This Saturday we travel to Bilston Town FC for the first time, so here is a bit of information about Bilston Town.
Full Name:- Bilston Town Community Football Club
Nickname:- The Steelmen
Founded:- 1894
Ground:- Queen Street, Bilston
Capacity:- 4000 ( 300 seated)
Chairman:- Graham Hodson
Manager:- Scott Hamilton
League:- West Midlands (Regional) League Premier Division
finished 15th of 20 in 2016-17 season.
The club was founded in 1894 after Bilston Rovers and Bilston Wanderers merged to form Bilston United In 1919 the club moved to Queen Street in Bilston. Between 1894 and 1939 the club was known as Bilston United and Bilston Borough and they played in various local cup competitions as well as the Walsall & District League and Birmingham Combination league. The club was disbanded in 1939 due to the outbreak of World War Two. The club reformed in 1946 simply as Bilston F.C. In 1954 the team joined the Birmingham & District League and won the championship in 1960–61 and again in 1972–73 (by which time the league had been renamed the West Midlands Regional League). In 1983 the club's name changed to Bilston Town F.C.

After finishing as West Midlands Regional League runners-up in 1984–85, the Steelmen were promoted to the Southern Football League, where they spent seventeen seasons in the Midland Division (later re-organised as the Western Division). Their best finish (3rd place) came in 2000–01, but the following season they could only finish 17th, after which they resigned for financial reasons and dropped three levels to the West Midlands League Division One.

After the 2006–07 season Bilston resigned from the West Midlands (Regional) League. In June the club's chairman issued a statement on the club's future:[1]

“ I have had several discussions/meetings and I am now drawing up final details with four interested parties. Three out of the four interested parties have a strong desire to continue a Bilston Town FC. I will post further details as & when a conclusion has been reached ”

Shortly after this the club's official website was shut down. The club was taken from the owners, and reformed as Bilston Town (2007)and accepted back into the West Midlands (Regional) League for the 2007–08 season, albeit in Division Two. The club finished the season in second place behind Wellington Amateurs.[2]

In 2009 the club appointed a new board and manager, with the aim of developing the club as a force within the local community and involving youth teams and leagues across the Black Country. After some mixed results, January 2010 saw Ian Broad appointed as Manager and Adrian Knight as Coach. New players joined the squad and the team finished in mid-table. Off the field the club continued to work within the community, forging strong links with the Bilston Partnership Youth Football League, and various groups working with the probation service and a local Pupil Referral Unit. In 2011 the club started a Saturday Soccer School for local youngsters, and continued its work within the local community, hosting a number of charity events to raise money for local causes. At the end of the 2011–12 season Ian Broad left the club, and was replaced by Andy Rutter as manager.

In his first season in charge Andy Rutter led the club to runners-up in division 1 and promotion was achieved,[3] while also achieving the clubs longest run in the FA Vase for over 10 years. The club also reached the quarter-finals of the Walsall Senior Cup, losing to Southern League team Sutton Coldfield Town after a penalty shoot-out.

Early in the clubs history they played at Prouds Lane, using the nearby Spread Eagle pub as their changing room. They moved to Queen Street after World War One, the opening game there was against Tamworth Castle on 27 September 1919 but several years later the club went bust and the ground was sold to the local council with the proviso that it always be used as a football ground. Within a year of going bust the club reformed and returned to Queen Street and has been playing homes games there ever since. The club house dates back to the mid fifties and floodlights were first installed in 1953.

The ground, as it exists today, can hold 4000 spectators, with 300 of them seated. Vehicles can be parked within the ground itself.

In April 2006 the BBC reported that the club's Queen Street ground had been vandalised over 120 times in six years.[7] In 2007 council officials ruled that the ground was unsafe, forcing the club to move out and play their matches in Bantock Park, a public recreation ground.[8]

In May 2008 Wolverhampton City Council announced plans to redevelop the football ground with a new hotel, restaurants and shops, allowing a complete overhaul of the pitch and terraces.[9] Work on the terraces, clubhouse and dressing rooms was completed in August 2008.[10]

Over the years Queen Street has hosted many local and youth competition finals including the JW Hunt Cup final on a few occasions. It has also been the home of Bustleholme, who ground shared with Bilston for several years. Dudley Town also shared the ground for a season in the mid-1980s after subsidence caused by old mine workings led to the closure of their ground. Wolverhampton Wanderers Reserves and Wolverhampton Wanderers women have both used the ground as a home base too. Willenhall Town will ground share at Queen Street from the 2015-16 season.