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A century from Kevin Pietersen helped England set West Indies an imposing total of 401 to win the first Test after day four at Lord's. |  |
Monday, 21, May 2007 04:37
Facts
Formed: 1881
Home Ground: Vicarage Road, capacity 19,920 (expanding to 23,100)
Nickname: The Hornets.
People
Owner: Eddie Davies
Chairman: Graham Simpson
Chief executive: Mark Ashton
Head coach: Aidy Boothroyd
Assistant coach: Keith Burkinshaw
Team captain: Gavin Mahon
History
Watford may have been founded in 1881, but the club had to wait almost a century before they could enjoy anything remotely resembling success. And this success was in no small part due to one man - Graham Taylor. For all his downfalls as an England manager, Taylor enjoyed a spectacular club career, and his two main spells at Watford as manager brought about the most successful periods in the club's history. When he first arrived for the start of the 1976-77 season, Watford were languishing in the old Fourth Division. However, by the start of the 1982-83 campaign they had reached the dizzy heights of the First Division - the equivalent of the Premier League today. With a side that included Luther Blissett - the club's record goalscorer with 186 - and John Barnes - who made over 30 appearances for England while still a Watford player - they finished second in the league in the 1982/3 season, and followed this up by reaching the FA Cup final the next year after beating Plymouth Argyle 1-0 in the semi-final at Villa Park, although they eventually lost to Everton at Wembley. The Hornets also competed in the Uefa cup that season, with the highlight of the campaign being a 4-3 aggregate victory over German side Kaiserslauten, having been 3-1 down after the first leg. However, Taylor's departure to Aston Villa in 1987 saw Watford slide back down to the second tier at the first time of asking, and they would only return to the top flight after his homecoming in February 1996, with promotion achieved in the 1998-99 season. Alas, their stay was brief, as indeed was their latest sortie, led by Aidy Boothroyd.
Honours
League runners-up: 1983
FA Cup runners-up: 1984
Last Season
Premiership: 20th - P 38 W 5 D 13 L 20 GF 29 GA 59 GD -30 PTS 28
FA Cup: Semi-final - lost 4-1 to Manchester United
League Cup: Fourth round - lost 5-4 on penalties to Newcastle United after drawing 2-2
A fan's view of the 2006/07 season
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