Extreme Football Tourism: NETHERLANDS: CSV (1976-2002) / FC Castricum (2002-)

Sportpark Noord-End, Castricum (FC Castricum, formerly CSV)

Netherlands, province: North Holland = Noord-Holland

14 X 2023 / FC Castricum - IJVV Stormvogels 2-1 / District West I, Saturday League 3A (= NL level 8)

Timeline

± 1911 / Foundation of a football club in Castricum, which takes on the name Castricumsche Sportvereeniging, usually referred to with the abbreviation CSV.
1912 / A second club was founded in Castricum, vv Castricum, its pitch being situated at Haagscheweg.
1914 / As vv Castricum folds after two unsuccessful seasons in NHVB Division 2 - NHVB being the Noordhollandsche Voetbalbond, the association of clubs from the province of North Holland playing their football below the regular NVB divisions -, that club's pitch at Haagscheweg is taken over by CSV.
1918 / CSV takes part in NHVB's leagues for the first time, being placed in League 4A.
1927 / Having suffered from a decreasing membership in the past years as a result of the foundation of RKSV Vitesse ’22, a Roman-Catholic club in Castricum, in 1922 – with CSV being a club without an affiliation to any religion – the club eventually folds in 1927.
1930 / Refoundation of Castricumsche Sportvereeniging. The new club settles at Terrein Provinciaal Ziekenhuis in Bakkum - changing to a new ground, Terrein Zeeweg, within months. Terrein Zeeweg constitutes a plot of land rented from a local teahouse, Johanna’s Hof.
1931 / The new CSV starts its life as a regular league club in NHVB Division 2. In its first season, the club manages to finish as runners-up behind vv Alkmaarsche Boys.
1934 / Winning the title in NHVB Division 2, CSV accedes to NHVB Division 1.
1938 / Following not one, but two tie-break matches against OFC, played on the pitch of KFC in Koog aan de Zaan – the first one finishing in a goalless draw, the second being won by the Castricum side with the narrowest of margins, 1-0 – CSV obtains the title in NHVB Division 1A, which results in the club acceding to KNVB Sunday League 4 for the first time.
1940 / Following the German oppression of the Netherlands, occupation authorities requisition Terrein Zeeweg for military purposes, as a result of which CSV has to groundshare at their local rivals RKSV Vitesse ’22 for the duration of the war.
1945 / Not having developed any activities in the last, particularly harsh year of World War II, CSV resumes its activities, returning to Terrein Zeeweg.
1949 / CSV youth prodigy Leen Bartels, a seventeen-year-old centre-forward, signs a contract with AFC Ajax, going on to have a modest professional league career at AFC Ajax (1950-56 / 39 matches, 6 goals) and IJVV Stormvogels (1956-57 / 9 matches, 0 goals).
1950 / Winning the title in District West I’s Sunday League 4C, CSV accedes to League 3 for the first time.
1961 / CSV has its best season ever, finishing as runners-up in Sunday League 3A. Also in 1961, at CSV’s Terrein Zeeweg, a covered stand is erected along the main pitch.
1963 / In spite of the guidance of player-coach Cor Blaauw, a former professional league player at Alkmaar ’54, CSV drops back into League 4 after an unbroken spell of thirteen seasons in District West I’s Sunday League 3.
1964 / CSV clinches the title in Sunday League 4B following an emphatic 6-1 defeat of SV De Valken. As such, the club manages a return to League 3 after just one year.
1967 / Finishing 11th in District West I’s Sunday League 3A, CSV drops back into League 4.
1970 / Finishing in joint-first place in Sunday League 4B with SV Sint Adelbert, CSV meets the club from Egmond-Binnen in a decider play-off against CSV for one place in Sunday League 3. Eventually, CSV wins the match, which was attended by some 4,000 spectators. As such, the Castricum side manages a new return to League 3. Also in 1970, CSV player Hans Mol signs a contract with professional league side AZ ’67.
1973 / Coached by Fred Vonk, CSV finishes 13th in Sunday League 3A, resulting in a descent back into League 4. Also in 1973, due to a lack of space at Terrein Zeeweg, but also following dissent among CSV’s membership – with Protestant members being unhappy with the low esteem in which the Saturday league branch of the club is held –, a breakaway club is founded, Sportclub Castricum, usually referred to as SCC, with part of the membership choosing to leave and play for the new club. Settling at Terrein Wouterland, the newly founded club is constrained to play its first team matches at Terrein ‘t Kruis in Heerhugowaard, groundsharing with KSV (Heerhugowaard) due to Terrein Wouterland not meeting NHVB’s minimum requirements.
1974 / Finishing last in Sunday League 4A, CSV finds itself in the ranks of Noord-Hollandse Voetbalbond (NHVB) for the first time since 1938. Meanwhile, after a slight upgrade of Terrein Wouterland, SCC is given permission to play its first team matches at this ground as well.
1975 / Unable to stop the rot, CSV’s first team finishes in 10th place in NHVB Hoofdklasse, resulting in a third relegation in a row – from NHVB Hoofdklasse to NHVB Division 1.
