Dunfermline Athletic F.C.

Dunfermline Athletic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in Dunfermline, Fife. Founded in 1885, the club currently play in the Scottish Championship. Dunfermline play at East End Park, are nicknamed The Pars and are currently managed by former striker Stevie Crawford.

Dunfermline Athletic
Full nameDunfermline Athletic Football Club
Nickname(s)The Pars
Founded2 June 1885 (1885-06-02)[1]
GroundEast End Park
Dunfermline
Fife
Capacity11,480[2]
ChairmanRoss McArthur[3]
Head coachStevie Crawford
LeagueScottish Championship
2019–20Scottish Championship, 6th of 10
WebsiteClub website

The Pars' most successful period was in the 1960s, when the side won the Scottish Cup twice, in 1961 and 1968 under the management of Jock Stein and George Farm respectively. The club regularly played European football in this period, reaching the semi-finals of the 1968–69 European Cup Winners' Cup under Farm.

The club have played at East End Park since their formation in 1885, however, the pitch they initially played at – also known as East End Park – was slightly west of the present stadium.[1]

After a period of relative success in the 2000s marked by appearances in three major finals (the 2004 Scottish Cup Final, the 2006 Scottish League Cup Final and the 2007 Scottish Cup Final), all of which were lost against Celtic. Dunfermline were relegated to the First Division in 2007. The club then encountered financial problems and, in April 2013, applied for and was granted full administration at the Court of Session in Edinburgh,[4] and in October 2013, the fan group Pars United assumed control of the club.[5]

History
Main article: History of Dunfermline Athletic F.C.

Beginning (1885–1959)
Chart of yearly table positions of Dunfermline in the Scottish League.

The club was initially formed as Dunfermline Football Club in 1874, when members of Dunfermline Cricket Club decided to establish a football section, with the intention of maintaining fitness during the winter.[1] A dispute over club membership caused some members to split away from Dunfermline Cricket Club, which resulted in the creation of Dunfermline Athletic Football Club on 2 June 1885. The club became the principal football club in Dunfermline and their first twenty-five years saw them compete primarily as an amateur team, until they turned professional in 1899.[6] The club first entered into the Scottish Football League in 1912 where they took part in the Scottish Division Two. The fifty years following the club's admittance to the SFL saw little success, with the side most frequently playing in the second tier, with occasional appearances in the top flight.

Stein & Farm (1960–1970)

Dunfermline's finest period came during the sixties. After being appointed manager on 14 March 1960 and saving the club from relegation to Scottish Division Two, Jock Stein – in his first managerial appointment – guided the Pars to their first major piece of silverware, winning the Scottish Cup in 1961 after just thirteen months in charge.

The years which followed saw Dunfermline consistently competing in European competitions, reaching the semi-finals of the 1968–69 European Cup Winners' Cup under George Farm. Although they lost by one goal on aggregate to eventual winners Slovan Bratislava, it remains the greatest achievement in Dunfermline's history.[7] This followed Farm managing Dunfermline to their second Scottish Cup victory, winning the competition in 1968.

Since 1970

After a period of decline during the 1970s and much of the 1980s, the club returned to the top tier in 1987 under club legend Jim Leishman, although they were subsequently relegated after just one season. The following years saw a similar pattern, with a handful of promotions and relegations throughout the 1990s. It was during this period that the club were rocked by the loss of club captain Norrie McCathie, who died on 8 January 1996 by carbon monoxide poisoning.[8]

The appointment of John Yorkston as chairman and the involvement of Gavin Masterton in 1999[9] saw the club enter a period of resurgence, with two Scottish Cup final appearances in 2004 and 2007, a Scottish League Cup final in 2006, as well as two short-lived excursions in the UEFA Cup in 2004 and 2007. In 2012 it emerged that the club had a number of outstanding tax bills with HMRC[10] following the financial mismanagement of the football club by Yorkston and Masterton. The club were put into administration on 11 April 2013[11] and after a points deduction, were relegated to the third tier for the first time since 1986.

The club were then taken over by the fans group Pars United,[12] and after three years in the League One, eventually won promotion back to the Scottish Championship under manager Allan Johnston.[13] Former striker Stevie Crawford was appointed head coach at the beginning of 2019,[14] following a restructure that introduced Jackie McNamara as technical consultant and Greg Shields as assistant head coach.[15]

Colours and badge
Logo used from 2001 to 2011
For a complete pictorial history of playing kit, see the Historical Football Kits site.

