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LATEST UPDATE - VCS & LFC / SPORTPARK ESCAMP I, THE HAGUE (NETHERLANDS)

NETHERLANDS: VCS (1957-) / HVV Hercules (2018-2019) / LFC (2024-)

Sportpark Escamp I - VCS, 's-Gravenhage = Den Haag Escamp (VCS & LFC, formerly HVV Hercules)

Netherlands, province: South Holland = Zuid-Holland

9 XI 2024 / VCS - RVV Semper Altius 0-3 / District West II, Saturday League 5C (= NL level 10)

Timeline

• 1908 / Foundation of a football club in The Hague, which takes on the name Swift. The founding father of the club was Dick Bordewijk. The club, little more than a band of boys playing improvised matches against teams from other parts of the city, spends the first years of its existence on a makeshift pitch laid out at Frederik Hendrikplein.
• 1910 / Swift takes part in the so-called Volkscompetitie, a league of aspirant clubs in The Hague organised by the HVB.
• 1911 / After unexpectedly winning a summer cup tournament in Rotterdam, organised by RVV Transvalia, and with RV&AV Excelsior, RV&AV Sparta, and RVV Feijenoord being among the participants, Swift is admitted as new member of the Haagsche Voetbalbond (HVB), the Hague’s sub-branch of the Netherlands’ Football Association (NVB). However, due to an older NVB member club from Amsterdam already having the name Swift (AVV Swift), the club has to take on a new name. Its first suggestion, Voetbalclub Swift (VCS) is rejected, upon which the painfully straightforward solution is found to translate the English ‘swift’ into Dutch, ‘snel’ – and, as a result, the club is accepted as new HVB member as Voetbalclub Snel (VCS). For the 1911-12 season, VCS is placed in HVB Division 2B. Moving away from Terrein Frederik Hendrikplein, the club settles at Terrein Fahrenheitstraat, part of a larger conglomerate of sports pitches near Valkenbosplein also used by other clubs, such as UNI and VVDH. Also in 1911, two new clubs see the daylight in The Hague, TOGO (‘Tot Ons Genoegen Opgericht’) and SHC (Spartaansche Haagsche (?) Club, a name chosen after the HVB had rejected the name ‘Sparta’, which had already been taken by the aforementioned club from Rotterdam). It is unclear where the grounds used by TOGO (until 1930) and SHC/SVC (until 1940) were situated.
• 1912 / In its first season as a HVB member, VCS clinches the title in HVB Division 2B without suffering a single defeat (goal difference: 84-4). In the subsequent promotion play-off against the winner of HVB Division 2A, DHC, the club manages a 11-6 aggregate win. As a result, VCS wins promotion to HVB Division 1. Also in 1912, VCS wins the first edition of the HVB Cup, defeating HSV Celeritas in the final (1-0). Most probably still in 1912, VCS moves away from Terrein Fahrenheitlaan (Valkenbosplein), settling at a newly laid-out pitch at Laan van Meerdervoort (near the crossroads with Lijsterbesstraat), where it finds vv BMT and HVV De Ooievaars as its neighbour clubs. 
• 1913 / After approximately one year at Terrein Laan van Meerdervoort, VCS moves to a newly laid-out pitch, Terrein Boudsvelden, hemmed in between the grounds of HV&CV Quick and DVV on the one side, and the dunes separating The Hague from the North Sea on the other, at the back of the Hoeve Hanenburg estate. Also in 1913, SHC changes its name to become SVC, Spartaansche Voetbalclub.
• 1914 / Due to the mobilisation of the Netherlands’ armed forces, another club in The Hague, UNI, finds its membership too far depleted to continue its existence; the remaining UNI members now deprived of a club join VCS.
• 1916 / Champions in HVB Division 1A, VCS goes on to win the overall HVB title in the final against TOGO, which had won HVB Division 1B. Both clubs accede to NVB (Sunday) League 3, the third level of the Netherlands’ league pyramid, for the first time. Also in 1916, VCS’ centre-forward Henk Roomberg earns himself a transfer to RV&AV Sparta, where he spends the remaining nine seasons of his footballing career. Roomberg was also part of the Netherlands’ squad in the 1924 Olympics in Paris, but he never won a cap for his country. Roomberg passed away in 1945 at the age of fifty.
• 1919 / VCS clinches the title in NVB District West’s Division 3C, with an equal number of points as runners-up RKSV Leonidas, but with a better goal difference; in fact, the difference was no more than just one goal, with VCS winning its last match against RVV Saturnus emphatically, 10-0, to obtain the title. In the subsequent play-offs against HVV Hollandia, Hortus (Amsterdam), and DVV ODS, the club fails to secure promotion to League 2. 
• ± 1920 / Moving away from Terrein Boudsvelden, probably involuntarily, VCS settles on a pitch at Fruitweg, which it has to share with HVV Laakkwartier. 
• 1923 / In spite of VCS holding its own in League 3 with a respectable fifth place, the club is retrograded to the ranks of the HVB due to the measurements of its pitch at Fruitweg not being in conformity with NVB regulations. The club does not manage a return to the (K)NVB divisions in the last seven years of its existence as an independent club.
• 1924 / Finishing bottom of the table in District West II’s League 3C, TOGO descends into League 4, a level introduced in NVB District West the previous year.
• 1925 / As a new sports ground with a multitude of pitches is inaugurated in The Hague, Sportcomplex Zuiderpark, the main pitch (the future Stadion Zuiderpark) as well as two side-pitches are occupied by HVV ADO, while VCS is allowed to settle on one of the remaining pitches.
• 1926 / Finishing bottom of the table in District West II’s League 4B, TOGO drops back into the ranks of the HVB after ten years. Also in 1926, SVC wins promotion from HVB Division 2 to HVB Division 1. 
