History of the Queen's Park Football Club 1867

The Queen's Park had very extensive intercourse with English clubs, after it had found its feet, so to speak, and chiefly after it had acquired first Hampden Park. It had then funds of its own, drawn at the gates. No longer was its income derived solely from the annual subscriptions of its members, as was the case when that great adventure was undertaken—namely, the visit to London to tackle the Wanderers, 7th March, 1872, in the first competition for the English Cup. This cup tie is described in the minutes of the club as " perhaps the most prominent event in the annals of modern football," and " had raised the club till it had become one of the first Association clubs in the kingdom." No mean boast, which was abundantly supported subsequently in many hard-fought battles, in which English clubs were compelled to respect the Queen's Park, and seek fixtures with the club, if not with the First Eleven, at least with the Second string. The Wanderers, after their first experience, took three and a half years before they could make up their minds to visit Scotland and face the Queen's Park a second time. In this encounter they fared badly, losing 5-0; but on that fatal date, 5th February, 1876, in London, it fell to the Wanderers to lower the proud unsullied standard of the Queen's Park by 2-0—a feat no other club could previously boast of, though some had run the club to a short head, or even a drawn game. This was a painful, yet historical, event in the history of the Queen's Park. On 4th November, 1876, the Queen's Park was again in London looking for revenge, and had ample satisfaction in its 6-0 victory. After that game all further intercourse by the Wanderers with the Queen's Park ceased, not through any fault of the Scots. Apparently the Wanderers were more than satisfied, as all efforts to bring them again to the scratch failed.

Notts County, after the Wanderers, comes in as the second English club to have intercourse with the Queen's Park, which began on 30th January, 1875, postponed from 19th December, 1874, when home-and-home matches were first arranged. Notts came to Hampden Park, and lost by 6-0. The return was played at Nottingham on the Monday following the International, 8th March, 1875 (1-1), both games being played according to "London Association Rules"—the one in Glasgow "on ground 120 yards long," and that in Notts "on ground not more than 150 yards long (it being understood that there they usually played 200 yards long)." "That whatever gate money was drawn at both ends be equally divided, after paying all legitimate expenses, such as advertising, gate-keepers, etc., etc." The secretary was; instructed to inquire if Notts intended to play any other team in this district when down, as such a proceeding would naturally affect the drawings here. A committee was appointed to arrange for a dinner to the Notts team. The Queen's Park was nothing if not sociable in the days of old. From 1875 until 1888-89, Notts County were met every year. In some years home-and-home matches were played. Queen's Park was always on the winning side, unless in the return match, 8th March, 1875 (1-1), and in the first English Cup tie at Nottingham (2-2), until 20th February, 1886, when Notts gained their first victory (1-0) at Nottingham. A third drawn game resulted in season 1887-88, and the last match, in the beginning of the year 1889, went to Queen's Park by 6-0. In all twenty-one games were played, of which the Queen's Park won seventeen, drew three, and lost one. No English club had more intercourse with our senior club, and none was more popular on the Hampden slopes than this combination from the lace city. Notts County dropped out of the Queen's Park programme after season 1888-89. Football in the lace town was not then what is used to be in the early days of the club. The Notts club had fallen in the social scale, and the town of Nottingham had become only famous to the Queen's Park as the town where lace is manufactured, and no more. The late Mr. Arthur Geake came from Nottingham, and these matches were naturally of great interest to him, bringing back many Pleasant reminiscences of his youthful days, and, it is said, once he crossed the Border going south the English accent, as current in the city of lace, came back to him in mellifluous tones, to be dropped the moment he recrossed the boundary line on the home journey. Mr. Geake became a member of the Queen's Park in 1879, four years after the first game against the County.

Notts Forest did not come into the Queen's Park purview until the clubs were compelled to meet in the seventh round of the English Cup ties, 14th March, 1885. At this date the Forest had acquired a great reputation, which they more than maintained. In the first tie, at Derby, they succeeded in retiring with honours even (1-1), to meet the Queen's Park again at Merchiston Castle Grounds, Edinburgh, 28th March, when they fell before a stronger Queen's Park team than opposed them on the first occasion, by 3-0. The Queen's Park had some team difficulty for its opening encounter with the Forest. With the disappearance of the County from the Queen's Park programme, Forest immediately came in, nor were they long retained on the Queen's Park list of fixtures. It was not a very satisfactory meeting for the Scots, as they lost by 4-2. The game was played at Nottingham, 2nd October, 1890. Forest were victorious again by 3-1, 26th September, 1891, at Hampden Park. For a long series of years, due probably to League football monopolising the dates of English clubs—the Queen's Park being then free in that respect—Notts Forest was not played again, until April, 1911, when the Queen's Park visited Nottingham, returning with a final victory of 2-1. The Strollers to some extent kept up the connection with Nottingham. They played a drawn game (2-2) with Beeston, 19th April, 1891, in the lace town, and again visited the city, 1st April, 1893, winning by 2-0. They paid four visits to Nottingham altogether, meeting Notts Forest "A," 3rd April, 1899, won by 4-1, and against the same team, 16th April, 1900, a draw (1-1) resulted.

