Falkirk Infirmary Shield Medal - John McNaught

April 19, 2013, 11:23 pm

≫ Next: Falkirk & District Junior League 1894/95

The grandson of Falkirk Outside-Right & Scottish Cup winner got in touch with me the other week asking about his career. He was intrigued because he had found Jock McNaught's medal from winning the Falkirk Infirmary Shield in 1912/13.

So I told him what I could and in return he sent me a picture of said medal.

Front

Back

John McNaught

Jock McNaught was brought in from Glasgow Junior football to try to replace that huge gap on the right wing left by the departure of John Simpson to Blackburn Rovers. They were big boots to fill [and I'm not actually sure anyone filled that position until Crunchie], but John had fitted in well, winning the Scottish Cup along with several other lesser competitions with the club.

But along came the Great War so we will never know what he could have done at the club. Like many other players he moved about during the war [and a missing season suggests either serious injury, enlisting, or both] before settling down in the post war years with Kilmarnock.

He will always be remembered in Falkirk as being a Scottish cup winner, but this is a little reminder to us that there were other cups & medals to play for [often forgotten in these days of Premier Leagues]

John McNaught

b 1892, Glasgow
d November 1972, Kilmarnock, Ayrshire

Debut – Saturday September 30th 1911 v Raith Rovers (H) Scottish League Division 1

Positions – Outside-Right

Club Honours – Scottish Cup W 1912/13, North-Eastern Cup W 1911/12, Dunedin Cup W 1913/14,
Dewar Shield W 1913/14, Falkirk District Charity Cup W 1913/14, Falkirk Infirmary Shield W 1912/13, 1913/14,1914/15, 1915/16

Scottish League Division 1 Matches/Goals [130/17]
Scottish Cup Matches/Goals [11/3]
Minor League Matches/Goals [1/-]
Minor Cup Matches/Goals [21/3]

Known Career – St Clement's, Cambuslang Rangers, Falkirk [1911/12-1915/16], Vale of Leven [1918/19], St Mirren [1918/19], Kilmarnock
[1919/20-1922/23], Johnstone [1923/24-1924/25], Clyde [1924/25], East Stirlingshire [1925/26]

Played for SPFA XI v PFA XI, Benefit Match at Glasgow, 20th April 1914

Height - 5 ft 7 in: Weight 10 st 7 lbs [1913]

Note - The Falkirk Infirmary here is not the same building as people will think of nowadays, it was a large victorian building on Thornhill Road [another building gone]

↧

Falkirk & District Junior League 1894/95

April 23, 2013, 8:47 am

≫ Next: David Ross was not an Anarchist!

≪ Previous: Falkirk Infirmary Shield Medal - John McNaught

Those of you who read this blog regularly may have noticed that I have a bit of a thing for the obscure. Instead of banging on about the obvious things like the Scottish League, I have posted about a goalie who only played in one match [a friendly] and conceded eight goals [against the 'shire FFS], about the grave of another who only played in one competitive match, about a whole season of the reserves and much more random nonsense.

Well here is another [this time non Falkirk FC related] bit of Falkirk footballing obscurantia [my own word]. Centred around the abortive Falkirk & District Junior Association in 1894/95.

[Note for non-Scots: junior football in Scotland does not mean youth football, it is a strange semi-professional parallel to the senior game. It is strong in many villages & small towns who are too small to support a Scottish League club, but there are also clubs in the cities, it is very community orientated. It was born out of clubs who played on public parks and therefore were excluded from the SFA who organised themselves into local [often county] Associations, and then into a national junior association.]

Well, I started out with the intention of detailing [yet] another obscure, short-lived local competition and it's instigators the short lived Falkirk Hibernian, but it grew a bit, because as we know nothing exists in a vacuum and it there was no single reason why 1894/95 nearly broke Junior Football in Falkirk.

But for this post I will be concentrating on the Falkirk District Association and it's clubs.

Club	Location	Home Ground	Approximate Formation
Crosscroes United	Standburn	Public Park	Formed cAug 1894
East End Rovers	Grangemouth	Zetland Park	Formed cFeb 1890
Falkirk Hibernian	Falkirk	Prince's Park	Formed cSep 1894
Gairdoch Juniors	Carronshore	Gairdoch Park	Formed cAug 1894 [May 1886]
Heather Rangers	Stenhousemuir	Goschen Park	Formed cNov 1890
Longcroft Thistle	Longcroft	Public Park	Formed cJan 1893
Rising Star	Skinflats	Bothkennar Park	Formed cNov 1886 [continued sporadically]
Vale of Carron	Carron	Inns Park	Formed cJul 1894

Junior football was not new in the Falkirk region in 1894, several teams had a fair bit of history already and many were well involved in the Stirlingshire Junior Association which was more than five years old by this time, in addition a few of the clubs also had affiliated with the Scottish Junior Football Association so were entered into the Scottish Junior Cup.

But 1894/95 started very slowly for the juniors, with very few early matches to note. No teams had thrown themselves into the hurly burly of a season proper and it was not until October that anything like a busy schedule got up and running.

Date	Home		Away		Notes
18^th Aug 1894	Falkirk 2^nd XI	3	Heather Rangers	3	Friendly
22^nd Aug 1894	Vale of Carron	2	Whitefield Swifts	0	Friendly
25^th Aug 1894	Heather Rangers	1	Longcroft Thistle	1	Friendly
25^th Aug 1894	East End Rovers	8	Rising Star	1	Friendly
1^st Sep 1894	Vale of Carron	5	Roselea	1	Friendly
1^st Sep 1894	Gairdoch Juniors	2	Gairdoch Ancients	6	Friendly
15^th Sep 1894	Vale of Forth	6	Vale of Carron	4	Friendly
15^th Sep 1894	Longcroft Thistle	1	East End Rovers	1	Friendly
15^th Sep 1894	Heather Rangers	4	Grasshoppers 2^nd XI	1	Friendly
22^nd Sep 1894	Vale of Carron	11	Alma Athletic	0	Friendly
22^nd Sep 1894	Alloa Thistle	9	Heather Rangers	3	Friendly
29^th Sep 1894	Falkirk Hibernian	0	Slamannan Swifts	6	Friendly
29^th Sep 1894	Vale of Carron	3	Seafield Thistle	1	Friendly
29^th Sep 1894	Heather Rangers	3	East End Rovers	1	Friendly

Two important events had happened almost unnoticed in September though. First for a reason never fully explained in the press, Slamannan Swifts [the Stirlingshire Junior Cup holders] were left out of the draw for the 1894/95 competition. It seems from putting pieces together that the Swifts never sent a representative to the first meeting of the season and the other representatives assumed that the club had let their membership lapse. But this was 'grist to the mill', for the Slamannanites.

Relations have always been 'distant' between Falkirk and Slamannan, the two town may share the same county, and Slamannan may be in Falkirk district, but quite simply until relatively recently it was far easier to get to Airdrie or Bathgate than Falkirk for residents of Slamannan [in fact the first Glasgow-Edinburgh railway line in Scotland linked Airdrie & Bathgate through Slamannan, whilst later Falkirk was linked to the two cities by a completely separate line some years later, effectively widening the gap between the two].

Needless to say Slamannan Swifts took their omission as a slight, and appealed to the SJFA. At around the same time a meeting was held in Rankin Lane, Falkirk, which brought into existence the first attempt at a serious football club to the south of Falkirk High Street: Falkirk Hibernian. Led by their enthusiastic secretary Patrick McSorley they were, during their brief existence, at the forefront of trying to put Junior Football in Falkirk on the map.

The Stirlingshire Junior Cup ties were to go ahead as per the original draw, whilst during October the teams of the District suffered very badly in the First round of the Scottish Cup, only Longcroft Thistle [bye] and Heather Rangers [by knocking out neighbours Larbert Windsor] surviving. Things were not looking good and it looked like most teams were going to be without serious matches, and there were still seven months of the season to go.

Date	Home		Away		Notes
6^th Oct 1894	Falkirk Hibernian	2	Falkirk Hawthorn	1	Friendly
6^th Oct 1894	East End Rovers	5	Gairdoch Juniors	1	Friendly
13^th Oct 1894	Campsie Black Watch	WO	East End Rovers	scr	Scottish Junior Cup 1^st Rd
13^th Oct 1894	Kilsyth Rangers	5	Slamannan Swifts	1	Scottish Junior Cup 1^st Rd
13^th Oct 1894	Heather Rangers	5	Larbert Windsor	1	Scottish Junior Cup 1^st Rd
13^th Oct 1894	Stirling Emmet	4	Falkirk Hibernian	4	Friendly
20^th Oct 1894	Vale of Forth	1	Heather Rangers	1	Friendly
27^th Oct 1894	Longcroft Thistle	2	Kilsyth Rangers	2	Scottish Junior Cup 2^nd Rd
27^th Oct 1894	Campsie Black Watch	W	Heather Rangers	L	Scottish Junior Cup 2^nd Rd
27^th Oct 1894	East End Rovers	1	Camelon 2^nd XI	1	Friendly
27^th Oct 1894	Rising Star	5	Gairdoch Juniors	2	Friendly

On November 10^ththe Stirlingshire Junior Cup began with a whimper, with only one of the matches surviving the vagaries of the Scottish climate. Two days later, the representatives of several junior clubs met in the Crown Hotel, Falkirk High Street to form the Falkirk & District Junior Association. The new Association started off with immediate controversy with the decision limiting membership to clubs situated within four miles of the town. This effectively barred both Slamannan Swifts & Slamannan Blue Bell [who had both been invited]. Both clubs complained that Longcroft was more than four miles from the town [they may have had a point], but to no joy, another slight for Slamannan.

The main argument against their inclusion was that Slamannan “is too far away and difficult to get at”, the Slamannan clubs countering that “they would be the greater sufferers as they would have to travel down to Falkirk eight times”, compared to the two trips up the braes by the other clubs, which they were willing to bear, but the Falkirk clubs were resolute.

The first matches were down for the following Saturday [Nov 17^th], only two were scheduled for that day because of the postponements in the first round of the Stirlingshire Cup ties.

In the end only one of these matches was completed, darkness prematurely ending Vale of Carron' match with Falkirk Hibernian, Rising Star comfortably beating Crosscroes in the other.

Then the Slamannan Swifts influence came to bear, the SJFA ruled it had been 'inappropriate' to omit the club from the Stirlingshire Junior Cup. The Stirlingshire Association grudgingly agreed to add the Swifts to the first round byes, but under protest from the clubs already knocked out of the competition and under SJFA advice the cup, and all completed matches from the cup were declared null and void, and the competition completely redrawn [irony of ironies, Slamannan Swifts, of course, received a bye in the new first round].