• 1928 / Champions in HVB Division 1, TOGO manages a return to KNVB League 4 after an absence of two years. Also in 1928, SVC suffers relegation from HVB Division 1 to HVB Division 2. In one of the following two seasons, the club must have managed a return to HVB Division 1, but no details about this are available.  
• 1930 / VCS and TOGO conclude a merger, resulting in the foundation of VCST (Voetbalclub-Snel-TOGO), which starts its life in District West II’s (Sunday) League 4, the level where TOGO had played in its last season as an independent club. 
• 1931 / Champions in HVB Division 1, SVC wins promotion to KNVB (Sunday) League 4 for the first time. It is unclear how SVC fared in the last nine years of its existence as an independent club (1931-40).
• 1932 / Champions in District West II’s League 4A, 5 points ahead of runners-up HVV Archipel, VCST fails to win promotion in the subsequent championship play-offs.
• 1940 / In its last season as an independent club, VCST finishes in eighth place in District West II’s League 4B. After the 1939-40 season, VCST concludes a merger with SVC, resulting in the foundation of VCS (Voetbalclub Sparta). This ‘new’ VCS is placed in (Sunday) League 3 for the 1940-41 season.
• 1942 / Champions in District West II’s Sunday League 3D, 2 points ahead of closest followers RC&VV VOC, VCS fails to win promotion in the subsequent play-off round.
• 1948 / Champions in District West II’s Sunday League 3F, 1 point ahead of closest rivals RVV HOV, VCS fails to win promotion in the subsequent play-off round.
• 1951 / Champions in District West II’s Sunday League 3A, 5 points ahead of runners-up RKSV Blauw-Zwart, VCS goes on to win promotion to Sunday League 2 in the subsequent play-off round. At the time of its title, VCS does not play at Sportcomplex Zuiderpark, though, having been thrown out by The Hague’s municipal authorities, upon which the club commences a groundsharing arrangement with HSV VUC at Terrein Schenkkade.
• 1952 / Finishing bottom of the table in District West II’s Sunday League 2A, VCS drops back into League 3 after just one season.
• 1953 / Champions in District West II’s Sunday League 3B, 3 points ahead of closest rivals RKSV Excelsior ’20, VCS goes on to win the championship play-offs against League 3A winner LVV De Postduiven in a match played at Stadion Zuiderpark, HVV ADO’s stadium, in front of a sell-out crowd of over 15,000 spectators (2-1, two goals by Piet Fens). As such, the club manages an immediate return to Sunday League 2. Also in 1953, after some two years of groundsharing with HSV VUC at Terrein Schenkkade, VCS is allowed to return to Sportcomplex Zuiderpark. 
• 1955 / Champions in Sunday League 2B, 2 points ahead of UVS, VCS goes on to win the championship play-offs, resulting in the club winning promotion to Sunday League 1 for the first time. That same year, professional league football is introduced in the Netherlands, but – contrary to the other club playing at Sportcomplex Zuiderpark, HVV ADO – the club chooses to stay in non-league.
• 1956 / VCS’ defender Guus Haak, 19 years old, is signed by professional league side HSV ADO, going on to wear the colours of RVV Feijenoord, and Holland Sport, until hanging up his boots in 1971. Haak also won fourteen caps for the Netherlands’ national team between 1962 and 1965.
• 1957 / VCS manages a respectable fifth place in Sunday League 1A, the best result the club had ever managed. That same year, the club moves away from its sole pitch at Sportcomplex Zuiderpark, settling at the newly laid-out Sportpark Escamp I at Dedemsvaartlaan, where the club has been home ever since. Sportpark Escamp I was part of an urban development zone, for which the initial design had been made by the renowned architect Willem Dudok. Originally, the oblong plot of land hemmed in between the Morgenstond and Bouwlust neighbourhoods had been destined to be used for a highway or a railway station, but in the end, these plans come to nothing – and a large sports park is laid out in the area. Also in 1957, although VCS had always been a non-confessional club, the decision is taken to start a branch for Saturday football to accommodate members of the Protestant faith – with a Saturday team being fielded in the HVB divisions from then onwards. In the first sixty years of the club’s existence, the Saturday section played second fiddle in the club, with the focus firmly being on Sunday football.
• 1958 / Finishing in second-last place in Sunday League 1A with RFC, VCS meets the club from Rotterdam in a tie-break match to determine which club would join bottom club AVV Zeeburgia in League 2 the following season. The encounter, played at SHS’ Sportpark Houtrust (att. 4,000), is won by VCS (2-0, goals by Thijs Barendse & Dé Fouw). As such, the club saves its skin in the top non-league division. Also in 1958, VCS celebrates its fiftieth anniversary with a gala match against professional league side SHS at Sportpark Escamp I (0-6). At the time, the club has a membership of 1,600, with activities not only comprising football, but athletics, gymnastics, and baseball – and from 1962 even a short-lived section for philately.
• 1959 / Finishing bottom of the table in Sunday League 1A, VCS drops back into League 2 after four seasons.
• 1961 / Finishing bottom of the table in District West II’s Sunday League 2A, VCS drops back into League 3. The decisive blow is dealt by the club finishing in second-last place, HVV (Koninklijke HC&VV), 2-1.
• 1962 / VCS crowns itself as champions in District West II’s Sunday League 3B, 1 point ahead of runners-up RKVV Westlandia, with the decisive points being clinched in a 3-2 win over ‘s-Gravenzandse VV (zo). As such, VCS qualifies for the championship play-offs with the three other title winners in District West II’s Sunday League 3, HVV VIOS, FC Kranenburg, and DVV ODS, with two promotion places at stake. However, the two tickets are clinched by HVV VIOS and DVV ODS, with VCS thus staying in Sunday League 3. In the following decade, the club remains a regular feature at this level.
