Grays Athletic Football Club is a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

club based in Grays,

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

, England. They are currently members of the and play at Chadfields in nearby

Tilbury Tilbury is a port town in the borough of Thurrock, Essex, England. The present town was established as separate settlement in the late 19th century, on land that was mainly part of Chadwell St Mary. It contains a Tilbury Fort, 16th century fort ...

History

The club was established as Grays Juniors in 1890, before merging with former Southern League club Grays United to form Grays Athletic.George H. Watts (2006) ''The Place I Love Best'', p14 The newly formed club joined the Grays & District League, later joining Division Two B of the South Essex League in 1908. They were runners-up in their first season in the division and won it in their second season, earning promotion to Division One for the 1909–10 season. The club were founder members of the

Athenian League The Athenian League was an England, English amateur association football, football league for clubs in and around London. The league was originally to be called the Corinthian League,Athenian Football League minutes 1912-1921 (National Football ...

in 1912, but the league closed down in 1914 due to

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and Grays transferred to the Premier Division (Amateur) of the London League.London League 1910–1928
Non-League Matters They won the division in their first season, with the reserves also winning Division One. The league was suspended at the end of the 1914–15 season, with Grays rejoining in the Premier Division when it restarted in 1919–20. Grays were Premier Division runners-up in 1920–21, before winning the division in 1921–22. In 1924 the club joined the Kent League but after two seasons in mid-table, they returned to the London League in 1926. The return was a success as the club were Premier Division champions in 1926–27 and runners-up in the next two seasons, before winning the title again in 1929–30.London League 1928–1950
Non-League Matters After finishing as runners-up in 1930–31, the club spent most of the 1930s in mid-table, although they won the league's Challenge Cup in 1936–37.
Grays Athletic F.C. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Grays were founder members of the Corinthian League, and were its inaugural champions and League Cup winners in 1945–46.History
Grays Athletic F.C. They were league runners-up in 1951–52, and the following season saw them qualify for the first round of the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

for the first time, losing 5–0 at home to

Llanelli ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Carmarthenshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Dyfed, Wales. It is on the estuary of the River Loughor and is the largest town in the Principal areas of Wales, ...

. They were league runners-up again in 1954–55 and 1956–57, before rejoining the Athenian League in 1958. When the league gained two more divisions in 1963, the club were placed in the Premier Division, where they remained until being relegated to Division One at the end of the 1971–72 season, in which they had finished bottom of the table. In 1977 the league was reorganised into a single division, and the club were runners-up in 1982–83. In 1983 Grays transferred to Division Two of the Isthmian League. League reorganisation saw them placed in Division Two South in 1984 and they went on to win the division at the first attempt, earning promotion to Division One. In 1987–88 they were Division One runners-up, resulting in promotion to the Premier Division. In 1988–89 the club reached the first round of the FA Cup for a second time, losing 2–0 at Bath City. They remained in the Premier Division until being relegated back to Division One at the end of the 1996–97 season. In 1999–2000 the club were Division One runners-up, earning promotion back to the Premier Division. In 2000–01 another appearance in the FA Cup first round saw them play

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...

opposition for the first time, losing 4–0 at

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of symbols, often specifically those of a written language, by means of Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifacete ...

. A sixth-place finish in 2003–04 resulted in Grays being placed in the new

Conference South The National League South, officially Vanarama National League South, is a professional Association football league in England. National League South is the second division of the National Leagues and step 2 of the NLS and sixth-highest ti ...

for the 2004–05 season. They went on to win the new division in its first season, earning promotion to the

Conference National The National League, officially known as Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in England. The National League is the first division of the National League (English football), National Le ...

. The season also saw them reach the final of the

FA Trophy The Football Association Challenge Trophy, also known as the Isuzu FA Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is a men's football knockout cup competition run by and named after The Football Association (the FA) and competed by mainly National League ...

, in which they beat

Hucknall Town Hucknall Town Football Club is a football club based in the town of Hucknall, Nottinghamshire, England. The club is a member of the and plays at the RM Stadium. History Hucknall Town were renamed from Hucknall Colliery Welfare in 1987 and for ...

6–5 on penalties after a 1–1 draw at

Villa Park Villa Park is a association football, football stadium in Aston, Birmingham, with a seating capacity of 42,918. It has been the home of Premier League club Aston Villa F.C., Aston Villa since 1897. The ground is less than a mile from both Witt ...

. In their first season in the Conference National the club finished third, qualifying for the promotion play-offs. However, they lost 5–4 on aggregate to Halifax Town. They also reached the second round of the

, beating

York City York City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of York, North Yorkshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system, as of the 2024–25 seas ...

3–0 at

Bootham Crescent Bootham Crescent in York, England, was the home of York City F.C., York City Football Club and York City Knights, York City Knights rugby league club. With a capacity of 8,256, it was near the city centre, just over a mile from York railway sta ...

before losing 3–0 at

Mansfield Town Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third level of the English football league system. The club was formed in 1897 as Mans ...

