Gretna F.C.

Formation

An amateur club called Gretna Green had existed in the town in the 19th century, but were bankrupt by the 1920s. This left the area without a team until Gretna Football Club was founded in 1946 by local workers and servicemen returning from the Second World War. Former professional footballer James Kerr was one of the club's founders and as part of the club's committee, his opinion held sway when picking the team. The club initially played in the Dumfries and District Junior League.

Period in English football

The following year, the club moved to the Carlisle and District League. This was despite the club being based in Scotland, albeit very close to the Anglo-Scottish border. They remained in this league for all but one season until 1982, when the club moved to the newly created Second Division of the Northern League. The club won this league and were promoted immediately, before back-to-back championship wins in the First Division, in 1990–91 and 1991–92, resulted in their promotion to the first division of the Northern Premier League. During this period, the club featured in the FA Cup, becoming the first club based in Scotland to appear in the competition proper since Queens Park in 1887. They managed to take Rochdale to a replay in 1991 and gave Bolton Wanderers a scare in 1993 before being beaten. The club saw its future in Scottish football and applied twice to join the Scottish League in 1993 and 1999. To help boost their later…

Mike McCartney (1988–2000) Rowan Alexander (2000–2007) Davie Irons (2007–08) Andy Smith (2008) Mick Wadsworth (2008)

English football

Northern League Division One Champions (2): 1990–91, 1991–92 Runners-up (1): 1989–90 Northern League Division Two Runners-up (1): 1982–83 Cumberland Senior Cup Champions (11): 1958–59, 1959–60, 1966–67, 1982–83, 1983–84, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1991–92, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1996–97 Runners-up (8): 1952–53, 1956–57, 1960–61, 1967–68, 1974–75, 1977–78, 1985–86, 1992–93

Scottish football

Scottish Cup Runners-Up (1): 2005–06 Scottish Football League Division One Champions (1): 2006–07 Scottish Football League Division Two Champions (1): 2005–06 Scottish Football League Division Three Champions (1): 2004–05