Welcome back to the cottage, Fulham FC
When I popped out to my local cornership to get the paper today, there were clearly more people about than usual. In fact, it was kinda difficult to cross the street and the hundreds of colourfull shirts, flags, banners and other football-like gear being carried by the crowd all heading in the same direction gave it away: Fulham Football Club is back home again.
For the record, I know very little about English football (soccer) and even less about the actual clubs, their league ranking and so on. But when I moved to Hammersmith & Fulham about 2 1/2 years ago, I did notice the large football club grounds close to my flat.
It was standing unused and empty till recently, when I saw some building work going on there. Which made me enquire about it a bit more.
Fans affectionately call the grounds “The Cottage” - perhaps, I guess, because it is a rather tiny stadium. (Tiny that is in comparison to grounds like Chelsea.) More likely they call it that because officially it is known as Craven Cottage. It’s also smack-bang in a residential area, on the river, and I believe that it’s residential location is one of the reasons why plans for a major re-development have failed, as local residents objected to a bigger stadium.
I don’t know the full story as to how it came about that Fulham FC could no longer play at The Cottage, but it turns out that they’ve been sharing grounds with Chelsea though that arrangement also turned sour. I also picked up on the Fulham Supporters Club which began as the “Back to the Cottage” campaign, formed after Fulham Football Club announced it had ditched plans to redevelop Craven Cottage on the lines of the planning permission received in February 2001.
According to the Fulham FC website, Fulham FC is the oldest of London’s first class clubs and its long history began back in 1879 with some Sunday-school boys knocking a ball around on a long-forgotten park pitch.
Fulham FC had it’s worst day in January of 1996 when it dropped to the bottom of the league, stared financial ruin in the face and had a host of other worries. They needed a miracle to survive and they got one: On May 29th 1997 Mohamed Al Fayed announced to the public that he had purchased the freehold of Craven Cottage, along with a major shareholding in the Club. (The same guy who owns Harrods.) He laid out a plan to take Fulham back into the premiership within 5 years, which was met with a lot of scepticism.
They got there in the 2001/02 seaon and today will see the first Premiership game back at the Cottage, with Fulham playing against Bolton Wanderers.
Which explains the crowds mentioned at first.
I think I just heard the opening whistle through my open balcony door. Welcome back, Fulham FC, and the best of luck against Bolton today.
- Riaan
London
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Nice story BUT you should know that the bit about Mr Fiad saving Fulham Fc is incorrect.
FFC was in the old division 2 at the time and playing nice football after being promoted the previous year.
FFC did not have large money problems and owned the ground as its biggest asset. Since Mr Fayed took
Ownership of the club he has taken the ground away and owns it under another company and FFC pays rent on its own ground?
He tried to gain planning permission to build flats on the ground as well, but a vigorous fight by true Fulham fans once again saved the club.
Yes Fulham fans are grateful for the positive things he has done for our club but he need to understand he will only ever own the top layer, everything under hat belongs to Fulham fans.
If he ever sells up or when he dies FFC will always be around. Ask Wimbledon fans, if you dont beleave me.