For much of Dunfermline's history their home colours have been black and white striped shirts, with black shorts and black socks, though recently they have worn white shorts and white socks. From the club's formation in 1885 until 1901, the club's home colours were a plain maroon shirt with either navy or white shorts and either maroon, white or grey socks.[16] The club then went through a period between 1901 and 1909 when their kits were blue.[16] The club first wore their now well-known black-and-white-striped shirts in 1909 and have worn these colours every year apart from the 1971–72 season, when they wore all white, the 2004–05 season, when they wore a white shirt with a single black stripe running down the left side of the shirt and during the 2007–08 season, in which they wore an all-white shirt with black shorts and white socks.[16] For the 2008–09 season, the Pars reverted to their well-known black-and-white stripes resembling the kit they wore for the 1997–98 and 1998–99 seasons.

Conversely, there has been no consistent colour or design of the club's away strips. Since the start of the new millennium, the club have most regularly had red kits of varying design; for example, the 2004–2005 away strip consisted of vertical red and black lines, whereas the 2016–17 kit was mostly red, with four horizontal lines of red, white and black across the chest. However, away kit designs have not been exclusively red, with the club having also had kits of purple, blue and yellow, as well as black, as was the case during the 2005–06 season.

Period Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor
1977–1980 Bukta none
1980–1983 Braisby Roofing
1983–1986 Rennie
1986–1988 Umbro Aluglaze
1988–1989 Thomson's World of Furniture
1989–1992 Landmark
1992–1994 Hummel
1994–1996 Matchwinner
1996–1997 Le Coq Sportif
1997–1999 Avec
1999–2000 Auto Windscreens
2000–2001 TFG
2001–2005 RAC Auto Windscreens
2005–2007 The Purvis Group[17]
2007–2008 Adidas
2008–2012 Puma
2012–2015 Joma
2015– SRJ Windows[18][19]

The current Dunfermline Athletic club badge design was created in 1957 by Colin Dymock, an art teacher at Dunfermline High School. It was allegedly inspired by one of Dymock's mysterious nightmares.[20] The "DAFC" represents the initials of the club, Dunfermline Athletic Football Club, whilst the tower is a representation of Malcolm Canmore's Tower. The tower was adopted by the town of Dunfermline to be used for the Burgh Arms and old seals. Malcolm Canmore was King of Scotland from 1057 to 1093, and made his residence in Dunfermline within what is now Pittencrieff Park. The park is represented by the stormy, ghostly blue and black night scene behind the tower, including the park's infamous hanging tree. The green area at the bottom of the crest is meant to represent the club's stadium, East End Park. Whilst the badge has been in use since the 1950s, it has undergone a number of alterations since its original incarnation, with the most recent adjustments in 2011 altering the outlines, font and colours of the logo.

Nickname

According to Black and White Magic, a 1984 book about the club by Jim Paterson and Douglas Scott, there are numerous theories as to the origin of the club's nickname, the Pars. The authors wrote:

"Most tend to confirm the more common belief that the name arose from the team's parallel striped shirts, their drinking habits or their style of play. The latter were both described as "paralytic". The earliest theory claims that in the early days when the Football Club was closely connected with the Cricket Club, the footballers were renowned for their performances at the bar and so were called the "Paralytics".

However, in the early 1900s it is known that Athletic's nickname was the "Dumps" – shortened from Dunfermline – and this is said to have been coined by English sailors visiting East End Park when their ship docked at Rosyth. After World War I they were known as the Pars and some believe the parallel black and white stripes to be the reason. Another school of thought involves English workers who came to work at the armaments depot at Crombie and at Rosyth Dockyard; they kept their association with their local team by forming the Plymouth Argyle (Rosyth) Supporters Club and it is said that the Dunfermline nickname comes from the banners in evidence around the ground."

Another view, which holds water with the older supporters is that the name derives from the word 'Parr' which is a juvenile salmon with dark vertical markings.

Club culture

Songs

Like other football clubs, Dunfermline has a number of songs and anthems. A popular song, and the anthem to which the team runs out is "Into The Valley" by local band "The Skids". Since the 1950s the crowd have left the ground after the game to the tune of "The Bluebell Polka" by Jimmy Shand and his band. After Dunfermline score a goal at East End Park, the chorus of The Dave Clark Five's Glad All Over is played.

Rivalries
Main article: Fife derby

Dunfermline Athletic have traditional rivalries with local sides Cowdenbeath and Raith Rovers as well as their near neighbours over the River Forth, Falkirk. They have also participated regularly in the Fife Cup since their formation in 1885, winning the competition more than thirty times, most recently during the 2006–07 season.

