 1992 Relegated to Division 2, where they still play.

1994 – 1995 Runners-up in the Tommy Thompson Cup.

Some of Great Bentley’s Leading Lights over the Years

P Z Clark, founder member of the Club, who had spells as Captain, Secretary and Chairman, before becoming a referee.

Joe Syrett, larger than life Secretary, whose enthusiasm helped to rejuvenate the Club’s ailing fortunes prior to World War 1.

George A Cowell, a Club Member since 1900, Mr Cowell went on to hold the key positions of the Secretary and then Treasurer, right up to his death in 1947.

George Seaman, long-serving player from 1919 – 1920, captained the side to success in the Tendring Hundred League and the Border League. George held office as Secretary, then after the 2 nd World Ward, Vice-Chairman and Treasurer, until 1957.

David Plummer, began as a player in 1932 and elected as Vice-Chairman in 1948, Chairman in 1951, and Secretary in 1959, until he stood down in 1967.

Pat Hynes, Secretary from 1946 to 1959, Pat was a key figure in Bentley’s move to a new pitch, and later, new dressing rooms.

Richard Morton, in more recent times, has been Chairman for the last twenty years, taking on the position when the club was going through turbulent times, and helping to steer them into much calmer waters.

TEAM CREST

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