Season 1890/91

Season 1890/91 was set to a challenging one for Queen's Park, with the introduction of the Scottish League having a significant effect on the club's fixture list. A week before Queen's first game of the new season, the club's Match Secretary, John McTavish, was said by The Scottish Referee to have stated that it was only due to a misapprehension that Queen's Park had not joined the League. He said that, in all probability, if all went well, Queen's would join the league in the following season. However, he then sent a letter to Scottish Sport stating the report in The Scottish Referee was inaccurate. He expressed the view  in his letter that time would tell whether Queen's Park had made a mistake in not joining the league.

The Hampden Park pitch had been returfed during the close season at a cost of £120 and the terracing had been extended all round the ground.

On Tuesday 29 July 1890, Queen's Park held their first pre-season practice game at Hampden Park. Practice matches took place on each Monday, Wednesday and Friday until the start of the season.

Queen's Park opened the season with a trip to Falkirk on Saturday 23 August 1890. An understrength Spiders' eleven won 10-5 before a crowd of 3,000 at Brockville Park. Two of the goals came from Willie Paul and Tommy Waddell. The scorers of the other eight goals are unknown.

On the following Wednesday, Queen's Park met Hibernian at the Edinburgh International Exhibition. Queen's recorded a resounding 9-0 victory. The scorers were Willie Paul (4), Jimmy Hamilton (4) and William Gulliland. The crowd of 9,000 crowd included many Spiders' fans who had travelled through to the capital in special trains.

On Friday 29 August, Scottish Sport gave an indication of the main reason that Queen's Park had decided against joining the Scottish League. According to the publication, Queen's would not ask players to engage in a series of matches which involved a drudgery and slavery that the promoters of football never dreamt of. 

For the first time, Queen's Park had arranged home and away fixtures with Clyde in season 1890/91. The first of these games took place at Hampden Park on Saturday 30 August. Queen's were not at full strength but overcame the Bridgeton men by three goals to two. The Spiders' scorers were Jimmy Hamilton, Willie Berry and a McNair own goal.

Saturday 6 September 1890 was Scottish Cup first round day. Queen's Park had been drawn away to Bridgeton side Thistle. A crowd of 3,000 saw Queen's take the lead in 30 minutes through Bill Sellar but Thistle equalised before half-time. With the sun, wind and slope against the, the Spiders' prospects did not look good. However, Queen's proceeded to hit four unanswered goals through Jimmy Hamilton (2), William Gulliland and Tom Robertson. Thistle pulled two goals back before the end but the Spiders went through to the next round with a 5-3 victory.

A week later, Queen's Park made their second trip of the season to Edinburgh to take on St Bernard's at Logie Green. The match created no little interest in the capital and there was a large attendance. Willie Paul opened the scoring with a terrific goal in 10 minutes and, after having a goal chalked off for offside, doubled Queen's lead from a scrimmage. St Bernard's fought back, however, and goals from John Dorkin and Combe Hall resulted in the match ending in a 2-2 draw.

On Saturday 20 September, Queen's Park were in Glasgow Cup first round action against Maryhill at Hampden Park. Bill Sellar put Queen's in the lead in five minutes and, shortly afterwards, team captain Willie Berry made it two. By 20 minutes, the Spiders were 6-0 ahead. Maryhill pulled a goal back in a breakaway but, by half-time, the score was 9-1. The Maryhill lads never relaxed their efforts but finally went down to a 13-1 defeat. Walter Arnott missed the match because he was suffering from the effects of a fall from an Irish jaunting car.

On the following Saturday, Queen's Park met Northern at Hampden Park in the second round of the Scottish Cup. A crowd of around 3,000 saw Queen's face a strong wind in the first half. Despite this, William Gulliland put the Spiders into the lead after a fine move and Bill Sellar made it 2-0 following clever play by Paul and Gulliland. Mitchell pulled a goal back for the Springburn men before half-time. In the second period, Queen's Park scored three unanswered goals through Tommy Waddell (2) and Bill Sellar to ensure a comfortable passage into the next round.

