Ground TBC Manager Carl Probert | Chairman Robin Hancock Founded 1886 | |
Full name Oakengates Athletic Football Club Nickname(s) The Gates (as Oakengates Town) League Mercian Regional League Premier Division | ||
Oakengates Athletic Football Club (previously Oakengates Town) is a football club based in Telford, Shropshire. The club plays 'home' games at Doseley Road, Dawley. It is named for the town of Oakengates, now part of Telford.
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Oakengates Athletic are currently members of the Mercian Regional League Premier Division.
History
Earliest records of Oakengates Town are from as early as 1886–87 when they lifted the Shropshire Junior Cup. In 1923–24 they entered the Birmingham and District League. A cup win was soon to follow in the 1926–27 season when they lifted the Shropshire Senior Cup. The reserve's were also successful in these times with a win in the Junior Cup in 1928–29. The first team won the Birmingham Senior Cup in 1929–30 beating Kidderminster Harriers 3–1 and nearly won the Birmingham and District League in 1930–31 only to lose the title on goal difference. They went on to lift the Shropshire Senior Cup again in season 1930–31 and retained it in 1931–32.
Oakengates won the Commander Ethelston Cup in season 1978–79, a feat which they repeated in the 1988–89 season. They won a Shropshire County League and cup double in the 1978–79 season and retained the cup in the 1979–80 season. A sole County Cup win was achieved in 1992–93. In the 1995–96 season Oakengates Town won a Shropshire County League and Cup double again which remains the last success to date.
At the start of the 2005–06 season the club was in serious debt, the clubhouse was derelict through vandalism and neglect and Oakengates Town was near extinction. A few locals decided to retain the history of the club and save it. The club was renamed Oakengates Athletic and moved away from its old ground in Oakengates (School Grove) to a new ground at Hadley via a short stay at Oakengates Athletic Stadium.
In 2007 Barry Williams was appointed manager and after consolidating the clubs position in the Shropshire county league he departed in 2010. The club appointed Jamie James to take over caretakers Lee Mitchell and Bryan Emlyn, but after only 23 games James departed and again the caretaker managers of club stalwart Lee Mitchell and Secretary Bryan Emlyn took over. At the beginning of the 2013 season the club brought in local lads Mickey Baker as Lees Assistant and Carl Probert as First team coach. After a triumphant season where the club lifted the Mercian Regional League Premier division title, Mitchell stepped down and Baker took the reigns with Probert also stepping up as his Assistant. Mitchell was appointed Director of Football. The club due to promotion had to relocate and its new home ground is Doseley Road, Dawley, Telford. After a respectable 8th place finish in West Midlands Division 2 Gates returned to the Mercian Regional league, the reasons were mainly down to finances of running the club at that level. Baker stepped down and his Assistant Probert took over with former Joint boss Bryan Emlyn assisting him.