Welcome to the latest instalment of the Gloucester Groundhopper blog.
For this chapter, we traveled back to the Black Country for some National League North action as Rushall Olympic took on Darlington at Dales Lane.
Some Notable People From Walsall
Leila Williams- Blue Peter Presenter
Zoe Dawson- Actress
Dave Walker- Singer
Terry Holbrook- Football Referee
Paul McDonald- Comic Novelist
Some Notable Former Players
Tyrone Barnett
Leon Clarke
Michael Kightly
Liam Lawrence
Jose Veiga
A History Lesson From The Gloucester Groundhopper
Although football had been played in the hamlet for at least 20 years prior, the Rushall Olympic Football Club is first mentioned in local newspaper reports on matches from the 1893-94 season. The club joined the Cannock & District League in 1895, finishing runners-up in their debut season, and then joined the Walsall & District League's Junior (where they were champions in 1903-04), Amateur, Parks, and Senior sections.
The squad won a number of local awards during the interwar years. At the time, the squad was mostly made up of local colliery workers, and they played on a pitch behind the Miners Arms tavern in Rushall, changing in the pub. However, the club collapsed before the Second World War.
A group of local young men decided to re-found the club in 1951. They approached the owner of a local fish and chip business and obtained permission to use Rowley Place as their headquarters and home field. The club joined the Walsall & District Amateur League, where they won the Second Division championship in 1952-53 and the First Division championship in 1955-56, before being promoted to the Staffordshire County League (South), where they won the Second Division title on the first try.
Between 1960 and 1965, the club won four championships after being promoted to the First Division. In order to obtain better league status, the team opted to relocate three miles away to the Aston University Sports Ground, which is located immediately off the main A34 Walsall to Birmingham route. Meanwhile, the club negotiated a lease on some land in Daw End, Rushall, and the new Dales Lane stadium opened on August 14, 1977.
In 1978, the club was admitted to the West Midlands (Regional) League, and in 1980, it won the First Division title. The club had 14 seasons of middling success in the Premier League, with a best position of fifth place in 1988-89. The "Pics" became founding members of the new Midland Football Alliance in 1994. Despite mediocre mid-table league performances in the late 1990s, the Pics did overcome then-Southern League team Rocester in a penalty shoot-out at Walsall's Bescot Stadium to win the Walsall Senior Cup in 2000.
After placing second in both 2000-01 and 2002-03, the Pics eventually won the league title and promotion to the Southern League Division One West in 2004-05. They were then transferred to the Southern League Division One Midlands for the 2006-07 season, where they lasted for two years, coming fifth in their final season and qualifying for the play-offs.
Because of the restructure of the Northern Premier League Division One, they were relegated to the NPL Division One South for the 2008-09 season, where they placed fifth and qualified for the play-offs. This time, they were likewise unsuccessful in gaining promotion. Manager Paul Holleran then departed the club, and was replaced by Neil Kitching, who started the season well before fading to finish in mid-table; the team also reached the Walsall Senior Cup final under Kitching.
Despite further budget constraints, Kitching was helped by a relatively young backroom staff that included Nick Amos and Ian Cooper, and they finished third in the 2010-11 season before reaching the play-off final after a 3-0 win against Brigg Town in the semi-final. Rushall Olympic advanced to the Northern Premier League Premier Division with a 2-0 victory over Grantham Town in the final, marking the club's first appearance at the seventh level of the English football league system.
Rushall Olympic finished seventh in the league in their maiden season at this higher level. They reached the finals of three cup competitions: the league cup, which they lost in extra time to North Ferriby United; the Staffordshire Senior Cup, which they lost to Kidsgrove Athletic; and the Walsall Senior Cup, which they retained. Rushall also equaled their highest FA Cup achievement, reaching the fourth qualifying round before being eliminated by Stourbridge.
Rushall made their FA Trophy debut in the first round proper in 2012-13, having qualified with victories against Woodford United, Chasetown, and Droylsden. Their reward was a trip to Wrexham, where they were defeated by a team that went on to win the competition's final. Rushall were again on the verge of the play-offs in the league, finishing sixth but failing to qualify for the end-of-season competition.
Rushall Olympic reached the fourth round of the FA Cup in 2013-14 before falling to Grimsby Town. Rushall finally ended seventh in the league, missing out on the playoffs by a single point. However, the Pics made two cup final appearances, losing in the Walsall Senior Cup final but winning the Staffordshire Senior Cup, beating Port Vale 2-1 at Vale Park. The team parted ways with five-year manager Neil Kitching at the end of the season, as did his assistant, Nick Amos. Rushall then appointed Richard Sneekes, a former West Bromwich Albion and Bolton Wanderers midfielder, as manager, with Steve Hinks as his assistant.
Olympic finished fifth in the Southern Football League during the 2022-23 season and qualified for the playoffs. The Pics defeated Coalville Town on penalties and progressed to the playoff finals, where they were defeated again on penalties by Nuneaton Borough. As a result, for the first time in club history, the club was promoted to the National League North.