• 1963 / Former VCS youth player, defender Pleun Strik, who had joined RVV Feijenoord’s youth academy in 1960, makes his debut in that club’s flagship team. Strik goes on to have an impressive 21-year-long professional league career at RVV Feijenoord, DVV Go Ahead, PSV, EVV Eindhoven, NEC, and FC VVV. Between 1969 and 1974, Strik won eight caps for the Netherlands’ national side, being an unused sub in the 1974 World Cup squad which won a silver medal.
• 1972 / VCS’ new clubhouse at Sportpark Escamp I is inaugurated – the construction still in place today. Also in 1972, 20-year-old midfielder André Wetzel, who had joined HFC Haarlem’s youth academy from VCS in the summer of 1971, makes his debut in HFC Haarlem’s first team, going on to defend the colours of several other professional league sides; FC Amsterdam, FC Den Haag, and Telstar. 
• 1978 / Finishing in second-last place in District West II’s Sunday League 3B, VCS descends into Sunday League 4 along with bottom club SV RKDEO. It is the first time VCS finds itself at this lowly level since the 1940 merger between VCST and SVC.
• 1979 / Inauguration of VCS’ new grandstand at Sportpark Escamp I, a construction still in place today.
• 1981 / The Hague’s city-council presents a plan, Structuurplan Eshofpolder, involving all the sports facilities at Dedemsvaartlaan, including VCS’ Sportpark Escamp I, having to make way for housing. After protests by inhabitants, however, the plans are shelved. 
• 1982 / After a professional league career of ten years, André Wetzel returns to VCS as a player, hanging up his boots one year later and taking on the role as head coach from the 1983-84 season onwards.
• 1984 / Champions in District West II’s Sunday League 4D, 5 points ahead of closest rivals SVDP, VCS wins promotion to Sunday League 3.
• 1985 / Coached by André Wetzel, VCS only just misses out on the title in District West II’s Sunday League 3A, finishing 2 points behind champions VSV TONEGIDO after a tight race. On the other hand, the club succeeds in winning the Haagsche Courant Cup, a prestigious local tournament, defeating VVM at Sportpark Escamp I (2-1) in front of an impressive crowd of 4,000.
• 1986 / Champions in District West II’s Sunday League 3A, 2 points ahead of closest followers FC Lisse, VCS wins promotion to Sunday League 2. The decisive points are clinched in a 3-0 home win against HBS (goals by John van den Hoogenband, Onno Sterk, and Ben Wiggeraad), attended by some 1,200 spectators. It heralds the club’s return to League 2 after an absence of 25 years. After the 1985-86 season, trainer André Wetzel leaves the club, signing for RVC. In the following decades, Wetzel goes on to work as a coach for many clubs, including Willem II, YR KV Mechelen, VVV-Venlo, and ADO Den Haag.
• 1988 / Finishing in second-last place in District West II’s Sunday League 2A, VCS drops back into League 3 along with bottom club SV Den Hoorn. The club’s trainer in this unsuccessful season is Rob Jansen. Also in 1988, former VCS youth player, winger Gaston Taument, makes his debut in Feyenoord Rotterdam’s first team, going on to wear the colours of RV&AV Excelsior, SL Benfica, RSC Anderlecht, OFI (Crete), and SK Rapid (Vienna), until hanging up his boots in 2002. Taument also won fifteen caps for the Netherlands’ national side between 1992 and 1996, being part of his country’s squads in the 1994 World Cup (in which he scored one goal) and the 1996 European Championships.
• 1990 / Coached by Leen de Graaf, VCS clinches the title in District West II’s Sunday League 3B, 5 points ahead of runners-up SV DWO. The decisive points are clinched in a direct confrontation with DWO at Sportpark Escamp I, ending in a 2-0 win for VCS (goals by Mark Rog & John Kleyn). As such, the club manages a return to Sunday League 2.
• 1992 / Finishing in joint first place in District West II’s Sunday League 2A with HSV ADO, VCS meets its city rivals in a play-off, played at VSV TONEGIDO’s Complex Rodelaan in Voorburg, with the first encounter finishing 0-0 A.E.T., and a second match on the same location seeing VCS walking away as winners (2-1, goals by Dennis Louwe and Jeroen Peeters). Both matches were attended by some 2,500 spectators. As such, VCS wins promotion to Sunday League 1.
• 1996 / Champions in Sunday League 1B, 2 points ahead of closest rivals UVS, VCS wins promotion to Zondag Hoofdklasse – the top division of the Sunday league pyramid since 1974 – for the first time. The decisive points for the team coached by Cees Tempelaar are obtained in a 2-4 away win at vv Nieuwenhoorn.
• 1997 / In the best season in club history, VCS finishes in sixth place in Zondag Hoofdklasse A.
• 1998 / Finishing bottom of the table in Zondag Hoofdklasse A, VCS drops back into Sunday League 1 after two seasons, along with the club finishing in second-last place, AFC. In the course of the season, coach Rob Beunder had been replaced by Ed de Maat, but to no avail. For the 1998-99 season, VCS signs a new trainer, Wim Meutstege, former professional league player at Go Ahead Eagles, RV&AV Excelsior, Sparta Rotterdam, and AFC Ajax (1970-80); moreover, Meutstege also won one cap for the Netherlands’ national team in 1976, being part of the national squad which won a bronze medal at the European Championships in Yugoslavia that same year.
• 1999 / Coached by Gerard van der Mark, who had replaced Wim Meutstege after an unsatisfactory first half of the season, VCS finishes in tenth place in Sunday League 1B, subsequently failing to hold its own in a promotion-relegation play-off. As such, the club suffers its second relegation in a row, descending into League 2 along with direct drop-outs SC Gastel and LVV Lugdunum. 
