Worcester Raiders F.C.
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| Full name | Worcester Raiders Football Club | |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2001 | |
| Ground | Sixways Stadium, Worcester | |
| Capacity | 12,024[1] | |
| Chairman | Steve Harris | |
| Manager | Jordan Lewis | |
| League | Hellenic League Premier Division | |
| 2023–24 | Hellenic League Premier Division, 10th of 20 | |
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| ||
Worcester Raiders Football Club is a football club based in Worcester, Worcestershire, England. They are currently members of the Hellenic League Premier Division and play at Sixways Stadium.
History
[edit]The club were formed in 2001 as a youth club. In 2010 an adult team was formed and joined the Saturday division of the Worcester & District League. In their first season in the league they won the Nursing Cup, beating Malvern Town 2–1 in the final,[2] and the Phipps Cup, beating Perrywood 5–1.[3] In 2011–12 they won the league's Bayliss Cup, beating the University of Worcester 3–2 in the final.[4] They retained the Bayliss Cup in 2012–13, and were league champions, resulting in promotion to Division Two of the West Midlands (Regional) League.
Worcester Raiders finished third in Division Two in their first season in the West Midlands (Regional) League, earning promotion to Division One.[5] In 2018–19 they were Division One champions and were promoted to the Premier Division.[5] At the end of the 2020–21 season the club were transferred to Division One of the Hellenic League. In the 2021–22 season, Worcester Raiders were runners-up in Division One, qualifying for the promotion play-offs. They defeated Pershore Town 3–0 in the semi-finals, but lost 3–0 to Hereford Pegausus in the final.[5] However, the club were later promoted to the Premier Division after a vacancy was created by Walton Casuals folding.[6]
Ground
[edit]Worcester Raiders initially played at Claines Lane.[7] In 2020 they started groundsharing at the Sixways Stadium of English Premiership rugby union club Worcester Warriors, with Worcester Warriors' co-owners Colin Goldring and Jason Whittingham becoming joint majority owners of Worcester Raiders in the process.[8] In September 2022 the gates to the ground were locked as a result of Worcester Warriors' financial problems. However, Raiders reached an agreement with the Warriors' administrators to remain at Sixways.[9]
Honours
[edit]- West Midlands (Regional) League
- Division One champions 2018–19
- Worcester & District League
- Division One champions 2012–13
- Bayliss Cup winners 2011–12, 2012–13
- Nursing Cup winners 2010–11
- Phipps Cup winners 2010–11
Records
[edit]- Best FA Cup performance: First qualifying round, 2022–23[5]
- Best FA Vase performance: Second qualifying round, 2021–22, 2022–23[5]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Worcester Warriors lining up new North Stand as they look to increase Sixways capacity to 20,000". Worcester News. 3 May 2016.
- ^ "Breaking news". Worcester & District League. 5 May 2011.
- ^ "BReaking news!". Worcester & District League. 21 April 2011.
- ^ "Worcester Raiders Lift Baylis Cup". Worcester & District League. 26 April 2012.
- ^ a b c d e Worcester Raiders at the Football Club History Database
- ^ "Raiders promoted after club withdraw from the league". Worcester News. Retrieved 2022-06-11.
- ^ "Worcester Raiders: Floodlights and 100-seat stand planned at Claines Lane". Worcester News. 20 February 2018. Retrieved 22 August 2020.
- ^ "Football comes to Sixways with Worcester Raiders deal". Worcester Warriors. 29 July 2020. Retrieved 22 August 2020.
- ^ Worcester Raiders FC [@WorcsRaidersFC] (6 October 2022). "𝙍𝙖𝙞𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙎𝙞𝙭𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨! 💪 Following discussions with administrators, Worcester Raiders are delighted to confirm that we will return to @SixwaysStadium. All remaining home fixtures can now be fulfilled. 1/4 #WeAreRaiders | #UTR https://t.co/E9CbOTZXKt" (Tweet). Retrieved 5 December 2022 – via Twitter.