Bemerton Heath Harlequins Football Club, nicknamed “The Harlequins,” is a non-league football club based in Salisbury, Wiltshire.
Established in 1989, they currently compete in the Pitching In Southern Football League Division One South, which is part of the eighth tier of English football. The team calls Moon Park their home ground.
The club was established in May 1989 through the merger of Bemerton Athletic, Moon F.C., and Bemerton Boys, all successful local football clubs. Bemerton Athletic had won the Wiltshire League three times, Moon F.C. had garnered multiple honours in the Salisbury and Andover Leagues, and Bemerton Boys had claimed several trophies in the Mid-Wilts League. Talks of a merger began in late 1988, aiming for entry into the Wessex League, driven by the close proximity of the clubs’ grounds and shared players. The merger resulted in the creation of Bemerton Heath Harlequins, operating from a self-built clubhouse.
The Harlequins quickly established themselves in the Wessex League. Their most successful season came in 1992/93, finishing third in the league, winning the Wiltshire Senior Cup, achieving a hat-trick of Hospital Cup victories, and making deep runs in the F.A. Cup and F.A. Vase. In 1996/97, the second XI became Wessex Combination League Champions and Cup Runners-up. The following seasons saw continued success, with the first XI reaching the final of the Wessex League Cup in 1997/98 and the last sixteen of the F.A. Vase in 1998/99. The club’s ground, Western Way, has seen continuous improvements, including the opening of the Moon Room in 1999.
In recent years, the club has experienced fluctuating performances, culminating in their first relegation. In 2019/20, Ian Saunders was appointed manager, bringing significant changes as the club faced Division One. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the club revived its Youth Section to support the community. In December 2020, Shaun Hale took over as manager, with Saunders becoming Director of Football. The Harlequins returned to the Wessex Premier Division by winning the Wessex Division 1 championship in the 2021/22 season, marking their first league title.