NEWBRIGHTONAFC.COM

HISTORY

The New Brighton Association Football Club was formed by seven people meeting in a house in Hawke Street in 1924.  The club became defunct around 1932. 

Some 27 years later on 16 September 1959, a meeting was held in Rawhiti Memorial Sports Pavilion in Shaw Avenue, where the present club was formed. 

The club entered teams in the second and fourth divisions of the Canterbury Football Association competition, plus two junior teams.

In the first season, New Brighton’s first team failed to win a game, but made full amends the following year (1961) by winning the second division championship.  The team was coached by life member Mr Chris Saxon.  The reserve team finished in fourth place in division four. 

New Brighton then had a meritorious rise in only three seasons from second division to the Premier League. 

After finishing mid-table in the Premier League in 1963 and 1964, New Brighton was relegated in 1965.  Playing in the second division under player coach Mr Terry Conley they walked away with a 100% record coring 85 goals for and only 7 against.

In 1967 New Brighton finished runner up in both the Hurley Shields and the Canterbury section of the Chatham Cup.

1968 brought the formation of the new Southern League Competition between Christchurch, Timaru, Dunedin and Invercargill.  New Brighton was placed in division two amongst howls of protest.  Despite the resignation of eight first team players, New Brighton won the Southern League division two and was promoted to division one for 1969.

1969 was to date the clubs best achievement on the playing field.  We made the final of the Chatham Cup, beaten by the hot favourites Eastern Suburbs of Auckland 2-0

In 1970 we were fourth in Southern League after leading the competition for eight weeks.

1971 saw New Brighton’s first team as winners of Southern League and winners of the playoff series, gaining promotion to the Rothmans National League.  Long serving NBAFC Secretary Mr Brian Hennessy dies on November 27^th aged 41 years.

New Brighton played National Football for six years with mixed fortunes.  Surviving relegation at the end of the first season on goal difference, they did little better in 1973 finishing ninth.

1974 was however their best season finishing 3^rd behind Mt Wellington and Christchurch United

1975 saw them slip back to ninth place in the National League with the following year seeing a revival to fourth.  1977 saw the end of National League Football for New Brighton, with an increase to 12 teams and automatic relegation for the bottom three teams where New Brighton finished 10^th on goal difference. 

Meanwhile the Reserve Team had built up quite a reputation playing in the Southern League division two, North Championships, where they were 5^th place in 1972 and 1977, winners 1973, runners up 1974 and 1976, and third in 1975.

But for New Brighton’s first team the slump was to continue, being relegated from Southern League first division in 1978.

When the first team finished 2^nd to Halswell in division two in 1979 it looked like New Brighton would have to wait another year for a chance to play Southern League division one, but a change in format splitting the League into a North and South zone was a reprieve. 

February 1979 was a milestone in the clubs history with the commencement of the building of a gymnasium and club complex in Bexley Road.  After purchasing four acres of land in Pages Road in 1967, after years of negotiating between the club and the Christchurch City Council, before the present site was agreed to and permission granted to build. 

The split North and South zone leagues saw the first team finish mid table in 1980 and 4^th in 1981.

On the 8^th June 1981, the first Management Committee meeting was held in the new clubrooms. 

Over the next four seasons New Brighton’s first team  maintained a mid table position, at times looking to be a team of considerable promise, winning games against top teams but dropping points to teams lower in the competition. 

This changed in 1986, when under Terry Conley, New Brighton finished 2^nd to Halswell in the North zone. In the process gaining the best goals total (41) and sharing the best defensive record (14 conceded) in the league.

Another change in the league structure with a return to a full Southern traveling league found New Brighton and five other Christchurch clubs back in the Division 2 North. After winning the qualifying league group, New Brighton finished 3^rd to ChCh technical in the 1987 season.

A frustrating 2 seasons in 1988 and 1989 for the Harry McCosh lead side, found the 1^st team comfortably winning the Division 2 North competitions only to fail in the play offs both years.

