Minster FC
MINSTER FC
| CLUB NAME | Minster FC |
| CHAIRMAN | Colin Holden |
| SECRETARY | Steven Farbrace
stevefarbrace@icloud.com |
| FIXTURES SECRETARY | Steven Farbrace
stevefarbrace@icloud.com |
| PROGRAMME EDITOR | Colin Holden
minsterfootballclub@gmail.com |
| FIRST TEAM MANAGER | Ian Wallace |
| MIDWEEK FIXTURES | Tuesday |
| CLUB WEBSITE | https://www.facebook.com/MinsterFC |
| HOME KIT | Amber and Black |
| GOALKEEPER HOME | Green |
| AWAY KIT | Blue |
| GOALKEEPER AWAY | Orange |
| PITCH DIMENSIONS | 100x65m |
GROUND NAME AND DIRECTIONS
Hartsdown Park, Hartsdown Road, Margate CT9 5QZ
From junction 2 of the M25 take the A2 and then the M2 towards Dover. On reaching the end of M2 take the A299 towards Margate.
Stay on the A299 for 16 miles until you reach the roundabout and take the 2nd turning for the A28 towards Margate. After 4 miles you will see the Margate boundary sign, and the dual carriage way will become a 2-way road.
After passing the BP garage and a pub called the Hussar, both on the right, you will pass through a set of traffic lights, take the 2nd right onto George V avenue (signposted Ramsgate A254), and follow it up and around to the left passing the Hartsdown Academy School on your right.
At the end of this road you will reach a T junction, turn right into Hartsdown Road. The entrance to the ground is a little further down on the left-hand side.
MINSTER FC – CLUB HISTORY
You will have seen from the club crest that Minster Football Club is over 100 years old, with only the two World Wars getting in the way of its continued existence – a matter not taken lightly, as club players and staff fought for their country during these difficult times.
The club photographs displayed in the main hall of our Minster pavilion remind us of our history and the generations of players who have represented the club.
Throughout these years there have been successful teams – most notably during the 1960s – who played the game in the right spirit and set the foundations for future generations to continue.
A difficult period in the early 1980s saw the club, with only a single team at the time, almost fail to finish a season in the Thanet League due to a lack of players and support.
My father Ralph, also known locally as Colin, stepped in to gather as many eligible youngsters as possible – including myself – to register and play those final matches to keep the club alive. The results didn’t matter; there was a much bigger objective in maintaining the continuity of the club.
For us 16 and 17-year-old lads at the time, we were finally playing for Minster – a team we had watched from the sidelines for many years. The following seasons saw the club begin to build again from the very bottom upwards.
Our club has grown quickly over the past 12 or 13 years, building on the success of a very young team managed by Ian Wallace. That side progressed through the Canterbury & District League and into the Kent County Football League, eventually reaching the Premier Division.
There, we consolidated our standing with finishes of second, fourth, second and second across four seasons.
That progress has now led to the club being accepted for promotion to the Southern Counties East Football League First Division as we begin an historic 2026/27 season at Step 6 of the National League System for the first time.
This is the highest level at which the club has competed since it was formed in 1911, and we are proud to have reached this moment.
We now have three further adult teams, which have been added over the past six years, and have developed a pathway for young players from within the area to progress with their football.
Our veterans team continues to enjoy its football in the local Len Martin Thanet & District League, while we now have two youth teams at Under-16 and Under-18 level. Previous youth teams have provided players for our adult squads over the years as that pathway has continued to take shape.
Last season, the club also established a women’s football team for the first time since the 1960s, when Minster were one of the original female teams in the area.
While we have enjoyed good fortune on the pitch over the past few years, backed by a huge amount of effort away from matchdays, we continue to be a club that sees long-term friendships and a sense of community spirit as the real “winning”.
We are a village team that will continue to use football to build competitive spirit alongside friendships that will last a lifetime.