Darwen was an early ground of pilgrimage for Queen's Park. The club of that name appeared first at Hampden Park, 24th September, 1881, won by 6-0, and during the Christmas Holidays, 24th December of that year, the return was played at Darwen, when Queen's Park had only a majority of 2-1. The clubs met for the third and last time, 23rd October, 1884, at Darwen, when honours were even (1-1).

The second string of Queen's Park opened connection with Aston Villa by visiting Birmingham, 20th January, 1879, just winning by 2-1. The senior teams then took the matter into their own hands, and a trip to this town became quite popular with the First Eleven. They paid three consecutive visits there, in 1881, 1882, and 1883, and always came home with the palms of victory (4-0, 3-0, 1-0). The great English Cup tie at Titwood Park, 19th January, 1884, from which so much was expected by the "Brums," and so little resulted, proved to be the occasion of their fourth encounter. The "Villans" came attended by great hosts to assist at the overthrow of the Queen's Park, in the first special football train run from England to Scotland. Never were club and supporters more disappointed. The "Villans" were overwhelmed, their supporters disgusted, and their reputation as cup-tie fighters ruined by their 6-1 defeat. On 8th November, 1884, in the following season, the "Villans," at Birmingham, found some slight recompense in overthrowing Queen's Park by 2-1. They preceded the Corinthian series by a year, appearing at Hampden, 1st January, 1885, and losing by 4-3. On the same day, Second Queen's Park won against the "Villans" Second Eleven, at Birmingham, by 3-0, and the juniors repeated the visit, New Year, 1886, the game ending in a draw (2-2). The Strollers lost to Aston Villa Juniors by 2-1 in the early part of 1887. In that year the senior "Villans" visited Hampden Park, but the game had to be abandoned at half-time owing to the weather, the public making a hostile demonstration on the occasion. The Villa kept up their association with Queen's Park, though not continuously, until 28th September, 1893, when the teams met at Birmingham, a draw (3-3) resulting. They were defeated by Queen's Park in 1888 by 2-1, in 1889 by 6-2. The last trial of skill was for the Sheriff of London's Charity Shield, 11th March, 1899, the game ending in a draw—no goals—and each had the custody of the shield for six months of the following season.

The Queen's Park came into touch for the first time with Blackburn Rovers, 26th December, 1881, when our senior club visited Blackburn. That game, and the following two in succeeding years, 1882 and 1883, were all drawn, both at home and away (2-2 away, 3-3 home, 1-1 away). This was a good indication of the relative merits of the teams at this period, and augured well for what was to be expected when these two crack clubs, the best in their respective kingdoms, were doomed to meet in the final for the English Cup in London, 29th March, 1884. The Rovers got the verdict by 2-1, though the Queen's Park have ever alleged they did not win the match, which was presented to them by that famous interpreter of the "off-side" rule, Major Marindin. It is a sad tale, and is told elsewhere. Their next meeting was in the following season, 4th April, 1885, again in a final for the English Gup. This time no share of the blame could be laid at the door of the unfortunate Major, who again conducted the game, the Rovers winning the cup by 2-0. Professionals, or veiled professionals, played in both these ties ; but when, 19th September, 1885, the Rovers visited Hampden Park with an amateur team, Queen's Park took seven goals off them, and gave away one. Under similar conditions, 26th December, 1885, at Blackburn, the Scots were uppermost by 3-0. In March, 1890, at Hampden Park, a serious reverse (6-0) was inflicted on the Rovers. 29th April, 1893, they were again on the losing side (3-1) on the same ground. Queen's Park had now come to recognise that the Rovers did not enhance its fixture list, and that a change to some other quarter was desirable. Blackburn Rovers, after that season, were omitted from the Queen's Park list of engagements, which caused no little heartburning in Lancashire, when it became known the Queen's. Park's reply to the Rovers request for fixtures was that they must wait. It was pointed out, the Queen's Park had never yet beaten the Rovers on level terms, except in two amateur games, and also, that the Queen's Park had ceased to be an attraction in Blackburn. If that were the case, the Rovers had become less of an attraction to the Scots, and that was why the premier club had not given the Rovers a date. The Rovers were not what they once were. They stuck too long to men whose feet had lost their cunning, and whose physical energies had wasted—facts they were loth to recognise. When Blackburn Rovers won the English Cup on three consecutive occasions, defeating Queen's Park twice in 1883-84, 1884-85, and West Bromwich Albion, 1885-86, the Football Association recognised this great feat by awarding the club a special trophy as a memento of the occasion. The Wanderers, who also won the cup three consecutive times, 1876, 1877, 1878, had the right to retain the trophy as their own property, but gave it back to the Association, to be competed for in perpetuity. Should not the Scottish Association have extended to the Queen's Park its appreciation of even greater performances than that of the Rovers, as the senior club twice won the Scottish Gup on three consecutive occasions—1874, 1875, 1876, and 1880, 1881, 1882? It would have been a graceful action, and it is not yet too late to remedy the omission.