• 2002 / Coached by Jan Linkerhof, VCS wins the title in Sunday League 2D, 1 point ahead of RKSV VELO, thus managing a return to Sunday League 1 after an absence of three seasons. The decisive points are clinched in a 0-1 away win against derby rivals HVV Laakkwartier (goal by Olav Goulooze).
• 2003 / Coached by Jan Linkerhof, VCS finishes in second-last place in Sunday League 1B, thus dropping back into League 2 after just one season, along with bottom club vv SJC.
• 2006 / Runners-up in Sunday League 2C for the third year running, this time finishing 10 points behind champions HVV Laakkwartier, VCS now finally succeeds in winning promotion via the play-offs. The successful coach is Hans Honders.
• 2007 / Finishing in tenth place in Sunday League 1B, VCS is unable to hold its own in the promotion-relegation play-offs, thus dropping back into League 2 along with the two bottom clubs, SV DRL and HVV Laakkwartier.
• 2009 / Finishing in tenth place in Sunday League 2C, VCS is unable to hold its own in the promotion-relegation play-offs, suffering a decisive defeat at the hands of BVV Wit-Rood-Wit, resulting in the club descending into League 3 along with the two bottom clubs, UVS and SV RKDEO.
• 2010 / Finishing in third place in District West II’s Sunday League 3C, VCS qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club is eliminated in R1 by CVV Zwervers (4-1 aggr.).
• 2011 / Former VCS youth player, attacker Anass Achahbar, who had joined Feyenoord Rotterdam’s youth academy in 2002, makes his debut for that club’s first team, going on to have a professional league career at DSC Arminia Bielefeld, PEC Zwolle, NEC, FC Dordrecht, ACS Sepsi OSK, and AEPS Aeolicos, eventually hanging up his boots in 2023. 
• 2012 / Finishing in third place in District West II’s Sunday League 3C, VCS qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club is eliminated in R1 by RVV AGE (3-0 aggr.). Also in 2012, much of VCS’ Saturday team, which suffers relegation from Saturday League 3 in the 2011-12 season, joins a newly founded club, HVV Hercules. Not disposing of its own ground, HVV Hercules concludes a groundsharing agreement with SV HMSH at Sportpark Vrederust. 
• 2013 / In a difficult season, in the course of which trainer Wout Pronk is replaced by Ed van Kouwenhoven, VCS finishes bottom of the table in District West II’s Sunday League 3A, thus descending into League 4 along with the club finishing in second-last place, vv UDO. For VCS, the relegation heralds a return to Sunday League 4 after an absence of 29 years at that lowly level.
• 2014 / Runners-up in District West II’s Sunday League 4C, 2 points behind champions SC REMO, VCS wins direct promotion to League 3 due to extra promotion places being available. The decisive points are clinched in a 0-10 away win at HSV ADS. The successful player-coach is Tolga Turkeri.
• 2015 / Finishing in twelfth place in District West II’s Sunday League 3C, VCS has to play a set of promotion-relegation play-offs, in which it finishes in first place in a group with RV&AV Overmaas and vv Abbenbroek. As such, the club staves off relegation.
• 2016 / VCS is pressured by The Hague’s city-council to conclude a merger with neighbour club HSV Escamp, but with neither of those clubs being keen on the merger, The Hague’s municipal authorities ban HSV Escamp from Sportpark Escamp I (West), leading to the club having to groundshare at various other non-league clubs in The Hague for the 2016-17 season, ceasing its activities in 2017, eventually being wound up in 2020. As for HSV Escamp’s pitch on the western side of Sportpark Escamp I, those had already been occupied by GSC ESCO in 2013 – initially as groundsharers, and from 2016 as sole users.
• 2018 / After six seasons of groundsharing with SV HMSH at Sportpark Vrederust, HVV Hercules, which had been a Saturday breakaway club of VCS, concludes an agreement with VCS, settling as groundsharers at Sportpark Escamp I, where it plays its first team football on a side-pitch.
• 2019 / In a one-off experiment, the Sunday Leagues 3 & 4 in District West II are combined, with the place each club finds itself in after the first half of the season determining if it is placed in League 3 or League 4 in the second half of the season. As VCS finishes in the bottom half of the table of the first part of the season, the club is retrograded to League 4 for the second half of the season – amounting to relegation to this level. Also in 2019, HVV Hercules allows itself to be absorbed into VCS, with HVV Hercules’ first team becoming the Saturday team of VCS.
• 2021 / After the 2020-21 season, which had been cut short due to the second COVID lockdown in the fall of 2020, the club withdraws from Sunday league football after 110 years. Henceforth, VCS’s Saturday team, which had been created in the 1950s and finds itself in Saturday League 4 in 2021, is the flagship team of the club.
• 2023 / Finishing in tenth place in District West II’s Saturday League 4E, VCS has to play a set of relegation play-offs, in which it is defeated comprehensively by HV&CV Quick (za), 2-7. As such, the club is placed in the newly created bottom division of District West II’s Saturday pyramid, Saturday League 5.
• 2024 / VCS is joined at Sportpark Escamp I by an unexpected groundsharer, a non-league club from Leyden, LFC (called FC Boshuizen until 2023). LFC had been evicted from Sportpark Boshuizerkade Zuid in Leyden by Leyden’s city-council following the club’s membership having fallen below a level deemed viable by municipal authorities. VCS and LFC, which plays its football in District West II’s League 1 – four divisions above VCS – explore the possibilities of a merger in the summer of 2025.

