A LOOK INTO HISTORY 218

A LOOK INTO HISTORY TWO HUNDRED AND EIGHTEEN
WILLESDEN (HAWKEYE) FC
Willesden Hawkeye FC was founded in 1984 by Roy Forbes-Allen of the Hawkeye Record Shop and Bakery in Craven Park Road to build a club to provide local talented players an opportunity to display their skills and compete with established senior teams in the South-East region.
They started out in the Brent Astro-Turf league during 1984/85 then joined the West London Football Combination two years later winning it in 1988/89. On an upward move next to come was the Middlesex County League as Hawkeye Willesden and they won their division in consecutive seasons plus the Middlesex Premier Cup, 1989-90 and in 1990-91 lost only one game, a 1-3 defeat by New Hanford on 12th January 1991.
The club gained senior status in 1990 progressing to the London Spartan League Division One winning the title in 1991-92 their first season. Their home ground at this stage was the Willesden Stadium and in 1992 they moved to their new home at the West London Stadium allowing them to compete in the Premier Division.

Our Match Programme, given away with £2 admission, is for a match in that first season at the West London Stadium, later to be called the Linford Christie Stadium, played on 14th November 1992 against Eltham Town and had a glossy four pages with a typed insert with a welcome, opponents history and a league table that showed their name, although top at the time, spelt incorrectly ! One famous name in that line-up was their No 2, Barry Hayles who went to Stevenage FC in 1994. 9 Clubs of note in the 22 that 1992/93 season were Cheshunt, Barkingside, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Abbey, Cockfosters, Haringey Borough, St Margaretsbury, Corinthian Casuals and Hanwell Town. Their final position at the seasons end was 4th behind champions Brimsdown Rovers but glory came in 1993/94 when, despite having three points deducted, won the league, two points ahead of Croydon Athletic with St Margaretsbury third. Dropping down to 15th place in 1995-96 with St Margaretsbury the champions was the final time we saw the club and they folded with Simba All Stars moving in though the stadium lights at the time beamed only on the athletic track and not the football field. They had a Reserve side for just one season, 1994-95 in the Spartan League Division Two with one game at home v Woodford 94 not played.