Thistle F.C.

Thistle
Full name Thistle Football Club
Founded 1868
Dissolved 1894
Ground 1882–1884: Dalmarnock Park
1884–1892: Beechwood Park, Dalmarnock
1892–1894: Braehead Park, Oatlands

Thistle Football Club (also known as Glasgow Thistle[1] and Bridgeton Thistle)[2] was a 19th century football club based in Glasgow. The club was briefly a member of the Scottish Football League Division Two, and has been described as the most insignificant and least successful to have entered the League.[1] They played at Braehead Park during their Scottish League season.

History

The club was formed in 1868, and that year were the first opponents faced by the country's oldest club Queen's Park.[3] From 1884, Thistle played at Beechwood Park in the Dalmarnock district of Glasgow[2][4] (not to be confused with the ground of that name which was home to Leith Athletic F.C. in the same era). At the time, the area was becoming both densely populated and heavily industrialised, and several aspiring teams formed among the tenements and factories.[5][6] Thistle were early rivals to Clyde[2] whose first ground was nearby at Barrowfield Park – initially that was the home of another local club Eastern.

They became a founder member of the Scottish Football Alliance in 1891, by which time Celtic had been formed in the neighbourhood,[7] quickly attracting bigger crowds. In 1892 Thistle were unable to use Beechwood Park,[2] moving to Braehead Park[4][8] in the Oatlands district, only a short distance away from the streets where their core support resided but on the opposite bank of the River Clyde. In previous and future decades this new site would have been easily accessible via Rutherglen Bridge at Shawfield, but the move took place between the demolition of the old bridge at that site (1890) and the completion of its replacement (1896), making travel more difficult during those years.

Although they initially struggled in the Alliance competition, Thistle were one of the members invited to form the new Division Two of the Scottish League for the 1893–94 season. The club failed to make an impact, suffering some heavy defeats, including a 13–1 reverse at Partick Thistle on 10 March 1894,[9] the largest defeat in the Scottish League up to that point; it has only been exceeded by Dundee Wanderers' 15–1 loss to Airdrieonians the following season.[1]

Finishing bottom of the league, the club folded before the re-election meeting, despite takings of £118 at a benefit match between Sunderland and a Scottish Football League XI.[1] Their final fixture was a friendly against Clyde.[2]

A group of Thistle supporters almost immediately formed a new club, Strathclyde F.C., named after the street where Beechwood Park stood.[2] They entered the Junior setup, initially playing back in Dalmarnock at New Beechwood Park[10] and eventually settling at New Springfield Park on the Parkhead side of the district; they won the Scottish Junior Cup three times before eventually folding in the 1960s.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Twydell, Dave (1993). Rejected F.C. of Scotland Volume 2: Glasgow & District. pp. 230–239. ISBN 1-874427-30-5.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Junior Football". Parkhead History. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
  3. ↑ "History: 1867– 1874". QPFC.com – A Historical Queen's Park FC Website. Retrieved 17 April 2018.
  4. 1 2 "Scotland Football Club Directory 1829-2009". Scottish Football Historical Archive. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  5. ↑ "History of Bridgeton and Dalmarnock - Industry". Glasgow History. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
  6. ↑ Origins - Barrowfield Park - 1877-98 Clyde FC
  7. ↑ "Brief History". Celtic FC. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
  8. ↑ Paul Smith & Shirley Smith (2005) The Ultimate Directory of English & Scottish Football League Grounds Second Edition 1888–2005, Yore Publications, p227 ISBN 0954783042
  9. ↑ J. Rollin, The Guinness Football Factbook, Enfield: Guinness Publishing, 1993, p. 140
  10. ↑ "Sporting Venues". Parkhead History. Retrieved 27 September 2017.

Coordinates: 55°50′20″N 4°12′52″W / 55.838790°N 4.214379°W / 55.838790; -4.214379

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