Welcome to the latest instalment of the Gloucester Groundhopper blog.
For this instalment of the blog, we went to see a team that plays in the National League South and is steeped in history. Bath City is the name of that team. The Romans play at Twerton Park, which is located in the heart of Bath, Somerset. This was yet another new territory for myself and Gloucester Groundhopper Sr, despite the fact that we saw some familiar faces.
Twerton Park is a sports facility located in the Twerton suburb of Bath, a city in the south west of England, about 15 minutes from the city centre. There is a lot of history to be found in the centre of Bath for people to enjoy. For those interested in history, there are the Roman Baths, Bath Abbey, the Royal Crescent, and the Holburne Museum. If you're not into that sort of thing, there are plenty of shops to browse as well as bars and cafes. We went to the stadium after taking in the sights of Bath.
It’s All In The Name
Bath City are known as The Romans. Bath was a thriving city during the Roman Empire, and there are still remnants of this within the city today. People from Bath are proud of their Roman heritage, hence the nickname.
Some Notable Former Players
Steve Book
Ryan Broom
Stuart Fleetwood
Marley Watkins
Bobby Zamora
Some Notable People From Bath:
Mary Berry- Chef
Jacqueline Wilson- Author
Bill Bailey- Comedian
Anne Widdecombe- Politician
Princess Claire of Belgium- Royal Family
Scott Sinclair- Footballer
Russell Howard- Comedian
A History Lesson With AFC Finners
Bath City began as Bath AFC in 1889. Bath City's history is entirely in non-league football, with the club joining the Western League Division 2 in 1908 and eventually being promoted to the Southern League in 1922. They remained there until the Second World War, when they were accepted by chance to compete in the temporary Division Two Northern Division against the likes of Liverpool, Manchester United, and Everton, eventually finishing as the eventual champions and becoming the only semi-professional side to win a Football League Trophy.
In 1932, Twerton Park was designated as Bath City's home ground. It currently has a seating capacity of 1,006 and a ground capacity of 8,840. In 1960, a record attendance of 18,020 was recorded against Brighton & Hove Albion.
Bath City was one of six clubs to represent England in the Anglo-Italian Cup, a now-defunct European football competition, in 1977 and 1978. They reached the English finals in both tournaments but were defeated by Lecco (1977) and Udinese (1978). During the group stage of the 1977 tournament, the club defeated Parma and Bari with ease.
They won the Southern League in 1960, and again in 1978. They were founding members of the Alliance Premier League, which is now known as the Conference National. They applied for admission to the Football League in the 1980s, but were narrowly denied.
Bath City's away game in the Conference against Histon was televised on Premier Sports on November 25, 2010. Bath City won 2–1, making it the club's second live televised football match after the FA Cup tie v Hereford United on BSkyB on December 5, 1993.
Bath City won the Conference South Play-off Final against Woking 1–0 on May 9, 2010, regaining their place in the Conference Premier for the first time since 1997.
Bath City's third live televised match was on ESPN in 2011, when they lost 3–1 a.e.t to Dagenham and Redbridge. However, ESPN did not play the extra time and instead cut back after the match ended.
They reached the FA Trophy semi-finals in the 2014/15 season, defeating Dover Athletic, Altrincham, and local rivals Bristol Rovers before losing on penalties to eventual winners North Ferriby United.
Bath City became a community-owned club in 2016, thanks to the support of fans such as legendary filmmaker Ken Loach and Eric Cantona, with a supporters group owning approximately 54 percent of the club.
They will stay in the Conference South, hoping to make the big leap to the Football League one day.
Honours
🏆Conference South Play-offs (Winners: 2009–10)
🏆Southern League (Champions: 1959–60, 1977–78, 2006–07) (Runners up: 1929–30, 1932–33, 1961–62, 1989–90, 2005–06)
🏆Western League (Champions: 1933–34) (Runners up: 1913–14, 1934–35)
🏆Western League Division 2 (Champions: 1928–29)
🏆Southern League Cup (Winners: 1978–79) (Runners up: 1949–50, 1958–59)
🏆Non League Championship Trophy (Winners: 1978–79)
🏆Anglo-Italian Cup (Runners up: 1976–77, 1977–78)
🏆Somerset Premier Cup (Winners: 1928–29, 1931–32, 1933–34, 1935–36, 1945–46, 1946–47 (shared), 1951–52, 1952–53, 1957–58, 1959–60, 1965–66, 1967–68, 1969–70, 1977–78, 1980–81, 1981–82, 1983–84, 1984–85, 1985–86, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1993–94, 1994–95, 2007–08)
Matchday: Bath City 0-0 Dulwich Hamlet
The stadium itself is located in Twerton, a small suburb of Bath. Parking is available on the ground floor. We did ask the steward in charge of the car park where we could park for free at the game, and his response was "on the gravel," so we assume this is available at every game. The car park is convenient because it is directly adjacent to the ground. Before entering the stadium, we went to the club shop, which sells a wide range of merchandise such as replica kits, scarves, and team posters. We also managed to get our customary pin badges from the shop for FOUR POUNDS. A little steep and the most expensive ground I've seen so far.
