Wealdstone is in the London Borough of Harrow and the club is based in Ruislip.  It’s about 3 miles north of Wembley stadium.  Wealdstone play at Grosvenor Vale (their home since 2008) which has a capacity of 4,085.  They share the ground with Watford FC’s Women.

Wealdstone was formally established as a club in 1899.  They are a semi-pro team who achieved promotion to the National League for the second time in their history in 2020, following a covid-curtailed season.  In their 4 seasons back in the 5th tier they have finished 19th, 16th, 13th (their best ever league finish), & 16th.

Plans to move to a new ground in Harrow in 2004 were scuppered by financial issues.  This proposed new home later became The Hive, home to Barnet FC.  Barnet remain Wealdstone’s main football rivals.

Wealdstone have had quite a few arrivals and departures over the summer.  Some of the arrivals are;

Deon Woodman (from QPR)
Enzio Boldewijn (Eastleigh)
Archie Matthews (Swansea City)
Elliot Simmons (Vancouver FC)
Sam Ashford (Cliftonville)
Todd Miller (Bromley)
Adrian Mariappa (Salford City)
Craig Eastmond (Sutton United)

Last season Wealdstone finished 16th in the league, 4 points clear of Borehamwood, who were relegated.  The club rang the managerial changes last season, dismissing one manager in Jan ’24, then another in March when they sat in the relegation places.  Their 1st team coach took over for the final 5 games of the season and succeeded in winning 3 of them.  This hauled Wealdstone clear of relegation.  Their current manager, Matt Taylor, was appointed in May ’24.  Taylor previously managed Walsall and Shrewsbury.

The ‘Stones’ performed much better at home than away last season – 2/3 of their points were won at home.

Wealdstone’s opening games have been;

Dagenham & Redbridge 2-1 Wealdstone, Wealdstone 0-1 Oldham, Wealdstone 0-1 Sutton, Hartlepool 1-1 Wealdstone, Wealdstone 1-0 Fylde, Solihull 1-1 Wealdstone, Wealdstone 0-2 York City, Woking 1-0 Wealdstone.  After 3 early season defeats, there were signs that Wealdstone were finding their feet, with 3 games undefeated, before their home loss to York.

These results (5 defeats, 2 draws, 1 win) have left the ‘Stones’ 21st in the league.  They have looked pretty resolute in defence, conceding only 9 goals in 8 games.  However, they aren’t scoring much – only 4 goals in their 8 games so far.

Wealdstone manager, Matt Taylor, was appointed in May 2024.

The ‘Stones’ (or sometimes the ‘Royals’) were formed in 1899.  Their home ground was Lower Mead in Harrow until 1991.  After this they were nomadic and played without their own home ground until they settled at Grosvenor Vale in 2008.

The club were in the National League (then the Alliance Premier League) in the 1980’s.  They won the league in 1985, but this was 2 years before automatic promotion to the EFL began.  So the club has never been an EFL side.  They suffered years of decline between 1988 and 2004, including the loss of their home ground.  Finally, in 2020 were promoted back to the 5th tier for the first time in 32 years.  They have been a ‘lower-half’ side in their 4 seasons in the National League – 13th their best finish.

Wealdstone’s Vale ground.

In spite of the club’s name, they play quite a few miles away from Wealdstone, which is in the London Borough of Harrow.  Instead, the club are in the London Borough of Hillingdon, just south of Ruislip.  This is close to RAF Northolt and the A.40 Oxford to London road.

The area is very much London suburbia, without any stand-out attractions locally.  You may be tempted by Ruislip Lido with its beach and miniature railway (just to the north of Ruislip)!

Ruislip Lido.

This is the eponymous Weald Stone that is said to have once marked a local boundary.  It’s unusual in that it’s a sarsen stone (same as Stonehenge and Avebury).  Nobody’s really sure how it got to London.  It would be easy to overlook in it’s home outside the Bombay Central restaurant!

If you have heard of Wealdstone, it may be because of internet celebrity (and Wealdstone FC fan) Gordon Hill aka ‘The Wealdstone Raider’.  As well as 70,000 followers on X, The Wealdstone Raider released a charity single at Christmas 2014 titled ‘Got no Fans’.  The song originated as a taunt of opposition fans during a match between Whitehawk FC and Wealdstone FC.  It charted at number 5 in the Christmas singles charts (only beaten by Ben Haenow, Mark Ronson, Olly Murs, and Ed Sheeran!)

58 year-old builder and roofer, Gordon Hill, became an internet and chart sensation in 2014 as The Wealdstone Raider.  Gordon donates proceeds to Great Ormond Street Hospital.