The connection of the Queen's Park with Corinthians deserves, and has received, a separate article to itself, as the special circumstances connected with that club caused it to stand alone among the many, especially as it was largely the outcome of the introduction of professionalism, about the period at which this English band of amateurs was constituted. Fixtures were very difficult to obtain with the great English universities, though much desired. Cambridge University appeared at Hampden Park as far back as 9th December, 1876, and again 15th December, 1877. They lost the first game by 3-0, but no goals were scored by either in the second. Oxford University lost on the classic slopes, 17th March, 1883, by 4-1. Very early in the career of Queen's Park, in order to give Oxford an opportunity of progressing in the English ties, the club scratched to that university, 18th February, 1873, in the second year of the English Cup competition, at which period the Queen's Park had no funds, with the second International against England on their hands at the time. The various clubs who, in 1883-84 and 1884-85, were met in the English Cup competitions of these seasons are mentioned elsewhere. Old Carthusians were only twice met—2nd January, 1882, at Hampden Park, and 24th February, 1883, in London, both being won, by 8-0 and 2-0 respectively.

Desiring a complete change of scene, the Queen's Park sought fresh English fields and pastures new, where other clubs had risen to fame, and were likely to form worthy opponents. Preston North End was one of these. A team of all the talents, its football developed on Scottish lines by Scottish players, it rose to the highest position in English football. Naturally the Queen's Park looked in this direction, and Preston North End was not the least unwilling to measure swords against a club whose history and reputation were greater than its own. Preston, therefore, made their debut at Hampden Park, 3rd April, 1886, and proved their mettle there, honours being even (1-1) when all was over. In the beginning of season 1886-87, 25th September, 1886, Preston were again the guests of the Queen's Park, who for the third time adopted experimentally the three half-back formation, then a new feature in football (Gow, Stewart, Watson), Preston North End also playing three half-backs. The result was so disastrous—a 6-1 defeat—that the Scots at once reverted to the old formation, but only for a time, as all clubs found it an advantage. The Queen's Park was frightened at the non-success of its experiment. No one foresaw the terrible uproar which attended the third visit of Preston North End to Hampden Park, 30th October, 1886, when they came there to settle an English Cup tie with Queen's Park. Here it was two half-backs, to three in Preston team. All went well, though far from pleasantly, till near the close, when Ross, jun., of the North End team, charged W. Harrower in a manner considered foul and low, the Queen's Park centre forward sustaining grave injuries. After the whistle blew, with Preston victors by 3-0, the enraged crowd broke in and demanded Ross, jun., that they might wreak their vengeance on him. His life would have been in grave danger, were it not that the Queen's Park officials successfully protected him, and spirited him away through a back window. The scene, while it lasted, was a terrible example of the lengths to which a crowd, maddened by indignation, can go to punish an offender. Notwithstanding this untoward incident, Queen's Park visited Preston, 30th April, 1887, and lost there by 1-0. Hugh M'Intyre, one of the first veiled professionals to leave Rangers, and join Blackburn Rovers, acted as referee in that game. On 28th April, 1888, when Preston North End decided to appear at Hampden Park, making their first visit since the Ross, jun., incident, they were in fear and trembling lest a hostile reception awaited them. There was some talk of leaving Ross, jun., at home, but his absence would upset the balance of the team, so he was played. Nothing happened, and everything passed off peacefully, probably assisted by the victory of the home club by 2-1. A similar result attended the meeting of the clubs in Glasgow, April, 1889. Preston was not played again until 30th April, 1892, at Hampden Park, victory resting with the visitors by 1-0. They visited the Queen's Park, 12th November, 1892, and lost by 2-1. With that game all intercourse ceased, though as late as 13th April, 1914, the Strollers defeated Preston North End Reserves by 3-2.

