Abercorn F.C.

Abercorn
Full name	Abercorn Football Club
Founded	1877
Dissolved	1920
Ground	East Park, Paisley (1877–1879) Blackstoun Park, Paisley (1879–1889) Underwood Park, Paisley (1889–1899) Old Ralston Park, Paisley (1899–1909) New Ralston Park, Paisley (1909–1920)

Abercorn Football Club was a football club based in Paisley, Scotland. The club were members of the Scottish Football League from 1890 until 1915 and folded in 1920. Abercorn were founder members of the Scottish Football League, but eventually could not compete with local rivals St Mirren.^[1] During their time in the SFL the club played at Underwood Park, Old Ralston Park and New Ralston Park. Their colours were blue and white stripes.

History

Abercorn F.C. was formed on 10 November 1877 with an initial membership of 200, a few months after St Mirren had been formed in the town with their first game been played in December against the 79th Highland Reserve Volunteers with the match ending in a 1–1 draw with Robert Fulton the president of the club getting the first goal and gate receipts of £3. In June 1878 at a meeting at the Star Hotel in Paisley were the representatives from Abercorn, Arthurlie, Barrhead, Barrhead Rangers, Barrhead Thistle, Bridge of Weir, Caledonia (Thornliebank), Cartvale, Clydevale (Greenock), Glenkilloch, Johnstone Athletic, Jordanhill, Levern, Linwood, Mearns Pollock, Thornliebank, 17th Renfrewshire Rifle Volunteers and 23rd Renfrewshire Rifle Volunteers. At the meeting these clubs became the founder members of Renfrewshire County Football Association and a cup was purchased a year later from Summerton Jewellers of Paisley. Abercorn would win the Renfrewshire County Cup on five occasions.

In 1887 they managed to make their first semi-final of the Scottish Cup, losing out to Cambuslang by a 10–1 scoreline, which is a joint record margin of defeat for the semi-final stage of the Scottish Cup. They would repeat the achievement of reaching the cup semi-finals in each of their next two seasons.

In 1890 the club became founder members of the Scottish Football League,^[2] alongside Cambuslang, Celtic, Cowlairs, Dumbarton, Heart of Midlothian, Rangers, Renton, Saint Mirren, Third Lanark and Vale of Leven. The club finished the inaugural season of the league in seventh place out of ten, but had the satisfaction of finishing ahead of St Mirren, who ended in eighth place. This success was short-lived, however, as when a Second Division was created in 1893, Abercorn and Clyde who had been voted off the Scottish League First Division became founder members along with Greenock Morton, Hibernian, Motherwell, Northern, Partick Thistle, Port Glasgow Athletic and Thistle (Glasgow)^[1] In 1895–96 the club won Division Two,^[2] earning promotion back to Division One after a ballot. However, they finished bottom of Division One the following season, and were relegated back to Division Two.^[2]

Abercorn won the Second Division championship in 1908–09,^[2] but were not promoted to Division One. They also failed to be elected to Division One after finishing as runners-up in 1911–12.^[1] The following season the club won the Scottish Qualifying Cup; during their run in this competition the club got its record attendance when 7,000 spectators attended the semi-final match with Nithsdale Wanderers.

The club dropped out of the Scottish Football League in 1915, when the Second Division went into abeyance.^[1] They played in the Western League from 1915–16 until 1919–20, when their lease on their New Ralston ground was ended at the behest of the local town council. This was ostensibly in order to build an Ice Rink, which did not happen for another four years. It was long accused that St Mirren had used their connections with Paisley Town Council to kill off their rival.

Unable to secure another ground within the town, this effectively spelled the end of Abercorn.^[1] Despite not being entered in any league competition they played one game in season 1920–21 with effectively a scratch team in a Scottish Cup defeat away to Vale of Leven. Around 2,000 spectators witnessed the last game that Abercorn played, which resulted in an 8–2 victory for Vale of Leven. Abercorn retained membership of the Scottish Football Association until 29 March 1922, when they were disbarred for failing to secure their own private home ground. Effectively though the club were defunct in 1920 when it played its last game, although an annual Abercorn Football Club dinner was still held in the town until 1939 just before the outbreak of World War II.

In season 2009–10, 90 years after the original club disappeared, a new club was formed under the Abercorn name in Paisley.^[3] The new club has had a marked lack of success, however. In its inaugural 18-game season, it lost all its matches.

Ground

Their home matches were initially played at East Park on the corner of Seedhill Road and Mill Street, before moving onto Blackstoun Park in Well Street in 1879. In 1889 they moved 200 yards to Underwood Park, where they remained until a 1899 move to Old Ralston Park in East Lane in the Ralston area of Paisley which was 700 yards from their first ground at East Park. In 1909 the club moved to a site directly to the west of Old Ralston Park; New Ralston Park.

Colours

1877–1881: Royal blue and white striped shirts, white shorts.
1881–1883: Navy blue shirts, white shorts.
1883–1908: White shirts, navy blue shorts.
1908–1916: Royal blue and white striped shirts, royal blue shorts.
1916–1920: Royal blue and white striped shirts, white shorts.