Tommy Waddell

Queen's Park were south of the border on Thursday 2 October 1890 (Goose Fair Thursday) for the opening of Nottingham Forest's new ground - the Town Ground. Forest was by now almost entirely a professional side. There was a crowd of 3,500 in attendance in beautiful weather. Queen's fell behind in 12 minutes to a Smith goal but two Jimmy Hamilton strikes put them ahead. The Spiders then suffered a blow when Bob McFarlane, who had injured his right leg earlier in the game, could take no further part. Forest took full advantage of the situation and further goals from Smith and Higgins (2) gave the English side an unexpected 4-2 victory. Forest played six of their eight Scots in the match. 

Queen's Park had no fixture on Saturday 4 October. They were next in action on Saturday 11 October with a Glasgow Cup second round tie with 3rd Lanark Rifle Volunteers at Hampden Park. Estimates of the size of the crowd varied significantly but it was probably around 15,000. It was a hard, exciting match. Queen's Park went into the lead in nine minutes through Willie Berry and, for a while, it looked as if they would win easily. However, 3rd Lanark equalised in 35 minutes when Billy Thomson scored from a scrimmage. Things looked good for the Spiders when, in 55 minutes, William Gulliland scored with a brilliant header from a Sellar cross. However, that was as good as it got for Queen's. From then on, 3rd Lanark held the upper hand and scored three unanswered goals through Billy Thomson, William Johnston and William Lapsley. Queen's applied some pressure near the end but to no avail. The Spiders' players reckoned that 3rd Lanark's first and fourth goals had not actually gone through the goal but the club's Glasgow Cup campaign was over.  

Seven days later, it was back to the Scottish Cup. Queen's Park's third round opponents were Uddingston, who proved to be no match for the Spiders. Despite splendid weather, there was only a small crowd at Hampden Park as the result was seen as a foregone conclusion. Queen's Park won 6-0. According to the Glasgow Herald, the goalscorers were Hamilton (3), Paul, Berry and not known. The North British Daily Mail opted for Hamilton, Gulliland, Paul, Sellar and scrimmage.

There was a blow for Queen's when Scotland International Willie Paul decided to return to his former club Partick Thistle.

Leith Athletic were visitors to Hampden Park for a friendly match on Saturday 25 October. There was a low attendance on a showery day. Queen's Park were four up at half-time thanks to two Jimmy Hamilton strikes, an Anderson own goal and a goal from either Gulliland or Waddell. Leith Athletic pulled a goal back but Queen's scored a further three times to complete an easy 7-1 victory. The second half scorers were Berry, Hamilton and Gulliland. Reports varied as to who scored the Leith Athletic goal. It could have been Clements, Macleod or Laing. (It just goes to show how difficult it is to pinpoint with accuracy the scorers of goals in the Victorian era.) Apparently, a couple of the Leith players had been "festivating" on the evening before the match. This will not have helped their club's cause.

There was another friendly match at Hampden Park on the following Saturday and, once again, it failed to capture the imagination of the public. The visitors on this occasion were near-neighbours Battlefield. As both clubs had the same strips, Queen's Park wore white jerseys. Queen's won the match 8-2. The Spiders' scorers were Tommy Waddell (3), William Gulliland (2), James Eccles and Jimmy Hamilton. Battlefield's goals came from George Hector and a scrimmage.

Queen's Park had been drawn away to Edinburgh University in the fourth round of the Scottish Cup and the match took place at Tynecastle Park on Saturday 8 November. There was heavy rain throughout the game and pools of water on the pitch. The attendance was only around 200 or so due to the deplorable conditions. Those who were there saw Queen's cruise to a 7-0 victory with goals from James Eccles (3), Jimmy Hamilton (2), Tommy Waddell and Willie Berry.

On the following Saturday, Queen's Park met Glasgow Thistle at Beechwood Park in Bridgeton. Queen's won a close match 3-2. Jimmy Hamilton and Bill Sellar scored the first two goals but it is not known who got the winner. Walter Arnott and Willie Berry were missing from the Queen's Park side that faced Thistle. They were part of the Glasgow team that went down to an unexpectedly heavy 4-0 defeat to East of Scotland at Tynecastle Park in Edinburgh. 

On Saturday 22 November, Queen's Park met Edinburgh University once again at a miserably wet and windy Hampden Park. The match was of an hour's duration only. The Spiders took matters easy but still won 6-0. The goals came from James Eccles (2), Jimmy Hamilton, William Gulliland, Tom Robertson and Robert Muir-Glen.