This of course threw the rudimentary Falkirk & District League fixture list into turmoil, the Stirlingshire Cup matches taking priority, it being the senior Association [and it has to be remembered that although the clubs had few competitive matches in their calendars they still had binding agreements for several 'home & away' matches with other clubs].

Date	Home		Away		Notes
3^rd Nov 1894	Kilsyth Rangers	4	Longcroft Thistle	2	Scottish Junior Cup 2^nd Rd Replay
3^rd Nov 1894	Crosscroes United	3	Falkirk Hibernian	0	Benefit Match
3^rd Nov 1894	Vale of Carron	1	Gairdoch Juniors	4	Friendly
3^rd Nov 1894	Rising Star	3	East End Rovers	1	Friendly
10^th Nov 1894	Falkirk Hibernian	3	Rising Star	6	Stirlingshire Junior Cup [Abandoned]
10^th Nov 1894	Heather Rangers	4	Campsie Black Watch	4	Stirlingshire Junior Cup [Void]
10^th Nov 1894	Kilsyth Rangers	1	Larbert Windsor	0	Friendly*
10^th Nov 1894	Longcroft Thistle	3	East End Rovers	0	Friendly*
10^th Nov 1894	Vale of Carron	5	West End Athletic	1	Friendly
17^th Nov 1894	Longcroft Thistle	4	East End Rovers	3	Stirlingshire Junior Cup [Void]
17^th Nov 1894	Vale of Carron	5	Falkirk Hibernian	1	Falkirk Junior League [Aband 75 mins]
17^th Nov 1894	Rising Star	6	Crosscroes United	2	Falkirk Junior League
17^th Nov 1894	Gairdoch Juniors	1	Heather Rangers	4	Friendly
24^th Nov 1894	Gairdoch Juniors	3	Rising Star	2	Falkirk Junior League
24^th Nov 1894	Heather Rangers	6	Vale of Carron	3	Falkirk Junior League
24^th Nov 1894	Falkirk Hibernian	2	Rumford Rovers	1	Friendly
24^th Nov 1894	Grasshoppers 2^nd XI	1	Longcroft Thistle	4	Friendly

The new Stirlingshire Cup was scheduled to start in December, it largely went to plan, the only problem being the Gairdoch Juniors v Rising Star match, which was twice abandoned because of the crowd encroaching on the field of play [the second time with only two minutes to go]. Other than this and a League match being cancelled due to the state of the pitch, the schedule went as well as could be expected under the circumstances. December was by far the closest the League came the closest to functioning properly.

About the most interesting match of the season happened in December when Falkirk Hibernian took the field against Gairdoch with only nine men, and finding themselves five goals down at half-time. On change of ends and the Hibernian now playing down the slope [and locals will attest there is a very pronounced slope on Prince's Park, so much so that it is difficult to imagine a football match on the modern park], took the game to the 'Gairs, winning the game 6-5!

Date	Home		Away		Notes
1^st Dec 1894	Vale of Carron	4	East End Rovers	1	Stirlingshire Junior Cup 1^st Rd
1^st Dec 1894	Falkirk Hibernian	WO	Campsie Black Watch	scr	Stirlingshire Junior Cup 1^st Rd
1^st Dec 1894	Heather Rangers	6	Larbert Windsor	1	Stirlingshire Junior Cup [Protest]
1^st Dec 1894	Gairdoch Juniors	0	Rising Star	3	Stirlingshire Junior Cup [Aband 65 mins]
8^th Dec 1894	Rising Star	2	Vale of Carron	2	Falkirk Junior League
8^th Dec 1894	Gairdoch Juniors	3	Crosscroes United	0	Falkirk Junior League
8^th Dec 1894	Longcroft Thistle	12	Heather Rangers	0	Falkirk Junior League
8^th Dec 1894	Tillicoultry Victoria	4	Falkirk Hibernian	2	Friendly
15^th Dec 1894	Falkirk Hibernian	6	Gairdoch Juniors	5	Falkirk Junior League
15^th Dec 1894	East End Rovers	5	Longcroft Thistle	1	Falkirk Junior League
22^nd Dec 1894	Heather Rangers	11	Larbert Windsor	0	Stirlingshire Junior Cup 1^st Rd
22^nd Dec 1894	Whitefield Swifts	1	Kilsyth Rangers	2	Stirlingshire Junior Cup 1^st Rd
22^nd Dec 1894	Rising Star	3	Gairdoch Juniors	4	Stirlingshire Junior Cup [Aband 88 mins]
22^nd Dec 1894	Falkirk Hibernian	6	Crosscroes United	0	Falkirk Junior League
22^nd Dec 1894	Dunipace 2^nd XI	7	Vale of Carron	0	Friendly
29^th Dec 1894	East End Rovers	1	Falkirk Hibernian	1	Friendly*
29^th Dec 1894	Falkirk 2^nd XI	3	Heather Rangers	2	Friendly
29^th Dec 1894	Rising Star	4	Whitefield Swifts	1	Friendly
31^st Dec 1894	Whitefield Swifts	2	Heather Rangers	2	Friendly

In order to raise funds for the new League a New Year's match was arranged against the Stirlingshire Association to be held at East Stirlingshire's Merchiston Park on Wednesday the 2^ndof January. The result showed the potential strength in the Junior Game in Falkirk, with the League side beating the Association side 4-0.

Falkirk District League – Reid [Vale of Carron]; Grant [Rising Star] & Dunn [East End Rovers]; Archibald [Vale of Carron], McIntosh [Vale of Carron] & Murray [Crosscroes United]; Fish [Heather Rangers] & Lorne [Heather Rangers], Muirhead [East End Rovers], Leyden [East End Rovers] & Thomson [Vale of Carron].

Stirlingshire Association – Murray [Heather Rangers]; Stirling [Kilsyth Rangers] & Omit [Larbert Windsor]; J.McSorley [Falkirk Hibernian], Reid [Vale of Carron] & Nugent [Kilsyth Rangers]; Sinclair [Falkirk Hibernian] & Mitchell [Falkirk Hibernian], Walker [Falkirk Hibernian], Parrot [Vale of Carron] & Laird [Rising Star]

As if the reorganisation of the Stirlingshire Cup had not already added to the League's problems, in January one of the worst winters then struck, calling off matches all over the country. This, of course hit junior clubs more than the senior clubs who had largely enclosed their grounds and employed a groundsman to take care of it.

There were weekends weekends with no matches reported in the local press, and some throughout January and February when only the biggest and most important of matches survived.

It was not until January that the first round of the Stirlingshire Cup was completed, the Association forcing Gairdoch and Rising Star to play their tie at Ochilview Park [Stenhousemuir FC] because of the previous abandonments. But every week brought new postponements pushing the fixtures further & further back. It was becoming more & more difficult to fit in the backlog of matches around already scheduled matches.

Date	Home		Away		Notes
2^nd Jan 1895	Falkirk Junior League	4	Stirlingshire Junior Ass	0	Benefit Match
2^nd Jan 1895	Heather Rangers	6	Crown Athletic	1	Friendly
5^th Jan 1895	Vale of Carron		Longcroft Thistle		Longcroft No show
19^th Jan 1895	Gairdoch Juniors	4	Rising Star	2	Stirlingshire Junior Cup 1^st Rd
19^th Jan 1895	Longcroft Thistle	1	Slamannan Swifts	3	Stirlingshire Junior Cup 2^nd Rd
19^th Jan 1895	Camelon 2^nd XI	6	East End Rovers	0	Friendly
19^th Jan 1895	Falkirk Hibernian	0	Vale of Carron	2	Friendly*
19^th Jan 1895	Crosscroes United	3	Whitefield Swifts	1	Friendly
26^th Jan 1895	East End Rovers	0	Falkirk 2^nd XI	2	Friendly
2^nd Feb 1895	Gairdoch Juniors	6	Falkirk Hibernian	2	League [protest]
2^nd Feb 1895	Vale of Carron	4	Heather Rangers	3	League [protest]
2^nd Feb 1895	Rising Star	4	Dunipace 2^nd XI	4	Friendly
16^th Feb 1895	Grasshoppers	0	Longcroft Thistle	7	Friendly
16^th Feb 1895	Vale of Carron	8	Bainsford Blue Bell	1	Friendly
23^rd Feb 1895	Crosscroes United	2	Gairdoch Juniors	2	Stirlingshire Junior Cup 2^nd Rd
23^rd Feb 1895	Rising Star	3	Longcroft Thistle	1	Falkirk Junior League
23^rd Feb 1895	East End Rovers	3	Heather Rangers	2	Friendly*
23^rd Feb 1895	Vale of Carron	3	Vale of Grange	2	Friendly

By March it seemed like most of the clubs had given up the ghost with the nascent league, only Falkirk Hibernian [when possible] trying to keep anywhere close to the agreed fixtures, several matches being called off at the last minute. In the end only two matches being played in the whole month.

Date	Home		Away		Notes
2^nd Mar 1895	Kilsyth Rangers	10	Heather Rangers	0	Stirlingshire Junior Cup 2^nd Rd
2^nd Mar 1895	Falkirk Hibernian	0	Vale of Carron	10	Stirlingshire Junior Cup 2^nd Rd
2^nd Mar 1895	Gairdoch Juniors	4	Crosscroes United	1	Stirlingshire Junior Cup 2^nd Rd
2^nd Mar 1895	East End Rovers	3	Rising Star	2	Friendly
9^th Mar 1895	Falkirk Hibernian	2	Longcroft Thistle	5	Falkirk Junior League
23^rd Mar 1895	Vale of Carron	2	Kilsyth Rangers	2	Stirlingshire Junior Cup Semi-Final
23^rd Mar 1895	East End Rovers	6	Falkirk Hibernian	3	Falkirk Junior League
23^rd Mar 1895	Rising Star	4	Vale of Grange	1	Friendly
30^th Mar 1895	Kilsyth Rangers	4	Vale of Carron	2	Stirlingshire Junior Cup Semi-Final Replay
30^th Mar 1895	Rising Star	2	East End Rovers	2	?????
30^th Mar 1895	Stenhousemuir 2^nd XI	4	Heather Rangers	2	Friendly

April spelt the death of the league, it was clear that the remaining matches were never going to be fulfilled, even the enthusiastic Falkirk Hibernian, though continuing to play, could only turn out shadow sides, and were a far cry from the side that had rallied in that second half against Gairdoch only a couple of months previously. The rest of the season being mainly given over to ensuring the completion of the Stirlingshire Cup.

