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As anyone with a passing knowledge of the history of the British game will
recognise, works football sides are an endemic part of the national game.
After all, Manchester United, started life as a team for Newton Heath
railway workers, Arsenal was once a squad of munitions workers and one of
the English game's greatest managers, Brian Clough, began his career at the
ICI works team, Billingham Synthonia.
It is perhaps no surprise then to learnt that
Matrixgrade, a demolitions firm, were formed by a group of textile
manufacturers at the company Wright & Dobson
in 1979. Based on Carlton Road, just to the east of the City of
Nottingham, Wright & Dobson
had been carrying out dyeing and fabric printing for more than
100 years, so it perhaps appeared a little overdue when Stephen Farmery
founded Wright & Dobson
Football Club.
In the early days, the team trained every day across the
road from the Wrights and Dobson factory, on King Edwards
Park.
They only played friendly matches with other Sunday teams for the first six months,
before beginning to take things a little more seriously. In 1980, they joined
a Sunday morning league, playing the likes of the Royal Oak, Plough and
Harrow and Hucknall Colliery Welfare (now the Conference North outfit, Hucknall Town.
They remained
in this league until the mid 80's, when they took the decision to switch to
Saturday football in the Spartan League. In the late 80's, the Club severed
its links with Wright & Dobson,
assuming the name of its new sponsor
Old Rose Football Club, a pub in the
Radford area of the City. Here, the club would go on to win the double
once and the Spartan League Senior Cup twice. In total they won this cup six times, more than
any over team since 1925.
As the team grew, greater sponsorship
was required, and in 1989 they assumed the name of their new sponsor,
Matrixgrade.
Wright & Dobson
has since been demolished, having gone into receivership.
Somewhat ironic, given the business of the present club sponsor.
In the early 90's, The Bees, so called form their yellow and black club
shirts, left the Spartan league for the Notts
Combination, finishing runners up. The following season, they joined the Notts Amateur League, winning the league twice. In 1997,
they moved to the Notts Alliance, winning Divison Two in their first season.
However, the wheels then came off, with The Bees
forced to leave, as their ground facilities at Annesley Welfare did not meet the required standard.
They went back to the Notts Amateur League, where they stayed for a couple of
years before moving to the NSL in 2007.
The Farmery family are still heavily involved
with the running of The Bees, with Stephen as Manager. Indeed, their home
ground was renamed 'The John Farmery Ground' in 2006, in honour of their
departed Treasurer of 20-odd years, though it was still
affectionately known as 'the Hive'.
Matrixgrade spent a significant time and
money in restructuring the Hive, so it was quite a shock when halfway through the
2007/08 season they decided to uproot ten miles east to the former colliery village of Bilsthorpe. However,
given the facilities on offer
at the
Bilsthorpe
Miners Welfare Sports Ground, it becomes
clear why this was such an
attractive option for The Bees.
The
setting is predominantly rural, with rolling fields to the north and east of the complex. Other than the tranquil location, what
stands out at the lair is the vastness & the tidiness of the facilities on offer.
You
will find no stands or floodlights here, but it has plenty to offer.
The entrance to the Ground is guarded by
two regal wrought iron gates - known as the George Lancaster Memorial
Gates. Upon entry, you will be greeted by a smart little wooden turnstile
shed, attached to which is a placard displaying the Club's name. It is
here, on the Eakring Road side of the Ground, where all of The Bees facilities
are housed. The
Clubhouse itself is a large brick built building with a triangular roof
and distinctive chimney breast perched above. Additionally on the south
side, to the left of the entrance, is another is a modern brick building, alongside
which lies one of the largest pitch rollers you'll find anywhere within
the county of Nottinghamshire.
The main pitch, upon which
The Bees ply their
trade, is situated close to the Clubhouse. It is cordoned off by a permanent,
white painted, metal pitchside railing on the southern half of the Ground.
The northern half is only roped off on match days, as a permanent structure
would infringe onto the neighboring cricket pitch.
On the south side of the pitch are two fair sized, white painted, dug
outs. Each has a tarpaulin roof attached, held aloft by two metal poles.
To the west of the pitch is the village of Bilsthorpe,
until recent times split into 'old' and 'new' by a railway bridge. Old
Bilsthorpe, dominated by St.Margaret's Church which dates back to 1663, is
not so visible. However, the housing estate, built for the migrating
colliery workers, is on the Ground's doorstep.
To the south of the Ground is the old
Bilsthorpe Colliery, where sadly, three colliery workers lost their lives as
recently as 1993 in a tragic accident.
The whole complex is secured by an eight
foot high metal fence to keep intruders at bay.
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From Nottingham - Take the
A60 northbound for 4.9 miles. At roundabout, take the second exit for the
A614 (Doncaster). At next roundabout after 7 miles (White Post Farm) , turn
right onto the A617 Kirklington Road. After 1 mile turn left onto Farnsfield
Road. Continue for 2 mils, and the
Bilsthorpe
Miners
Welfare Sports Ground is on the left, just before the railway bridge.
Stagecoach
East Midlands No.27 (Mansfield - Eakring); Veolia
No. 227 (Newark - Edwinstowe);
Veolia
No.29b (Newark -
Bilsthorpe)
Mansfield
- 9 miles. Catch one of the above buses from Mansfield Bus Station
next to the train station.