Queen's Park had been scheduled to meet St Mirren at Westmarch in Paisley in the fifth round of the Scottish Cup on Saturday 29 November. However, the match was postponed due to a frozen pitch. The game took place on the following Saturday. As a result, Queen's Park's scheduled match with Nottingham Forest had to be cancelled. The crowd of over 6,000 was one of the biggest ever seen at the Westmarch ground. It was an exciting match, with play end to end. St Mirren went into the tie with high hopes of success and their optimism seemed justified as goals from James McAulay and James Dunlop gave them a 2-0 advantage at the interval. Queen's Park started the second half on the front foot and Willie Berry beat 'keeper Cameron to a through ball to reduce the deficit. Shortly afterwards, William Gulliland struck the equaliser. It was then St Mirren who applied the pressure but Queen's Park broke away and Jimmy Hamilton hit the winner to meet the Spiders' cup run alive. 

Queen's Park's next game was a friendly match against Airdrieonians at Hampden Park on Saturday 13 December. An understrength Queen's side won the match 4-2. According to the Glasgow Herald, the Spiders' scorers were David Allan (3) and William Gulliland. The North British Daily Mail preferred Jimmy Hamilton (2), David Allan and William Gulliland. It had been reported at the start of the season that Davie Allan had retired. Clearly not!

In the sixth round of the Scottish Cup, Queen's Park had been drawn away to local rivals 3rd Lanark Rifle Volunteers - the side that knocked them out of the Glasgow Cup. The tie should have been played on Saturday 20 December but was postponed due to frost and snow. Matters were no better a week later with the Cathkin Park pitch again unplayable.


Queen's Park's next fixture was the annual New Year's Day game with Corinthians of London. Despite a frozen pitch at Hampden Park, a large and enthusiastic crowd saw a fine match. Jimmy Hamilton had a goal chalked off and Tommy Waddell hit the post before, in 30 minutes, Hamilton put Queen's in the lead after good play by Bill Sellar. Corinthians then equalised when either George Brann or Arthur Henfrey struck a fine shot. After half-time, Queen's Park scored a second goal when 'keeper Wilkinson failed to cut out a cross ball and either Hamilton or Sellar slotted the ball through the unguarded goal. The Spiders were now I control and extended their lead when Jimmy Hamilton forced home a Gulliland corner kick. Queen's were on top to the finish and earned a deserved 3-1 victory. After the, the two sides dined at the Alexandra Hotel in Bath Street. The Queen's Park team that defeated Corinthians was - George Gillespie; Walter Arnott and Bob Smellie; Donald Sillars, Alan Fraser and Tom Robertson; William Gulliland, Willie Berry, Jimmy Hamilton, Bill Sellar and Tommy Waddell.

In the absence of fixtures against other leading clubs, Queen's Park had been forced to settle for friendly games against less fashionable sides. The latest of these games came off at Hampden Park on Saturday 3 January 1891 when Govan side Whitefield provided the opposition. In a match of one hour's duration, Queen's strolled to a 9-2 victory, with goals from Waddell (3), Gulliland, Lambie, Robertson, Berry, Fraser and an own goal.

The Scottish Cup tie with 3rd Lanark Rifle Volunteers finally happened on Saturday 10 January. The pitch at Cathkin Park was frostbound but the two sides agreed to go ahead with the match. The attendance of around 6,000 was much lower than originally anticipated. However, the crowd was composed of spectators who lived within easy reach of Cathkin Park. People from further afield had assumed that there was no hope of the game being played. The pitch was covered in layers of sand (a hundred cart loads) but the footing was still treacherous. In 15 minutes, Queen's Park took the lead through a brilliant piece of play by Bill Sellar. Both sides went close before, in 75 minutes, 3rd Lanark drew level. William Lapsley sent the ball into the Queen's goalmouth and, after an almighty scramble, the ball was bundled through goal "amidst frantic cheering and waving of hats". There was great excitement in the crowd as both teams chased a winner. Near the end, Queen's Park thought they had won the game. A Sellar shot was punched out by a defender from under the bar. Queen's claimed a goal but the referee gave a free kick on the goal line. The Spiders' forwards could not force the ball home and the tie went to a replay.

Glasgow played Sheffield at Bramall Lane on the afternoon of the 3rd Lanark game. The Queen's Park players selected for the Glasgow side had to be withdrawn because of the cup tie. Sheffield won 4-3. 