Note – Below, a compilation of photos of two different visits: pictures 1-6 = non-matchday visit, March 2019 / pictures 7-23 = match visit, November 2024.

All photos: (c) W.B. Tukker / www.extremefootballtourism.blogspot.com. Publication of any of these images only after permission of author

NETHERLANDS: vv Pekelder Boys

Rutger Oldeboom-Sportpark, Boven Pekela (vv Pekelder Boys)

Netherlands, province: Groningen

3 XI 2024 / vv Pekelder Boys - vv Alteveer 1-3 / District North, Sunday League 5C (= NL level 10)

Timeline

• 1931 / In Boven Pekela, a peat excavation colony in the eastern part of the Province of Groningen, a football club is founded, which is given the name vv Pekelder Boys, with the club’s first board consisting of Chris Funk, Leo Ahlers, and Ebbo Norder. The club rents a plot of farmland from the Bunk family at Wildeplaats in Zuiderkolonie (the southern hamlet of Boven Pekela), where a pitch is laid out. vv Pekelder Boys joins the so-called GVB, Groninger Voetbalbond, Groningen’s sub-branch of the Netherlands’ Football Association (KNVB), organising all football in Groningen below the level of District North’s Sunday League 3 – with no League 4 being organised in this district until after World War II. For the 1931-32 season, vv Pekelder Boys is placed in GVB Division 3C.
• 1933 / After two years at Terrein Bunk, vv Pekelder Boys lays out a new pitch on a plot of farmland owned by Jan Klooster, a local smallholder. The new pitch is also situated at Wildeplaats in Zuiderkolonie.
• 1936 / After an independent existence of five seasons, vv Pekelder Boys concludes a merger with vv Jupiter from nearby Nieuwe Pekela, resulting in the foundation of vv PJC (Pekelder Boys-Jupiter-Combinatie). The new club settles at Terrein Tunteler, a pitch situated at the crossroads of modern-day Ontsluitingsweg and Jacob de Weerdstraat in Nieuwe Pekela. Effectively, this heralds the end of football in Boven Pekela for the following ten years.
• 1946 / After the hardships of World War II and the end of the German occupation of the Netherlands, a new football club is founded in Boven Pekela, which takes on the exact name of its predecessor, vv Pekelder Boys, with the first board consisting of Jan Siepel, Joost Mellies, and Reint Nieboer. The club is placed in GVB Division 3D Branch II for the 1946-47 season. The club rents a plot of land from a local smallholder, Hugo Prins, but the pitch can only be laid out after the potato harvest in October – the result being that the club plays only away matches in the first stages of the season, making its home debut on October 25th, 1946, with a 3-1 home win over vv Veendam 5. Terrein Hugo Prins is situated at Tilstraat in Noorderkolonie, with the players having to change clothes in the nearby Café Huls, which also serves as clubhouse in the first years of the club’s existence.
• 1947 / vv Pekelder Boys wins promotion to GVB Division 2 in its first season. An entrance booth is added to the set-up at Terrein Hugo Prins.
• 1949 / vv Pekelder Boys wins promotion to GVB Division 1.
• 1956 / Runners-up in GVB Division 1, vv Pekelder Boys qualifies for the play-offs for promotion to KNVB Sunday League 4, but the club fails to accede to that level.
• 1960 / Having spent the first fourteen years of its existence in the ranks of the GVB, vv Pekelder Boys now accedes to District North’s Sunday League 4 for the first time. Also in 1960, vv Pekelder Boys purchases a plot of farmland from a local smallholder, Mr Wever, in Noorderkolonie, having in mind to move its activities there from Terrein Hugo Prins in the following year. 
• 1961 / With a pitch and dressing rooms being put in place at Terrein Wever, vv Pekelder Boys’ new home ground is inaugurated officially by Nieuwe Pekela’s mayor, T. Evenhuis, on September 2nd, 1961. Subsquently, a gala match is played between vv Pekelder Boys and derby rivals vv PJC on this pitch, still in use today as the Pekelder Boys’ second pitch. Unsurprisingly, the match is won by vv PJC, which plays its football in Sunday League 1 – the highest non-league level – at the time (0-4).
• 1963 / Champions in District North’s Sunday League 4G, 1 point ahead of runners-up vv Bellingwolde, vv Pekelder Boys wins promotion to Sunday League 3 for the first time. The title is clinched in a 4-0 home win against vv Nieuweschans.
• 1966 / Finishing bottom of the table in District North’s Sunday League 3D, vv Pekelder Boys drops back into League 4 after three seasons.
• 1967 / Champions in District North’s Sunday League 4G, 3 points ahead of closest followers vv BNC, vv Pekelder Boys manages an immediate return to Sunday League 3.
• 1969 / Finishing bottom of the table in District North’s Sunday League 3D, vv Pekelder Boys drops back into League 4 after two seasons.
• 1971 / Finishing bottom of the table in District North’s Sunday League 4G, vv Pekelder Boys drops back into the ranks of the GVB after eleven years. 
• 1972 / vv Pekelder Boys finishes as runners-up in GVB Division 1B, 3 points behind champions and derby rivals vv PJC, thus missing out on an immediate return to Sunday League 4.
• 1973 / Champions in GVB Division 1B, 1 point ahead of closest rivals SV Drieborg, vv Pekelder Boys wins promotion to Sunday League 4. Subsequently, the club also clinches the honorary title of GVB champions following a 3-0 win over GVB Division 1A winner vv ASTREA in an encounter played at vv Muntendam’s ground. Thereupon, the club qualifies for an extra title competition against the other title winners at this level in District North, TVC ’28 (TVB), vv WKE (DVB), RKVV Bakhuizen (FVB), and SV Raalte (NCVB), in which the club finishes in third place, with TVC ’28 walking away as winners.
• 1974 / Coached by Jacob Loer, vv Pekelder Boys finishes in joint last place in District North’s Sunday League 4G with vv NOVO, meeting the club from Nieuwolda in a tie-break match, played at vv Bato’s Sportpark Sint-Vitusholt. With some 1,200 spectators attending, vv NOVO wins the encounter 1-0, as a result of which vv Pekelder Boys drops back into GVB Division 1 after just one season.
• 1975 / Works get underway on a new clubhouse for vv Pekelder Boys at Terrein Wever. This clubhouse – still in place today, is constructed at Noorderkolonie, not adjacent to the club’s sole pitch, as the farmstead of Rutger ‘Rotgerd’ Oldeboom, is situated in between. Rutger ‘Rotgerd’ Oldeboom is a hermit living in an old farmstead bordering vv Pekelder Boys’ sports park. Oldeboom, referred to in the local dialect as Rödde, was regarded as the Netherlands’ last hermit. Relations between him and the club were not been particularly warm, even though the eccentric man was offered a free meatball from the club’s canteen now and again, whenever a ball – a football, in this case – had been kicked onto his territory.
• 1976 / Finishing in joint first place in GVB Division 1B, vv Pekelder Boys loses a tie-break match for the title against SV Blauw-Geel ’15, thus missing out on promotion. Also in 1976, on November 4th of that year, Rutger Oldeboom passes away at the age of 92. The club decides to buy the land from Oldeboom’s heirs to lay out a second pitch, situated to the south of the sole pitch the club had disposed of since the early 1960s.
