Eventful Southern League Spell for Rangers

It`s fair to say that Stafford Rangers` nine-year spell as a Southern Football League club was `eventful`!

One of the founder members of the Alliance Premier League in 1979/80 and FA Trophy winners in 1971/72 and 1978/79, Rangers had been a real force in the Northern Premier League in its early years.

They were never quite as successful at the highest level of non-League football though and were relegated in 1982/83 only to bounce back two seasons later.

But Rangers were relegated again at the end of the 1994/95 season and for the first time, due to geographical reasons, were placed in the Southern League Premier Division for the first time.

The slide coincided with a plethora of managers coming and going at Marston Road.

Under the management of Dennis Booth, Rangers enjoyed a tremendous 1992/93 campaign, finishing sixth in the Conference and reaching the FA Cup Second Round, defeating Lincoln City in a First Round replay at Marston Road.

After Booth departed for Bristol Rovers, Brendan Phillips, who had been hugely successful as boss of Nuneaton Borough, took over but left in 1994 and former goalkeeper Mark Harrison (left), who had played for Rangers in 1987/88, took over as player-manager.

Harrison, who later took charge of the Bangladesh national side and still manages in his home country of South Africa, left in June 1995 to return to his homeland.

The club turned to local man Bob Horton to steady the ship. However, having enjoyed a successful time in charge of Midland Alliance neighbours Knypersley Victoria, Horton`s side lost their opening five league games, and he left the club after just seven weeks in charge.

Former Wolves and Wales favourite George Berry, who did a good job as caretaker boss when Phillips left, again took the helm but stated he didn`t want the job as he was already Stafford`s commercial manager as well as still playing.

Kevan Bowen took over in October 1995 and Rangers had not gained a point.

The local man made an immediate impact and achieved satisfactory results in the second half of the season, but the damage had already been done at the start and the club was relegated for the second successive season.

With an ambition to take Stafford back to their former heights in non-League football, the Board appointed former Norwich City and Manchester City defender Kevin Bond – son of John Bond - as manager towards the end of 1997.

Despite some good performances Rangers ended the season in a mid-table position and Bond moved on to Portsmouth.

Former Stoke City and Coventry City forward Ian Painter succeeded Bond in the 1998 close season and in his first term in charge Rangers finished fifth in the Southern Midland Division with the distinction of being the equal highest scorers in the Pyramid with 92 goals.

In 1999/00, following a slow start, a strengthened side achieved a club record unbeaten run of 23 games in Division One West – the divisions having been split into East and West rather than Midland and South.

Rangers were once again equal highest scorers in the Pyramid with 107 goals and duly won the championship, finishing three points in front of Moor Green.

After two seasons in the Premier Division, finishing seventh and ninth respectively, Painter left the club in April 2002.

During Painter's final season, Rangers recorded a club-record 15–0 victory over Kidsgrove Athletic in a Staffordshire Senior Cup tie in November 2001.

Phil Robinson, whose playing career took him to several top League clubs around the East and West Midlands, such as Wolves, Notts County and Stoke City, joined his home-town club as player-manager in the 2002 close season and immediately set about creating a structure to develop young local talent with the introduction of reserve and youth teams.

He retained only a few of Painter's squad which led to increased support on the terraces due to improved results.

They finished second in the Southern Premier Division, reached the FA Cup First Round for the first time in a decade and brought the Staffordshire Senior Cup back to Marston Road with a 5–1 victory over Stoke City at Port Vale's Vale Park.

Robinson's second season in charge, 2003/04, brought more success with Rangers this time finishing third in the league behind Crawley Town and Weymouth to earn a place amongst the Conference North as one of the founder members and end their spell as members of the Southern League.