Only a couple of minutes away from KSK Hasselt there is a very charming ground to be found. Most groundhoppers skip this ground, but we definitely enjoyed paying a visit to Ten Hove; home ground of KSK Thor Hasselt.
The name is most probably the most unique part. Everybody would expect Koninkelijke Sportking or Sport Klub Tot Heil Onze Ribbenkast Hasselt to be the full name, but in reality it's Koninklijke Spalbeek-Kermt Ten Hove Op de Rooi Hasselt. Pretty awesome, right?
It all started in 1952 with the creation of Sporting Spalbeek. The core goal of the team was to form the youth in their social and sportive capabilities. Nice little detail; their second coach was Nic Hoydonckx who went with Belgium to the very first World Cup in Uruguay in 1930.
Already in 1961 the team managed to reach the top regional league in Limburg, but that would immediately be the highest they would ever go. Afterwards it mostly was a going up and down between all of the regional leagues. By 1970 they were back in the third regional league and they had Rene Vandereycken in the first team. Afterwards it would take until the new millennium before they would win another championship.
Since 2012 the team underwent a lot of changes, starting with a new board in 2012 and quickly followed by a move to Ten Hove, after having played in the Spalbeekstraat for almost 40 years. In 2014 it was time for another change - the old name Koninklijke Sporting Spalbeek made way for KSK Thor Hasselt. By that time the team was back in the second regional league. Main focus to this day is the development of the youth players.
The Hove is the old ground of KSK Kermt, which has merged with KSC Hasselt and became the current KSK Hasselt. Charming little ground and we're more than glad this is still in use.