Date	Home		Away		Notes
6^th Apr 1895	Rising Star	8	Falkirk Hibernian	1	Falkirk Junior League
13^th Apr 1895	Gairdoch Juniors	2	East End Rovers	4	????
13^th Apr 1895	Kirkintilloch Rob Roy	1	Longcroft Thistle	0	Friendly
13^th Apr 1895	Stenhousemuir 2^nd XI	7	Vale of Carron	1	Friendly
20^th Apr 1895	Slamannan Swifts	3	Gairdoch Juniors	2	Stirlingshire Junior Cup Semi-Final
27^th Apr 1895	Camelon 2^nd XI	4	Gairdoch Juniors	5	Friendly
2^nd May 1895	Falkirk Hibernian	2	East End Rovers	4	Falkirk Junior League
11^th May 1895	Rising Star	5	Woodbine Rovers	1	Friendly
16^th May 1895	Kilsyth Rangers	3	Slamannan Swifts	1	Stirlingshire Junior Cup Final
18^th May 1895	Rising Star	2	East End Rovers	0	????

This season effectively encapsulated the life of Falkirk Hibernian, they played a couple of friendlies at the beginning of the next season, but then they just faded away. The other clubs involved continued playing with varying levels of success, but they were all village teams so rooted in a community, whereas Falkirk Hibernian's natural support [I don't even have to say it] was spread throughout the town, with clusters in the Howgate& Silver Row [both formerly poor areas of town, now built over by shopping centres!]. However the small populations of Standburn, Skinflats & Longcroft meant that these clubs could rarely compete, even at a local level. To this day, only the Gairdoch club survives in any form [though it is, technically, a different club].

In hindsight many factors came together to hinder the proper organisation of the Falkirk & District Junior Association: the late start was bad enough; the redrawing of the Stirlingshire Junior Cup added to the fixture pressures; but the straw that broke the camel's back was the disruption to the fixtures caused by the severely cold weather in January and February. Every Cup and League fixture had a cascading effect which eventually became unrecoverable, and after May nothing was heard of the League ever again.

No champions were ever pronounced, quite correctly it does not really exist in any histories of the junior game in Scotland, Stirlingshire or Falkirk, but then again only Falkirk Hibernian completed as many as half of their matches. Correspondingly no final table was ever published, but from what I know I have been able to put together the following. There were other matches which may have been League matches but it is too unclear to be certain and some matches may have been played but gone unpublished due to the eventual lack of interest.

Falkirk & District Junior League	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
Rising Star	5	3	1	1	21	10	7
Gairdoch Juniors	4	3	-	1	17	10	6
East End Rovers	3	3	-	-	15	6	6
Vale of Carron	4	2	1	1	9	11	5
Longcroft Thistle	4	2	-	2	19	10	4
Falkirk Hibernian	7	2	-	5	22	34	4
Heather Rangers	3	1	-	2	9	19	2
Crosscroes United	3	-	-	3	2	15	-

This was the chaos that happened when eight of the best junior clubs in the region tried to organise themselves. To try to put some kind of perspective on that, and how mental it could have been, here are the names of 79 other clubs who were reported playing matches during the 1894/95 season in and around Falkirk.

Alma Athletic

Alma Thistle

Alma Wanderers

Back Row

Bainsford Blue Bell

Bainsford Bridge Thistle

Bainsford Northern

Bank Street

Bantaskine

Beancross Athletic

Bo'ness Road Thistle

Britannia

Blinkbonny Thistle

Bonnybridge Thistle

Boyd Street Wanderers

Campfield Rovers

Carron Thistle

Cockburn Street

Cow Wynd Rangers

Cow Wynd Wanderers

Dalderse Swifts

Garrison Swifts

Glebe Rangers

Glebe Star

Glebe Thistle

Glen Rangers

Grahamston Albert

Grahamston Star

Grahamston Swifts

Grahamston Thistle

Grange Thistle

High Station

High Station Rovers

High Station Star

Honeymoon Swifts

Honeymoon Terrace

Howgate Hibernians

Falkirk Celtic

Falkirk East End

Falkirk Hawthorn

Falkirk Minerva

Kerse Lane

Kerse Rangers

Larbert Wild Rose

Larbert Windsor

Laurieston Rovers

Laurieston Swifts

Merchiston Swifts

Munro Street Rangers

Northern Star

Oakleaf

Parkfoot Rangers

Persian Rovers

Pleasance Star

Redding

Roselea

Royal Oak

Rumford Rovers

Slamannan Blue Bell

Slamannan Strollers

Slamannan Swifts

Slamannan Thistle

Springfield Rovers

Springfield Wanderers

Star of Grange

Station Star

Thornbank Swifts

Thornhill Swifts

Thornhill Wanderers

Union Jack

United Star

Vale of Grange

West End Hibs

West End Swifts

Western Athletic

Whitefield Swifts

Woodbine Rovers

Woodvale Rovers

Zetland Swifts

↧

David Ross was not an Anarchist!

April 23, 2013, 11:43 am

≫ Next: Falkirk FC Graves - Luke Raisbeck

≪ Previous: Falkirk & District Junior League 1894/95

David Ross was a fine Outside-Left for Falkirk FC in the 1880s & 1890s, but he is one of the few Falkirk players of his era about whom I know quite a bit of his biographical details, including the political non-affiliation [or should that be non-political no-affiliation?] referred to in the title.

I know this because that was one of the bizarre questions asked by the [still] paranoid American Immigration Authorities upon entry to Ellis Island. This was, of course, in the days before the rise of Bolshevism [now superseded by jihadism [or whatever it is this week [at time of writing “Chechen Nationalism”]]].

Though born in the County of Berwick, it would seem that his family moved about a fair bit, his Mother being from Coldsteam and his younger Sister having been born in Ireland.

The earliest I have come across young David was in the 1881 Census, still at school, the family lived in Cistern Lane, Falkirk [named for the Falkirk cistern which was between Baxter's Wynd & St Andrew's Square, and is nowadays partly under the Howgate Shopping Centre.

The earliest footballing mentions came in May & June 1889, when he was a member of the successful, if brief lived Falkirk Excelsior side that won the Falkirk & District Junior Cup [a blog post on that subject is in the making, but it won't be for a while].

Since I have never found a single friendly involving Falkirk Excelsior, and they only seem to have existed between March and June 1889, I strongly suspect that they may have been an invention of Falkirk FC to enable their younger players to get some competitive matches, but other than the fact that at least five of the Excelsior went on to play for Falkirk I have no real proof.

Falkirk had noticed his progress, and after a try out with the reserves Davie made his début in the last game of the season a friendly against Gairdoch.

Whether by luck or by design Falkirk's regular Outside-Left, Thomas Harley, transferred his allegiance to East Stirlingshire over the summer and David took up the vacant space with relish. He and George Barr forming a powerful balance to the right-wing partnership of Alex Stark& Thomas McDonald which had been the mainstay in propelling Falkirk to the position amongst the leading teams in the County during the latter half of the 1880s. With the addition of new Centre-Forward Danny Daye [another acolyte of that Falkirk Excelsior side], Falkirk had a truly strong forward five.

David kept his place for the next four seasons, occasionally having to move to Inside-Left when competition for the wing places got strong [Alex Stark was the best winger in the county, so occasionally played Outside-Left when needed]. Only when finally squeezed out by the new left-wing pair of Andrew Hamilton & James Tennant [both of whom went on to score more than 100 goals for the club] did David take a much lesser role, playing his final matches in December 1893.

I can find no further trace of him on the football field so presume that he turned fully to his [slightly] more dependable trade, that of a bricklayer. And usually this would be about where I would lose track of many of the early Falkirk players, unless their death was recorded in the local press usually just in passing.

But not David, for, as I have already stated he was no Anarchist, so was not barred entry to his new homeland. Thanks to the rampant paranoia of the US Government we now know that on the 17th of May 1907, aboard the S.S.Caledonia sailing from Glasgow was one David Ross, 35 [sic] years of age, born in Berwickshire, former resident of Falkirk. We further learn that he was able to read and write, was unmarried, had never been to the USA previously, paid for his own ticket, was carrying at least $100 with him and was going on to meet up with a friend, Mr Jas. Rankine of 117 Lea Place, Planefield, New Jersey [although I have no idea I would love to know whether or not this was the James Rankine that played for Falkirk 1884-1886 …]. On to the nitty-gritty, David was 5 ft 7 in, with dark hair, blue eyes and of a 'ruddy' complexion, he was of good mental & physical condition and was not deformed. But most importantly he was not an Anarchist, he was not a bigamist and he offered no threat to the Government of the United States [or at least that is what he said to the authorities …..]

SS Caledonia Ship Manifest

After this point I lose track of him again, there were several Scots called David Ross in the next US Census living in New Jersey, but none of them match well enough for me to pursue those avenues, of course the possibilities are boundless as to where he might have gone, anywhere in the US or Canada [even Mexico, why not?], he may have died soon after arrival, he may have changed his name, he may even have got sick of people asking him whether or not he was an Anarchist and packed up and gone home, until something new crops up, I will keep looking.

David Ross

b 2nd May 1871, Coldingham, Berwickshire

Debut – Saturday June 5th 1889 v Gairdoch (A) Friendly

Positions – Outside-Left, Inside-Left, Outside-Right

Representative Honours – Stirlingshire v Forfarshire 1893/94

Club Honours – Stirlingshire Cup W 1889/90, Falkirk District Charity Cup RU 1890/91, 1891/92, Falkirk Infirmary Shield W 1891/92, 1892/93, RU 1889/90, 1890/91

Scottish Cup Matches /Goals [9/3]
Minor League Matches/Goals [18/9]
Minor Cup Matches/Goals [30/26]
Friendly Matches/Goals [56/23]

Hat-Tricks – 4 [Midland League [1] Stirlingshire Cup [1], Falkirk District Charity Cup [2]]

Known Clubs – Falkirk Excelsior, Falkirk [1888/89-1893/94]

↧

Falkirk FC Graves - Luke Raisbeck

April 27, 2013, 10:46 pm

≫ Next: Sandy Young

≪ Previous: David Ross was not an Anarchist!

I am not going to play around, Luke was a workaday midfielder that Falkirk signed in 1901 [hey, better than me], he never really set the heather on fire and soon moved on [to clyde].

But he was from a footballing Family being a cousin of William Raisbeck [Falkirk 1905/06-1906/07] & cousin of the Liverpool & Scotland player Sandy Raisbeck.

