IN OPPOSITION TODAY Paget Rangers History The club was established in 1938 by pupils of Paget Road School in Erdington, Birmingham and was accepted into the Intermediate Division of the Birmingham Juvenile Organisation Committee. In their first two seasons Paget enjoyed instant success, winning the league title on both occasions; however the outbreak of the 2nd World War brought a halt to progress. Following the outbreak of peace, Paget joined the Birmingham Youth and Old Boys AFA, before moving to the Central Amateur League in 1949 and then the Worcestershire Combination (now Midland Combination) in 1950. In 1951 Paget Rangers purchased a site on Springfield Road in Walmley for a cost of £550. Springfield Road was to be Paget’s home for the next 42 years. The 1950s was a decade of consolidation for The Bears, before experiencing their first major success in 1960 when a unique quadruple was achieved. Paget won the Midland Combination League Title, The Midland Combination League Cup, The Birmingham Junior Cup and the Sutton Coldfield Charity Cup. Paget went on to retain the league title again in 1961. Further success followed in 1967 when Paget Rangers defeated Alvechurch to win the Midland Combination League cup (Alvechurch had beaten Paget in the previous year’s final). In 1970 Paget won the Midland Combination Premier Division for the third time, following that success with a second-place finish in 1971. In 1971 the club erected floodlights at Springfield Road, becoming the first Midland Combination club to have floodlights in the process. The switching on of the lights was marked by a visit of Aston Villa to Springfield Road, drawing a crowd in excess of 2000. Paget Rangers won their 4th Midland Combination League Cup in 1983 and a 5th success soon followed in 1986, earning Paget Rangers a place in the Southern League for the first time. Unfortunately a mass exodus of players following the departure of manager Eddie Caulfield to local rivals Sutton Coldfield Town undermined the club’s progress and after one season in the Southern League the club was relegated to the West Midlands (Regional) League. Paget adapted to live in the West Midlands (Regional) League and achieved a top half finish in all but one season between 1988 and 1994. The highest place achieved during this period was a second-place finish in 1992, when Gresley Rovers won the title. Success was achieved in the League Cup however in 1992, when Paget Rangers defeated Gresley Rovers in a thrilling final. The club also reached the final of the League Cup in both 1993 and 1994, but finished as runners-up on both occasions. In 1993 Paget Rangers sold their Springfield Road ground for housing development for a fee believed to be in excess of £1.4million. Whilst a site for a new home was sought Paget Rangers began a groundshare agreement with local rivals Sutton Coldfield Town. In 1994, following league restructuring, Paget were elected as founder members of the new Midland Football Alliance. Paget won the inaugural championship in 1994/95 by a twelve-point margin from Hinckley Athletic to once again achieve promotion to the Southern League Midland Division. The 1994-95 season was an outstanding season for Paget as in addition to claiming the Midland Football Alliance Championship, they won the Lord Mayor of Birmingham's Charity Cup when beating Moor Green in the final, and finished as runners-up in the Staffordshire Senior Cup to Stoke City. The same season saw them reach the semi-final of the Birmingham Senior Cup, thus enjoying their best ever run in the competition which included a 2–1 victory over Coventry City in the quarter final. However, they were beaten by Aston Villa but not before putting on a spirited performance at Villa Park. In all, throughout the 1994/95 season, a total of five Southern League Clubs were beaten in various cup competitions. The first season in the Southern League was an instant success, with a 5th-place finish, including memorable victories over both Tamworth and run-away leaders Nuneaton Borough. In fact Paget Rangers were top at Christmas, but the sale of star striker Ian Bennett and midfielder David Campbell to Leicester United undermined any hopes of a second successive promotion. CONTINUED ON PAGE 19
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