playing team, and Moster the reserve team to play at the Moster home field. The goal had a failed conceptual predecessor with Stord IL, IL Trott and IL Solid. Simonsen was criticized for focusing too much on profit. In November 2002 the extraordinary annual convention of Stord's football section approved the plans, The club was founded on 18 December 2002. Chairman of the board was Kristian Innvær, and head coach was Magnar Aaland. He resigned in pre-season in February 2003. Assistants Eivind Egeland and Øystein Djuve were the replacements. Egeland soon resigned to pursue a non-football career in Hommersåk. Soon after the Icelander Kristinn Atlason was hired as head coach. When both Djuve, the physical coach Tore Hammer and the two junior team coaches Jørgen Hammersland and Tore Atle Sørheim resigned in April, Simonsen himself took over as junior team coach. On the other hand, Kjetil Løvvik ceased his professional career to play for Stord/Moster. He lived in Oslo, but flew to Stord to play matches and became a prolific goalscorer. Stord/Moster won the league, but lost to Norheimsund IL in the playoff to the Second Division. In the 2003 Norwegian Football Cup it was defeated in the first preliminary round by SK Nord. Financially, the club witnessed a deficit in 2003 (while the club Stord IL actually profited from losing its senior team). Kristinn Atlason wanted to continue as coach, but was replaced by Vegard Hansen. The former Bristol City and Strømsgodset defender also played matches. The 2004 season went well in that Stord/Moster won the league again, despite that 2003's top goalscorer Kjetil Løvvik played less. In the playoff to the Second Division it beat Nest-Sotra 3–2 on aggregate, and won promotion. This was a revenge after Nest-Sotra eliminated Stord/Moster in the first preliminary round of the 2004 Norwegian Football Cup. The new goal of the club, according to majority owner Simonsen, was to reach the upper echelon of the Second Division within 2007. The club's reserves team also won promotion, to the Third Division. However, the club still had financial issues. The running expenses showed a deficit of NOK 477,000 in 2003 and NOK 819,000 in 2004. In 2005, the new chairman Geir Ove Sele pondered that the club's goals for 2005, among others an average attendance of 1000 on home matches, as well as the perceived willingness of sponsors to support the team, might be unrealistic.