We tried to stick to our tradition of doing a circuit around the perimeter of the ground, but to be honest, it just wasn't possible. Despite this, what we could see was delightful. There is a large stand in front of the stadium that says 'Bath City,' so you can't miss it. It is home to a gym called 'Charlie's,' as well as a few burger vans strewn about. However, we decided to forage for food in the ground. My father ordered a double cheeseburger, which he rated 7/10. He said it was one of the best burgers he'd ever had at a football game, and Bath City goalkeeping coach Steve Book couldn't believe how much my father was enjoying it. The burger cost him £4.50, which is fantastic value.
Steve Book is an example of his own brilliance. When he was the goalkeeper coach at Cheltenham Town, he put in a lot of effort to interact with the fans, which helped bridge the gap between fans and the club. You can see him working his magic again in Bath. He came over and talked to my father for about twenty minutes, but it wasn't just my father he did this with. It's clear that 'Bookie' enjoys interacting with fans and thrives in that role.
There is also a large stand on the opposite side of the field with a burger stand. One of the best areas of the stadium was behind the goal (I apologise to Bath City fans, but I don't know what the name of this stand was). There are white bars behind the goal, and it looks like a football stadium from the 1980s. It was really cool and retro. It had a lot of personality and was really cool to look at.
Bath's ticketing system was very efficient. You order your tickets online (£14 for adults, £8 for students), and they email you an e-ticket. The turnstile then scans your ticket, and you're in.
One of the best aspects of this stadium was that fans were allowed to mix with one another. There were no fights; instead, the two sides exchanged a lot of banter. It was a pleasure to communicate with the Bath City fans. They were friendly, willing to talk about their team, and equally interested in hearing about mine. Bath City have certainly put to rest a theory put forth by a Birmingham City fan on their forum that it was too much to ask for a football fan to converse with an opposing fan. They were a true credit to themselves. This was reflected in the atmosphere, despite the fact it was really quiet, the noise that the Bath City supporters were making was really positive and they were fully behind their team.
Teamsheets
Bath City
Manager: Jerry Gill
Ryan Clarke (c)
Joe Raynes
Zak Delaney
Jack Batten (S/O)
Alex Fletcher
Omar Holness
Cody Cooke
Elliott Frear
Dan Ball
Ben Seymour
Ryan Jones
Substitutes
Will Fuller
Eddie Jones
Tom Richards
Tom Smith
David Sims-Burgess
Dulwich Hamlet
Manager: Gavin Rose
Charlie Grainger
Sanchez Ming
Andre Blackman
Michael Timlin
Ronnie Vint (C)
Tyrone Sterling
Chike Kandi
Giovanni McGregor
Danny Mills
James Dayton
Ibra Sekajja
Substitutes
Darren McQueen
Luca Levee
Taofiq Olomowewe
Jazzi Barnum-Bobb
Reise Allassani
The game began strongly in favour of Dulwich Hamlet, who were vying for a play-off spot in the National League South. They were confidently passing the ball around and exploiting the wide areas, putting in cross after cross to no avail. When Ibra Sekajja raced through on goal, only to be pulled back by defender Jack Batten, the game appeared to swing even more in their favour. After only fifteen minutes, the defender was sent off, leaving Bath City with ten men. At this point, Bath could have been forgiven for throwing in the towel and adopting a siege mentality, as Ivory Coast did earlier this week against England. However, after a rocky ten minutes in which goalkeeper Ryan Clarke kept them in the game with two excellent saves, it was Bath City who put in the most effort. The Dulwich Hamlet goalkeeper tipped a long-range shot over, and The Roman also had a header that went just wide. At the time of the break, the score was 0-0.
During halftime, I spoke with AFC Finners, and the conversation went something like, 'you wouldn't believe Dulwich Hamlet had a man advantage.' The second half was no different. In a half where you'd expect Dulwich to dominate, it was Bath who had the better chances. Elliott Frear curled a shot straight at the goalkeeper, Cody Cooke had a shot blocked, and Alex Fletcher had a shot well saved as well. Dulwich, on the other hand, rarely threatened, and the game ended 0-0. Overall, Bath City gave a good account of themselves and demonstrated that they have the quality and mentality to stay in the top flight. If Dulwich Hamlet are to compete for promotion this season, they will need to improve. I wouldn't have believed you if you told me these two teams were at opposite ends of the table. Jerry Gill has done an outstanding job, and I fully expect Bath City to compete at the top of the table next season.
Scores On The Doors
Atmosphere: 5/10 Food and Drink: 7/10 Stadium: 6.5/10 Welcome: 9/10 Overall Experience: 7.5/10
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