Honours

Scottish Football League
- Division Two champions 1895–96, 1908–09
Scottish Qualifying Cup
- Winners 1912–13
Renfrewshire Cup
- Winners 1886, 1887, 1889, 1890
Paisley Charity Cup
- Winners 1886, 1889, 1892, 1895, 1905, 1909, 1913

References

1 2 3 4 5 Crampsey, Bob (1990). The First 100 Years. Scottish Football League. p. 291. ISBN 0-9516433-0-4.
1 2 3 4 Abercorn at the Football Club History Database
↑ Abercorn FC – back from the dead! Daily Record, 6 December 2010

Abercorn Football Club

The club	Players

Grounds	Underwood Park Old Ralston Park New Ralston Park

Scottish Football League (1890–2013)

≫ Scottish Professional Football League (2013–present)

Divisions	Premier Division (1975–1998) First Division (1975–2013) Second Division (1975–2013) Third Division (1994–2013)

Cup competitions	League Cup Challenge Cup B Division Supplementary Cup Summer Cup Spring Cup

Clubs	Aberdeen Abercorn Airdrieonians (1878) Airdrieonians (2002) Albion Rovers Alloa Athletic Annan Athletic Arbroath Armadale Arthurlie Ayr Ayr Parkhouse Ayr United Bathgate Beith Berwick Rangers Bo'ness Brechin City Broxburn United Cambuslang Celtic Clackmannan Clyde Clydebank (1914) Clydebank (1965) Cowdenbeath Cowlairs Dumbarton Dumbarton Harp Dundee Dundee United Dundee Wanderers Dunfermline Athletic Dykehead East Fife East Stirlingshire Edinburgh City (1928) Elgin City Falkirk Forfar Athletic Galston Greenock Morton Gretna Hamilton Academical Heart of Midlothian Helensburgh Hibernian Inverness Caledonian Thistle Johnstone Kilmarnock King's Park Leith Athletic Linthouse Livingston Lochgelly United Meadowbank Thistle Mid-Annandale Montrose Motherwell Nithsdale Wanderers Northern Partick Thistle Peebles Rovers Peterhead Port Glasgow Athletic Queen of the South Queen's Park Raith Rovers Rangers Renton Ross County Royal Albert Solway Star St Bernard's St Johnstone St Mirren Stenhousemuir Stirling Albion Stranraer Third Lanark Thistle Vale of Leven

Seasons	1890–91 1891–92 1892–93 1893–94 1894–95 1895–96 1896–97 1897–98 1898–99 1899–1900 1900–01 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13

Clubs Stadia Monthly awards Representative team

Defunct Scottish football clubs

Former Scottish Football League members	Abercorn Airdrieonians (1878) Armadale Arthurlie Ayr Ayr Parkhouse Bathgate Beith Bo'ness Broxburn United Cambuslang Clackmannan Clydebank (1914) Clydebank (1965) Cowlairs Dumbarton Harp Dundee Wanderers Dykehead Edinburgh City (1928) Galston Gretna Helensburgh Johnstone King's Park Leith Athletic Linthouse Lochgelly United Mid-Annandale Nithsdale Wanderers Northern Port Glasgow Athletic Renton Royal Albert Solway Star St Bernard's Third Lanark Thistle Vale of Leven

Former Highland League members	Caledonian Elgin Caledonian Inverness Celtic Inverness Citadel Inverness Thistle Inverness Union

Former East of Scotland League members	Edinburgh Athletic Tollcross United

Former South of Scotland League members	5th Kirkcudbrightshire RV Cronberry Eglinton Lanemark Mauchline Springbank Stranraer Athletic Tarff Rovers Whithorn

Other senior clubs	23rd Renfrew RV Aberdeen (1881) Airdrie Alexandra Athletic Ayr Academicals Ayr Thistle Barholm Rovers Barrhead Bellstane Birds Blythswood Bon Accord Bridge of Allan Bute Rangers Callander Campsie Clifton & Strathfillan Clydesdale Coylton Coila Crown Dumbreck Dundee East End Dundee Harp Dundee Our Boys Eastern Gairdoch Grahamston Grangemouth Granville Grasshoppers Inveraray Kilsyth Wanderers Kirkcaldy United Laurieston Lochgilphead Orion Oxford Redding Athletic Rovers Shawfield Amateurs Slamannan Southern Strathmore (Arbroath) Strathmore (Dundee) Thornliebank Vale of Bannock Vale of Leven Rovers (Alexandria) Vale of Leven Rovers (Glasgow) Victoria United West End Western

Other junior clubs	Arbroath SC Baillieston Juniors Bankfoot Athletic Blackburn Athletic Blantyre Celtic Burnbank Athletic Duntocher Hibernian Falkirk Juniors Glenbuck Cherrypickers Inverkeithing United Maryhill Hibernians Parkhead Port Glasgow Athletic Juniors Shawfield Steelend Victoria Stonehouse Violet Strathclyde

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