Season 2005/06

After the previous season's impressive performances and run to the FA Vase Quarter-Finals the Club was full of early season optimism when the players returned to pre-season duty.

With the Longwell Green 6's tournament wrapped up before pre-season training even started Andy Black completed the signings of goalkeeper Ali Hines (Team Bath), Simeon Allison (Melksham Town), Lee Davidson (Chippenham Town) and Ross Plain (Westland United).

A new Chairman was installed as Gavin Hares took over the reigns fro the vacant position and work on improving the changing rooms was completed to create a larger match officials area and a female officials room as well as other minor works around the ground.

The league season started well with wins over Devizes Town (2-1) and Odd Down (Bath) (3-0) which took the team into an FA Cup game at home against St Blazey full of confidence.

The game ended 0-0 and was destined for a midweek replay in Cornwall but within 24 hours of the game ending the Club was in turmoil after Black informed officials he couldn't raise a side and the replay was conceded.

Conceding the game saw the Robins fined and banned from competing in the competition for the following season but that was nothing compared to the humiliation it caused the Club.

Black was sacked within 48 hours and, after a spell as care-taker boss, Reserve Team Manager Andy Crabtree was installed as the new gaffer.

With a reduced budget it proved to be a real baptism of fire for the new man as Crabtree set about changing the squad and bringing in his own players while allowing others to leave.

Former Clevedon Town winger Steve Mason was the first to join while highly rated centre-half Jamie Cheeseman soon followed from Melksham Town, Ricky Hulbert from Bath City and a young promising striker from Trowbridge Town Matt Cooper.

Out went Matt and Brad Peters to Street, Jon McAlinden and Dean Griffiths followed Black to Premier Division rivals Bitton, Davidson moved onto Odd Down (Bath) and Sam Jarman joined Sherborne Town.

The Robins crashed out of the FA Vase at the first hurdle at Bournemouth Poppies with two players in hospital and defeat was also tasted at Mangotsfield United in the Somerset Premier Cup with the Vase defeat Jon Hayter's last for the Club after sustaining severely damaged ribs.

Frome never really recovered from the FA Cup heartache as crowds dipped and players left but Crabtree stuck to his task of re-building the Club and gave several of the Reserve team players a chance to shine.

There were some memorable wins and some defeats that the remaining fans wanted to forget as quickly as possible.

The Robins soon met up with former boss Black who had taken over at Bitton and they recorded a solid 1-1 draw at The Recreation Ground. The win also saw the return to Frome of midfielder Joe Gomes who Black had released to Shepton Mallet the previous season.

Another local lad was starting to make a name for himself as Matt Cowler stepped up from the Reserves and cemented a regular spot in Crabtree's evolving squad.

Goalkeeper Hines was the next to go as his place was taken by the emerging talent of Dean Evans, who Crabtree had brought to the Club the previous season from Frome Town Sports to play in the Reserves, and he kept his place for the last quarter of the season.

The season was destined to be a wash-out but Crabtree still managed to steer his side to a respectable seventh place with just two defeats in the last fourteen league games.

The Reserves continued to prosper as they finished runners-up in the Somerset County League Division One and only lost out on the title on the last day of the season with a defeat at home to Shirehampton which handed the Bristol side the title. However, the team still achieved promotion back to the Premier Division for the first time in years.

The end of the season did see Frome involved in a cup showdown as they were awarded the honour of hosting the Western League Les Phillips Cup Final between Corsham Town and Willand Rovers with the Wiltshire side winning 1-0 in the last ten minutes. Corsham's manager was impressed with the way the final had been organised and wrote in the Bath Chronicle: "This cup is the one everyone in the Western League wants and winning it is brilliant. Frome were superb hosts, they looked after us before and after the game and the whole occasion was very well presented".

The season may not have produced any silverware and there may have been plenty of heartaches but the Club learned several important lessons to help take them forward and those lessons helped Frome Town back to their best within just a few months.

A new sponsor joins the Club as Mirage Signs donate new rain jackets. Pictures are captain Dean Ranger, Chairman Gavin Hares & Manager Andy Crabtree

Frome Town Ladies were celebrating after clinching the league title to gain promotion to the South West Combination League for the following season

Lee Davidson in action against Devizes Town

Longwell Green 6's champions during pre-season

The Reserves line-up before the start of the new season back in the Premier Division of the County League under the management of Paul Sturman