Honours
🏆 Northern Premier League Division One South (Play-Off Winners: 2010–11)
🏆 Midland Alliance (Champions: 2004-05)
🏆 West Midlands (Regional) League Division One (Champions: 1979-80)
🏆 Walsall Senior Cup (Winners: 1964-65, 1999-2000, 2008-09, 2010-11, 2011-12, 2022-23)
🏆 Staffordshire Senior Cup (Winners: 1964-65, 1999-2000, 2008-09, 2010-11, 2011-12, 2022-23)
🏆 Southern League Premier Division Central (Play-Off Winners: 2022-23)
Matchday: Rushall Olympic 3-2 Darlington
We travelled to Rushall (based in Walsall) on cold, windy Saturday morning as AFC Finners and I looked forward to our first game together for over three weeks. We arrived at the ground in good time, factoring a visit to Frankley services on the way there, and paid to park at the ground (£3 for the privilege).
We were fairly early to the ground, however, we were greeted by a member of staff called Paul, who was telling us about how Leeds United legend Allan Clarke was a local to the area (conversation was arisen from the fact there is a huge poster of him near the entrance). We then informed him that our friend, Luke the Stuart Dallas fan, was a huge Leeds United supporter, which prompted Paul to quickly go somewhere to get something. He returned bearing a large poster with the autograph of the man himself (Allan Clarke, not Paul), which he said we could have. We gave this as a gift to Luke, who was over the moon with it, so thank you Paul!
We then did our customary circuit of the ground. We absolutely loved the ground, and while it isn't the highest in standard we have been to (hence the score later on), it was amazing to see a club take great pride in their ground, and it is clear a lot of effort is taken into the upkeep of the stadium. There appears to be a new stand in the offing too, which is something to look forward to for supporters.
We then went into the club bar, which had a large TV screen showing the early kickoff which, this time, was Kings Lynn Town vs Tamworth in the National League North. The bar is laden with memorabilia which is signed by famous footballers, notably shirts signed by Matt Le Tissier and Dean Saunders. It was in the bar that we were welcomed by another member of staff- Fin. As Fin and Finn and a guy who's not so thin made eachothers acquaintance, it became clear that the welcome was amazing at this club.
Finn at this stage was starting to feel peckish, so we headed to the Pic's Pantry for some food. There appeared to be an abundance of food available, however there didn't seem to be any vegetarian options for Finn to try, so he had to settle for chips.
We then went to the club shop, which was pretty small and bare, to be honest. There wasn't much in there, but they sold club pin badges for £4 each, which was a positive. There was a guy just outside the club shop who was pretty insistent that we should buy a programme, and he was very good at his job because Finn bought one- £3.
We then ventured to find a spot for the game. The atmosphere was okay. The Darlington fans were singing throughout and had bought a drummer which was good. The downside was that the acoustics in the ground aren't great, so the sound didnt travel very well. A shoutout also has to go to the guy who must have broken the World Record for the amount of times someone shouts 'come on Rushall' in a 45 minute period, what an effort!
Teamsheet
Rushall Olympic
Manager: Liam McDonald
Jake Weaver
Kory Roberts
Alex Fletcher (c)
Jordaan Brown
Rico Browne
Sam McLintock
Alex Moore
Owen Oseni
Owen Farmer ⚽️
Ronan Maher ⚽️ ⚽️
Simeon Maye
Substitutes
Jaden Charles
Conor Tee
Louis Hall
Thomas Edge
Rico Patterson
Darlington
Manager: Steve Watson
Tommy Taylor
Ben Hedley
Tom Platt
Toby Lees
Cedric Main ⚽️ ⚽️
Will Hatfield
Scott Barrow
Jarrett Rivers
Cameron Salkeld
Kallum Griffiths
Matty Cornish
Substitutes
Jake Lawlor
Mitchell Curry
Joe Gibson
Aidan Rutledge
Ben Liddle
Darlington dominated the early stages, with Cedric Main opening the scoring inside a quarter hour. Jarrett Rivers slipped in Main, who shook off his defender before scoring one-on-one.
On the half-hour mark, Ronan Maher levelled for Rushall, hitting powerfully across goal and into the far corner after receiving the ball on the outskirts of the box. The attacker added to his tally with an equally stunning goal, cutting inside, turning his man and reaching the top corner.
Subsequently, in what appeared to be the final moments of the first half, Cedric Main levelled by poking a header past Jake Weaver from a well-deflected corner.
With the final kick of the half, however, Owen Farmer gave Rushall Olympic their lead back after a corner found the Wolves loanee's feet to shoot under Tommy Taylor in goal for the visitors.
Rushall ought to have scored a few more goals in the second half when Alex Moore's attempt was saved by Owen Oseni in the last seconds. However, they managed to hang on for a crucial three points.
Scores on the Doors
Atmosphere: 6/10
Food and Drink: 6/10
Stadium: 6/10
Welcome: 9/10
Overall Experience: 7.5/10
'COME ON RUSHALL!!
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