Extreme Football Tourism: NETHERLANDS: vv 't Fean '58 (1972-2023) / vv Surhuisterveen (1972-1979) / FC Surhústerfean (B) (2023-)

Sportpark 't Ketting West, Surhuisterveen = Surhústerfean (B pitch of FC Surhústerfean, formerly vv Surhuisterveen / vv 't Fean '58)

Netherlands, province: Frisia = Friesland

4 VI 2022 / vv 't Fean '58 - SC Joure 2-2 / Saturday League 2I (= NL level 7)

Timeline

1935 / After over a decade of irregular football activities in the village of Surhuisterveen, a first football club sees the daylight which seeks affiliation to FVB (Friesche Voetbalbond), the Frisian branch of the official Netherlands' FA (KNVB). The new club, given the name vv Surhuisterveen, starts its life in FVB's Sunday Division 3. The club's first ground is Terrein Boer Nieuwland at Groningerstraat.
± 1945 / Shortly after the liberation of the Netherlands, vv Surhuisterveen, hitherto a Sunday league club, starts a Saturday league branch, allowing boys from the village's evangelical community to join the club as well. Possibly in 1946, for the first time, the club enters first teams in both Sunday and Saturday league football.
1948 / Winning the title in FVB Saturday Division 2, vv Surhuisterveen's Saturday league team accedes to FVB Saturday Division 1.
1950 / With vv Surhuisterveen's Sunday league branch acceding to KNVB Sunday League 4 for the first time, a move to a new ground has become unavoidable, given that Terrein Boer Nieuwland (Groningerstraat) does not have the correct measurements for official football matches. A solution is found at Lauwersweg, where the club rent a plot of land from the local Reformed Church.
1952 / Clinching the title in FVB Saturday Division 1, vv Surhuisterveen's Saturday league team qualifies for a promotion play-off against vv Balk, but is defeated - although it takes a third match (played at a neutral venue, Oranjewoud) to determine the winner -, thus missing out on promotion.
1954 / Finishing as runners-up in FVB Saturday Division 1, vv Surhuisterveen's Saturday league branch is admitted to KNVB Saturday League 4 due to extra promotion places being available.
1955 / In its first year in Saturday League 4, vv Surhuisterveen's Saturday team finishes 7th, thus dropping back into FVB Division 1.
1958 / Having finished in 5th place in FVB Saturday Division 1B in the 1957-58 season, vv Surhuisterveen's Saturday branch, led by Ipo Westra, decides to break away and found a separate football club, which is given the name vv 't Fean '58. The two main reasons for the break-up are, firstly, disagreement among protestant-christian members about a football pool being organised by the club; and, secondly, a more generally felt dissatisfaction about Saturday league activities being regarded disdainfully by the part of the membership dedicated to Sunday league football. Being recognised as the regular successors of vv Surhuisterveen's Saturday branch, vv 't Fean '58 does not have to start at the bottom of the league ladder, instead continuing life in FVB Division 1. Although emotions must have played a part in the break, both clubs continue to share the same pitch in the following years, with floodlights being added in 1958 to allow midweek training sessions being held.
1959 / Coached by Hendrik Mozes, vv 't Fean '58 gets off to an inconspicuous start, suffering relegation to FVB Saturday Division 2 in its first season as an independent club.
1960 / Still guided by Hendrik Mozes, vv 't Fean '58 finds its way back to FVB Saturday Division 1. Also in 1960, a second pitch is added to Terrein Lauwersweg, commonly used by vv Surhuisterveen and vv 't Fean '58.
1962 / Winning the title in FVB Division 1 following a neck-and-neck race with vv Kollum, vv 't Fean '58 wins promotion to KNVB Saturday League 4 for the first time as an independent club.
1963 / A practice pitch is added to Terrein Lauwersweg, bringing the total of available pitches at the park up to three.
1964 / Although there is talk of a new municipal sports park to be laid out elsewhere in Surhuisterveen in the near future, vv Surhuisterveen and vv 't Fean '58 build a new clubhouse with dressing rooms at Terrein Lauwersweg.
1966 / A start is made on the works to bring about a new municipal park, Sportpark 't Ketting.
1968 / The club's 10th anniversary is celebrated with a six-team-tournament at Terrein Lauwersweg, won by vv Houtigehage.
1969 / After 3 years, the pitches at Sportpark 't Ketting having been laid out, the park is ready for use - were it not for the fact that there are no clubhouse and dressing rooms available yet. As long as this situation continues, no matches can be played in the new surroundings.