1976 / Abandoning Terrein Zeeweg, where the club disposed just of a main pitch and a smaller training pitch, CSV moves into the newly-built Sportpark Noord-End.
1977 / One year after CSV, SCC settles at Sportpark Noord-End as well, being allowed the luxury of its own main pitch at the eastern end of the ground.
1978 / After seven seasons at AZ ’67 and one more year of professional league football at FC Volendam, Hans Mol returns to the ranks of CSV in Castricum.
1983 / Having spent their first ten seasons in NHVB’s Saturday divisions, SCC now wins promotion to KNVB District West I’s Saturday League 4 for the first time.
1990 / After more than a decade of meagre results in the ‘bubbling under’ of NHVB, CSV, coached by Jan Kooij, wins the title in NHVB Division 3, thus acceding to D2.
1991 / Following a decisive defeat of SV Koedijk, CSV, coached by Hans Touber, obtains the title in NHVB Division 2, thus acceding to D1.
1992 / Possibly replacing a wooden predecessor – no definitive information on this matter is to be had – CSV adds a covered stand in stone to the set-up at its side of Sportpark Noord-End, naming it after the club’s faithful groundskeeper Chris de Leeuw.
1996 / Having spent the past thirteen seasons in League 4, SCC now finishes in 4th place in Saturday League 4A, winning the ensuing round of promotion play-offs. As such, SCC accedes to League 3 for the first time, where the club is destined to spend the last six years of its existence. Meanwhile, in a renovation of the football pyramid, involving the abolition of all regional football associations organising the divisions below the level of KNVB League 4, CSV is placed in the newly formed Sunday League 6B.
1999 / Following a play-off defeat at the hands of SV Julianadorp (2-1), CSV descends into League 7, the lowest division of the football pyramid.
2001 / As League 7 is abolished, CSV is automatically placed in League 6 for the 2001-02 season.
2002 / Following a year of talks between the two clubs, a merger is concluded between CSV and SCC, resulting in the foundation of FC (Fusieclub) Castricum. The new club, which settles at CSV’s Sportpark Noord-End (West), starts its life with two first teams, a Sunday team in Sunday League 6A, and a Saturday team in Saturday League 3, the levels at which CSV and SCC had spent their last seasons respectively. SCC’s Sportpark Noord-End (Oost) is taken over by local netball club KV Helios.
2003 / Finishing runners-up in District West I’s Sunday League 6A, FC Castricum’s Sunday team wins the promotion play-offs to accede to Sunday League 5 – just holding out at that level for one season though, with relegation following in 2004.
2004 / Clinching the title in District West I’s Saturday League 3A, FC Castricum’s Saturday team accedes to League 2.
2005 / Winning the title in Sunday League 6B, FC Castricum’s Sunday team returns to League 5 after a one-year absence.
2007 / Having managed three seasons at League 2 level, FC Castricum’s Saturday team now drops back into League 3 following an 11th place in League 2A.
2008 / Six years after the merger of CSV and SCC, FC Castricum withdraws from the regular Sunday pyramid, with just a first team on Saturday remaining. The best result the Sunday team achieved following the merger was a 6th place in League 5C in the 2006-07 season.
2009 / Winning its second League 3A title in five years, FC Castricum’s Saturday team – by now the club’s only first team – returns to Saturday League 2.
2012 / With 7 points more than runners-up vv Aalsmeer, FC Castricum clinches the title in Saturday League 2A, thus winning promotion to League 1 for the first time in the history of the club as well as its two predecessors.
2013 / In a difficult season in Saturday League 1A, FC Castricum does not manage a single victory and seven draws – thus finishing the season rock bottom with just 7 points, 13 points less than the second-last in the final table, vv Valleivogels. As such, the club drops back into League 2 after one season only.
2016 / Following an 11th place in Saturday League 2A, FC Castricum descends into League 3 – possibly after a round of play-offs, but further information on the matter is lacking.
2017 / Clinching the title in District West I’s Saturday League 3A, 8 points ahead of closest rivals vv Monnickendam, FC Castricum wins promotion to League 2.2018 / Unable to assert itself in League 2, FC Castricum finishes in 14th and last place in League 2A, 9 points behind the second-last in the final ranking, HBOK. As such, the club drops back into League 3 after one season only.
2024 / Finishing in fourth place in District West I's Saturday League 3A, FC Castricum qualifies for the promotion play-offs, defeating SC Buitenveldert in R1 (8-0), but being eliminated in R2 by ASV Wartburgia (3-1).

Note - Thanks to several of FC Castricum's board members - the majority of which are former SCC affiliates - for adding important parts of information to the data available about club's history on the open net.