History [13 Feb @ 12:00am]

Olton Orient were created in the summer of 2006. A few rogue Dynamo Athletic FC players were discussing taking over the team from a manager incompetant in team selection, tactics, and running a club off the pitch. The idea of starting a new 'rogue' team came up a couple of times, but running it would be problematic.
Lanky, Neil Jenkins, David Jenkins and Dave Smith were the players in question and following the move of Dynamo to Shirley Park away from their beloved Wagon Lane, things had to change! A summer of prolonged dialogue finally had to come to a head.
Then it came, 9th July 2006, Italy v France in the World Cup final. A few of the lads went to the Barley Mo in Solihull, set up camp and watched the game... during which, the topic of starting a new team came up in conversation. Put it down to beer, sheer enthusiasm or passion for Sunday league footie but from then on the O's were formed. Discussions surrounded the running of the 'new' club, managing it, quitting Dynamo Athletic, who would play in our great new team, and the most important, which league would we play in?! It couldn't have been the beer, because even after the night the idea rummbled on...
Phone calls were made, E-mails sent, but from the off our position looked bleak. There were no places in the leagues we wanted to play in and other league secretaries were ignoring our advances. Some players were still training at Dynamo, while attempting to recruit some players along the way. Eventually a league nobody had ever heard of came in and gave us hope. They had a place following the collapse of an established team, so we jumped at the chance.
Fingers had taken up the running of the club following the famous 'World Cup' conversation and took Neil and Lanky along to meet the league secretary. Malcolm 'the chimny' Wittaker sat smoking his way through the meeting in a dark corner of the Glades club house. He threw prices, rules and deadlines at us, but we weren't to be detered. Amongst all this the newly formed team, yet to be named, began training at Monkspath.
Friends of friends came to 'have a kick about' But eventually it was the group that everyone had discussed who would form the bulk of the squad. A few within would fall short of the standard, but that wasn't to be realised until a ball had been kicked. A few players we did want from Dynamo didn't come as expected, Matty and Paddy stayed at Dynamo, for a little while anyway! Fingers was still plugging away, and pulling rabbits out of the hat, a sponsorship deal was secured with the Hogshead.
Some of the money towards that all important league place was secured. The team name was still to be decided, MP Dons (a bit chav like), and some other random names were suggested but when the day came, Olton Orient was put on the application form by Fingers (mainly because I was there twisting his arm!) Fingers sent me off to get kits, "Anything but Yellow and blue" he said! trips to Birmingham County FA to obtain an affiliation number, collecting players' money, friendlies, it was a hectic month. It was all done in time though for the first fixture away at Real Sporting... a 7-1 defeat... and that, they say, is history! Lanky OoOoOOOoooooooooo's!!