The cup replay took place at Hampden Park on the following Saturday. A crowd of some 12,000 saw what the North British Daily Mail described as perhaps the finest game ever played between the sides. Queen's Park were first to strike with a fine Bill Sellar header in eight minutes. 3rd Lanark equalised in 20 minutes when Jimmy Burke scored with a fast, low shot. The Warriors then took the lead when William Johnston pounced on a defensive mistake and fired the ball in off the underside of the bar. In 55 minutes, Willie Berry made the score 2-2 with a beautiful shot from a Sellar pass. Queen's Park had the better of the remainder of the exchanges but the tie went to a second replay. 

The second replay took place at Hampden Park on Saturday 24 January. The weather was very disagreeable, with rain, sleet and snow, but 12,000 hardy souls took their place at Hampden Park. The decision of the two clubs to play the game at Hampden was controversial as SFA rules stated that second replays after the fourth round should take place on neutral grounds. The pitch was soft and heavy. Queen's Park were dealt a severe blow with the late withdrawal of Tom Robertson and Donald Sillars. Fraser and McAra deputised. Queen's Park were decidedly the better side in the opening half and led at the interval through a rocket William Gulliland shot from a tight angle. The balance of play changed entirely in the second half and 3rd Lanark, with the wind and snow in their favour, went on to win with ease. Fifteen minutes into the half, Burke equalised from a William Lapsley cross and further goals from William Johnston, Neil McInnes and Billy Thomson gave the Volunteers a deserved 4-1 victory. The Glasgow Herald remarked - "The superior training (fitness) of the Third was very apparent."

Queen's Park were at Kilmarnock on Saturday 31 January. Due to a fierce wind and torrential rain, the teams decided to play an unofficial match (not to appear in the records) of two halves of 30 minutes. However, play was abandoned after ten minutes. 

Queen's Park were not back in action until Saturday 14 February when they played a return match with Corinthians before a crowd of over 10,000 at the Kennington Oval. Queen's arrived in London with only ten men but were joined by a young player named Stevenson from the Hampden Eleven. The Spiders did most of the early pressing and scored the only goal of the game in 30 minutes through Willie Paul, who had made himself available for this match. Corinthians had to play the majority of the game with ten men following Cecil Holden-White injuring his knee. Bill Sellar had two goals disallowed in the unexpected Spiders' victory.

A week later, Queen's Park met Northern at Hampden Park. Queen's missed several good chances in the opening half and the game was goalless at the interval. The Spiders' forwards played better in the second period and goals from Bill Sellar and Willie Berry sealed a comfortable 2-0 win. 

On Saturdays 28 February and 7 March, there were International trial matches at Hampden Park and then Tynecastle Park, with a number of Queen's Park men involved. The Scottish League ordered the clubs under its jurisdiction to withdraw their players from the International trials as the dates clashed with the league programme. Four Hearts players and two Vale of Leven players defied the ban and went on to be part of the Scotland side that faced England in early April.  

Queen's next game was against Partick Thistle at Inchview Park in Whiteinch on Saturday 14 March. A crowd of around 4,000 saw the Spiders have the better of the opening exchanges but fall behind in 30 minutes to a Keay goal. However, Queen's equalised soon afterwards when a Walter Arnott free kick found its way through goal. The Thistle goalkeeper was in great form but the Spiders' non-stop pressure was finally rewarded with minutes to go when Willie Lambie struck their winning goal.

William Gulliland and Tom Robertson were part of the Scotland side that beat Wales 4-3 in Wrexham on Saturday 21 March 1891. On that same afternoon, Queen's Park had been scheduled to meet 'Varsities Corinthians at Hampden Park. At Bill Sellar's suggestion, however, it was the "Scotch International Team" that would face England that took the field against the side of Oxford and Cambridge students. (Different sets of players were selected to play Wales and England.) The idea was to give the Scotland side some practice before the clash with the auld enemy. The match attracted a crowd of around 12,000. Walter Arnott, Bob Smellie, Willie Berry and Bill Sellar himself played for the Scots, as did Frank Watt who had joined Queen's Park from Kilbirnie a week or so previously. After losing two early goals, the Scotland eleven won the game 9-2. Reports of who got the goals varied considerably but Bill Sellar and Frank Watt may both have scored hat tricks (or more).

Frank Watt

Arrangements were finalised for a new league - the Scottish Alliance League. Queen's Park declined an invitation to join the 12-club league, on the basis that they would be unable to fulfil the fixtures. Their place was given to Ayr FC.

