Rushden and Diamonds were formed on the 21 April 1992 by Max Griggs, the owner of the Dr Martens shoe company who bought two non-league clubs (Rushden Town and Irthlingborough Diamonds) and merged them to form a team which would compete in the Southern (Beazer Homes) League Division One and play its home games at Nene Park in Irthlingborough in Northamptonshire.Rushden Town were formed in 1889 and were known as 'The Russians'. They had been compulsorily relegated from the Southern League Premier Division because their ground was not up to standard.