• 1977 / Finishing in joint first place in GVB Division 1B with vv Oosterhoek, vv Pekelder Boys meets that club in a tie-break match played at SC Scheemda’s ground, with the encounter finishing 0-0 A.E.T. (att. 900). In a second match on the same location, vv Oosterhoek eventually wins out (2-0 A.E.T.). vv Pekelder Boys gets a new chance in a lucky-loser final against vv Eenrum, runners-up in GVB Division 1A, due to an extra promotion place being available. However, the encounter against that club, played at vv Harkstede’s ground, results in another defeat (3-0). As such, vv Pekelder Boys misses out on a return to Sunday League 4 yet again. Also in 1977, vv Pekelder Boys’ new pitch is inaugurated, with the club moving first team football to this pitch – where it has been played ever since. Honouring the memory of Rutger Oldeboom, the club decides to name its park at Noorderkolonie after him, the Rutger Oldeboom-Sportpark.
• 1978 / Finishing in joint first place in GVB Division 1B for the third (!) year running, this time tying for first place with vv Sellingen, vv Pekelder Boys meets that club in a tie-break match, played at ASVB’s Sportpark Blijham, losing the encounter 3-1 and thus missing out on promotion for the umpteenth time. Also in 1978, new dressing rooms are added to the set-up at the Rutger Oldeboom-Sportpark.
• 1979 / After three years of tying for first place in GVB Division 1B, vv Pekelder Boys now crowns itself as sole champions in this division, clinching the decisive points in a match against SGV. As such, vv Pekelder Boys wins promotion to Sunday League 4 after an absence of five years at that level. Moreover, the club also wins the GVB championship title, defeating D1A champions vv De Vogels.
• 1983 / Finishing in joint tenth place in District North’s Sunday League 4H with vv Bareveld, vv Pekelder Boys, coached by Jack Geerdes, meets that club in a tie-break match at vv Veelerveen’s ground (att. 800), with vv Bareveld walking away as winners (2-0). As a result, vv Pekelder Boys drops back into the ranks of the GVB.
• 1984 / Finishing in second place in GVB Division 1B, with an equal number of points as champions vv Heiligerlee, but with an inferior goal difference, vv Pekelder Boys wins automatic promotion to Sunday League 4 due to extra promotion places being available. The decisive points are clinched in a 2-0 away win at vv Woltersum.
• 1985 / Finishing in joint tenth place in District North’s Sunday League 4H, vv Pekelder Boys has to play a tie-break match to assure itself of a prolonged stay at that level. Meeting vv Bareveld at vv Veendam 1894’s Sportpark De Langeleegte Noord – with a sole Arnold de Groot goal deciding the match to the advantage of the club from Boven Pekela. As such, vv Pekelder Boys staves off relegation. 
• 1986 / Celebrating its fortieth anniversary, vv Pekelder Boys plays a gala match at the Rutger Oldeboom-Sportpark against Belgian side KV Mechelen, coached by Aad de Mos at the time. In front of a crowd of 550 spectators, vv Pekelder Boys takes the lead with a Wubbo Luth goal, with the match eventually finishing in an emphatic 1-12 win for the Belgian professionals. KV Mechelen’s side included the likes of Leo Clijsters, Walter Meeuws, Erwin Koeman, Wim Hofkens, Graeme Rutjes, and Piet den Boer. Nevertheless, in spite of the celebrations of reaching this milestone, the 1980s are a difficult decade for vv Pekelder Boys, as the club is marred by financial problems and conflicts within the board, resulting in part of the membership turning its back. Only after years of economising, the club eventually masters the situation in the early 1990s. 
• 1993 / vv Pekelder Boys finishes as runners-up in District North’s Sunday League 4G, 2 points behind champions vv SPW. In the subsequent round of promotion play-offs, the club wins the group stage, finishing ahead of vv BNC and vv Gasselternijveen – only to suffer defeat in the final against DVC ’59, played at vv Valthermond’s Sportpark De Meent (2-1).
• 1996 / vv Pekelder Boys finishes as runners-up in District North’s Sunday League 4G, 5 points behind champions vv STA, missing out on promotion in the subsequent play-off rounds. Also in 1996, a covered terrace for 400 spectators is added to the set-up at the Rutger Oldeboom-Sportpark.
• 1999 / Champions in District North’s Sunday League 4E, 1 point ahead of closest followers vv Gieten, vv Pekelder Boys wins promotion to Sunday League 3, heralding a return to that level after an absence of thirty years. The successful coach is Henk van der Vlag.
• 2000 / In the best season in club history, vv Pekelder Boys finishes in fifth place in District North’s Sunday League 3C under the aegis of coach Henk van der Vlag. In the first five matches of the season, goalkeeper Herman Tieck does not concede a single goal.
• 2001 / Finishing bottom of the table in District North’s Sunday League 3B with coach Henk van der Vlag, vv Pekelder Boys drops back into League 4 along with the club finishing in second-last place, vv Gasselternijveen.
• 2002 / Still coached by Henk van der Vlag, vv Pekelder Boys finishes as runners-up in District North’s Sunday League 4E, 1 point behind champions vv Bato, failing to win promotion in the subsequent play-off rounds.
• 2005 / Finishing in second-last place in District North’s Sunday League 4E, vv Pekelder Boys descends into Sunday League 5 along with bottom club TEVV. After the season, coach Henk van der Vlag leaves the club.
• 2006 / Coached by Roel Muskee, vv Pekelder Boys clinches the title in District North’s Sunday League 5E, 4 points ahead of runners-up vv Nieuweschans. As such, the club manages an immediate return to Sunday League 4.
• 2009 / Coached by Henk Oosterwold, vv Pekelder Boys finishes in eleventh place in District North’s Sunday League 4D, going on to suffer defeat in a promotion-relegation play-off and thus descending into League 5 along with vv Bato, FVV, and bottom club vv Borgercompagnie.
• 2010 / Finishing in fifth place in District North’s Sunday League 5F with coach Henk Oosterwold, vv Pekelder Boys qualifies for the play-offs, in which the club wins the group stage against vv VIOS (O) (2-2) and vv Surhuisterveen (4-3). In the final, vv Pekelder Boys also has the better of vv Froombosch (0-2), resulting in the club winning promotion to Sunday League 4.
• 2013 / Finishing in third place in District North’s Sunday League 4D, vv Pekelder Boys qualifies for a promotion-relegation play-off, in which the club is defeated by League 3 club vv Wildervank (3-3 A.E.T. & penalties), thus being deprived of promotion.
• 2014 / Finishing in fourth place in District North’s Sunday League 4D, vv Pekelder Boys qualifies for the promotion play-offs. Suffering a 3-4 aggr. defeat against vv Zuidlaarderveen in R1, the club get the opportunity to play a lucky-loser play-off, but this match is lost as well, with vv Dronrijp walking away with a ticket for Sunday League 3 (3-0).
• 2017 / Finishing in twelfth place in District North’s Sunday League 4C, vv Pekelder Boys has to play a set of promotion-relegation play-offs to avoid dropping back into League 5. Suffering defeat in R1 against vv Harkstede (5-1 aggr.), the club is handed the opportunity to play a lucky-loser play-off, winning the tie against vv Bareveld (3-0 aggr.) and thus eventually securing a prolonged stay in League 4.
• 2018 / Coached by Bert Brugge, vv Pekelder Boys finishes bottom of the table in District North’s Sunday League 4C, thus dropping back into Sunday League 5 along with the club finishing in second-last place, vv Alteveer.
• 2019 / Coached by Tonny Huft, vv Pekelder Boys finishes in third place in District North’s Sunday League 5E, thus qualifying for the play-offs. Successively defeating vv Meeden (5-0) and vv Wijster (0-3), the club manages an immediate return to Sunday League 4.
• 2022 / Coached by Ard Leeraar, vv Pekelder Boys finishes in second-last place in District North’s Sunday League 4C, thus dropping back into League 5 along with vv Farmsum and bottom club FVV.

