Helensburgh Football Club our history

 

Helensburgh F.C. is a continuation of a Club that was formed back in 1981. The Club was then known as Clyde Centre Y.F.C. and was founded in the October of that year as part of the youth club attached to the Community Centre at the old Clyde St School.  There was only one team formed at that time, but Jim Gray, the Club’s Chairman, realised that there were a number of other boys who wished to play football but not necessarily be a member of the community centre.

With this mind Jim decided to pull away from the youth centre, but decided to keep the association via the name and opened the membership to all local boys. This proved very popular and at least 70 boys joined the following season.

The club has always played in and supported the local leagues and has taken part in the old West Dumbartonshire Youth Football League at various age groups – winning a couple of trophies along the way Until this league eventually folded.  By this time the formation of Soccer Sevens had taken hold and a new league run by the West Youth Development league took over from the old guard.

However, this was not the first time the club had taken part in organised small sided games. A year after formation, the club instigated the Clyde Cup, a very popular small sided competition played between local teams at various age groups.  The funds of which normally went to a local good cause.  What eventually happened to this cup and competition is not known, but it was surely one of the forerunners of the now popular Soccer Sevens.

Jumping forward to present day and the club now being known as Helensburgh Football Club. This decision was taken 3 years ago when the committee decided as the Old Clyde Street School was now derelict, the Club would maybe benefit by a re-branding and felt that it would be better renaming the Club after the town from whence they came, whilst, also at that time the local paper ran stories relating to the original Helensburgh F.C. from the late 1800’s.  With this in mind the Club committee decided that they would like to resurrect the name – and so Clyde Centre became Helensburgh F.C. once again.
The present committee and members continue to provide an avenue for the young people of the town and surrounding area to take part in the great game of football, carrying on a tradition that was started over 25 years ago by Jim Gray.