Like most of the Raisbecks he moved to Canada shortly after where he is interred.

Like I said I will not beat about the bush, I have not visited this grave, but I am happy to bring this to you.

Luke Raisbeck

b 2nd September 1878, Polmont, Stirlingshire

d 18th February 1947, Grassy Lake, Alberta, Canada

Debut – Thursday August 15th 1901 v Camelon (H) Friendly

Positions – Half-Back

Minor League Matches/Goals [3/-]

Known Career – Airdrieonians [1897/98], Motherwell [1897/98], Third Lanark [1899/00], Middlesbrough [1899/00-1901/02], West Ham United, Falkirk [1901/02], Clyde [1901/02-1902/03], Broxburn United [1903/04], Port Glasgow Athletic [1903/04-1904/05], Blackpool [1905/06]

↧

Sandy Young

April 30, 2013, 4:19 pm

≫ Next: Old Falkirk FC Photo.

≪ Previous: Falkirk FC Graves - Luke Raisbeck

Everton & Scotland star Sandy Young did not spring from nowhere. He came from the Slamanann club. But even more than a hundred years ago it was clear that playing for Slamannan was not good enough for such a good player, so he tried his his hand at a [slightly] higher level.

Towards the end of the 1898/99 season Sandy Young came to Falkirk when [it must be said] that East Stirlingshire was the bigger & better club in the whole of Stirlingshire. Why: I do not know why, but he played for Falkirk.

He played for Falkirk he scored goals and soon St Mirren swooped, in 1899/00 he moved to the Paisley club, but since Paisley is not the greatest place within a year and a half he was back at Falkirk, where he got a first team place.

When Sandy came back, he came with his brother [Walter], but he did not last long. thrust straight back into the centre-forward role he scored a lot, which brought Everton to the table.

Everton's bid of £100 was too much for a non-league team to turn down, so off he went.

Sandy went off & made lots of money & played lots of games about which you can google [he played games for lots of teams [not Falkirk], get the hint].

after football, Sandy emigrated to australia [after all the choice of Slamannan or australia, d'oh], and I ought know little else.

Until, in 1916 it was reported that Sandy Young had been arrested for the murder of his brother over the ownership of some sheep [Sadly not Walter [Falkirk FC 1900/01-1901/02] as that would have been a great blog]. Whether or not he was guilty we will never know, as he was never tried due to his mental state.

Soon after he was shipped back to Scotland where it seems he died in a mental home in Portobello in 1959.

Whether it was being a Slamanannite in Falkirk, or a Scot in England, that drove him mental we don't know, but I have my suspicions [having schooled with them, they are all weird up there].

Alexander Young

b 23rd June 1880, Slamannan, Stirlingshire
d 17th September 1959, Portobello, East Lothian

Debut – Saturday March 18th 1899 v Dunblane (H) Central Combination
Positions – Centre-Forward
Club Honours – Central Combination RU 1900/01, Stirlingshire Consolation Cup RU 1900/01
Minor League Matches/Goals [19/11]
Minor Cup Matches/Goals [9/2]

Hat-Tricks – 1 [Central Combination [1]]
Known Career – Slamannan [1898/99], Falkirk [1898/99], St Mirren [1899/00], Falkirk [1900/01], Everton [1901/02-1910/11], Tottenham Hotspur [1911/12], Manchester City [1911/12], South Liverpool [1912/13]

references
http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/2096473
http://www.evertoncollection.org.uk/object?id=796+EFC%2F1%2F1%2F13&b=yes&q=alex%2Byoung

↧

Old Falkirk FC Photo.

April 30, 2013, 4:57 pm

≫ Next: Falkirk FC Graves - Livingstone Rae

≪ Previous: Sandy Young

This is an old Falkirk FC photo from either 1900/01 or 1901/02, the Goalkeeper with the cap in the back center is Sandy Thomson.

The chap in the front centre is the club secretrary Murdoch McIntyre. The rest I do not know.

I would like help

↧

Falkirk FC Graves - Livingstone Rae

May 2, 2013, 12:30 pm

≫ Next: Falkirk FC 100 Club - Andrew Burt

≪ Previous: Old Falkirk FC Photo.

Livingstone 'Livvy' Rae is another of those stalwarts of football in the town. He played for the three clubs in Falkirk immediate area [Falkirk, Falkirk Amateurs & East Stirlingshire]

From a well known family in Larbert [to this day you will find several Livingstone Raes in Larbert Parrish Church Graveyard.

This Livingstone is buried in Falkirk Cemetery [many people call the cemetery that I call Falkirk Cemetery, Camelon Cemetery. Though Falkirk Cemetery is completely within Camelon, and there is no municipal cemetery in Falkirk, the official name of the municipal cemetery in Camelon is Falkirk Cemetery].

An amateur throughout his career, Livvy did not play as often as others as it seems he was a School teacher in the real world [records of school teachers in the district escape me].

He played in the period coming up to joining the League, and should be appreciated as one of the [many] people who caused it to happen.

Livingstone Rae

b 28th April 1877, Falkirk, Stirlingshire
d 14th December 1953, Falkirk, Stirlingshire

Debut – Saturday March 9th 1895 v Paisley Academicals (H) Friendly

Positions – Left-Half, Left-Back, Right-Back

Club Honours – Central Combination W 1899/00

Scottish Cup Matches /Goals [1/-]
Scottish Qualifying Cup Matches /Goals [5/-]
Minor League Matches/Goals [43/3]
Minor Cup Matches/Goals [5/1]
Other Matches/Goals [19/-]
Total Matches/Goals [73/4]

Known Career – Falkirk [1894/95-1895/96], East Stirlingshire [1896/97-1897/98], Falkirk [1897/98-1900/01]

↧

Falkirk FC 100 Club - Andrew Burt

May 5, 2013, 1:55 am

≫ Next: Falkirk FC Graves - James Callander

≪ Previous: Falkirk FC Graves - Livingstone Rae

An'ra Burt was yet another of those legendary players for the club who through time and circumstances seem to have been overlooked with time. Little wonder, it is well over a century since he played his last match, and during his best years Falkirk was playing mostly at a local level.

Andrew came to prominence in the Slamannan Rovers side which was trying to switch from junior to senior football. But was coming up against the same problems they had in the junior game [lack of structured competition, lack of easily accessable opponents, population too small to sustain a consistently competitive side] and any gems the Rovers did unearth were quickly picked off in the newborn era of professional football.

It may have helped that alongside him in that Slamannan Rovers side was his elder brother, Adam, who had had a spell as Centre-Half with Falkirk FC, but the Bairns were themselves in need of replenishing their side due to even bigger clubs cherrypicking their better players.

Starting off as a Centre-Forward, Andrew soon found his place at the club at Inside-Left and scored consistently for the next five years. And this was a period when Falkirk had several consistent scorers in their ranks.

I am not sure why he was never tempted to move to a larger club who might have offered him league football and probably better pay. Perhaps he had a very good job in Slamannan, or maybe no other clubs wanted him, but he stayed with Falkirk for the rest of his career.

It is a true shame that his last proper season at the club was the club's first in the Scottish League as he was, according to match reports, slightly past his best, so his record of ten league matches with one goal looks very poor in comparison with those that came later, and of course is very deceptive as to his importance to the history of Falkirk FC.

He was brought back in an emergency in 1905 to make up the numbers in a Stirlingshire Cup match v Falkirk Amateurs, but he was well 'out of the game' according to the local papers [even though Falkirk strolled the game winning 9-0 he never got on the scoresheet] this slight blemish again is a bit of a shame.

In the club picture at the beginning of the 1902/03 season Andrew is pictured front & centre with the ball between his legs, in club pictures of the time this normally signifies that the player was captain. Since I have no record of the captain for this season it may be so, but it may also have been honorary due to his service and longevity, either way.

Again, nowadays people may question the inclusion of friendlies in his career figures, but one has to understand that the leagues of the time only allowed for at most twenty-two games a season and due to the fickle nature of cups, the season had to consist of a large number of 'ordinary' matches but these were in no way pre-season warm ups, they were proper fixtures usually arranged on a home and away basis.

Andrew Burt 1902/03

Andrew Burt

b 30th April 1873, Slamannan, Stirlingshire

d June 1951, Glasgow

Andrew Burt's Falkirk FC Career

Debut – Saturday September 21 1895 v East Stirlingshire (A) Friendly

Positions – Inside-Left, Centre-Forward, Inside-Right

Representative Honours – Stirlingshire v Forfarshire 1896/97

Club Honours – Central Combination W 1899/00, RU 1900/01, Midland League RU 1895/96, Stirlingshire Cup W 1895/96, RU 1897/98, Falkirk Infirmary Shield W 1901/02, RU 1895/96, 1897/98, 1900/01, Stirlingshire Consolation Cup W 1901/02, RU 1900/01

Scottish League Matches/Goals [10/1]

Scottish Cup Matches/Goals [6/2]

Scottish Qualifying Cup Matches/Goals [24/15]

Minor League Matches/Goals [110/54]

Minor Cup Matches/Goals [43/24]

Other Matches/Goals [78/44]

Total Matches/Goals [271/140]

Hat-Tricks – 8 [Scottish Qualifying Cup [2] Central Combination [1] Stirlingshire Cup [2] Other [3]]

Known Club Career – Slamannan Swifts, Slamannan Rovers [1892/93-1894/95], Falkirk [1895/96-1902/03, 1905/06]

Notes

Falkirk’s first substitute, replacing the injured George Drummond v Vale of Leven (H) Nov 28th 1899, Friendly.

Brother of Adam Burt [Falkirk 1891/92].

↧

Falkirk FC Graves - James Callander

May 9, 2013, 8:45 am

≫ Next: Old Falkirk Football Club Photo - 1900

≪ Previous: Falkirk FC 100 Club - Andrew Burt

I, literally just walked past this gravestone this afternoon, and thought, "whoa .... that rings a bell". So I had a closer look. I was very happy that it was the player that I thought it was because this is a very special Falkirk player.

Camelon Cemetery

Jimmy Callander should be the merest footnote in the history of Falkirk FC, he played in four matches in total, spread over several seasons only scoring once.

May 26th 1897 v East Stirlingshire (A) Benefit Match 0-3
Nov 5th 1898 v Alloa Athletic (A) Central Combination 3-3
May 17th 1900 v Camelon (A) Falkirk & District League 1-4
May 6th 1901 v East Stirlingshire (H) Falkirk & District League 2-4

He played at Inside-Right in all, scoring his only goal for the club in the last of these matches, but as you can see he was hardly our good luck charm.