Note – Much of the information above was derived from the book “50 jaar voetbalvereniging Pekelder Boys in Boven Pekela 1946-1996”, by Harry Becker / Gertie Beikes / Chris Lubben / Rient Nieboer / Peter Nieboer, and published by the club on the occasion of its fiftieth anniversary in 1996.

All photos: (c) W.B. Tukker / www.extremefootballtourism.blogspot.com. Publication of any of these images only after permission of author

NETHERLANDS: SV THOS

Abel van der Laan-Sportpark, Beerta (SV THOS)

Netherlands, province: Groningen

3 XI 2024 / SV THOS - vv Westerwolde Reserves 1-2 / District North, Reserves League 5-12

Timeline

• 1920 / Foundation of a first football club in Beerta, which is given the name Zwart-Wit. Later that same year, upon joining the newly founded Oost-Groninger Voetbalbond, also known as the Voetbalbond Oostelijk Groningen (VBOG), the club takes on a new name, Voetbalvereeniging ‘Tot Heil Onzer Spieren’, abbreviated as vv THOS. The club starts its activities on a pitch laid out alongside the Beertsterdiep, on a plot of farmland rented to the club by a local smallholder, Mr Brandsma.
• ± 1921 / Foundation of a rival club in Beerta, BVC (Beertase Voetbalclub), which also joins the VBOG, groundsharing with vv THOS at Terrein Brandsma.
• ± 1922 / Foundation of a third club in Beerta, Take Care, although it has to be pointed out that the membership of Take Care mainly consisted of inhabitants of the countryside area around Beerta proper. Like the two other clubs in the village, Take Care joins the VBOG. It is unclear where Take Care’s pitch was situated.
• ± 1923 / As Terrein Brandsma has to be vacated, vv THOS and BVC have to look out for new locations for their home matches. BVC moves to a pitch laid out on a plot of farmland not far from the toll booth situated in Beerta-West at the time. vv THOS, on the other hand, finds a temporary new home on a plot of land not far from Café Hilgenga (the former Café Ankes) on the southern outskirts of the village. Café Hilgenga, known at the time as the gathering place of Beerta’s leftist movement – with communism quickly spreading among local agricultural workers in the northeastern corner of the Province of Groningen – is used as clubhouse and dressing room.
• ± 1924 / BVC folds, ceasing all activities, leaving vv THOS and Take Care as the two football clubs for youths in Beerta.
• 1925 / As the Voetbalbond Oostelijk Groningen ceases all activities, all remaining member clubs, including vv THOS, join the so-called Groninger Voetbalbond (GVB), the Groningen sub-branch of the Netherlands’ Football Association (NVB, later renamed KNVB).
• ± 1926 / Moving away from the temporary pitch near Café Hilgenga, vv THOS settles on a newly laid-out pitch on a plot of farmland owned by a local landholder, Benjamin de Levie. Benjamin de Levie, who is of Jewish ancestry, would later fall victim to the murderous German occupation regime, being deported to Auschwitz III (Monowitz), where he dies at the age of 65 in 1942.
• ± 1928 / After an existence of some six years, Take Care folds, ceasing all activities – leaving vv THOS as Beerta’s only football club.
• ± 1931 / vv THOS wins the title in GVB Division 1, as a result of which the club has the right of promotion to KNVB District North’s (Sunday) League 3 – with no League 4 being organised in this district until after the German occupation years. However, due to the club not disposing of dressing rooms in situ, a KNVB requirement, with Terrein De Levie not having the correct measurements for the KNVB divisions either – and vv THOS’ board not having in mind to move to a location offering the possibility of laying out a larger pitch – a part of the club’s players leaves the club, forming a breakaway club with the name vv Beerta. vv Beerta settles on the pitch formerly used by Take Care (location unknown).
• ± 1933 / Moving away from Terrein De Levie, vv THOS settles on a newly laid-out pitch not far from Café Hilgenga – not far from the location used by the club in the mid-1920s. 
• ± 1934 / After an existence of some years only, vv Beerta folds, ceasing all activities. Part of its membership returns to vv THOS. 
• 1935 / Now having the disposal of a pitch in conformity with KNVB requirements, following a second title in GVB Division 1, vv THOS finally makes the leap from the ranks of the GVB to KNVB District North’s (Sunday) League 3 (with no League 4 existing in District North until after World War II).
• 1936 / In its first season in District North’s Sunday League 3C, vv THOS manages a sensational second place, finishing 4 points behind champions vv Zuidbroek.
• 1937 / vv THOS finishes as runners-up in District North’s Sunday League 3C for the second year in a row, finishing 3 points behind champions SC Scheemda.
• 1942 / vv THOS finishes as runners-up in District North’s Sunday League 3D, 4 points behind champions vv Zuidbroek.
• 1943 / Champions in District North’s Sunday League 3D, 6 points ahead of runners-up SC Scheemda, vv THOS is deprived of the opportunity to win promotion to League 2 due to no title play-offs being held after the 1942-43 season due to organisational problems during the ongoing occupation of the Netherlands’ by Nazi Germany.
• 1944 / Yet again winning the title in District North’s Sunday League 3D, this time finishing 2 points ahead of closest followers vv Delfzijl, vv THOS nevertheless does not accede to League 2 – either due to no promotion play-offs being held or due to not being successful in those play-offs. 
• ± 1947 / Moving away from Terrein Café Hilgenga, vv THOS settles on a newly laid-out pitch at Hoofdstraat, consisting of one pitch for matches (current Pitch 2 of the park) as well as a training pitch situated somewhat further northward. 
• 1949 / As vv THOS absorbs Gymnastiekvereniging Beerta, the local gymnastics club founded around 1900, the club changes its name to become Sportvereniging (SV) THOS. Also in 1949, the club’s first team undertakes a summer tour in Denmark, playing two friendly matches against clubs from the Nykøbing Mors region.
• 1951 / SV THOS finishes as runners-up in District North’s Sunday League 3D, 2 points behind champions FVV.
• 1956 / sv THOS finishes as runners-up in District North’s Sunday League 3D, 9 points behind champions vv Neptunia.
• 1957 / Coached by Mr Ten Berge, SV THOS wins the title in District North’s Sunday League 3D, 2 points ahead of vv ZNC, failing to win promotion in the subsequent title play-offs.
• 1964 / Finishing in second-last place in District North’s Sunday League 3D, SV THOS descends into Sunday League 4 for the first time, along with bottom club vv Kwiek. This heralds the end of an uninterrupted spell of 29 years of League 3 football.
• 1965 / Champions in District North’s Sunday League 4G, 2 points ahead of closest rivals vv Westerwolde, SV THOS wins promotion to Sunday League 3 after just one year.
• 1966 / SV THOS finishes as runners-up in District North’s Sunday League 3D, 3 points behind champions vv Zuidlaren.
