Bristol Rovers

Bristol Rovers Club Profile

Bristol Rovers, nicknamed the Pirates and affectionately known by their fans as the Gas, were formed in the Eastville area of Bristol in 1883

The club was originally known as the Black Arabs with the name evolving from Eastville Rovers to Bristol Rovers in 1898. They settled at the Eastville Stadium in 1897 and became founder members of Division Three South in 1920.

It was not until 1953 that Bristol Rovers managed promotion to the Second Division, remaining there for nine years thanks largely to the goalscoring talents of Bristol Rovers players' Geoff Bradford and Alfie Biggs who also won an England cap and who ended his career with 242 goals for Rovers, a club record.

The club reached the sixth round of the FA Cup in both 1951 and 1958, although perhaps their proudest moment in the competition came when they demolished Manchester United's 'Busby Babes' 4-0 in the third round in 1956.

Bristol Rovers' news has been full of trials and tribulations over the last 20 years, notably having to ground share with Bath City for ten years before taking up residence at the city's rugby stadium, the Memorial Ground. Rovers are currently playing their football at Cheltenham's Whaddon Road while the Memorial Ground is being redeveloped.

Throughout this time, however, the club continued to produce a wealth of talent with Nigel Martyn, Ian Holloway, Gary Mabbutt, Jason Roberts, Barry Hayles, Bobby Zamora and Nathan Ellington all making names for themselves at Rovers.

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