Extreme Football Tourism: NETHERLANDS: vv ONA '53

Sportpark J.D. van Ketwich Verschuur Oost, Wageningen (vv ONA '53)

Netherlands, province: Guelders = Gelderland

6 VI 2026 / vv ONA '53 - vv Zeewolde 0-4 / District East, Saturday Leagues 2 & 3 - promotion-relegation play-off R2 (= NL levels 7 & 8)

Timeline

1953 / Foundation of a football club in the town of Wageningen in the Province of Guelders, Netherlands – more specifically in the new working-class neighbourhood ‘t Rode Dorp. The new club is given the name Voetbalvereniging (vv) ‘Ontspanning Na Arbeid’ (ONA) 1953 (’53) – with the addition of the year of foundation being obligatory to distinguish the club from its near-namesake vv ONA from Gouda. The founding fathers of the club are Jan Kok, Joop Kok, Barend Mulder, and Henk Tiemessen. Although the club joins Afdeling Arnhem (alternatively referred to by its pre-war name Arnhemse Voetbalbond, AVB), one of the sub-branches of the Netherlands’ Football Association (KNVB), it cannot commence its existence as a competitive club yet due to not disposing of a home ground. Therefore, for the time being, vv ONA ’53 sticks to playing occasional friendly matches.
1955 / Reaching an agreement with the so-called Nederlands Scheepsbouwkundig Proefstation (NSP, Dutch Shipbuilding Testing Facility Foundation) – the modern-day Maritime Research Institute Netherlands (MARIN) – the membership of vv ONA ’53 is given permission to lay out a pitch on a meadow owned by the institute. As such, after a two-year wait, the club is finally placed in the bottom Sunday division of Afdeling Arnhem for the 1955-56 season.
1956 / Due to the NSP reclaiming its plot of land after just one year for the construction of a towing tank, vv ONA ’53 has to move away from its first pitch after just one year, resettling at Terrein Oude Tol, situated halfway between Oude Bennekomseweg and Oude Diedenweg.
1957 / Moving away from Terrein Oude Tol after one season, vv ONA ’53 is placed at the newly laid-out Sportpark De Nude in the eponymous new neighbourhood. With the vast improvement of facilities, the club now undertakes the foundation of a youth academy. At Sportpark De Nude, vv ONA ’53 is joined by city-rivals WAVV later on, sometime in the 1960s.
1968 / vv ONA ’53 wins promotion from Afdeling Arnhem Sunday Division 1 to District East’s Sunday League 4 for the first time.
1972 / Finishing bottom of the table in District East’s Sunday League 4F, vv ONA ’53 drops back into the ranks of Afdeling Arnhem.
1974 / After an absence of two years, vv ONA ’53 manages a return to Sunday League 4, gaining promotion from Afdeling Arnhem Sunday Division 1.
1975 / vv ONA ’53 finishes as runner-up in District East’s Sunday League 4F, 9 points behind champions vv Uchta.
1976 / Champions in District East’s Sunday League 4F, 3 points ahead of closest rivals vv Oosterbeek, vv ONA ’53 accedes to Sunday League 3 for the first time.
1979 / Finishing in second-last place in District East’s Sunday League 3D, vv ONA ’53 descends into Sunday League 4 after three years, alongside bottom club SV Hatert.
1986 / vv ONA ’53 finishes as runner-up in District East’s Sunday League 4F, 2 points behind champions vv Uchta.
1987 / Champions in District East’s Sunday League 4F, 3 points ahead of closest followers OVC ’85, vv ONA ’53 wins promotion to Sunday League 3.
1990 / Moving away from Sportpark De Nude, which has to make way for housing, vv ONA ’53 and WAVV are both relocated to the newly laid-out Sportpark J.D. van Ketwich Verschuur in the new neighbourhood Noordwest; Jan Derk van Ketwich Verschuur was the mayor of Wageningen between 1979 and his passing in 1988 at the age of 49. At the new park, vv ONA ’53 occupies the eastern half, with WAVV settling directly to their west. ONA’s clubhouse on the new location is inaugurated that summer.
1991 / Finishing in second-last place in District East’s Sunday League 3D, vv ONA ’53 drops back into Sunday League 4 after four seasons, alongside bottom club SC Bemmel.
1996 / Runaway champions in District East’s Sunday League 4F, 12 points ahead of closest followers vv Eldenia, vv ONA ’53 wins promotion to Sunday League 3.
