Carfin Rovers F.C.
| Nickname(s) | Rovers, the Dandy Dandy | |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1897 | |
| Dissolved | 1899 | |
| Ground | Beechgrove Park | |
| Match Secretary | Hughie Clifford, Philip M'Mahon | |
|
| ||
Carfin Rovers F.C.was anassociation footballclub fromCarfininLanarkshire,active in the late 19th century.
History
[edit]The club was formed in 1897, "from the ashes" of theCarfin Shamrockclub.[1]The media often referred to the club more simply asCarfin.
Rovers joined theScottish Football Associationthat August,[2]Its side for its firstScottish Qualifying Cuptie in 1897–98, at home toAlbion Rovers,contained Hughie Clifford and William Mason, both of whom had been players at Shamrock, plus Thomas and Galloway, formerly ofMotherwell.[3]A good-tempered match ended 1–0 to the visitors.[4]
Rovers bounced back from the defeat with its biggest competitive win - 13–0 in theLanarkshire Cup,againstAirdriehill[5]- which put the club into the semi-final, against Motherwell, but the Steelmen had an easy time of it, winning 6–1.[6]
Rovers only had one more season in senior football, and beatUddingstonin the second round in the Qualifying Cup (after walking over a "non est"Blantyre),[7]but lost atRentonin the third, when a win would have put the club into theScottish Cupproper; Carfin was reckoned without a chance before the game,[8]but nearly caused a great shock, the balance of play favouring a draw.[9]However Carfin lost toEast Lanarkshirein its first round Lanarkshire Cup tie, the blame in part being put on a decision to go toHarthillby brake in windy conditions, which left the team not only unfit, but at a disadvantage in gauging the effect of the wind on an exposed and unfamiliar ground.[10]The E.L. repeated the result when the clubs met in the Consolation Cup.[11]
The club was also one of the five which formed part of theLanarkshire Football Second League,scheduled for the latter half of the 1898–99 season, but which does not seem to have completed.[12]
The club died as the result of a breakaway; perhaps notably, the club had changed secretary the previous season amid some rancour.[13]The new club,Carfin Emmet,claimed it had the right to use Beechgrove Park.[14]Rovers' last action was scratching toAlbion Roversin the first round of the 1899–1900 Qualifying Cup, by which time the club existed "in name only";[15]the club secretary tried to claim that Emmet had inherited Rovers' debts, but after the Scottish FA investigated the matter and ruled the clubs were separate entities, the Carfin secretary's letter was "relegated to the waste paper basket without being read".[16]
Colours
[edit]The club wore white jerseys[17]and blue knickers in its first season,[18]and black afterwards.[19]
Ground
[edit]The club played at Beechgrove Park, which was "not by any means an ideal one", with a small and narrow playing area.[20]
Nickname
[edit]The club's nickname of the Dandy Dandy came from the Dandy Rows, streets of miners' cottages in the village.[21]The club was also known as the Double Back Row for the same reason.[22]
Notable players
[edit]- Hughie Clifford, later ofStoke
- William "Cosh" Mason, who had played forNottingham Forestafter leaving Shamrock
References
[edit]- ^"Lanarkshire notes".Scottish Referee:2. 13 August 1897.
- ^"Scottish Football Association".Edinburgh Evening News:7. 4 August 1897.
- ^"Lanarkshire notes".Scottish Referee:4. 10 September 1897.
- ^"Snapshots".Hamilton Herald:7. 17 September 1897.
- ^"Football results".Airdrie Advertiser:7. 23 October 1897.
- ^"results".Scottish Referee:3. 13 December 1897.
- ^"Notes from the east".Scottish Referee:4. 30 September 1898.
- ^"Lanarkshire notes".Scottish Referee:1. 7 October 1898.
- ^"Round the country".Scottish Referee:1. 10 October 1898.
- ^"Lanarkshire notes".Scottish Referee:2. 24 October 1898.
- ^"Lanarkshire notes".Scottish Referee:4. 10 April 1899.
- ^"Lanarkshire notes".Scottish Referee:2. 17 February 1899.
- ^"Lanarkshire notes".Scottish Referee:1. 23 September 1898.
- ^"Notes on sport and pastime".Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser:6. 19 August 1899.
- ^"Round the country".Scottish Referee:2. 8 September 1899.
- ^"Lanarkshire notes".Scottish Referee:2. 30 October 1899.
- ^M'Dowall, John (1899).Scottish Football Annual 1899–1900.Glasgow: Hay Nisbet. p. 69.
- ^M'Dowall, John (1897).Scottish Football Annual 1897–98.Glasgow: Hay Nisbet. p. 65.
- ^M'Dowall, John (1898).Scottish Football Annual 1898–99.Glasgow: Hay Nisbet. p. 66.
- ^"Snapshots".Hamilton Herald:7. 17 September 1897.
- ^"Lanarkshire notes".Scottish Referee:2. 13 August 1897.
- ^"Lanarkshire notes".Scottish Referee:1. 18 October 1897.