Extreme Football Tourism: NETHERLANDS: KSV BWO (B) (19??-2013) / KSV BWO (2013-)

Gemeentelijk Sportpark De Noork - veld 1, Hengelo Ov. (KSV BWO, main pitch since 2013)

Netherlands, province: Overijssel

23 XI 2024 / KSV BWO - SDC '12 2-3 / Saturday League 3N (= NL level 8)

Timeline

1918 / RKVV Achilles, a Roman-Catholic football club in Hengelo founded in 1912, moves to a newly laid-out pitch opposite Café Pentrop, abandoning its old pitch, Terrein Deurningerweg. The pitch near Café Pentrop occupied the location now taken by the westernmost pitch of Sportpark De Noork, i.e. the main pitch of the park until 2013.
1920 / Having played its football on the pitch across from Café Pentrop for two years, RKVV Achilles now moves to the so-called Twentsch Stadion at Deurningerstraat. Nothing is known about the use of the pitch near Café Pentrop in the following decade.
1929 / At the instigation of the local parish, a football club in the Noork district in Hengelo (Overijssel), which is given the name RKVV (Roomsch-Katholieke Voetbalvereeniging) Blauw-Wit. As most Roman-Catholic clubs in Twente, RKVV Blauw-Wit does not join the official Netherlands’ FA (KNVB), successfully applying for membership of the Roman-Catholic association RKUVB (Roomsch-Katholieke Utrechtsche Voetbalbond) instead. The RKUVB is a sub-branch of the RKF (Roomsch-Katholieke Federatie). Allegedly, the club’s first pitch was situated at Van Alphenstraat, roughly coinciding with the location of the modern-day ice-rink, although no definite sources are available on the subject.
± 1932 / Moving away from its original pitch at Van Alphenstraat, RKVV Blauw-Wit settles at Terrein De Noork – the former main pitch of RKVV Achilles in the years 1918-20 – although it has to be pointed out that there are no definite sources available on the subject. Also in 1932, a nationwide Roman-Catholic league pyramid is formed, the so-called IVCB (Interdiocesaan Voetbalcompetitiebond), with teams from RKF sub-branches having the opportunity to win promotion to the three IVCB divisions. RKVV Blauw-Wit is relatively successful in the 1930s, finding itself in IVCB Division 2B East by the 1937-38 season.
1940 / Having spent the first eleven years of its existence in the RKF (RKUVB & IVCB), RKVV Blauw-Wit is now constrained to make the step to the official Netherlands’ FA (renamed NVB following the German oppression of the Netherlands, abandoning the royal epithet ‘koninklijk’ for obvious reasons) as all other football associations are abolished by German occupation authorities. For the 1940-41 season, the club is placed in District East’s (Sunday) League 2. Due to a NVB member club from Amsterdam, future professional league club ASV Blauw-Wit, already having the right to the name ‘Blauw-Wit’, RKVV Blauw-Wit has to change its name – choosing to become ‘Blauw-Wit-Oost’ (BWO), or, officially, KSV (Katholieke Sportvereniging) BWO.
1942 / Finishing in last place in District East’s Sunday League 2A, KSV BWO descends into Sunday League 3. In the following five decades, KSV BWO never makes headlines in non-league football, alternating spells in Sunday League 3 (1942-51, 1954-64, 1980-85 & 1993-97) and Sunday League 4 (1951-54, 1964-66, 1968-80 & 1985-93) - with even a short interlude of two seasons (1966-68) in Division 1 of the so-called Twentse Voetbalbond (TVB), the level below Sunday League 4.
1965 / A group of disaffected BWO members forms a breakaway club, vv ATC ’65 (A Triginta Conditum 1965 – the literal translation of the Latin name being ‘Founded by Thirty (Men)’). The new club starts its life at a side-pitch of Stadion Veldwijk (later renamed Stadion) Fanny Blankers-Koen) - a pitch, in fact, later taken over by FC Twente's youth academy. vv ATC ’65 has been KSV BWO’s fiercest derby rival ever since.
1997 / Champions in District East’s Sunday League 3A, KSV BWO accedes to Sunday League 2 after an absence of 55 years. The stay at that level is short-lived, though, with relegation following instantly in 1998. In the following fifteen years, the club yet again alternates spells in Sunday League 3 (1998-2000, 2001-02 & 2006-09) and Sunday League 4 (2000-01, 2002-06 & 2009-14).
