Hayling United Football Club is a football club based on Hayling Island in Hampshire, England. The club is affiliated to the Hampshire Football Association, and is a FA Charter Standard club. The Humbugs were founded in 1884 as Hayling Island, but changed their name in the early seventies to the present name. The club currently play in the . History Formation and early years There is no definitive date for the founding of the club but there are numerous mentions of matches being played in 1884 including one against a team that went on to become Portsmouth Football Club. Playing in the Portsmouth side that day under the name of A C Smith was a struggling local doctor who went on to become the creator of Sherlock Holmes as Arthur Conan Doyle. Teams under the name of Hayling Island continued to play in the Waterlooville and District League until the club joined the Portsmouth League in the early fifties. From there some 40 years later they progressed to the Hampshire League where their first fixture was in the north Hampshire (nearly Berkshire) village of Ecchinswell, the home of Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber who, it was suggested at the time, was sponsoring the club. By this time the club were playing as Hayling United having changed their name in the early 1970s. Wessex League success In 2004 Hayling joined the newly-formed Wessex League Division Three. After finishing runners-up in back-to-back seasons, they achieved promotion to Division One. Hayling lost just five games in their debut season at this level, scoring a club record 116 goals in the process, and were crowned champions of the division. A six-season stint in the Wessex Premier League followed, where Hayling achieved their highest-ever finish in the 2008 season and also took part in the early rounds of the FA Cup. Defeats to Romsey and Blackfield & Langley in 2009 and 2010 respectively brought a premature end to Hayling's FA Cup dreams, but they would have more joy the following season. After holding Bridport to a 2-2 draw at St Mary's Field, Hayling's hopes of progression were wiped out thanks to a 2-0 home defeat in the replay. The Humbugs fared better in the FA Vase, especially during the 2012-13 season. Having successfully navigated a tough first-qualifying round replay against Verwood Town, Hayling then beat local rivals AFC Portchester in the following stage to set up