The reason for the scarcity of matches for the club is quite simple. He was not a Falkirk player. Throughout this period he was was playing as regularly as he could for his main club : Falkirk Amateurs.

Football has never been the most reliable of trades for those who ply it so James instead studied to be an architect. With very good reason, because it seems he was rather good at it. Many of his designs survive to this day.

Most prominent among his clients was the Falkirk Co-operative society, and the old Co-op store on the corner of Kirk Wynd and Bank Street [now a Clydesdale Bank] is his most recognisable achievement. But those of you who have an eye for the Art Deco style of the 1920s & 1930s can also see his hand in the cinema on Princes Street [now a nightclub], the shops in Callandar Riggs [coincedence] at the Bus Station, and the Callander Arms pub across the road.

He also helped design or alter buildings which no longer exist such as part of Aitken's Brewery and several of the foundry offices around the town.

But, for a Falkirk Football Club history blogger like me, by far and away the jewel in the crown is that James Callander not only played for the club, he also designed the old grandstand at Brockville Park. I like the circularity of that.

Sadly though I have no picture of him, I will keep searching.

James Callander

b 14th May 1881, Shotts, Lanarkshire
d 6th March 1942, Edinburgh

Known Career – Falkirk Excelsior, Falkirk Amateurs [1896/97-1900/01], Falkirk [1898/99-1900/01]

↧

Old Falkirk Football Club Photo - 1900

May 9, 2013, 1:30 pm

≫ Next: Forgotten Derbies – Falkirk v King's Park

≪ Previous: Falkirk FC Graves - James Callander

I recently found this rather poor quality photo of Falkirk Football Club, for once I have the names of the players though [if the caption is to be believed]

The players in the picture were named as

Standing - Thomas McFarlane, John Smith, Alex Thomson, David Morton, Livingstone Rae, Patrick McWilliams.

Seated - John Christie, John Conway, George Drummond, Andrew Burt, James Conlin.

If this is correct [and I have no reason to disbelieve it] then the only time Falkirk ever played this exact team was on Wednesday 16th August 1900. Falkirk winning 6-5 with Conway and Conlin scoring one each and Burt scoring four [one penalty].

I have previously blogged about Thomas McFarlane, Livingstone Rae& Andrew Burt.

I will think about the others ....

↧

Forgotten Derbies – Falkirk v King's Park

May 10, 2013, 4:55 am

≫ Next: Why Falkirk's Biggest win should have been bigger

≪ Previous: Old Falkirk Football Club Photo - 1900

Falkirk's obvious rivalry is with our neighbours East Stirlingshire, and for a while this was quite a serious derby in these parts, but circumstances have meant the two clubs rarely play each other in competitive matches so it has ebbed.

It is well known the enmity between the fans of Falkirk & Dunfermline Athletic, and this is what most would recognise as our current main rivals in the so-called “Kincardine Bridge Derby”.

But I was recently looking through Falkirk's New Year Holiday matches and noticed a fixture popping up on a very regular basis which has now gone the way of most history.

The opponents were King's Park and the match was played invariably played in Stirling in the first week of January, usually the first Monday. This was an arrangement which never occurred with East Stirlingshire which is itself interesting.

The rivalry [perhaps a creation of the two teams to try to have a lucrative annual match we will never know] is obvious with hindsight. These were the two oldest and longest established clubs in Stirlingshire [Bonnybridge Grasshoppers were older but they had a precarious existence and had long spells of inactivity] both coming into existence in the mid 1870s. There was possibly also a slight element of snobbery in the fixture, both clubs probably looking down on other relative newcomers to the local football scene.

The earliest found match between the two clubs dates back to April 1878 [though there might have been an match earlier that season which was not noted in the press] when the young bloods of Falkirk travelled to the county town and came away with a very creditable scoreless draw. Over the next decade the reciprocal friendly matches were complimented with the odd meeting in the Scottish & Stirlingshire Cups and largely meetings were very even, only the odd large victory being obtained by either team.

The first recognisable 'holiday' match between the two teams took place on Monday the 4th of January 1892 [this was the first season Falkirk played any special 'holiday' matches [unless the 1887/88 'tour' of the North be can counted]], King's Park winning by two goals to one.

With the exception of 1900 and 1901 [when the match was played as part of the Falkirk & District League schedule] the annual match continued to be played almost every year [several were not played because of the Scottish January weather] until Falkirk joined the Scottish League in 1902 when the fixture list meant there was no space for the match.

But this just meant a switch to May when the two clubs played a benefit or charity match for a worthy cause [though later the worthy cause more increasingly became King's Park itself]. Even these matches were dying by the outbreak of the Great War and never came out of the other side.

Between the wars matches the clubs were restricted to Stirlingshire Cup or Stirlingshire Consolation Cup matches with the odd benefit here or there. But by this time Falkirk had long since stopped treating the Stirlingshire cup with anything like seriousness and in many of these later matches Falkirk played either their reserves or a very weakened side, and King's Park were themselves withering, to the point that it was decided by the directors that they were wound up as an entity during WWII and the relationship between the clubs finally ended.

I cannot say from this distance what this relationship between Falkirk and King's Park was like or how the two sets of supporters felt about the other club. It was quite unlike the Falkirk/East Stirlingshire relationship which could get quite hostile at times. And it is slightly a pity that the club never resumed after the war.

Below is as complete a picture as I can give to the fixture.

Scottish Cup	FFC	Draw	KPFC	FFC	KPFC
In Falkirk	4	1	-	18	6
In Stirling	1	-	-	3	1
Total	5	1	-	21	7
Midland League	FFC	Draw	KPFC	FFC	KPFC
In Falkirk	3	-	-	20	4
In Stirling	1	-	2	7	8
Total	4	-	2	27	12
Central Combination	FFC	Draw	KPFC	FFC	KPFC
In Falkirk	4	1	-	20	10
In Stirling	2	-	3	10	10
Total	6	1	3	30	20
Stirlingshire Cup	FFC	Draw	KPFC	FFC	KPFC
In Falkirk	7	3	3	47	30
In Stirling	4	3	5	24	28
Total	11	6	8	71	58
Redding Pit Disaster Cup	FFC	Draw	KPFC	FFC	KPFC
In Stirling	1	-	-	1	-
Total	1	-	-	1	-
Stirlingshire Consolation Cup	FFC	Draw	KPFC	FFC	KPFC
In Stirling	1	-	2	3	6
Neutral	2	-	-	10	2
Total	3	-	2	13	8
Falkirk & District League	FFC	Draw	KPFC	FFC	KPFC
In Falkirk	1	1	-	5	1
In Stirling	1	-	1	4	6
Total	2	1	1	9	7
Friendlies	FFC	Draw	KPFC	FFC	KPFC
In Falkirk	7	1	1	15	4
In Stirling	10	3	5	45	31
Total	17	4	6	60	35
All Matches	FFC	Draw	KPFC	FFC	KPFC
At Falkirk	27	7	8	128	61
At Stirling	20	6	16	94	84
Neutral	2	-	-	10	2
Total	49	13	24	232	147

↧

Why Falkirk's Biggest win should have been bigger

May 11, 2013, 4:19 am

≫ Next: Falkirk FC Team picture 1910

≪ Previous: Forgotten Derbies – Falkirk v King's Park

I have often thought in my moments of weakness that I was brought up to support the wrong team, my lack of faith is enhanced by the tales that other teams can tell, such as the Raith Rovers team being sunk on the way to the Canary Islands, Third Lanark touring Argentina [twice] in the 1920s, Stanley Matthews playing for Stenhousemuir, we did none of that. But we did have our high points – This is not one!

Other teams have great, or even interesting, biggest victories, that of Falkirk seems lame, [as recently as 1984 Stirling Albion put 20 past Selkirk].

Falkirk FC [the best team in Stirlingshire, if not the world] recorded their best best ever victory [in terms of goals] against Bridge of Allan, in the Midland League, 15-0.

Now, I know, 15-0 is bloody good [better than most] but it is the nature, and the fact it could have been better that irks me.

The date was the 28^th of April 1894, the place was Brockville Park, and a very strong Falkirk side was up against a very weakened Bridge of Allan side.

Falkirk – R.McNeil; T.Turnbull & T.McFarlane; H.McKinnon, J.Pray & R.Fearns; A.Stark & F.Kenny, J.McLaren, J.Tennant & A.Hamilton.

Scorers – J.Pray, R.Fearns 2, A.Hamilton 2, J.Tennant 2, J.McLaren 2, A.Stark, H.McKinnon 3, F.Kenny 2

Bridge of Allan – Anderson; Ferguson & Smart; McPherson, Silver & Carmichael; Kinross & Hoggart, Thomson, Noble & Reid.

Scorers - None

Falkirk went straight on the offensive and were three goals to the good by the ten minute mark. Constantly pressing there was only one team in it and Falkirk were eight goals to the good by the break. Falkirk were looking on form and this could be a rout, then somebody took a mental turn. With Bridge of Allan on the ropes Falkirk completely altered their formation.

In the second half Falkirk turned out as

J.Tennant; A.Hamilton & A.Stark; J.McLaren, F.Kenny & R.McNeil; T.Turnbull & H.McKinnon, J.Pray, T.McFarlane & R.Fearns.

Yes, I know, this re-organised team scored almost as many as the proper eleven had in the first [Hugh McKinnon even scored a second half hat-trick], but I will always want to know what that front five might have done to a tiring and demoralised Bridge of Allan side [according to my calculations that five score 423 goals for Falkirk between them [Kenny the weak link with only 24!!]], I know they could have done much better, but it was not to happen, it ended 15-0 and that is that.

To this day it stands as Falkirk's biggest ever win, I think it should have been bigger.

↧

Falkirk FC Team picture 1910

June 3, 2013, 8:51 pm

≫ Next: Falkirk FC Managers - David Reid

≪ Previous: Why Falkirk's Biggest win should have been bigger

According to modern eyes, this is very a weird looking photograph. I cannot explain it. But it looks like a Falkirk team photo when they are wearing a very pale strip [probably blue]. It is definitely Falkirk FC, I could recognise several of these players in my sleep. No, from 'Slasher' Morrison [left of the goalie] through the legendary 'Jock' Simpson [lying on the ground, left] through 'Willy' Davidson [front row, right] through William Lieshman & Henry Collins just behind 'Skipper' Anderson [front, centre, ball between his feet] this is easily the Falkirk FC squad at the start of 1910/11.

