Ten things...
Cheltenham
1 They're just a small town in Gloucester but with GCHQ nearby. So we'd better be careful, should someone deliberately be listening closely to results.
2 Cheltenham was a spa long before they finally made it into the Football League. That involved lots of water under the bridge, so were glad not to bottle their last chance.
3 There is a good girls school on the Bath road. Or should that be an eminent education establishment for ladies of a certain class? Apparently they much prefer handling to kicking.
4 Supposedly there were plans to rebuild Whaddon Road main stand like the Promenade in Grecian style. However local nimbys didn't fancy classical colonnades in their back yard, thank you!
5 The Whaddon Road end terrace is now covered for away supporters. This is similar to Regency inspired Montpelier Walk and is an architectural aberration to boot.
6 Cheltenham was formed in 1892 because football fast became a national sport and they were fed up with bloody rugby anyway.
7 They originally played at Carters Field. The story goes they moved from tiny Whaddon Lane when the manager misinterpreted the Chairmans pre-season selection instructions of 'get Carter'.
8 The Robins once played an FA Cup tie at Cheltenham Athletic Ground - guess what happened to the place?
9 In the sixties, seventies and eighties Robins were bobbing along in twilight of Southern League. Then they wanted to fly higher so held a dawn Conference.
10 Gresley Rovers won promotion to the Conference ahead of Cheltenham but their ground was not up to standard. Town luckily got the nod in 1997 and talk about right place and time, merely two years later...
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