, as well as retaining the FA Trophy with a 2–0 win over

Woking Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in north-west Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'', and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settleme ...

in the final. The club's league form subsequently faded and after narrowly avoiding relegation in 2006–07 and 2008–09, they finished bottom of the Conference National in 2009–10 and resigned from the Football Conference. Grays were initially rejected by the

Isthmian League The Isthmian League () is a regional Association football, football league covering Greater London, East of England, East and South East England, featuring mostly semi-professional clubs. Founded in 1905 by amateur clubs in the London area, th ...

and were lined up to play in the Essex Senior League. However, an appeal to

the Football Association The Football Association (the FA) is the Sports governing body, governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest footb ...

saw them placed in Division One North of the Isthmian League. A fifth-place finish in 2011–12 saw them qualify for the play-offs, in which

Enfield Town Enfield is a large town in north London, England, north of Charing Cross. It had a population of 333,587 in 2021. It includes the areas of Botany Bay, Brimsdown, Bulls Cross, Bullsmoor, Bush Hill Park, Clay Hill, Crews Hill, Enfield Hig ...

defeated them 3–1 on penalties after a 2–2 draw in the semi-final. However, the club were Division One North champions the following season with a club record 102 points, earning promotion back to the Premier Division. In August 2016 the club became community-owned. They went on to finish bottom of the Premier Division in the 2016–17 and were relegated back to the (renamed) North Division. In 2022–23 the club finished fifth in the North Division, qualifying for the promotion play-offs, in which they lost 3–2 to

AFC Sudbury Amalgamated Football Club Sudbury is a association football, football club based in Sudbury, Suffolk, England. The club was formed in 1999 by the merger of Sudbury Town F.C., Sudbury Town and Sudbury Wanderers F.C., Sudbury Wanderers, the proc ...

in the semi-finals.

Season-by-season

Ground

The club initially played at the Hoppit Ground in Little Thurrock.Grays Athletic
Pyramid Passion In 1906 they moved to the

New Recreation Ground The New Recreation Ground was a football stadium on Bridge Road, Grays, Essex, England, and was the home ground of Grays Athletic. Prior to it being closed, the capacity stood at 4,100, of which 1,000 was seated. Grays Athletic moved to the g ...

, playing there until 2010. After the ground was sold to developers, the club groundshared with East Thurrock United at their Rookery Hill ground in Corringham.Grays Athletic win Ryman League appeal
BBC Sport, 18 June 2010 During the 2012–13 season the club played at Rush Green Stadium in Rush Green, sharing the ground with West Ham United's reserves who played in the

Professional Development League The Professional Development League is a system of Football in England, English youth association football, football leagues that are managed, organised and controlled by the Premier League or by the Football League. It was introduced by the Th ...

. The following season, West Ham pulled out of the deal in June and Grays moved to

Aveley Aveley is a village and former civil parish in the unitary authority of Thurrock in Essex, England, and forms one of the traditional Church of England parishes. Aveley is 16 miles (26.2 km) east of Charing Cross. In the 2021 United King ...

's Mill Field ground. When Aveley moved to Parkside in 2017, Grays became tenants at the new ground."Parklife for Millers", ''Groundtastic'', Autumn 2017, issue 90, pp46–49 In February 2023 Grays announced the club would be groundsharing at

for the 2023–24 season. In 2024 the club obtained ownership of Ship Lane, the former home of

Thurrock Thurrock () is a unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area with Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough status in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Essex, England. It lies on the north bank of the River ...

, stating they hoped to be playing at the new ground in the 2025–26 season. However, they have since revised their target to the 2026-27 season, and talks are currently on-going to extend their groundshare agreement with Tilbury FC.

Honours

**Winners 2004–05, 2005–06 *Football Conference **Conference South champions 2004–05 *Isthmian League **Division Two South champions 1984–85 **Division One North champions 2012–13 **League Cup winners: 1991–92 *London League **Premier Division champions 1921–22, 1926–27, 1929–30 **Premier Division (Amateur) champions 1914–15 **Challenge Cup winners 1936–37 *Corinthian League **Champions 1945–46 **League Cup winners 1945–46 *South Essex League **Division Two B champions 1908–09 *

Essex Senior Cup The Essex Senior Cup is a knock-out system football competition that has been running since 1884, and is the most prestigious cup competition in the county of Essex. The competition is run mainly for non-League clubs in the region, although leag ...

**Winners 1914–15, 1920–21, 1922–23, 1944–45, 1956–57, 1987–88, 1993–94, 1994–95 * Essex Thameside Trophy **Winners 1947–48, 1978–79, 1980–81, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1990–91, 2001–02 * East Anglian Cup **Winners 1944–45

Records

*Best

performance: Second round, 2005–06 *Best

performance: Winners, 2004–05, 2005–06 *Best

FA Vase The Football Association Challenge Vase, also known as the Isuzu FA Vase for sponsorship reasons, is an annual football competition run by and named after The Football Association (The FA), for teams playing in Steps 5 and 6 of the English Nation ...

performance: Fourth round, 1977–78, 1979–80, 1981–82, 1983–84 *Biggest victory: 12–0 vs Tooting Town, London League, 24 February 1923Williams & Williams, p326 *Biggest defeat: 0–12 vs Enfield,

, 20 April 1963 *Attendance: 9,500 v Chelmsford City,

fourth qualifying round, 1959 *Most appearances: Phil Sammons, 673 (1982–1997) *Most goals: Harry Brand, 269 (1944–1952) *Transfer record fee paid: £12,000 to Welling United for Danny Kedwell *Transfer record fee received: £150,000 from

Peterborough United Peterborough United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third level of the English football league system. Peterborough United formed in ...

for

Aaron McLean Aaron McLean (born 25 May 1983) is an English retired professional footballer who played as a striker. At international level he gained five caps for the England C team during his time in non-league. McLean began his senior career with Leyt ...

References

External links

* {{Coord, 51.5035, N, 0.2613, E, display=title Football clubs in England Football clubs in Essex Fan-owned football clubs in England Association football clubs established in 1890 1890 establishments in England Sport in Thurrock Athenian League London League (football) Kent Football League (1894–1959) Corinthian League (football) Isthmian League clubs National League (English football) clubs South Essex League