But I just can not explain the strips they are wearing, especially for a staged club pic, it is obviously before a game as you can see the crowd behind. It is Brockville, every Falkirk fan close to my age and older would recognise that bit of the stand [even though I was only in the stand once in my life: I could see it the rest of the time] so it is clearly taken facing the Cooperage Lane End.

Enjoy.

↧

Falkirk FC Managers - David Reid

June 3, 2013, 8:57 pm

≫ Next: No Falkirk FC Grave - Jimmy McPhie

≪ Previous: Falkirk FC Team picture 1910

Although the term 'manager' has been used in football since the beginning of professional football the role of the position has changed greatly over that time. In the case of Falkirk FC the earliest character at the centre of the running of the club was the Secretary [there being no manager, whose title evolved into Secretary-Manager before finally just becoming the Manager]. But the simple fact there has always a single chap around whom the club revolved. Initially he was an ordinary member elected for the upcoming season at the AGM, a couple only lasted a season or two, Robert Bishop came and went four times due to his work commitments in the real world, and it was not really until William Nicol [1900/01-1923/24] that it became a serious permanent paid position.

The secretary's role at the club was also different, he was involved more broadly in the running of the club [which was after all, for a long time a gentleman's amateur sporting club whom anyone could join if they paid their annual dues] his jobs included chasing up late payments of club dues, arranging fixtures with other clubs, arranging the club's annual sports day and making sure the bills were paid [though this job was shared with the treasurer]. Strangely the one thing he was not responsible for was the selection of the team on a week by week basis [in the case of Falkirk this was left in the hands of a selection panel [also elected at the AGM] of either five or seven members, though it must be said that the secretary had the casting vote when needed. The Secretary had the duty of sending those selected a postcard informing them so [oh I wish I could find some of those poscards].

Needless to say the shift from amateurism to professionalism, then the further need for 'results on the pitch' meant a shedding of those wider roles and a concentration upon first team affairs, until we get to the point where we are today.

I give this background info to the role of the football manager through history in order to bring you the curious case of the death of Falkirk's second full-time Manager – David Reid.

David Reid was thrust into the role of Falkirk Manager with the death of William Nicol [he died on the 9th of February 1924 during a Scottish Cup 2nd Round game with East Fife] and at the time Falkirk was a relatively strong Division 1 side, with some great names in the history of the club on their books.

Over the course of the next three seasons Falkirk gained in strength year on year, and although some good players had to be sold down south [few clubs in Scotland could resist, then as now, the sums offered by English League clubs] these were replaced by players who were equally up to the job from Division 2, Northern England, Ireland and especially from the Junior ranks.

It was on a scouting trip when David Reid died, he died at about 2 o'clock on the 29th of October 1927 at Thornhill Junction Station on his way to a Fife Junior Cup match to watch a potential signing... Nothing surprising about a football manager going to watch a potential signing I hear you think, but here is the thing. This could never happen nowadays. Because if you check the dates you might notice that Falkirk were due to play Clyde in a League match at Brockville an hour later.

Unthinkable in our time, but if you mull it over, it kind of makes sense, the team had been picked, and the captain ran the team on the pitch [in the 1920s substitutes were a long way in the future], there was little tactical fluency [all clubs played a form of 2-3-5, yes some centre-halves played deep while others were more central midfielders, some wing-halves overlapped the winger whilst others kept back, and some centre-forwards were out-and-out penalty box players whilst others laid off and brought the Inside-Forwards into play much more, but this was often more reliant upon the skills of the players available than upon tactical nuance], so there was little the manager could do once the whistle had blown. And in a time when few games kicked off at other than 3 o'clock on a Saturday there was no better time to scout.

In comparison with other managers of the era he never really got a chance to build his own Falkirk side, but the one he was building seemed to be improving. Below is his record as manager [including the posthumus match against Clyde], it is not outstanding, but had been improving season upon season.

	P	W	D	L	F	A
Scottish League Div 1	138	51	34	53	223	211
Scottish Cup	17	10	3	4	40	15
Dunedin Cup	6	-	2	4	4	10
Dewar Shield	4	3	-	1	4	3
Stirlingshire Cup	9	6	-	3	23	14
Stirlingshire Consolation Cup	4	2	-	2	4	6
Falkirk Infirmary Shield	7	3	2	2	21	10
Friendlies etc	8	1	3	4	15	22
Total	193	76	44	73	334	291

↧

No Falkirk FC Grave - Jimmy McPhie

June 5, 2013, 4:48 pm

≫ Next: Falkirk FC Graves - Thomas Smith

≪ Previous: Falkirk FC Managers - David Reid

I was going to check the new bit of Camelon Cemetery in case something surprising turned up, and also with the hope that I might come across the grave of James McPhie, but when I checked my book of collected Falkirk FC Obituaries [yes, I am that sad] they said he was to be cremated so it is most probable there is nowhere for me to find [I might be wrong I have never had to get involved at the sharp end yet .........].

I wanted to find a grave for several reasons, but mainly because of two reasons I wanted to do a blog post, first he is one of the main links between Falkirk in the pre & post WWII eras [the other being Kenny Dawson, about whom I have already posted] the other being that Jimmy was the youngest Falkirk player I know about for certain [though it must be said William Lees might have still been younger when he played in a Stirlingshire Cup match in 1892, but that is still unclear]. Jimmy was still a schoolboy when he was allowed to play in a benefit match for the first team against East Stirlingshire two days after his sixteenth birthday on the 27th of August 1936.

Jimmy had already been a success at schoolboy level, so it was not such a surprise he came to the attention of Falkirk at such a tender age, but in the rough and tumble of Division 1 football in the 1930s [when goalkeepers were knocked over the line by a shoulder-charge and it was considered a goal to the Centre-Forward], but Falkirk kept tabs on him, signing him up professionally a year later. I do not need to say that James was great across all the five back positions because his career lasted nearly twenty years [and average players do not last that long], but he was particularly adept at either Left or Right Back.

His Falkirk career [proper] began toward the end of the 1937/38 season, still a teenager, with a huge career ahead of him. But we all know what is coming.

To this day I do not understand exactly what Adolf Hitler had against Scottish Football to try to disrupt it as much as he did, but many players had to go to the defence of the SFA, in order that we may now watch what we must.

I also do not know if Jimmy actually saw action, but he certainly contributed, being a training instructor in the RAF at the rank of Sergeant. During the War he also guested with Preston North End & Reading [he may have played for more ... [but the abysmal state of research of English football 1939-1945 means I am yet to ascertain the details [This is understandable as apparently quite a lot of England was also engaged in the "Battle for the Defence of Scottish Football [as it is properly known]]].

After Scottish Football had been successfully defended, Jimmy returned to Bonnybridge and to the welcoming arms of a Falkirk team which had not come out of the war as well as it had entered it. This was a period of rebuilding [although Adolph only killed [murdered] one Falkirk player as far as I know [blog post is coming about Edwin Young], Falkirk had played two teams [at some expense] for a lot of the war where many other clubs just stopped, kept their money in the bank and watched from the sidelines, this cost Falkirk FC [and I mean in money] which hurt the club in the immediate post-war era.

Anyway, although Jimmy played for Falkirk throughout the war when available, it was in his late twentys when he came back that he made his true place among the Falkirk 'greats'. This is very tricky to measure in terms other than longevity and his place in the hearts of the fans, as the sixteen team team Division A meant a reduction in League fixtures, the shortfall being taken up with the group section of the newly introduced League Cup [so there was little chance of catching up with Tom Ferguson who played several seasons where there were fortytwo league games a season], but that is neither here nor there. Football post-war was a different beast from football pre-war.

Jimmy was the bedrock of the Falkirk FC defence in the decade immediately after the war, it is strange to see a Falkirk line-up during those years without McPhie [or McPhee] at either 2 or 3 [there were no numbers then, but I mean RB or LB], solid as a rock.

After regular injury made him finally give up football [his last game was on Saturday 11^th of April 1953 in a Dewar Shield Semi-Final v Deveronvale]. Jimmy took up the dual role of Falkirk Reserve team manager and coach, and it is here where his place in the history of Falkirk was cemented for a second time [as if it were needed] because in between Bob Shankly and Reggie Smith in the succession of Falkirk Managers stepped Jimmy. Only as caretaker, but it counts as far as I am concerned, for six matches during the 1956/57 season he was in charge, his record of two won, one drawn, three lost is fine for someone who was just holding the reins.

It is a whole shame about that whole 'fighting Hitler' thing [in terms of his Falkirk career], it is a shame he has no grave to take a picture of, it is not a shame a lad from Bonnybridge had such a good career with his local League club.

I have no picture of him before 1946 [ten years after his debut, but there were reasons]

James McPhie

b 25th August 1920, Bonnybridge, Stirlingshire

d 24th February 2002, Falkirk, Stirlingshire

Debut – Thursday August 27th 1936 v East Stirlingshire (A) Benefit Match

League Debut – Saturday April 30th 1938 v St Mirren (A) Scottish League Division 1

Positions – Left-Back, Right-Back, Left-Half, Centre-Half, Right-Half

Club Honours – Scottish League RU 1939/40, Scottish League Cup RU 1947/48, Dewar Shield RU 1947/48, Stirlingshire Cup W 1937/38, 1938/39, 1947/48, Falkirk Infirmary Shield W 1938/39, Stirling District Charity Cup RU 1948/49

Falkirk FC Career

Scottish League Matches/Goals [170/3] [2 pens]

Scottish Cup Matches [16/-]

Scottish League Cup Matches/Goals [37/1] [1 pen]

Supplementary Cup Matches/Goals [1/-]

Festival of Britain Quaich Matches/Goals [1/-]

Wartime League Matches/Goals [57/3] [3 pens]

Emergency Cup Matches/Goals [4/-]

Southern League Cup Matches/Goals [9/1] [1 pen]

Summer Cup Matches/Goals [4/-]

Victory Cup Matches/Goals [4/-]

Dewar Shield Matches/Goals [16/-]

Stirlingshire Cup Matches/Goals [16/1] [1 pen]

Falkirk Infirmary Shield Matches/Goals [2/-]

Stirling District Charity Cup Matches/Goals [1/-]

Penman Cup Matches/Goals [1/-]

Other Matches/Goals [20/3] [2 pens]

Total Matches/Goals [344/12] [10 pens]

Known Career – Falkirk [1936/37-1954/55], Preston North End [1940/41], Reading [1941/42]

↧

Falkirk FC Graves - Thomas Smith

June 5, 2013, 6:23 pm

≫ Next: The Brothers Turnbull

≪ Previous: No Falkirk FC Grave - Jimmy McPhie

I get excited by quite simple things, so this excited me. Again strolling through our local cemetery in Camelon I came across a gravestone I really did not expect to see. I came across that of Thomas Smith, a solid Left-Half for about a season and a half in the early 1890s. I did not expect to see it not only because it is the earliest grave of a Falkirk player I have yet seen [they become harder to find the further back because of possible exhumation] but also because I know that Tommy and his family were not from Falkirk, but from Carronshore, so thought he might be buried in Stenhousemuir [even Bothkennar at a push] not Falkirk.

