History of Bristol Rovers F.C. - The 1890s

The 1890s

The decade began with Eastville Rovers continuing to mainly play friendly matches, as well as taking part in the Gloucestershire Cup each year. In 1890, Rovers again reached the final of this competition, losing 7–2 to Clifton Association in a game that was notable for the fact that the referee was England cricketer W. G. Grace.

In May 1891 the club negotiated a deal to allow them to play at the Schoolmasters Cricket Ground, Horfield for the 1891–92 season. Rovers only played there for one season however, and moved to Durdham Down for 1892–93 season.

1892 was a major landmark in the history of the club, with Eastville Rovers joining an organised league for the first time. Rovers became a founding member of the Bristol & District League (later to become the Western Football League), and their first league game was played on 1 October 1892 against Mangotsfield F.C.. Although it was officially a home game for Rovers, the game was played at Mangotsfield and Rovers were defeated by 3 goals to 1. This first season ended with Rovers placed sixth of the nine teams in the league, with six wins, two draws and eight defeats from the sixteen games played.

The 1893–94 season was a poor one, with Rovers finishing 11th out of 12 teams, with only Mangotsfield F.C. below them in the league. Things improved in 1894–95 however with a 6th place finish. This season saw Rovers move to their fifth home, locating themselves at a ground referred to sometimes as Rudgeway and at other times as Ridgeway in the Fishponds area of the city. On 22 September 1894 the first meeting of the two teams that went on to become Bristol Rovers and Bristol City took place. Bristol South End beat Eastville Rovers 2–1 at St. John's Lane in Bedminster.

For the 1895–96 season the Bristol & District League had renamed itself the Western League and had expanded to two divisions. Eastville Rovers were allocated two places in the league, one in the Division One for the first team and one in Division Two for the second XI. Rovers' first game in the Western League, like their first game in the Bristol & District League three years earlier, was against Mangotsfield. This time, however, the result was a win to Rovers, with the game finishing 4–0. Rovers ended the season tied for second place in the league with Staple Hill, and after a play-off game between them ended in a 2–2 draw the teams were declared joint runners-up.

5 October 1895 saw the first appearance in the FA Cup, although this ended in a 2–0 defeat at the hands of Warmley, and on 25 January 1896 the first competitive match between Eastville Rovers and Bristol South End took place, with Rovers winning 4–0 in the Gloucestershire Cup. In the 1896–97 FA Cup, after having beaten Newbury and Bristol St. George, Rovers were drawn away to Royal Artillery Portsmouth. Rovers decided though that they had no hope of winning the game and decided to save the travel expenses by withdrawing from the competition. During the 1896–97 season, Rovers purchased the Eastville ground from Bristol Harlequins rugby club on 26 March 1897 and on 3 April played their first game there against Aston Villa. This would remain their home for almost 100 years.

During the last few years of the 19th century, Eastville Rovers had gradually become known as Bristol Eastville Rovers, and on 7 February 1899 the club officially changed its name to Bristol Rovers.