• ± 1968 / An additional pitch is laid out at Terrein Hoofdstraat, situated to the south of the main pitch. Upon completion of the works, SV THOS moves its first team football to this new pitch – still the club’s main pitch today.
• 1973 / SV THOS finishes as runners-up in District North’s Sunday League 3D, 7 points behind champions vv Helpman. Also in 1973, a new floodlight installation is inaugurated at Terrein Hoofdstraat. Meanwhile, works get underway on a new clubhouse, including a boardroom and dressing rooms, a design by Beerta’s municipal architect, J. Berghuis.
• 1974 / Inauguration of SV THOS’s new clubhouse at Terrein Hoofdstraat, with the inaugural ceremony being performed by Beerta’s mayor, J.G. Voslamber.
• 1975 / Coached by J. Dalmolen, SV THOS conquers the title in District North’s Sunday League 3D, finishing 3 points ahead of closest followers vv WEO. As such, the club wins promotion to Sunday League 2 for the first time.
• 1978 / In the most successful season in club history, SV THOS, coached by M. van Donderen, finishes in fourth place in District North’s Sunday League 2B, with only reputed non-league clubs SV Twedo, vv WKE, and Achilles 1894 picking up more points than the side from Beerta. Also in 1978, former SV THOS youth academy player, striker Jurrie Koolhof, makes his debut as a professional league player with SC Veendam at the age of 18. Koolhof goes on to defend the colours of AVC Vitesse, PSV, FC Groningen, SBV Vitesse, BV De Graafschap, and BV Veendam, hanging up his boots in 1994. Koolhof also won five caps for the Netherlands’ national side in 1982-83. In the years 2000-08, Jurrie Koolhof worked as a professional league coach at BV De Graafschap, BVO Emmen (assistant), AGOVV Apeldoorn, FC Dordrecht, MVV, and SC Cambuur, before turning to youth scouting and TV punditry. Succumbing to an incurable disease, Jurrie Koolhof passed away in 2019 at the age of 59. His two sons also had careers as professional sports players, the elder, Wesley, as a tennis player, and the younger, Dean, as a footballer at BV De Graafschap, MVV Maastricht, and Helmond Sport.
• 1979 / Finishing in second-last place in District North’s Sunday League 2B, SV THOS, coached by Jan Broertjes – who had replaced M. van Donderen in the closing stages of the season – drops back into Sunday League 3 after two years, along with bottom club SV Bedum.
• 1980 / Among the festivities organised to celebrate SV THOS’ sixtieth anniversary, a gala match is held at Terrein Hoofdstraat, with SV THOS playing host to a team of former AFC Ajax players, including Klaas Nuninga, Jan Mulder, and Sjaak Swart.
• 1983 / Finishing bottom of the table in District North’s Sunday League 3D, SV THOS drops back into Sunday League 4 along with the club finishing in second-last place, derby rivals vv Nieuweschans.
• 1984 / SV THOS finishes as runners-up in District North’s Sunday League 4G, 2 points behind champions vv Bato.
• 1989 / SV THOS finishes as runners-up in District North’s Sunday League 4G, 7 points behind champions vv ASVB.
• 1992 / Champions in District North’s Sunday League 4G, 4 points ahead of closest followers vv STA, SV THOS wins promotion to Sunday League 3 after an absence of nine seasons at that level.
• 1997 / Coached by Henny Lingbeek, SV THOS finishes bottom of the table in District North’s Sunday League 3B, thus dropping back into League 4 along with the club finishing in second-last place, vv HSC.
• 2003 / Coached by Aike Lubben, SV THOS finishes bottom of the table in District North’s Sunday League 4E. As such, the club is retrograded to Sunday League 5 for the first time in club history, being accompanied to that level by the club finishing in second-last position, vv Kwiek.
• 2008 / SV THOS finishes as runners-up in District North’s Sunday League 5E, 9 points behind champions vv Bareveld. In the subsequent round of play-offs, the club fails to win promotion to League 4.
• 2013 / Finishing in fifth place in District North’s Sunday League 5F, SV THOS qualifies for the promotion-relegation play-offs, in which the club finishes in last place in a group behind vv Nieuw Roden and vv Harkstede, thus failing at its attempt to return to Sunday League 4. Also in 2013, former SV THOS youth player, 19-year-old Hans Hateboer, who had left the club for BV Veendam’s youth academy several years previously, makes his debut as a professional league player at FC Groningen, going on to wear the colours of Atalanta BC (2017-24) and Stade Rennais FC (2024-) – as well as being called up several times for the Netherlands’ national team from 2018 onwards.
• 2014 / Former SV THOS board member and canteen manager Abel van der Laan passes away at the age of 83. In his honour, SV THOS’ sports park at Hoofdstraat is renamed Abel van der Laan-Sportpark. 
• 2019 / Runners-up in District North’s Sunday League 5D, 2 points behind champions vv Farmsum, SV THOS qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club draws a bye in R1 before being trashed by vv Bareveld in R2 (0-9).
• 2022 / Coached by Jaap Sikkema, SV THOS finishes as runners-up in District North’s Sunday League 5C, 10 points behind champions vv Veelerveen. In the subsequent play-off rounds, SV THOS draws a bye in R1, going on to defeat vv Drieborg in R2 (3-2 A.E.T.), resulting in the club winning promotion to Sunday League 4 after an absence of 19 years at that level.
• 2023 / Having an excellent season in District North’s Sunday League 4C, SV THOS finishes in second place, 4 points behind champions vv Veelerveen. In the promotion play-offs, the club is eliminated by USV Nieuwleusen (0-1).
• 2024 / Coached by Bob Mulder, SV THOS finishes bottom of the table in its second season in District North’s Sunday League 4C (just 1 win, 7 points, goal difference: -93), suffering relegation to League 5 along with FVV, vv PJC, and vv Bareveld. Following the 2023-24 season, the club withdraws from first team football, continuing with just a reserves’ team and several recreational teams. The club makes headlines in local media in November 2024 when it announces that it is on the brink of folding due to a lack of players – leading to an immediate surge in membership, with several players from other clubs in the region joining SV THOS’ reserves’ squad.

Note – Important parts of information provided above were derived from a booklet published by SV THOS on the occasion of the club’s sixtieth anniversary, “Jubileumnummer SV THOS Beerta 60 jaar” (1980), with especially a historic article about the early club history by G.L. Siemons proving an important, yet sketchy source. If anyone can shed more light on the following unanswered questions, please get in touch with me: 

(1) In which year exactly did vv/SV THOS move to the current park at Hoofdstraat (later renamed Sportpark Abel van der Laan)? In the article above, using various oral sources, the date has been estimated at ± 1947.

(2) In which year exactly was the current main pitch added to the set-up? In the article above, using various oral sources, the date has been estimated at ± 1968.

All photos: (c) W.B. Tukker / www.extremefootballtourism.blogspot.com. Publication of any of these images only after permission of author