It seems to be the original stone [but I am no graveologist so cannot say]

Camelon Cemetery

There is not much to say about his career, he started with his local club - Gairdoch - and showed so much promise as an eighteen year old in a match v Falkirk that Falkirk decided to 'borrow' him for an end of season charity match. He was in the starting line-up the next season, and became a regular in one of the club's more successful seasons. But for whatever reason during the next season he was gradually replaced by 'Paddy' Wemyss at Left-Half, and soon returned to "his first love".

What is quite strange is that no clue was given as to why he died so young in either of the local papers, another mystery for me to keep chasing.

Thomas Smith

b 31st October 1872, Carronshore, Stirlingshire
d 14th February 1895, Carronshore, Stirlingshire

Debut – Wednesday May 25 1891 v Falkirk District XI (H) Benefit Match

Positions – Left-Half

Club Honours – Stirlingshire Cup RU 1891/92, Falkirk District Charity Cup W 1891/92, Falkirk Infirmary Shield W 1891/92

Scottish Cup Matches /Goals [2/-]
Scottish Federation Matches/Goals [17/-]
Stirlingshire Cup Matches/Goals [6/1]
Minor Cup Matches/Goals [3/-]
Other Matches/Goals [20/1]
Total Matches/Goals [48/2]

Known Career – Gairdoch [1890/91], Falkirk [1890/91-1892/93], Gairdoch [1893/94-1894/95]

Played for Gairdoch v Clackmannan, Friendly at Gairdoch Pk, Carronshore, 27th August 1892
Played for Gairdoch v Grangemouth, Friendly at Caledonian Pk, Grangemouth, 28th January 1893

↧

The Brothers Turnbull

June 6, 2013, 8:36 am

≫ Next: Lawrence McLachlan

≪ Previous: Falkirk FC Graves - Thomas Smith

This post comes somewhere between my usual rambling nonsense and my Falkirk FC Graves 'series', but first I shall digress -

I go on my strolls through the local cemeteries for more than just looking for dead Falkirk FC players. I go because they are peaceful [even pleasant] places [I sometimes put pictures of them on my tumblr], I go because I am interested in many aspects of the history of Falkirk [I recently posted on my other blog my thoughts on an aspect of WWI after coming across a relevant grave], and I go because what I find constantly surprises me. But then again since I 'became' unemployed I have plenty of time on my hands.

I could never be mechanical about it, could never just find out where a player was buried and go take a pic. I look at every grave in each of the sections of the cemetery. I takes time, but this way have found the graves of Alex Stark's family [sadly he is not in Falkirk having emigrated to New Zealand], have graves of players when I had no inkling of what happened after they stopped playing, have found graves of players who played for other clubs in the district. But I said I like surprises.

So I was pleasantly surprised when I came across across a headstone which mentioned three Falkirk players at once, but which was not quite a grave. The three were brothers, and I just did not expect this to be in the cemetery.

I did not expect it because of the three Turnbull brothers to play for the team, Alex Turnbull emigrated to Canada, I had already found Thomas Turnbull's grave about 50 metres away, and I believe James Turnbull remained in England after his long career down there.

But then again this is more of a family memorial than a grave, anyway, thank you Edith W McVey of Lasalle, Canada.

↧

Lawrence McLachlan

June 6, 2013, 11:27 am

≫ Next: Historian, Statistician or Geneologist? - John Smith

≪ Previous: The Brothers Turnbull

I came across the grave of Lawrence McLachlan the other day, there is not much I can say about him or his Falkirk career. He played in one friendly [v King's Park, 17th November 1883] he scored, then he came back to haunt us too often.

So it is with very kind permission of Drummond Calder that he allowed me to republish his article from the East Stirlingshire programme on the 100th Anniversary of his death.

Lawrence “Laurie” McLachlan – A True East Stirlingshire Great

Although Laurie was born on 20th August, 1862 in Stane, near the lost village of Shotts Iron Works, he was a product of Bainsford. His father had been a solider but left the army and found work as an iron moulder. He moved from Bainsford to work in the iron foundry at Shotts Iron Works at the time Laurie was born. During the 1800s Falkirk and Shotts were main centres of iron production in Scotland and families moved from one foundry town to another in search of work. By the start of the 1870s the family were back living in Bainsford and over the next 10 years Laurie was brought up there. During Laurie’s life, although he would live in Falkirk from at least 1883 to his death in 1912 and at various times before this, his ties with the village of his birth would never diminish and were further cemented in 1886 when he returned back to Stane to marry his childhood sweatheart. Laurie’s early footballing career is somewhat unclear. It is unknown if he was living in Bainsford when football arrived in the village in 1879 with the formation of the Gentlemen of Bainsford (Bainsford’s 1st recorded football team) and then Britannia in October 1880. Although Laurie was 18 years old at the time our club was formed he was living in Shotts in April 1881 there has been no evidence uncovered yet that he was involved with the club at the outset. He may have played for East Stirlingshire then although we have no confirmation of this or may just not have played football at this point. One thing is known is that Laurie did play for the Glasgow club, Cowlairs and this would have been most likely been during the period from 1881 to 1883, he certainly played for them in season 1882/83. He also played 1 known game for the Hibernians in 1884. It is unknown if he was still living in Bainsford at that time or living elsewhere, which is more likely. However, at the end of 1883 he appears to have returned to Bainsford and was looking for a football club. He played one trial game for the Stirlingshire giants at that time, Falkirk, on 17th November before joining East Stirlingshire in December 1883. It may well have been that Laurie played for East Stirlingshire in the games against Partick Thistle and Vale of Teith in October and November 1883, though it cannot be said for certain. Laurie’s 1st known game for E.S. was on 15th December, 1883 at Bainsford against Hampden XI (Queen’s Park). 1883/84 season proved to be the “breakthrough” season for the club and Laurie was at the forefront of the improvement in the club’s play and standing. There is a remote possibility given the lack of details from the club’s games in the 1st three seasons that he had played for the club as far back as the first ever season.

The signing of Laurie was without a doubt one of the greatest signings that the club has ever made. From his known debut in December 1883 then until end of season 1889/90 he would be a permanent fixture in the club’s 1st XI. At the time Laurie joined East Stirlingshire the standard team formation was 2-2-6 with the forward line being made up of an outside and inside right and left players and two centre forwards. As the game moved into the mid 1880s the formation changed to 2-3-5 with only one centre forward. Laurie was the club’s star centre forward in the 2nd half of the 1880s but he was more than that. He was the catalyst, an inspirational captain, driving the club forward, who took a small local club that were yet to make their mark into the one which dominated the whole county of Stirlingshire and help the club start making its’ mark on the national stage. In doing so Laurie would become the club’s, and even the districts’, first footballing superstar, hero worshipped by the East Stirlingshire fans and admired by everyone else. Certainly Laurie would go on to be the club’s Captain and very likely the all-time record goalscorer (many goals in the games he played in the mid 1880s did not have recorded scorers as the centre forward Laurie would have scored the majority of these unknown goals) scoring 135 known goals for E.S. in 179 known appearances. In reality his goals tally for the club would have been most likely nearer the 200 mark. Laurie was much more than a goalscorer. He was a player that the spectators paid money to come to see and admire. Even 50 odd years on after he had finished playing he was he was still held in upmost regard for his footballing skills as is evidenced from the comments attached to a reproduction of an East Stirlingshire team photograph in the Falkirk Mail in 1942 which said “The famous Laurie McLachlan is in this team; he was a great and clever centre forward.”

From“Reminiscences from 50 years in football” by John M. Harley (written in the mid 20th Century), reproduced in the Scottish Football Historian issue no. 22 (July/August 1985) further insight into Laurie can be gained;

“To the juvenile eye there was never such a team at (as) that East Stirlingshire of long ago led by Laurie McLachlan. Never its equal but in our more tolerant moments we give way to the great Queen’s Park who had the felicity of wearing “our” colours.......Laurie McLachlan has been mentioned. Distance may lead enchantment, to the view but a picture remains of that stockily built centre forward, with his danty like steps, dribbling his way to the opponents’ goal – and the culminating shot remain a vivid memory. It is difficult to assess what would have been his value in present day football. They were artists in those days with their individual control of the ball and close passing movements which made the forward line sweep forward in unison quite unknown today. It was an art then, but now a science which makes the ball do the travelling to the exclusion of the prettier form of the game”.

Also, from the East Stirlingshire Club’s 1922 booklet;

“Older supporters of the club will still remember Lawrie McLachlan, one of the finest centre-forwards of his day”.

Laurie would go on to win with East Stirlingshire, 9 Cup winners Gold Badges, 3 Cup runners up medals, play in 10 representative matches (scoring 8 goals) with the Inter-County team and also play in 2 representative matches for Falkirk District and in the course becoming the 2nd most decorated E.S. player ever. Laurie also was recognised at national level when he played for the Scottish Crusaders in 1886. He was the 1sr ever player from the district to receive such an honour. Later he was put forward for a tational team cap but never got the nod. During season 1885/86 he would become East Stirlingshire 1st eleven captain, a position he would hold for the next 5 seasons.

Once Laurie had hung up his boots for the last time he still was involved in East Stirlingshire being on the cub committee for a number of seasons. He also tried his hand at refereeing. Laurie’s other great sporting love was cricket and he played for a number of seasons in the late 1890s with Caledonia in the Falkirk Cricket League.

In keeping with footballer players of the time, Laurie played for East Stirlingshire as an amateur. It wasn’t until 1893/94 that the club started to pay their players. Laurie earned a living as a moulder, very likely in Falkirk Iron Works and sadly the harsh working conditions appear to have contributed to his early death at the age of 50. His passing was announced in the Falkirk Herald:

“On Thursday last there passed over to the great majority Mr Lawrence McLachlan, who will be well remembered by those who took an interest in football in the early days of the Stirlingshire Association. 'Laurie' as he was familiarly called was working up to almost the last day of November. An Internal trouble then developed, and he died, as stated, on Thursday, in the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary. The deceased, in the opinion of many was the best centre-forward that ever toed the leather in the 'shire. He was a most prolific goal-scorer and as neat a dribbler of the ball as one could wish to see. Many honours fell to the East Stirling during his connection with the club, and he was a winner of many trophies, a considerable number of these being secured in four-a-side and five-a-side games.”

