Corsham Print
Wiltshire Senior League
Former Clubs
Meadowcroft
Ground
Pembroke Gardens, Moredon Road, Swindon and then, from 1980-81, Burderop Park, Wroughton

Seasons in League (Number and period)
7 Seasons (1978-79 to 1984-85)

Status
Folded

League & Cup Honours (when in WSL)
Division 4 Winners 1978-79
Wiltshire Junior Cup Runners-up 1979-80
Division 2 Winners 1981-82

Club Notes
Meadowcroft started life as a youth team playing in the Swindon Borough League. After much success in the youth league the team progressed to the Swindon & District League in Season 1974-75, playing their games at Pembroke Gardens off Moredon Road in Swindon.  The step-up to adult football was to immediately prove a success as Meadowcroft took the Division 4 title and also won the Swindon Junior Cup final (George Thomas Cup) to do a league and cup double, gaining promotion to Division 3 as a consequence. 

The success continued the following season, 1975-76, as they retained the Swindon Junior Cup and won the Division 3 championship at the first attempt gaining a two-step promotion to Division 1. The one small downside of this double promotion was it meant they would be unable to defend the Junior Cup, as they would now play in the Advertiser Cup.

Despite the big step-up the Meadowcroft side took it in their stride and romped to the Division 1 title in Season 1976-77, finishing nine points clear of second placed Olympika at a time when it was two points for a win, losing just one game all season in the league. They scored a massive 137 goals in their 28 league fixtures with striker Colin Pike leading the way with around 60 goals.

Season 1977-78 saw them in the Premier Division of the Swindon & District League for the first time but there was no stopping their success story as they took the league title after an epic battle with Stratton British Legion. The two-way fight for the title continued until 6th May 1978 when Meadowcroft beat Cricklade Town 5-0 to secure the title to add to the Advertiser Cup they had won over the Easter weekend. Having won both of the top honours in the Swindon & District League, Meadowcroft decided to continue their upward trajectory by joining the Wiltshire County League for Season 1978-79.

Meadowcroft immediately adapted well to life in the County League and were involved in a battle for the title also involving Walcroft, Penhill YC Reserves and Warminster Town Reserves. After 34 league games just two points separated the top three sides and it was Meadowcroft who triumphed, finishing two points clear of both Walcroft and Penhill Reserves to make it five consecutive league titles for the club. The title success meant promotion to Division 3, the top level of Junior status football in the county.

Every time that Meadowcroft took a step-up they adapted well to the higher standard of football and were again in the upper reaches of the league table for most of the season, eventually finishing in third place. They also had a great run in the prestigious Wiltshire Senior Cup, making it through to the final where they met fellow Division 3 side Shrewton United, going down to a narrow 2-1 defeat. Shrewton United were also to deny Meadowcroft league honours as they pipped them for second spot in the league table behind champions Sanford Reserves. 

Meadowcroft were again amongst the leading pack in Division 3 in Season 1980-81, their first season at their new ground at Burderop Park in Wroughton, eventually securing a place finish, just eight points behind eventual champions Shrewton United. The move to Burderop Park facilitated continued progression as the ground enabled the club to gain Senior status and after two top four finishes in Division 3 they were accepted into Division 2 for Season 1981-82.

Senior status did not put a brake on Meadowcroft’s climb up the football ladder as the championship of Division 2 in Season 1981-82 was a straight fight between Meadowcroft and Salisbury side Bemerton Athletic. In the end both sides had to play Chippenham Town Reserves in their final respective games. Meadowcroft won their game 5-0 but Bemerton lost 2-1 so the title went to Meadowcroft. Had the two results been reversed the pair would have been level on points with Bemerton champions on goal difference. For Meadowcroft it was a great first season at senior level and they almost achieved the accolade of the going the whole season without a defeat. After going 30 games unbeaten their first and only defeat of the season came on 28th April when they lost 4-1 at home against Purton. Both Meadowcroft and Bemerton gained promotion to Division 1, the top senior league in the county, and they were joined by Tisbury.

Meadowcroft were to spend three seasons in the top division of the league but with so many good sides in the division they found the opposition a lot tougher. After eight seasons of unbridled success a seventh-place finish in Division 1 in their inaugural season in the topflight was to prove to be their peak in adult football. In such a strong division the seventh-place finish was a fine achievement given how quickly Meadowcroft had progressed in such a short space of time. The following two seasons saw them finish in 11th spot and at the end of Season 1984-85, with a group of players who had achieved so much as a team together coming getting towards the end of their playing days, the club called time on their adventure and folded.

Team Record
The Meadowcroft side which won the Advertiser Cup and Swindon & District League Premier Division in 1977-78, the season before joining the Wiltshire League
(picture from the excellent 100 Years of Football in Swindon & District League)
How Meadowcroft lined up for the Wiltshire Junior Cup Final in 1979-80 (programme courtesy of Tim Smith, the Meadowcroft keeper)
Meadowcroft - 1982 (picture courtesy of Tim Smith)
Programme cover and team line-ups from their game with Warminster Town in 1981-82
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