2013 / On January 18th, 2013, the new clubhouse at Sportpark De Noork, replacing an older construction which found itself roughly in the same place, is inaugurated by Hengelo’s alderman Erik Lievers and BWO’s chairman Peter Sinnema. As the balcony of the second tier of the clubhouse offers a fine view of pitch 2 of the park, the decision is taken to move first team football to this pitch. The old main pitch on the western side of the park has remained in use for lower team football. In the 2012-13 season, finishing in fifth place in District East’s Sunday League 4A, KSV BWO qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club defeats vv Reutum in R1 (3-2 aggr.) before bowing out against RKSV EMOS in R2 (3-2 aggr.). Also in 2013, former BWO youth player Peet Bijen, who had joined FC Twente’s academy seven years previously at the age of eleven, makes his debut for Jong FC Twente, going on to defend the colours of FC Twente, ADO Den Haag, and FC Emmen, before hanging up his boots in 2022.
2014 / Coached by Otto Krabbe, KSV BWO clinches the title in District East’s Sunday League 4A, 2 points ahead of closest rivals RKSV De Tukkers. As such, the club manages a return to Sunday League 3 after an absence of five seasons.
2015 / As Otto Krabbe continues his successful streak as the club’s head coach, KSV BWO obtains its second title in a row as runaway champions in District East’s Sunday League 3A, finishing a staggering 14 points ahead of closest followers EV&AV De Tubanters 1897. As such, the club finds itself in Sunday League 2 for the first time since the turn of the century.
2016 / Runners-up in Sunday League 2J, 1 point behind champions RKVV STEVO, KSV BWO qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club knocks out WAVV in R1 (7-4 aggr.), before being eliminated in R2 by TVC ’28 (3-3 aggr. & penalty shoot-out). Also in 2016, former BWO academy player Reuven Niemeijer makes his debut as a professional league player with Heracles Almelo at the age of 21, going on to defend the colours of FC Emmen, SBV Excelsior, Brescia Calcio, and RKC Waalwijk.
2017 / Still coached by Otto Krabbe, KSV BWO finishes in fourth place in Sunday League 2J, qualifying for the play-offs; successively defeating SV Leones (3-0 aggr.) and RKVV STEVO (3-2 aggr.), the club manages to win a historic promotion to Sunday League 1, the sixth level of the Netherlands’ football pyramid.
2018 / As Otto Krabbe leaves the club, being succeeded by Peter Schulte, KSV BWO has the best season in its history, finishing in a decent sixth place in Sunday League 1E. After the 2017-18 season, Peter Schulte is succeeded by René Nijhuis, former professional league player at FC Twente, BVV Den Bosch, FC Den Bosch, TOP Oss, and Heracles Almelo (1989-2001). Also in 2018, BWO’s main pitch (since 2013) at Gemeentelijk Sportpark De Noork is equipped with a synthetic surface.
2019 / Coached by René Nijhuis, KSV BWO finishes in last place in Sunday League 1E, thus suffering relegation to Sunday League 2 along with the club finishing in second-last place, WAVV.
2020 / Rock bottom in Sunday League 2J all season, KSV BWO only avoids relegation by virtue of the 2019-20 season being cut short by the first COVID lockdown in March 2020.
2023 / After 94 years of Sunday football, KSV BWO used the opportunity offered by the Netherlands’ FA to make a ‘horizontal’ switch to the Saturday pyramid, starting its life as a Saturday club in Saturday League 2I.
2024 / Finishing in tenth place in Saturday League 2I, KSV BWO has to play a set of promotion-relegation play-offs to assure itself of a prolonged stay at that level. Successively knocking out SV Losser (2-1) and vv Zwart-Wit ’63 (1-4), the club eventually bows out in the final against vv Hellendoorn (1-4). As a result, BWO is retrograded to Saturday League 3.