1990 through to 1992 found mid table results. An accomplishment considering the heartbreak after 2 seasons of missing out on the playoffs and a massive player exodus. The aptly named “survivors” team of 1991 & 1992 lead by Gary Phillips and Jamie Macgregor, showing the true spirit of New Brighton Players.

1993 found the 1^st team with Ray Burney in charge miss out on winning the league narrowly to Cashmere, but 1994 was the year where Harry McCosh returned and finally got the win in the playoff we had all be after. A comfortable win in Dunedin over Caversham found New Brighton back in the top flight of Southern league football. The “Dream team” 2^nd team by finishing 2^nd in division 1 also gained a spot in the Southern league reserve league for 1995 season.

1994 the kitchen and function room toilet extension was added to the Bexley Road complex.

1993 and 1994 was also the period of time when the Rovers Sunday league side was integrated into the New Brighton AFC.

During the nineties, Harry McCosh, Fred Simpson, Gary Phillips and Keith Howard all had stints in charge as the trend of player turnover continued. However the Woman’s and Sunday sections continued to blossom in numbers and with good results.

Barry McTauge’s return to the club saw an improvement in the 1^st team to match that of the growing facilities and ground improvements at Bexley.

The New Brighton Masters team was first sighted in 2002. A year the 1 st team finished mid table. Better results were gained by the Sunday and Woman’s sections who dominated their respective divisions.

Mike Poole’s arrival as 1st team coach in 2003 saw the team finish mid table again, after leading early in the season. The woman’s 2^nd team secured the knock out competition.

2004 saw Reserve team coach Don Saxon follow in his father’s footsteps to coach the New Brighton 1^st team. It was always going to be a difficult job after being handed the job at the last minute following the resignation of Mike Poole. The team failed to fire and finished last in the Mainland league, however managed to pull together to fend off Burnside in the playoffs. The Premier woman’s team made it through to the quarter finals of the Uncle Toby’s cup where they were beaten by Seatoun.

The Sunday section did the double by both the 1^st and 2^nd teams winning their cup competitions.

HONOURS

1969; Finalists Chatham cup final

1971; Winners Southern league

1972-1977; National league team

1988; Finalists Hertz cup

1965; Winners English cup

FULL INTERNATIONALS

MEN                                                               WOMAN

Ken France                                                     Zarnia Cogle

Owen Nuttridge                                              Jane Simpson

Derek Phillips

Alex Smith

Graham Storer

Club Officials 1959-2005

Patrons

1959-1969       J Mathison MP and S Clothier

1961                S Clothier

1962                V Gable

1963                J Laing

1964-65           R Marriot

1973-1984       J Jeffries

Presidents 

1959-1961       A Hodges

1962-1964       E Lineham

1965                R Aitcheson   

1966-1967       R Wilkinson  

1968                J Parleton      

1969                R Wilkinson

1970-1973       R Storer

1974-1975       B Lapthorne

1976-1977       M Bennie

1978-1986       N McIntosh

1987-1990       A Hoogerwerf

1991                G Bowden

1992-1994       J McTague

1995-1998       P Tonkin

1999-2001       T Dowell

2002-2005       S Ager

Secretaries

1959-1960              A. Farr

1961-1967       B Hennessy                           

1968                R Hutson                                           

1969-1970       B Hennessy                                       

1970                R Hutson                                           

1972-1979       D Robinson                                       

1980-1981       J McTague                                        

1982                T Bradshaw, L Johnstone                 

1983                Ms J Gretorex                                              

1984 -1988      J McTague                                        

1989                L Hide

1990-1992       Ms L Stanley

1993                J McTague

1994                Ms E Lapthorne

1994-1995       Ms J Craig

1997                Ms R Fraser

1998                P Tonkin, D Sparks

1999-2000       D Sparks

2001                K Jones

2002                P Bradshaw

2003-2005       Ben McNabb

Life Members