Enfield's oldest football club still going strong after nearly 120 years

What started out as an old boys’ club for former Enfield Grammar School pupils has expanded to around 200 players across multiple teams, writes Sienna Mahoney

After 119 years, they have earned the title of “oldest football club in Enfield”.

Enfield Old Grammarians Football Club started out in 1907 and, in recent seasons, have become the borough’s highest-ranked fully amateur club, and their first eleven have now won four trophies in two years.

The club started out as a “gateway” for old Enfield Grammar School students to continue playing football after they left. But now, the football club is open to anyone who wants to get involved, from a competitive or a social aspect.

Ben Hooke admits the club remains “quite old school”. He started out as a student at Enfield Grammar and joined the club in 2014 when he left the school.

After rejoining the club in 2021, Ben has gone on to become first team manager and club vice-chairman.

“Most people went to the grammar school,” he says. “I’m still playing with people I knew from school.”

But not all are former Enfield Grammar pupils, and the club is now home to around 200 players across five teams, plus a veterans’ team.

Despite the club being established in 1907, their major successes came more recently. The first eleven team finally won the Amateur FA Senior Cup in 2024/25, for the first time in the club’s history.

“We’ve had four cup finals that we’ve competed in,” says Ben. “We won our league unbeaten. We won three trophies.”

In the Southern Amateur League, the club’s third eleven are one of the highest ranked and means they are competing against other clubs’ second elevens.

As a manager, Ben oversees the first team. “It’s a lot of fun [but] a lot of admin,” said Ben. “I grew into it over time.”

Ben describes the club as more democratic than what would be expected. Each team also has multiple captains that help to run the team, it’s not just the manager.

The club often hosts social nights for their members as well.

“I think this is what makes us different from other clubs,” says Ben.

Each social night allows members to get to know each other outside of a competitive setting, in a more relaxed atmosphere. Some social nights that they offer include barbecue nights, casual football tournaments, darts nights, and more.

Find out more about Enfield Old Grammarians via Instagram:
Visit instagram.com/eogfc

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