Lawrence (Laurie) McLachlan – Facts and Player Statistics

Born – 20/8/1862, Charlotte Square, Stane

Died – 26/12/1912, Edinburgh

Debut – 15/12/1883 v Queen’s Park (Hampden XI) (h) Friendly

Positions – Centre-forward, Outside-right, Inside-right

Representative Honours – Stirlingshire v Fife 1884/85, 1885/86, 1886/87 (scored 1 goal), 1889/90 (scored 2 goals) Stirlingshire v Forfarshire 1887/88 Stirlingshire v Lanarkshire 1883/84 (scored 1 goal), 1884/85 (scored 1 goal) Stirlingshire v Linlithgowshire 1885/86 (scored 3 goals), 1886/87, 1888/89 (scored 1 goal) Falkirk District XI V Linlithgowshire (Benefit Match) 1885/86 Falkirk District XI V Rangers (Benefit Match) 1884/85

Club Honours – Stirlingshire Cup W 1885/86, 1886/87, 1887/88, 1888/89 RU 1883/84 Falkirk&District Charity Cup W 1884/85, 1885/86, 1886/87, 1887/88 RU 1888/89, 1889/90 Falkirk Cottage Hospitals Shield W 1889/90

Known Career – Cowlairs (1882/83), Hibernians (1883/84), Falkirk (1883/84), East Stirlingshire (1883/84 to 1889/90), Tayavalla (1884/85 – played as a guest), King’s Park (1888/89 – played as a guest), Shotts Select (1890/91 – played as a guest)

Played for Probables v Improbables, Stirlingshire Trial Match at Brockville Park, Falkirk, 15/4/1884 (scored 3 goals)

Played for Probables v Improbables, Stirlingshire Trial Match at Bainsford, 7/3/1885

Played for Probables v Improbables, Stirlingshire Trial Match at Brockville Park, Falkirk, 21/4/1886 (scored 2 goals)

Notes - Became the East Stirlingshire 1st eleven Captain by Jan 1886. Was elected 1st eleven Captain at the June 1886 AGM and was club Captain for a total of 5 seasons. Also played for East Stirlingshire 2nd XI (1889/90). Played cricket for Caledonia (1898).

	Scottish Cup		Stirlingshire Cup		Falkirk & District Charity Cup		Falkirk Cottage Hospitals Shield		Friendly		Benefit Match		TOTAL
Season	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
1883/84			2	1					2	0			4	1
1884/85	1	0	4	1	3	2			7	4	1	1	16	8
1885/86	3	1	6	9	2	2			17	11	6	3	34	26
1886/87	2	1	3	3	3	2			24	19	2	1	34	26
1887/88	4	5	4	7	3	2			27	26	2	0	40	40
1888/89	5	6	4	7	3	0			19	11			31	24
1889/90					3	2	2	1	15	7			20	10
TOTAL	15	13	23	28	17	10	2	1	111	78	11	5	179	135

Note: 5/4/1884 Stirlingshire Cup Final - Recorded this as a Lawrence McLachlan goal although this might have been a goal by Robert Sharp. Falkirk Herald said this was a Sharp goal from a shot. However, The Stirling Observer gives the goal to L. McLachlan, who scored from a slight scrimmage after Sharp had put in a good cross from the left.

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Historian, Statistician or Geneologist? - John Smith

June 6, 2013, 3:36 pm

≫ Next: Falkirk FC Reserves 1886/87

≪ Previous: Lawrence McLachlan

I might use the term Falkirk FC Historian in the title of this blog, but that was because when I started it I did not really think about it for long, and could not come up with a better word for what I do. I look up stuff related to Falkirk Football Club, then I put it in spreadsheets & folders [both real and those on my computer]. I am a [self-glorified] researcher/statistician. Falkirk has an official Club Historian, Michael White, he writes books about the club, he can tell you lots of stuff I do not know, he is available through the club. That is why he occasionally writes things for the Herald when a former player dies while I make a new spreadsheet, and this is why he interviews former players and I trawl through cemeteries. I do not really busy myself with how a player felt, or played, in such and such a match, I like the details.

This is the way I became a bit of an amateur geneologist. Common names often mean I do not know how many matches/goals a player played/scored, so I had to start turning names on a page of the Herald [or Falkirk Mail] into distinct individuals, this has eaten up much of the time I have devoted to exploring the past of Falkirk FC. The difference between the family historian type of geneologist and the football club history type of geneologist is that when [from a rough calculation off the top of my head] I might have thirty [or at a push sixtytwo] direct antecedents since the formation of Falkirk FC this number can be two season's worth of players in football.

The scale of the task has never bothered me, I will do what I am able, others will, or will not, continue what I have started. But this does show the limitation of what I do. This means there are players in the history of the club about whom [without a stroke of amazing luck] I will probably never be able to say anything other than he pulled on the navy blue between X & Y seasons. My best example [other than players who only played one match] is the Falkirk FC Right-Back and Right-Half from the turn of the 19th to the 20th Century with the archetypal common name: John Smith

I have a grainy picture of him, but other than that I only know when he was named in a Falkirk line-up. I would like to give a brief explanation of his life outside of the game, but I simply do not know where to start looking. The 1901 Census should be perfect, but as a professional? [he might have been an amateur] football player he could have lived anywhere within a 25 mile [or more] radius of the town, and that is the majority of the population of Scotland. I am not sure of his other clubs, though I suspect he also played for East Stirlingshire.

Like I said, I don't know where to start, so, here is what I do know.

John Smith

Debut – Monday January 2nd 1899 v King’s Park (A) Friendly

Positions – Right-Half, Right-Back

Club Honours Central Combination W 1899/00, Falkirk Infirmary Shield RU 1900/01, Stirlingshire Consolation Cup RU 1900/01

Scottish Cup Matches /Goals [1/-]
Scottish Qualifying Cup Matches /Goals [5/-]
Minor League Matches/Goals [27/3]
Minor Cup Matches/Goals [7/-]
Other Matches/Goals [14/]
Total Matches/Goals [54/3]

Known Career – Falkirk Amateurs?, East Stirlingshire?, Falkirk [1898/99-1901/02]

NB - Career: a Smith, or a J.Smith appeared in Falkirk Amateurs or East Stirlingshire line-ups before Falkirk but I have yet to find anything which definitely links the two [or three] players.

↧

Falkirk FC Reserves 1886/87

June 7, 2013, 1:33 pm

≫ Next: Falkirk FC 1933

≪ Previous: Historian, Statistician or Geneologist? - John Smith

Yet another picture of Falkirk FC-ish from the dim and distant past, I particularly like this photo because it is a picture of the reserve team, and every member of this reserve team played at least once for the first team. As with most reserves sides most of the players never had the same impact as others. Besides I would never have a picture of Falkirk's great Inside-Right Thomas McDonald, or William Law [the first player to be sent off in Stirlingshire] without finding this.

The team is

Thomas Bellingham, George Kerr, John Drummond, Robert Rae, Robert Sibbald
Robert Symington, John Devlin, William Law
Thomas McDonald, George Rae, William Murphy

But more importantly to the wider community of Scottish Football historians, this might be the earliest surviving picture of Jock Drummond who at one point was Scotland's most capped player. He is at the centre of the back row, and he would have been about 16 or 17 at this point. I have been looking for Jock Drummond's grave in Camelon for a while, but have yet to find it. I am beginning to fear that he was cremated.

I would go on about Jock Drummond's Falkirk career, but what can I say? He was good, he got capped, moved to play for the Huns, came back. There are learned people who have written better stuff about him than I. In the real world the family moved to Falkirk when he was young, they lived in the 'Grahamsford' area of town, he was a junior Bank clerk. He became famous at football. When he returned he lived near the High Station.

John Drummond

b 13th April 1870, Alva, Stirlingshire
d 23rd January 1935, Falkirk, Stirlingshire

Debut – Saturday April 16th 1887 v Alloa Athletic (H) Friendly
League Debut – Saturday August 20th 1904 v Aberdeen (A) Scottish League Division 2

Positions – Left-Back, Centre-Half, Left-Half, Right-Back

Representative Honours – Scotland v Ireland 1891/92, Stirlingshire v Linlithgowshire 1888/89, v Fife 1890/91, v Forfarshire v 1890/91, 1891/92

Club Honours – Scottish League Division 2 RU 1904/05, Stirlingshire Cup W 1889/90, RU 1891/92, Falkirk District Charity Cup W 1889/90, 1891/92, RU 1890/91, Falkirk Infirmary Shield W 1891/92, RU 1889/90, 1890/91

Scottish League Division 2 Matches/Goals [13/-]
Scottish Cup Matches /Goals [12/-]
Scottish Qualifying Cup Matches/Goals [2/-]
Minor League Matches/Goals [13/1]
Minor Cup Matches/Goals [33/1]
Other Matches/Goals [97/4]
Total Matches/Goals [170/6]

Played for Zingari v Falkirk Excelsior, Friendly at Tannery Pk, Falkirk, 28th April 1887
Played for Falkirk Caledonians v Redding Athletic, Friendly at Redding, 5th May 1887
Played for Redding Athletic v Vale of Avon, Friendly at Redding, 8th June 1887
Played for Redding Athletic v Kilsyth Wanderers, Friendly at Garrell Garden Pk, Kilsyth, 10th September 1887
Played for Falkirk District XI v Rangers Ibroxonians, Benefit Match at Brockville Pk, Falkirk, 11th June 1889
Played for King's Park v Hurlford, Friendly at Forthbank Pk, Stirling, 1st January 1891

Known Career – Falkirk [1886/87-1892/93], Rangers [1891/92-1903/04], Falkirk [1904/05-1906/07]

Notes
Scored Falkirk's first recorded goal from a penalty kick, v Glasgow Wanderers (H) September 12th 1891, Scottish Federation
Cousin of George Drummond. [Falkirk 1899/00-1901/02]
Made his League debut for Falkirk 17 Years 126 Days after his Falkirk 1st XI debut
Played his last match for Falkirk [Friendly v Morayshire XI (A) May 7th 1907] 20 Years 21 Days after his debut.

I have his playing record whilst at Rangers somewhere but cannot seem to find it right now, it is a shame as I would like to put his complete career here.

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