Everton and Sunderland come into the picture. The former was first met at Liverpool, 13th April, 1891, when the Queen's Park had been left in splendid isolation by the institution of a Scottish League. The game ended with honours even (1-1). Everton played the return game at Hampden Park, 12th September, 1891 the match again being drawn, with a similar score. In the beginning of the following season, 1st October, 1891, Queen's Park paid its first visit to Sunderland, winning there by 4-2. Although return fixtures with both Everton and Sunderland had been arranged, circumstances prevented their being fulfilled. Queen's Park was again at Liverpool, 6th October, 1892, when another drawn game resulted (2-2), and on 3rd April, 1893, Sunderland sent the Scots home in a minority of 4-2. Wolverhampton Wanderers visited Hampden Park, 17th April of that year, and were badly defeated by 5-0. The visit of Queen's Park to Sunderland, 4th September, 1893, was more satisfactory, as victory rested with the Scots by 2-1, but the return match at Hampden Park, 14th April, 1894, was lost (4-1). Newton Heath, a new fixture, was taken on, 30th December, 1893, at home, and the game was won by 3-2. The return at Manchester, 27th September, 1894, was drawn (3-3). Football was also looking up in the Sheffield district at this time, and the Wednesday club came to Hampden, 31st March, 1894, and asserted their superiority by 2-1. Though Wednesday had first been played as far back as 2ist October, 1880, and defeated then by 5-0, the clubs had not met in the interval. Wednesday drew with Queen's Park in the cutlery town, 3rd April, 1899, neither scoring. This was their last match with the Scots. Stoke was played twice in this season, home-and-home matches— the first, at Crosshill, was won by 4-2, and the second, at Stoke, lost by 1-0. Queen's Park second string had had a long connection with Stoke, and had frequent trips to the Trent town, which they visited annually from 10th December, 1877, up to 1881, playing six matches, all of which, save the last (2-2) were won. One of the worst reverses Queen's Park ever sustained was inflicted by Sunderland, at Hampden Park too, 20th October, 1894, when Queen's Park lost by 8- 1;. but the return, 15th April, 1895, at Sunderland, was successfully contested, the home team being beaten 4-3. Sunderland won the two games in the following season—the first, 12th October, 1895, by 5-2, at Hampden, and the second at the Wearside town by 2-0. Everton were played at Liverpool, 28th September, 1896, another drawn game (2-2), and Derby County, 12th December, at Derby, which was lost by 3— 1. Only one match took place with Sunderland in 1897-98, the teams drawing at Hampden Park (1-1). Sunderland were the victors in Glasgow, 26th September, 1898, by 3-1. Liverpool now took the place of Everton, making their debut in Glasgow, 25th September 1899, the home club winning by 2 - 0; but the return at Liverpool went against the Queen's Park by 4-2.

Richmond was visited in London, 20th November, 1899, Queen's Park gaining the verdict by 4-3, and the return, 25th March, 1901, at the Crystal Palace, resulted in a draw (1- 1). Tottenham Hotspur, a rising star, inflicted a reverse by 1-0 on Queen's Park, at Tottenham, 6th January, 1902. The Queen's Park's adhesion to the Scottish League in 1900 left little room for English fixtures, and only one English club outside the Corinthians was tackled in 1903-04—namely, United, at Newcastle, 4th April, 1904, which was lost by 2-1. The same in 1904-05, Woolwich Arsenal running up a majority of 6-1 against Queen's Park at Woolwich, 27th February, 1905. West Norwood came to Hampden Park, 1st April, 1907, each side scoring one goal. Queen's Park were in London playing Clapton, 28th March, 1910—won by only 1-0. After that season, except in the New Year's Day game, no English clubs have been taken on. The club has been always generous in the matter of trips to its junior elevens. The Strollers are old travellers and propagandists, doing substitute for the senior team in the latter capacity. Hampden XI have also done their share, affecting the Belfast district, going first there 1st January, 1881, to play Clifton-ville. They overwhelmed Moyola Park, at Castle Dawson, 3rd January, during that tour, 16-0 being a record for them. Yet Moyola Park that same year won the Irish Challenge Cup. Every year up to 1884, inclusive, found them in that district. Now that the senior team has little time for touring, just before the war the Strollers, Hampden XI, and Victoria XI had their trips, and have done credit to the club in many districts of England. The last two of the junior elevens had to be dropped during the war period ; but now that Peace has once more spread its aegis over a disturbed and perplexed world (11th November, 1918, when the Armistice was signed), the Queen's Park will not be less generous to its juniors than if has ever been in the past.