1999 / Former vv ONA ’53 youth player, 19-year-old Peter Wisgerhof, who had moved to the academy of SBV Vitesse at the age of thirteen, makes his professional league debut for SBV Vitesse. The defender goes on to have subsequent spells at NEC and FC Twente, while also winning 2 caps for the Netherlands (2010-11). Wisgerhof eventually hangs up his boots at the age of 34 in 2014.
2003 / Coached by Zeger Tollenaar, vv ONA ’53 finishes bottom of the table in District East’s Sunday League 3D, thus dropping back into Sunday League 4, along with the club in second-last place, vv Eldenia.
2006 / Champions in District East’s Sunday League 4F, 2 points ahead of runner-up VVO, vv ONA ’53 manages a return to Sunday League 3 after three years. The successful coach is Marcel Orlemans.
2009 / Coached by Fred de Smalen, vv ONA ’53 finishes in second-last place in District East’s Sunday League 3D, thus suffering relegation into Sunday League 4, along with bottom club SC Veluwezoom.
2011 / Champions in District East’s Sunday League 4F, 4 points ahead of closest rivals vv Eldenia, vv ONA ’53 wins promotion to Sunday League 3. The successful coach is Armand Mannen.
2012 / Finishing in third place in District East’s Sunday League 3D, vv ONA ’53 qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which the club is knocked out in R1 by vv DVC ’26 (6-1 aggr.).
2014 / Coached by Armand Mannen, vv ONA ’53 finishes in third-last place in District East’s Sunday League 3D, going on to suffer defeat in R1 of the promotion-relegation play-offs against vv Arnhemse Boys Schuytgraaf (8-1 aggr.). As such, the club drops back into Sunday League 4 after three seasons, along with direct drop-outs SCP and vv SML.
2015 / Runaway champions in District East’s Sunday League 4F, 12 points ahead of closest followers RKVV HAVO, vv ONA ’53 manages an immediate return to Sunday League 3. The successful coach is André Hagen.
2016 / Finishing in third-last place in District East’s Sunday League 3D, vv ONA ’53 saves its skin in the promotion-relegation play-offs with an 8-2 (aggr.) win over SV Nijmegen.
2017 / Finishing in third-last place in District West I’s Sunday League 3D, vv ONA ’53 is drawn into a promotion-relegation group with vv Schalkwijk and SV Ilpendam. Clinching a comprehensive home win against the former (5-0), ONA goes on to draw away against the latter (1-1) – and with Ilpendam managing only three goals against Schalkwijk, ONA wins the group and thus avoids relegation.
2018 / Coached by John van Dijk, vv ONA ’53 finishes bottom of the table in District East’s Sunday League 3D, thus descending into Sunday League 4 alongside RKSV Groesbeekse Boys and SC Millingen.
2019 / Following a meagre tenth place in District East’s Sunday League 4D, vv ONA ’53 chooses to transfer its first team to the Saturday pyramid, being placed in Saturday League 4 for the 2019-20 season.
2020 / In the 2019-20 season, cut short due to the first COVID lockdown in March 2020, vv ONA ’53 finds itself top of the table in District East’s Saturday League 4B, 11 points ahead of closest followers vv Echteld, after 16 of 24 matches. On that basis, the club is placed in Saturday League 3 for the new season. The successful coach is Marcel Nijhuis.
2024 / Champions in District East’s Saturday League 3B, 1 point ahead of closest rivals vv Renswoude, vv ONA ’53 wins promotion to (Saturday) League 2 for the first time in club history. The successful coach is Martin Mol.
2025 / Finishing bottom of the table in Saturday League 2G with coach Martin Mol, vv ONA ’53 drops back into Saturday League 3 after just one season, along with vv Hooglanderveen and vv Renswoude.
2026 / Runner-up in Saturday League 3L alongside SV OSS ’20, 15 points behind runaway champions SV Harskamp, vv ONA ’53 qualifies for the promotion-relegation play-offs. Following a win over vv Zwart-Wit ’63 in R1 (2-0), the club is knocked out in R2 by vv Zeewolde (0-4, cp. photos below).

Note – Essential parts of the information above have been derived from a magazine, published on the occasion of the sixtieth anniversary of vv ONA ’53 in 2013 (“De Dribbelaar, Ledenblad van voetbalclub ONA ’53 – Jubileumnummer”, ed. June 2013). Thanks to the board of vv ONA ’53 for putting a copy of this magazine at my disposal.