Corsham Print
Wiltshire Senior League
Purton FC
Club Formed: 1923
Club Nickname: The Reds
Chairman: Terence Crumbie
Club Contact Details
Secretary:  Andy Cowan
Email:  cowan.andy@hotmail.co.uk
Tel:  01793 876384
Mobile: 07974 218795

Manager: 
Tel:
Email:

Club Welfare Officer:  Andy Cowan 
Club Social Media Details
Team Photo & Club Colours



Season 2024-25 Team Photo

To Be Added

When Available

Details of Home Ground
Name of Ground: Red House
Ground Address: Red House, Church Street, Purton SN5 4DY

Ground Tel: 07702 184339

 Match Day Programme?  Yes
Ground Directions: Ground is close to Purton Village Square on the B4041 between Royal Wootton Bassett and Cricklade.
Club History
 The current Purton Football club dates its birth as 1923, although there is evidence of a Purton Football Club in existence before the First World War with a Purton side playing in the Vale of White Horse League in 1898-99 and the Cirencester & District and Swindon & District League’s at the start of the 20th century. Like a number of clubs, including local neighbours Wootton Bassett Town, it looks like they folded in the early years of the century to then be re-formed in the 1920’s. 

The mid 1920’s saw the club achieve cup success winning the Malmesbury Cup and the Malmesbury Hospitals Cup in both the 1925-26 and 1926-27 seasons. They also won the Cirencester Hospitals Cup in Season 1925-26, a trophy they again won in Season 1937-38. That period in the 1930’s just prior to the Second World War was the start of what was to be a period of great success for the club which was then interrupted by the outbreak of the war. Season 1936-37 saw the club competing in Division 1 of the Wilshire League. A 5th place finish in that season was followed by two 3rd place finishes. Season 1938-39 was to be a particularly successful, as well as that 3rd place finish they also won the prestigious Wiltshire Senior Cup for the first time, defeating Swindon Corinthians in the final. 

The war was to bring a halt to football activities until the 1945-46 Season but Purton did not allow the conflict interrupt their run of success as they entered what was to be a golden period for the club through the latter years of the 1940’s and throughout the 1950’s. The first season after the war saw Purton crowned Wiltshire League champions for the first time, a feat they then repeated for the next two seasons. Season 1948-49 saw them drop to second spot, finishing just two points behind winners Devizes Town, but they had the consolation of lifting the Wiltshire Senior Cup for the second time. The final season of the decade saw a 3rd place finish and the club remained a top six side throughout the early years of the 1950’s. Season 1950-51 saw them again lift the Wilshire Senior Cup and they won the trophy for the fourth time in Season 1954-55. Season 1956-57 saw another championship as they won the Wiltshire Senior League Division 1 title finishing four points clear of nearest rivals Roundway Hospital and Wootton Bassett Town. They almost repeated the achievement the following season when they finished runners-up to Swindon BR and moved up into the Premier Division.

The move to the higher level saw an end to the period of unprecedented success as they found it tougher at the higher level. They were generally at the bottom end of the table and in Season 1962-63 they finished at the very bottom of the table. After finishing in 17th spot in season 1964-65 the club folded, re-forming again ahead of Season 1967-68 in Division 1 of the Wiltshire League, the club finishing 3rd from bottom in their return to action. With the formation of the Wiltshire Combination in Season 1968-69, Purton remained in Wiltshire Division 1 and generally struggled, again finishing bottom of the table in Season 1970-71. The following season, club stalwart Alan Eastwood joined the club and things picked up towards the middle of the 1970’s ahead of the formation of the current Wiltshire County League in Season 1976-77.

Purton started life in this league with a fourth-place finish in Division 2 which earned them promotion to Division 1. Purton once more struggled in the topflight of Wiltshire football, winning just two of their 30 games to finish bottom of the table. The next five seasons were spent back in Division 2, but Season 1982-83 was to start a second period of success for the club as they won the Division 2 title, finishing three points clear of runners-up Chippenham Town Reserves. This time round they adapted well to life in Division 1 and three seasons of gradual improvement saw them crowned champions of Division 1 of the Wiltshire County League (what is now our Premier Division) for the first and only time in Season 1984-85, earning promotion to the Hellenic League as a result, where they were to stay for the next 31 years. 

The early seasons in the Hellenic League saw Purton once again lift the Wiltshire Senior Cup, defeating Wootton Bassett Town in 1987-88 and Highworth Town the following season as they won the trophy for the sixth time. A 3rd place finish in Season 1990-91 was their highest finish in the Hellenic League prior to Season 1995-96, although they did lift the Wiltshire Senior Cup for the 7th and final time in Season 1994-95. Season 1995-96 saw their greatest success to date as the goals of Mark Collier fired them to the Hellenic League Division 1 title, as Purton finished a point clear of runners-up Wantage Town. Eight seasons later in Season 2003-4 that achievement was to be matched in spectacular style as Purton lifted what was now the Division 1 West title for the second time, going the whole season unbeaten in their 34 league games. Sadly for the club they were denied promotion to the Premier Division due to ground criteria rulings. In between the club had twice finished as beaten finalists in the Wiltshire Senior Cup, losing to Highworth Town Season 1997-98 and Pewsey Vale in Season 1999-200. They also won the Hellenic Supplementary Cup in Season 2001-2, defeating Old Woodstock Town 3-1 in the final. Having failed to gain promotion the 2003-4 championship winning side was broken up and subsequent seasons saw them remain in Division 1 West with the highest position achieved being a 5th placed finish in Season 2009-10. At the end of Season 2015-16, after a 6th place finish in Hellenic Division 1 West, Purton were forced by ground grading requirements to drop back down to the Wiltshire Senior League. 

Purton’s return to the Wiltshire Senior League initially saw two top six finishes and they were again going well in Season 2019-20 when Covid brought the season to an early end. Things did not go quite so well when the second season was ended by Covid and Season 2021-22 was to be a really tough season for the club when new manager Andy Ealey's spell in charge did not work out and then new manager Frankie Hunt found it difficult to attract the necessary players to compete at the level and the club were to finish rock bottom with just two wins all season. It was another tough season in 2022-23 with Purton losing all 20 of their league fixtures, scoring just seven goals all season to finish bottom of the table once again.

However, the anticipation was that Season 2023-24 would see a massive change in fortunes with Matty Bennett, joint leading scorer in the Premier Division in Season 2021-22 when with Royal Wootton Bassett Town Development in their title winning season, coming in as player manager along with Peter McGunigall and assembling what looked to be a very strong squad ahead of the season. It proved to be just that as Purton challenged for honours at the top end of the table and went into the final game of the season still in with a chance of the title and promotion but relying on both Park United and Faringdon Town dropping points in their final games. Whilst Purton did what they needed to do to in their final game, unfortunately results elsewhere meant they missed out on a top two finish. Whilst potentially a third place finish could still have meant promotion the club did not want to make the step up knowing that they would need to do a rebuild of thier squad in the summer. With more players not commiting to another season both Bennett and McGunigall stepped down a month before the start of the 2024-25 Season meaning that rebuild job will now be under a new manager.

Purton 2023-24

Purton 2022-23

Purton 2021-22

Purton 2020-21

Purton 2018-19
Purton 2019-20
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