In the STV television detective drama Taggart, the writer and Dunfermline fan, Stephen Hepburn used the names of the 1968 Scottish cup winning side for the characters in a 2003 episode.[21]

Filth was the 1998 novel by Scottish writer Irvine Welsh. It was adapted into a 2013 film of the same name, directed by Jon S. Baird with James McAvoy in the lead role. In the film the Hearts supporting Officer goes to view his team's results in a shop window, at the top of the results page Dunfermline were said to have beaten Celtic at home by four goals to nil.

Notable managers and players

Managers

Players

Players

First team
As of 29 June 2020[22][23]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
2 DF Aaron Comrie
3 DF Tom Lang
4 DF Lewis Martin
5 DF Euan Murray
9 FW Gabby McGill
11 MF Ryan Dow
No. Position Player
12 MF Kyle Turner
15 FW Kevin Nisbet
20 GK Cammy Gill
24 DF Josh Edwards
— DF Paul Watson
— DF Steven Whittaker
For recent transfers, see 2020–21 Dunfermline Athletic season.

Reserve team

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player
18 DF Paul Allan
19 DF Matthew Bowman
26 MF Matty Todd
27 FW Lewis McCann
31 DF Kieran Swanson
No. Position Player
34 DF Thomas Bragg
35 FW Lucas Berry
39 DF Miller Fenton
40 GK Ben Swinton

Club captains since 1985
Period Captain Vice-captain
1985–1988 Bobby Robertson
1988–1996 Norrie McCathie
1996–1998 Craig Robertson
1998–1999 Andy Smith
1999–2000 Andy Tod[24]
2000–2002 Ian Ferguson
2002–2007 Scott M. Thomson
2007–2009 Scott Wilson[25] Stephen Glass[25]
2009–2010 Stephen Glass[26]
2010–2012 Austin McCann[26]
2012–2013 Jordan McMillan[27] Josh Falkingham
2013–2014 Josh Falkingham[28]
Andy Geggan[29]
Josh Falkingham[29]
2014–2015 Josh Falkingham[30] Gregor Buchanan[30]
2015–2017 Callum Fordyce[31][note 1] & Andy Geggan[32][33]
2017–2018 Callum Morris[34] Sean Murdoch
2018–2019 Lee Ashcroft[35]
2019–2020 Paul Paton[36] Lee Ashcroft[36]
note 1 Fordyce was initially appointed club captain for the 2015–16 season, however, after suffering a severe leg-break in September 2015,[37] Andy Geggan was given the captain's armband for the remainder of the season. The two are considered co-captains for the season, with both having lifted the Scottish League One trophy together at the end of the season.[38]

Management

Club officials

Backroom staff
As of 29 June 2020[39][40]
Position Name
Head Coach Stevie Crawford[14]
First Team Coach Jason Dair[41]
Assistant Head Coach Greg Shields[14]
Coach Steven Whittaker
Technical Consultant Jackie McNamara[14]
Goalkeeping Coach David Westwood
Head of Medical and Sports Therapy Stuart Phin
Head Physiotherapist Jamie Sutton[42]
Physiotherapist John Porteous
Club Doctor James Parris[43]
Sports Scientist Gary McColl
Kit Controller Mo Hutton
Media and PR Officer Craig Brown

Board of directors
As of 1 June 2020[44]
Position Name
Chairman Ross McArthur
Vice Chairman Billy Braisby
Director Bob Garmory
Director Ian Hunter
Director Jim Leishman
Director Drew Main
Director Kip McBay
Financial Controller David McMorrine

