McDowell, Matthew Lynn (2010) The origins, patronage and culture of association football in the west of Scotland, c. 1865-1902. PhD thesis. http://theses.gla.ac.uk/1654/ Copyright and moral rights for this thesis are retained by the author A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the Author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the Author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given. Glasgow Theses Service http://theses.gla.ac.uk/ [email protected] The origins, patronage and culture of association football in the west of Scotland, c. 1865-1902 Matthew Lynn McDowell BA Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for The Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of History, Scottish area Faculty of Arts University of Glasgow September 2009 ABSTRACT Rangers and Celtic Football Clubs, together known as the ‘Old Firm’, have received the lion’s share of attention given to Scottish association football in both scholarly and popular literature. During Scottish football’s formative years, however, the ascendancy of the Old Firm was far from set in stone. The exhaustive study of these two extraordinary organisations, therefore, greatly distorts our understanding of Scottish football’s Victorian origins. Both clubs were part of a far greater scene which included not only fellow ‘senior’, well-established clubs, but also any number of ‘junior’, ‘juvenile’ and non-classified football clubs, as well as fledgling associations which oversaw the regulation of the young game. This thesis will examine the birth and growth of football in the west of Scotland, during a period stretching from the mid-1860s to the Ibrox disaster of April 1902. Clubs were formed at any number of locations, from schools and churches, to factories and coal pits, as well as the many spaces in between. Clubs’ respective connections in their own communities not only dictated how and why the game was played, but also determined the local support and patronage that each club received from local establishment figures. Victorian football organisations were as much social clubs as they were organisations dedicated to the playing and winning of the sport, and the sociability and conviviality of clubs determined their place in a complex social hierarchy, often leading to hedonistic excess. What pulled football away from this social scene, however, was its undisputed status as a gate money bonanza, one which saw not only the formation of a partisan supporter culture, but also the creation of a niche press dedicated to the ins and outs of the nascent game, both of which continued to fuel participation in the young sport. When the game itself became the main attraction, and when victory became more important than camaraderie, professionalism was not far behind. Play-for-pay irrevocably changed the relationship between players, supporters, the press and football clubs’ local communities. This thesis will examine the interrelationships between the players, the supporters, sport clubs’ patrons and the press, as well as the local and national connotations present in the building and advancement of the newly-popular association game. TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgements............................................................................................................... i List of abbreviations………. …………………………………………………………….iv List of figures in appendix................................................................................................. vi 1. Introduction.....................................................................................................................1 I: Football and institutions...............................................................................................21 2. Football and the institutions of order ..............................................................................22 3. Football, migrant communities and social welfare .........................................................44 II: Football and industry ..................................................................................................60 4. Football and industry: theory .........................................................................................61 5. Football and workplace paternalism in Dunbartonshire .................................................68 6. Football in coal and iron communities............................................................................82 7. The association game and the workplace........................................................................99 8. The changing landscape (of sport) ................................................................................117 III: Football and society .................................................................................................135 9. The social gatherings of early Scottish footballers .......................................................136 10. Supporter culture and the atmosphere of the terraces .................................................168 11. Violence in early Scottish football..............................................................................189 12. The press and early Scottish football ..........................................................................208 13. Conclusion ..................................................................................................................234 Bibliography .....................................................................................................................238 Appendix…………………………………………………………………………………...a i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am grateful to several individuals at Glasgow University’s history department, whose support has assisted me greatly during my time at the university. I would first like to thank my supervisor, Dr. Irene Maver, whose assistance and patience over the past four years I have greatly appreciated. I would also like to thank Dr. Martin MacGregor, Dr. Karin Bowie, Dr. Graeme Small and Mrs. Margo Hunter for their assistance with tutoring and work experience. I also wish to express my gratitude to the board of examiners for my viva voce : my internal examiner Dr. Mark Freeman, lecturer in the Department of Economic and Social History at Glasgow University; and external examiner Dr. Wray Vamplew, emeritus professor in the Department of Sports Studies at Stirling University. I am also grateful to the libraries, archives and museums in the west of Scotland whose contents were used through the course of my research. I would first like to thank the staff at the Mitchell Library, Glasgow, where I performed the majority of my initial primary source research. I am grateful for their time and their patience. The following university libraries and archives were instrumental in the completion of this thesis: the Glasgow University Library (including the special collections department); the Strathclyde University Library; the Strathclyde University Archives; the Stirling University Library; the Mina Rees Library at the City University of New York (CUNY) Graduate Center; and the Scottish Football Museum at Hampden Park, Glasgow. The following libraries and local history centres have also assisted me greatly: the Dick Institute, Kilmarnock; the Burns Monument Centre, Kilmarnock; the Carnegie Library, Ayr; the Vennel Local and Family History Centre, Irvine; the Baird Institute, Cumnock; the Ardrossan Library; the Paisley Central Library; the Watt Library, Greenock; the Dumbarton Library; the Alexandria Library; the Milngavie Library; the Hamilton Town House Library; the Airdrie Library; the Coatbridge Library; the Larkhall Library; the Motherwell Library; and the Motherwell Heritage Centre. I also wish to express my thanks to several other individuals within Scottish football: John Byrne, historian, Arthurlie FC; Tony Cowden, office administrator, Greenock Morton FC; Albert Moffat, president, Petershill FC, Richard Moss, chairman, Albion Rovers FC; David ii Ross, historian, Kilmarnock FC; Scott Struthers, secretary, Hamilton Academical FC; and Robert Watson, secretary, Wishaw FC. My thanks to all. Finally, I wish to thank my parents, whose support – financial and otherwise – has been greatly appreciated over the course of the past five years. iii For Kayleigh iv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS Organisations and titles AC Athletic Club ARV Ayrshire Rifle Volunteers BLFC British Ladies’ Football Club CC Cricket Club CYMA Catholic Young Men’s Association DRV Dunbartonshire Rifle Volunteers ERV Edinburgh Rifle Volunteers FA The Football Association, other Football Associations FC Football Club FP former pupils’ club ICI Imperial Chemical Industries ILP Independent Labour Party LRV Lanarkshire Rifle Volunteers MP Member of Parliament MSP Member of Scottish Parliament QP Queen’s Park Football Club RRV Renfrewshire Rifle Volunteers SFA Scottish Football Association SFL Scottish Football League SJFA Scottish Junior Football Association SNP Scottish National Party UP United Presbyterian Church YMCA Young Men’s Christian Association Archives AL Airdrie Library BMC Burns Monument Centre, Kilmarnock DI Dick Institute, Kilmarnock DL Dumbarton Library GUL Glasgow University Library, Special Collections HTHL Hamilton Town House Library