Brading Town
Club Address:

Vicarage Lane Brading Isle of Wight PO36 0AR

Tel: 01983 405217

Chairman: Roy Penney

Secretary: Laurie Abrahart

Manager: Phil Moore

Directions to ground:

Off the A3055 Ryde to Sandown road. On entering Brading from Ryde take the first left off the mini roundabout – Vicarage Lane is adjacent to the main Brading car park.

For teams travelling to the Island we suggest Diamond Taxis (01983 811593) for mini-bus transfers to and from Vicarage Lane.

Club History:

A football club was first formed in Brading in 1871 and they played teams from Cowes, East Cowes, Ryde, Sandown and Ventnor.

They played at Vicarage field and Beechgrove. They joined the Isle of Wight League when it was formed in 1898.

In the 1920’s and 1930’s, they mainly played in the Isle of Wight Division 2 League and managed to win it on several occasions.

In 1948 the club won promotion to the Isle of Wight Division 1 League.

This was the start of one of the most successful periods in the club’s history.

In the 1950’s they won the Division 1 championship for a record 8 consecutive years.

In 1953 they decided to purchase their current Vicarage Lane ground.

They were also successful in the Isle of Wight Challenge, Memorial and Jubilee Cup Finals.

Large crowds watched the matches at Vicarage Lane and when the cup finals were played at Newport up to 9 coach loads would leave Brading to support the team.

In 1973 the club joined the Hampshire Division 4 League.

This was the start of another successful era.

They won promotion in 3 consecutive years.

In 1975/76 they won the Hampshire League Division 2 championship and the intermediate Cup.

The victory in the Intermediate Cup was the third time they had won the trophy in five years.

In 1977/78 in their first year, they finished fourth in Hampshire Division 1.

In the 1980’s the club built their clubhouse and tea bar.

During the 80’s the club then became an established Hampshire side, however, in the 1991/92 season they were relegated.

In 1997/98 they finished runners up to Mayflower and gained promotion back to Division 1.

Between 1997 and 2000, the club reached three consecutive Cup Finals, on each occasion being beaten by Newport.

In 2000 they installed their floodlights which had been bought from Erith and Belvedere.

In 2001 they finished fifth in the League.

At the end of the season the manager and a number of players left the club.

This began a difficult period for the club.

They also experienced financial problems.

The following season the club finished fourth from bottom of the League and in 2004 they finished bottom of the Hampshire League with just 8 points.

Despite finishing bottom of the League the club successfully applied to join the new Wessex 2 League which was formed for the 2004/2005 season.

During this very difficult period the club managed to improve its financial position, and facilities at its picturesque Vicarage Lane ground.

The current manager returned to the club and in their first season in the Wessex League, finishing 15th.

They also reached the Isle of Wight Gold Cup Final losing 4-0 to Newport.

In 2005/06, they finished third in Wessex Two and gained promotion to the new Premier Division.

Four teams were promoted from Wessex Two, with Brading finishing the highest out of the four, which included Downton (fourth), Horndean (sixth) and Ringwood Town (ninth).