Managers
Main article: List of Dunfermline Athletic F.C. managers

Achievements

Honours

Major honours

Minor honours

Club records

European record
Main article: Dunfermline Athletic F.C. in European football

See also

References
  1. "History: 1985 to 1959". Dunfermline Athletic FC. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
  2. "Dunfermline Athletic Football Club". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 20 May 2018.
  3. "DAFC board changes". dafc.co.uk. 3 June 2016. Retrieved 3 June 2016.
  4. "Dunfermline's move into full administration unopposed". BBC Sport. 11 April 2013. Retrieved 11 April 2013.
  5. "Dunfermline: Pars United assumes control of club". BBC Sport. Retrieved 20 May 2014.
  6. "Key dates in the club's history". Dunfermline Athletic FC. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
  7. McLean, Kirk. "Legends – George Farm". Queen of the South FC. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
  8. McKie, John (10 January 1996). "Police investigate death of Scottish football stalwart – News". The Independent. Independent Print Limited. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
  9. Dunkerley, Stephen (2015). Into the Valley: an East End odyssey. Dunfermline. pp. 99–103.
  10. Wilson, Richard (14 March 2013). "Liquidation threat grows as Dunfermline braced for winding up order from HMRC". The Herald. Herald & Times Group. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
  11. "Dunfermline's move into full administration unopposed". BBC Sport. BBC. 11 April 2013. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
  12. "Dunfermline: Pars United assumes control of club". BBC Sport. BBC. 16 October 2013. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
  13. McLaughlin, Brian (26 March 2016). "Dunfermline 3–1 Brechin City". BBC Sport. BBC. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
  14. "Dunfermline: Stevie Crawford appointed head coach". BBC Sport. BBC. 10 January 2019. Retrieved 10 January 2019.
  15. Roache, Ian (10 January 2019). "Jackie McNamara named Dunfermline's new consultant as Stevie Crawford is appointed permanent boss". The Courier. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  16. "Dunfermline Athletic-Kit History". Retrieved 9 February 2008.
  17. "Purvis Group extend sponsorship". dafc.co.uk. 10 April 2012. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  18. "DAFC and SRJ Windows". dafc.co.uk. 2 July 2015. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
  19. "DAFC & SRJ Windows extend partnership agreement". dafc.co.uk. 19 February 2018. Retrieved 19 February 2018.
  20. "Club Badge". Dunfermline Athletic FC. Retrieved 12 May 2017.
  21. Radio Times magazine, 18–24 September 2010, page 112
  22. "2019–20 Dunfermline Athletic squad". Dunfermline Athletic FC. Retrieved 31 July 2019.
  23. "2019–20 Dunfermline Athletic squad". Dunfermline Athletic FC. Retrieved 31 July 2019.
  24. Dunkerley, Stephen (2015). Into the Valley: an East End odyssey. Dunfermline. p. 105.
  25. "Squad for Austria". Dunfermline Athletic FC. 2 July 2008. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
  26. "Dunfermline name Austin McCann as new skipper". Daily Record. Scottish Daily Record and Sunday Mail. 4 June 2010. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
  27. "Dunfermline: Threat to players' jobs concerns Jordan McMillan". BBC Sport. BBC. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  28. "Josh Falkingham". Dunfermline Athletic FC. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  29. "New recruits for the PST". Dunfermline Athletic FC. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  30. "2015-02-12 Dunfermline Athletic Supports Council minutes". Dunfermline Athletic FC. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  31. "Leading the way". Dunfermline Athletic FC. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 16 September 2015.
  32. "Captaincy is big thing for Geggs". Dunfermline Athletic FC. 2 October 2015. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
  33. "Dunfermline captain Andy Geggan says referee Crawford Allan admitted to blunders in match against Inverness". Dunfermline Press. Newsquest. 28 July 2016. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
  34. Hart, Ross (6 July 2017). "New Dunfermline Athletic skipper Callum Morris on the honour of being made captain". Dunfermline Press. Newsquest. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
  35. Collin, Iain (26 July 2018). "Lee Ashcroft 'fits the bill perfectly' as Allan Johnston names ex-Kilmarnock defender as new Dunfermline captain". Deadline News. Capital City Press. Retrieved 26 July 2018.
  36. "Club captain appointed". Dunfermline Athletic FC. 18 July 2019. Retrieved 18 July 2019.
  37. "Callum's long break". Dunfermline Athletic FC. 19 September 2015. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
  38. "Dunfermline 1 Peterhead 0". Dunfermline Athletic FC. 30 April 2016. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
  39. "Management Team". Retrieved 1 January 2019.
  40. "Backroom Staff". Retrieved 1 January 2019.
  41. "Jason Dair appointed as first team coach". Dunfermline Athletic FC. 14 June 2019. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
  42. "Manager on Thursday". Dunfermline Athletic FC. 25 June 2020. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  43. "New club doctor". Dunfermline Athletic FC. 21 July 2017. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
  44. "DAFC Board of Directors". Retrieved 1 January 2019.
  45. "DAFC Honours". Dunfermline Athletic FC. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  46. "Stranraer 2–1 Dunfermline Athletic". BBC Sport. BBC. 7 May 2014. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  47. "Dunfermline Ath 2–3 St Johnstone". BBC Sport. BBC. 25 November 2007. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  48. "East End Park, Dunfermline". Football Ground Guide. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  49. "ECWC 1968–1969". Pars Database. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  50. "Istvan Kozma". Dunfermline Athletic FC. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  51. Hugman, Barry J., ed. (2007). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2007–08. Edinburgh: Mainstream Publishing. p. 267. ISBN 978-1-84596-246-3.
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