BELGIUM: REFC Évelette (1986-2009) / REFC Évelette-Jallet (2009-2023)

Terrain Saint-Donat, Évelette (formerly REFC Évelette / REFC Évelette-Jallet)

Belgium, province: Namur = Namen

3 V 2016 / REFC Évelette-Jallet - SC Petit-Waret 3-3 / Namur, Provincial League 4 - promotion play-off (= BE level 8)

Timeline

• 1929 / Foundation of a football club in Évelette, which takes on the name Excelsior Football Club (EFC) Évelette. The club obtains registration number 1476 upon being accepted as a new members of the Belgian Football Association (URBSFA / KBVB). It is unclear where EFC Évelette played its home games until 1986. 
• 1954 / Obtaining the royal epithet, EFC Évelette officially changes its name to become Royal Excelsior Football Club (REFC) Évelette. 
• 1986 / REFC Évelette settles at Terrain Saint-Donat.
• 2009 / In its last season as an independent club, REFC Évelette clinches the title in Namur’s Provincial League 4A, 4 points ahead of runners-up Alfa Andenne. As such, the club wins promotion to Provincial League 3. Following the 2008-09 season, REFC Évelette concludes a merger with ES Jallet-Goesnes (a club founded in 1967, registration number 7044), resulting in the foundation of Royal Excelsior Football Club (REFC) Évelette-Jallet, with Évelette’s registration number 1476 being retained. All activities move to Évelette’s Terrain Saint-Donat, with Jallet’s Terrain de la Rue de Hodoumont being abandoned. 
• 2011 / Finishing bottom of the table in Namur’s Provincial League 3A, REFC Évelette-Jallet drops back into Provincial League 4 along with RFC Temploux-Suarlée and FC Andoy-Wierde.
• 2012 / Runners-up in Namur’s Provincial League 4D, 5 points behind champions RSC Neffe, REFC Évelette-Jallet qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which it manages to win both of its group’s games, against ES Pétigny-Frasnes (1-0) and R Gembloux Sport B (1-3). As a result, the club wins promotion to Provincial League 3.
• 2013 / Finishing bottom of the table in Namur’s Provincial League 3C, REFC Évelette-Jallet is retrograded to the bottom division of Namur’s provincial divisions after just one season, along with ES Ardennaise, RCS Condruzien B, and US Viroin-Treignes.
• 2014 / Runners-up in Namur’s Provincial League 4D, 11 points behind runaway champions RUS Méan, REFC Évelette-Jallet qualifies for the promotion play-offs. However, losing both of its group games, against FC Auvelais B (1-4) and FCE Tarciennois (4-3), the club misses out on a return to Provincial League 3 – in spite of a comprehensive win over RCS Entente Mosane in a lucky loser round (3-6), as no extra promotion places turn out to be available.
• 2015 / Runners-up in Namur’s Provincial League 4A, 1 point behind champions FC Naninnois B, REFC Évelette-Jallet qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club finishes in last place in the group stage following defeats against RAS Houyet (1-2) and RWA Sauvenière B (4-1).
• 2016 / Runners-up in Namur’s Provincial League 4C, 3 points behind champions RCS Entente Mosane, REFC Évelette-Jallet qualifies for the promotion play-offs. Being drawn in a group with Flavion Sport B and RSC Petit-Waret, REFC Évelette-Jallet manages to finish top by defeating Flavion B away (0-3) and drawing its home game against Petit-Waret (3-3). As such, the club manages to win promotion to Provincial League 3.
• 2019 / Runners-up in Namur’s Provincial League 3B, 7 points behind champions RFC Sart-Bernard, REFC Évelette-Jallet qualifies for the promotion play-offs, finishing as runners-up in the group stage, but going on to win the lucky loser final against FC Achêne (2-3). As such, the club accedes to Provincial League 2 for the first time since the merger in 2009.
• 2022 / Finishing in third place in Namur’s Provincial League 2B, only 3 points behind champions US Saint-Hadelin Haversin, REFC Évelette-Jallet qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which RCS Profondeville (4-1) and ES Pétigny-Frasnes (3-0) are knocked out in the first two rounds successively. In the final, against Union Bossière Gembloux, Évelette wins the away match (0-2), but the second leg turns into near disaster (0-2, 1-3 A.E.T.), upon which the club wins the penalty shoot-out – thus eventually going on to win a historic promotion to Provincial League 1, a level never attained before by REFC Évelette, ES Jallet-Goesnes, or REFC Évelette-Jallet. The successful coach is Olivier Cauz.
• 2023 / In its first season in Namur’s Provincial League 1, REFC Évelette-Jallet narrowly avoids the drop, finishing in third-last position, just above direct drop-outs RCS Andennais and US Saint-Hadelin Haversin. Also in 2023, businessman José Lardot, former strongman at RUW Ciney, Solières Sport, and R Stade Waremmien FC, takes over the presidency of REFC Évelette-Jallet. With the its ambitions having outgrown the basic Terrain Saint-Donat, the club secures a deal with Ohey’s municipal authorities to be allowed to play its home games at the synthetic pitch of Terrain de la Rue Bois d’Ohey in Ohey proper, thus becoming groundsharers of RSC Oheytois. As REFC Évelette-Jallet does not have a reserves’ team or a youth academy, the move is tantamount to a complete abandonment of Terrain Saint-Donat.

All photos: (c) W.B. Tukker (co-edited by J.C. te Boekhorst) / www.extremefootballtourism.blogspot.com. Publication of any of these images only after permission of author.