Dover Athletic F.C.
Dover Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Dover, Kent. The club was formed in 1983 after the dissolution of the town’s previous club, Dover F. C., whose place in the Southern League was taken by the new club. The team usually wear white shirts and are consequently nicknamed the Whites. They have played at the Crabble Athletic Ground since the club’s formation.
About Dover Athletic F.C. in brief
Dover Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Dover, Kent, England. The club was formed in 1983 after the dissolution of the town’s previous club, Dover F. C., whose place in the Southern League was taken by the new club. The team usually wear white shirts and are consequently nicknamed the Whites. They have played at the Crabble Athletic Ground since the club’s formation. In the 1989–90 season Dover Athletic won the. Southern League championship, but failed to gain promotion to the Football Conference as the. club’s ground did not meet the required standard. Three seasons later the team won the title again and this time gained promotion. to the Conference, where they spent nine seasons before being relegated at the end of the 2001–02 season. In 2007 the club won Division One South of the league, before winning the Premier Division in 2008–09 and thus gaining promotion to Conference South. They spent five seasons in this division, reaching the play-offs three times, before defeating Ebbsfleet United in the 2013–14 play-off final to finally return to Conference Premier after a twelve-year absence. In 2014 the club entered a Voluntary Arrangement process by which insolvent companies offset their debts against future profits, due to their debts that were estimated at £400,000. Former manager Gary Bellamy was sacked after just six months in the job. Everton goalkeeper Neville Southworth took over but was dismissed just three months later with the club rooted to the foot of the table.
In March 2002 the club finished the first season back in Southern League Premier Division, back in third place, adrift of Tamworth who claimed the promotion back to the Southern Premier Division. In May 2001 the club was in severe financial difficulties, with a number of directors resigning and debts exceeding £100,000, and the entire board of directors resigned, forcing the Supporters’ Trust to take over the running of the club. In November 2002, Dover finished the bottom of the Conference and was relegated to the back of the Premier League. The next season Dover finished 17 points adrift, albeit 17 points behind Tamworth, who claimed one place back in the back place, and were relegated to Southern League Division One. In April 2003, the club were relegated back to Conference Division One, and finished the season in the bottom spot. In December 2003, Dover were relegated from the Conference to the Isthmian League’s Premier Division for one season before mounting financial problems led the club to a further relegation. In January 2004, Dover was forced to pay a £1,000 fine to a creditors’ group in order to avoid liquidation. In June 2004 the club paid a fine to the creditors to offset its debts, but the club remained in the Conference Premier. In July 2005, the creditors paid the club a further £500,000 to offset the debts that had been incurred by the club during the previous season, and they were forced to leave the league.
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