HISTORY
Nutley Football Club was formed in 1890, making its home at Fords Green. The club entered the now defunct Lewes League. From 1930 the club spent a decade playing on the site of what is now the Memorial Hall; this was due to fixtures clashing with the cricket team. After the war the club moved back to Fords Green. Early records from the time in the Lewes League are scarce. However there were cups won in the 1930`s and 1950`s.
In 1957 the club moved to the Mid Sussex League, the first trophy arrived in 1958 with an Edgar German Cup win. The club also entered a second team into the league, starting life in the lowest division, 5 at the time. Promotion followed in 1960, but relegation followed the next season.
The 1970-71 season proved to be a great season with the first team winning a treble of the division 3 title, Edgar German Cup and the Mid Sussex Junior Charity Cup. A Mowatt cup followed Three years later. Meanwhile the second Eleven was also making progress with successive titles won in 74 and 75 along with a Stubbins Cup. It was in the later Seventies when the club appointed its first managers. John Maskell was perhaps the first. Prior to this the teams were always selected by a five man committee; this was the normal procedure in those days. A transition period followed with a number of players retiring.
Graham Wilson was at the helm by the time more silverware was won. The team was now benefiting from the junior side that Mike and Chubby ran with a number of them having progressed. The Edgar German Cup win of 1984 was an example with players like Gary Eede and Mark Reed playing a prominent role. The same season also saw a division 2 title. It was not all joy as there was the disappointment of losing the Sussex Junior Cup Final. The following season witnessed another title and promotion to the top division. The side was weakened after this when a number of the talented players were offered the opportunity to play county football. This was never discouraged with the view that we should accept this with a sense of pride.
Further success did not arrive until the nineties with a division one title in 1993 and a Malins cup for the second team. The teams were now being managed by John Topps and Keith Funnell. Defeat in the Sussex Junior Cup Final that year was a bitter pill to swallow. The next few seasons was a case of near misses for the first team narrowly missing out on the premiership title on more than one occasion. The team also reached the semi final of the Sussex Intermediate Cup a big achievement for a village team as facing county opposition was never easy.
A gradual decline took place in the noughties as retirements and an ageing side took its toll. The team found itself in the depths of division seven in 2011 after successive relegations. Christian Sparks was now appointed manager and set about building a new young side. The climb back stated in 2012 with the division Seven title, divisional titles were won in both the following seasons.
The 2014 season was a brilliant year with a hat-trick of trophies, the Stratford and Sommerville cups, along with the division 5 title. The biggest prize came in 2015 when the club secured the Sussex Junior Cup in a dramatic penalty shootout win over TD Shipley. The following season the division 1 title meant promotion to the Championship. This is where the club has remained despite finishing high enough to secure promotion to the premier league.
Nutley first had a junior team in the mid Seventies entering the Crowborough League, with newly retired player Donald Tester in charge. The original team included Andrew Ridley, Tim Wilson, Gary Carr, Kevin Reed and both Ogden brothers John and Nick. The first season was a learning curve often playing sides a year older. The second season saw a big improvement in results. With the team now established Mike Francis took over as Donald had moved away from the area. Mike inducted a new group of youngsters into the team, encouraging the young lads to enjoy themselves and play in a sporting manner. In fact the first trophy won was for sportsmanship in 1978. Two years later the group that included local lads Mark Reed, Trevor Botting, Alan Best and Sean Chewter, won both the Crowborough under 15 League and the Tournament Shield trophy. The successful season was under the guidance of Chubby Scott who had replaced Mike due to work commitments. This was the lads last season before progressing to the adult sides. Mike was very proud to have been able to take Trevor to an England schoolboys trial at Stamford Bridge. He also watched three of the lads in later years play for Lewes against Brighton in the Sussex Senior Cup Final at the old Goldstone Ground.
The junior team remained dormant until Ben Scott and Gavin Paisley started an under 10`s team in 2015. This side has now gelled nicely and is currently playing in the under twelve section of the Crowborough League. The previous season saw them win the Sportsmanship award and their division. The team have just completed their season and finished a very respectable fourth in the division. In the last year Ben and Ollie Green started an under 8`s side, who are some of the keenest and happiest players imaginable. The first season for the under 8`s was remarkable as they were unbeaten. First team player Hamish Norris also helps out with the coaching of both teams. As always the emphasis is on having fun and development.