Barnet Football Club, in general, takes 1888 as the beginning of it’s history and the date is across the front of the ground at Underhill and even since the move to the Hive, there have been promotions involving different combinations of the 1888 date. But exactly how relevant is 1888 to BFC’s history?
I would argue that, in fact, the 1888 date does not really have anything to do with the current club, as it stands in 2014. All 1888 really stands for is that it was the first year that a senior club in Barnet called themselves by that name. However, the club were already in existence prior to that going by the name of New Barnet FC and prior to that, going back to 1881 as Woodville FC, so Barnet FC, as it was then, really date back to 1881, not 1888.
However, the main reason for not accepting the 1888 date is that that club, known as Barnet FC, are not the one that we all know and love. That club dissolved in 1901, the last match being a 5-0 defeat at the club’s Queens Road ground by Barnet Ramblers in a friendly match that took place on the 16th November. Interestingly, Alston Works Athletic, later to become Barnet Alston and play a major part in the development of the current club, played their first ever game on that day, beating New Barnet PSA Reserves 3-0.
Also around at the time were Barnet Avenue, who had started out life in 1890 as Shrewsbury FC and had then morphed into Avenue FC and then Avenue FC (Barnet) and finally Barnet Avenue.
Barnet Avenue took over BFC’s Queen’s Road ground at the beginning of the 1901/02 season when Barnet moved to a ground on Barnet Hill, quite close to Underhill. That really is the only connection that Barnet Avenue had to Barnet FC apart from the fact that they were rival clubs in Barnet. In fact, there was ill feeling between the two clubs and Barnet Avenue had been the cause of Barnet withdrawing from the North Middlesex League during the previous season.
So in November 1901 there were a number of clubs in Barnet, including Barnet FC, soon to not exist and two of the clubs are directly related to the modern Barnet FC, however, the club known by that same name were not one of them.
In 1904, Barnet Avenue dropped the ‘Avenue’ part of their name and became Barnet FC and their first game as Barnet FC was a 1-0 home defeat in a friendly match by Potters Bar on 29th October. It could be argued that this could be a notable date in the current club’s history as it was the first time a club was called Barnet FC and that was directly related to the club today.
In 1912, Barnet FC (nee Avenue) and Barnet Alston (formerly Alston Works Athletic) amalgamated to become Barnet & Alston FC and the club became, essentially the club we know today. The new club played at Barnet Alston’s ground, which was Underhill which was opened in 1907 with a London League Premier division game against Crystal Palace Reserves which Barnet Alston won 1-0 as most fans today will know following the centenary celebrations at Underhill in 2007. The old Barnet FC’s ground at Queens Road was not the choice for the new club and QE Boys’ school is on the site of that ground now.
The new club’s first game was a 4-0 Middlesex Premier League win over Waltham at Underhill on 7th September 1912. The club were also founder members that season of the Athenian League. The majority of the players in that first Athenian League season were Alston players and, as the club also played at Alston’s ground and had played at a higher league level than their partners in the merger, it was clear that they were the major player in the amalgamation of the two clubs.
The First World War intervened in 1914 and when football resumed in 1919, the club emerged as simply Barnet FC. Their first match was a 2-2 home draw with Tufnell Spartan on 6th September 1919 and their first Athenian League game, a 2-1 away win at Hampstead Town on 13th September. The club has remained Barnet FC until the present day and is exactly the same club. I would argue that 1919 should be considered the start of the present club if one is going to go by when the current club first had that title. After all, that is the basis of the use of 1888 as the club’s beginning.
But that Barnet FC are an extinct club much the same as the original Hendon FC which began in 1877 but are not the same as the current club which take their ‘start date’ as 1908. Hendon began life as Christchurch Hampstead and are the same club that played against Barnet FC in the Athenian League match mentioned above. Later the club changed its name to Golders Green becoming Hendon FC in 1946. Following this, it could be argued that 1912, when Barnet FC and Barnet Alston merged to become Barnet & Alston was the real beginning of the club or, alternatively, 1890 when Shrewsbury FC began life. Each of these dates have something to commend them as ‘start dates’ for the modern Barnet FC. The only one, in my opinion, that doesn’t have any merit is the one the club actually uses; 1888. I think it is time for a rethink on this and I look forward to the club’s centenary celebrations in 2019? Or maybe they should have took place in 1990 or 2004 or 2012!!!!!