1972 / Along with vv Surhuisterveen - as well as the village's netball club and two gymnastic clubs -, vv 't Fean '58 moves into Sportpark 't Ketting, which has finally been adorned with a clubhouse, shared by all four clubs. On the inaugural day, with the ceremonies being performed by Surhuisterveen's mayor, Huib Ottevanger, vv Surhuisterveen and vv 't Fean 58 play a friendly match on the main pitch, which will be shared by both clubs for the time being. Meanwhile, Terrein Lauwersweg is abandoned after 22 years, later being taken over by Riemersma, a stroller factory.
1973 / With the decisive goal being scored by Willem Bethlehem in a defeat of OKVC (1-0), vv 't Fean '58 clinches the title in Saturday League 4B ahead of CVV Be Quick Dokkum. The coach helping the club to gain promotion to Saturday League 3 is Taeke de Haan.
1979 / A start is made on the construction of a new clubhouse and dressing rooms at the eastern end of Sportpark 't Ketting, to the south of the park's B pitch. The premises are intended to be made use of by vv Surhuisterveen, the netball club and the two gymnastic clubs - but not by vv 't Fean '58.
1980 / Their new clubhouse being finished in December 1979, vv Surhuisterveen moves into the building in the early months of 1980. From now on, this club uses the park's B pitch as its main pitch, leaving behind vv 't Fean 58 on the (formerly shared) A pitch. Later in 1980, vv 't Fean 58 also replaces the original clubhouse with a new, more modern construction, which is inaugurated with a gala match of a regional selection taking on an all-star team including the likes of Rinus Israël and Piet Wildschut. On a less cheerful note, vv 't Fean '58 finishes the 1979-80 season in an 11th and second-last place in Saturday League 3A, thus dropping out of that division after a spell of 7 seasons. Trainer Wijnand Germs, who had led the club's first team during all those 7 years, steps down.
1984 / Although finishing second-last in Saturday League 4B, vv 't Fean '58 manages to stay up by winning a relegation play-off.
1996 / As a 'Hoofdklasse' is introduced as the new top tier of the nationwide Saturday league pyramid, above Saturday League 1, extra promotion places are available in the lower divisions; as such, vv 't Fean '58, finishing 4th in District North's Saturday League 4B that year, manages a direct promotion to League 3 after an absence of 16 seasons.
1997 / Coached by Jacob Russchen, who also oversaw the promotion in 1996, vv 't Fean '58 finishes 4th in its first season in Saturday League 3C. Qualifying for the promotion play-offs, the team, captained by Simme Schievink, manages a 3-1 win over vv DZOH '85 in the final, played at BSVV's Sportpark Bovensmilde, thus acceding to Saturday League 2 for the first time in club history.
2007 / A partnership is created with vv Surhuisterveen, in which the upper half of the respective clubs' youth academies are merged to become SJO (Samenwerking Jeugdopleiding) Feanstars.
2015 / A complete merger is brought about between the youth academies of vv Surhuisterveen and vv 't Fean '58 under the umbrella of SJO Feanstars.
2016 / Having enjoyed 19 consecutive seasons in Saturday League 2, vv 't Fean '58 now finishes 13th in League 2I, thus dropping back to League 3 level.
2018 / Having narrowly staved off relegation the previous season, vv 't Fean '58 now wins the title in Saturday League 3B, resulting in a return to League 2 after a 2-year absence.
2022 / Winning the title in Saturday League 2I, with the decisive point being obtained in a 2-2 draw at home against SC Joure, vv 't Fean '58 accedes to Saturday League 1 for the first time in club history.
2023 / In a difficult season in Saturday League 1F, vv 't Fean '58 finishes 12th, with only FVC finishing behind them (VVG having withdrawn their first team in the course of the season); as a result, the club drops back into Saturday League 2 after just one season. Exactly 65 years after its breakaway from vv Surhuisterveen, vv 't Fean now concludes a merger with their neighbours vv 't Fean '58. The merger was facilitated by vv Surhuisterveen's decision to move its senior team into the Saturday pyramid in 2020. As a result of this merger, FC Surhústerfean sees the daylight, with Jan Lammers being chosen as the new club's first chairman. First team football moves to vv Surhuisterveen's main pitch.

Note - My match visit at Sportpark 't Ketting West (photos below) saw vv 't Fean 58 winning the league title in Saturday League 2I and gain promotion to Saturday League 1 for the first time in the club's history.