Wanderers Football Club is a charitable sports team based in Lambeth, who raise funds on behalf of UNICEF UK, who have an astounding heritage and an intrinsic connection to the local area.
Wanderers Football Club were originally formed by six former Harrow schoolboys as Forest FC in Leyton in 1859. The club was one of the founder members of the Football Association in 1863. A year later and the club - driven by a split between the Alcock brothers, John and Charles - became Wanderers, relocating to play many matches in Battersea Park. Charles Alcock was sitting on the FA committee and proposed the FA Challenge Cup; the first tournament took place in the 1871-2 season, with the final being held at Kennington Oval, between Wanderers and Royal Engineers. Morton Peto Betts scored the only goal in front of a crowd of 2,000, ensuring Wanderers would be the first ever holders of the FA Cup.
The club lifted the trophy four more times - three times back at the Oval - and helped football to grow into its current form. However, as more and more teams developed from the private schools in the south and the industrial towns in the north, the appeal of the Wanderers waned and the club disbanded in 1883 - their final game a 6-1 victory over Harrow School.
In 2009, the club was reformed with the support of the Alcock family's descendants and UNICEF UK. The first match the club played in 126 years took place in Oxford against the University team. In 2010, Wanderers will be playing against UNICEF's Central London Group back at their spiritual home of Kennington Park (Sunday 11th April, 10am kick-off on the astro turf pitch) followed by drinks at The Grand Union Bar on Kennington Road. Further matches against Royal Engineers at Chatham on 15th May and Clapham Rovers at Norbury on 15th August have also been arranged.
The Club is eager to attract players, supporters and sponsors and hope to firmly establish themselves as Lambeth's foremost football team over the next few years - a period of change for the club we hope to share with you.
More information about the club, it's history, players and upcoming events can be found at http://www.originalwanderers.
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