F.C. Boca Gibraltar

Boca Gibraltar was a football team from Gibraltar. They played in the Gibraltar National League until 2020, having previously played in the Gibraltar Premier Division and the Gibraltar Second Division and they also played in the Rock Cup.[1]

Boca Gibraltar
Full nameFootball Club Boca Juniors Gibraltar
Nickname(s)Boca
Founded2012
Dissolved2020
GroundVictoria Stadium, Gibraltar
Capacity5,000

History

The club was founded as Boca Juniors Gibraltar F.C. in 2012, and joined the Gibraltar Second Division for the 2012–13 season. After the Gibraltar Football Association joined UEFA in 2013, the league saw significant expansion and an influx of foreign players, however, a 10th-place finish in the 14-team league was all they could muster in the 2014–15 season. After rebuilding the squad in the now 12-team division, the team finished 8th in the 2015–16 season.

Significant improvements after the departure of Red Imps, Pegasus and Britannia from the league saw an impressive 3rd-place finish in 2017, while the club began referring to themselves as simply Boca Gibraltar. However, 7 points separated Boca from the top two teams, and they missed out on the promotion play-off. A restructuring in summer 2017 saw former goalkeeper and club captain Philip Hermida promoted to Director of Football, with the intention of challenging for promotion in 2018. A 1–1 draw with Ocean Village rivals Bruno's Magpies on the final day secured the Second Division title by a single point on 22 May 2018, ensuring that Boca would play in the Gibraltar Premier Division for the first time the next season.

In February 2019 with the club on the brink of folding, the club was taken over by a group of investors including former player Phillip Hermida, Allen Bula Jr, and former national team coach Aaron Edwards.[2] Though this new consortium managed to keep the team afloat, the team continued to struggle. Potential investment never materialised during the abandoned 2019–20 season, however a rebuild of the squad in summer 2020 began, with new manager Stephen Vaughan Jr. bringing in an influx of British and Italian players to strengthen the side.[3] However, the sponsorship was withdrawn in August,with Vaughan stepping away from the football club to concentrate on his sports management company. Under Edwards, the team started the season brightly, however after incurring 2 forfeits due to HGP rule violations, the club was refused domestic licence which resulted in the team expelled from the league on 9 December 2020.[4] However, a team operating under the name Boca Juniors Gibraltar entered the 2021 Gibraltar Futsal Second Division, indicating that there is a new phoenix club that exists without ownership.

Final squad

Correct as of 9 December 2020.[5]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Wales WAL Jack Atkinson
2 DF Gibraltar GIB Ethan Thorne-Llambias (on loan from Lincoln Red Imps)
3 MF Gibraltar GIB Sean Gilbert
4 DF Spain ESP Guillermo Pérez
5 MF Gibraltar GIB James Parkinson
6 MF Gibraltar GIB Max Cottrell
7 FW England ENG Luke Wall
8 MF Brazil BRA Matheus Motta
9 FW Gibraltar GIB Lython Marquez
10 FW Gibraltar GIB Dylan Peacock
11 MF Gibraltar GIB Leon Clinton
12 DF Spain ESP Oscar Moreno
No. Pos. Nation Player
14 FW Gibraltar GIB Nathan Santos
15 DF Gibraltar GIB Lee Coombes
16 DF England ENG Lennie Armstrong (captain)
18 DF Gibraltar GIB Elias Juel-Saleh
19 MF Scotland SCO Cavan Burns
20 DF Italy ITA Massimo Sammartino
21 DF Italy ITA Alberto Drudi (on loan from Chievo)
23 MF Italy ITA Mattia Ramundo
25 GK England ENG Kieren Proctor
26 DF Italy ITA Daniele Grieco (on loan from Chievo)
27 MF Italy ITA Hassen Haddad

Club staff

According to the club's website.[6]

Position Name
Club Management
Chairman-Manager Gibraltar Aaron Edwards
Assistant Manager England Luke Purcell
Fitness Coach Spain Jesus Gallardo
Physio Gibraltar Gavin Vinales

References
  1. "Gibraltar Football Association - Rock Cup". Gibraltar Football Association. Retrieved 2020-05-12.
  2. FC Boca officially under new ownership Football Gibraltar. 27 February 2019. Retrieved 27 February 2019.
  3. New Technical Team Announced Boca Gibraltar. 1 June 2020. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  4. FC Boca Juniors Gibraltar will not fulfil their Gibraltar National League fixture scheduled for this evening. Gibraltar FA. 9 December 2020. Retrieved 9 December 2020.
  5. Boca Squad List Archived 2019-08-27 at the Wayback Machine Boca Gibraltar Official Website. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
  6. About Us Archived 2018-08-23 at the Wayback Machine Boca Gibraltar official site. Retrieved 19 December 2018.
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