On Saturday 28 March, Scotland beat Ireland 2-1 before a crowd of around 9,000 at Celtic Park. George Gillespie, Donald Sillars and Tommy Waddell played in the game, with Waddell scoring the first goal. Queen's Park, minus the three players on international duty, played Kilmarnock at Hampden Park. Queen's led twice in the first half, with goals from Gulliland and Lambie, but the score was 2-2 at the interval. With the wind at their backs, the Spiders dominated the second period and further goals from Jenkins and Sellar gave them a 4-2 victory. 

The following Saturday was the date of Scotland's annual encounter with England. A crowd of 25,000 had been expected at Ewood Park in Blackburn but only around 8,000 turned out on the day, a third of them Scots. Many locals shunned the game because no Blackburn Rovers players had been selected for the England side. Despite being without the Scottish League players who had missed the trials, the Scots still hoped for a win but it was not to be. England won 2-1. Walter Arnott captained the Scotland side and Bob Smellie, Bill Sellar and Willie Berry also featured. Frank Watt scored the Scotland goal but was listed as a Kilbirnie player. While Scotland laboured in Lancashire, Queen's Park met Glasgow Thistle at Hampden Park. Queen's took the lead in the first minute with a Willie Lambie goal but Gemmell equalised soon after. A fine Hector shot restored the Spiders' lead before half-time. Queen's had the better of the second half and further goals from a scrimmage and from Lambie gave them a 4-2 victory.

On Monday 13 April, Queen's Park were south of the border taking on Everton at Anfield. The Liverpool Mercury said that the visit of Queen's Park had long been desired by football enthusiasts in Merseyside. A crowd of 12,000 was present for the match. Play was end to end in the first half, with both sides playing well, but there was no scoring at half-time. Early in the second half, a misunderstanding between goalkeeper Andrew Baird and Walter Arnott gave Edgar Chadwick the opportunity to shoot Everton into the lead. Jimmy Hamilton then missed a great chance for Queen's Park when he headed over from close range. However, he later made up for his error when he accepted a Berry pass and fired home a fast low shot. An exciting match, with football of the highest order, ended in a 1-1 draw. On that same day, Queen's Park's second eleven, the Strollers, drew 2-2 with Beeston in Nottinghamshire.

On Tuesday 14 April, the North British Daily Mail reported that Kelso and Queen's Park (Glasgow) had drawn 1-1 on the previous day. It is not known which Queen's Park side made the trip to the Borders.

With the Scottish League clubs having refused to play in the Glasgow Merchants' Charity Cup on the scheduled dates, Airdrieonians, Northern and Partick Thistle were invited to join Queen's Park in the competition for the trophy. Queen's were drawn against Partick Thistle at the semi-final stage of the competition and the tie was played at Hampden Park on Saturday 18 April. Queen's Park took the lead in three minutes when Tommy Waddell forced the ball through the Thistle goal. After Jimmy Hamilton missed two good chances, Partick Thistle broke away and John Gilchrist scored an equaliser. Queen's continued to waste chances but, just before the interval, Jimmy Hamilton or J McFarlane put the Spiders ahead with a fine shot. Queen's Park had much the better of the second half but, try as they might, could not add to their lead. The absence of the big names - Celtic, Rangers and 3rd Lanark - from the competition had resulted in a lack of public interest and only 2,500 spectators turned out for the Queen's Park v Partick Thistle tie.

Northern beat Airdrieonians in the second of the semi-finals and the Springburn club lined up against Queen's Park in the Charity Cup Final on Saturday 25 April 1891. The match was expected to be something of a walkover for the Spiders and barely 2,500 were present at Hampden Park. The first half saw Queen's miss a series of opportunities and it was not until the second half that they took the lead. The goal, when it finally came, was a good one. Jimmy Hamilton was the scorer after a fine forward move. To everyone's surprise, however, George Watson equalised five minutes later. Queen's pressed hard in the closing stages and the Northern goal had several close shaves but the match finished in a 1-1 draw. The Glasgow News described Queen's Park's failure to beat an understrength Northern side as "inexplicable". 


Queen's Park and Northern were back at Hampden Park a week later for the Glasgow Charity Cup Final replay. The attendance was again small, a wet morning helping keep it down to about 1,250. Queen's Park had learned their lesson from the first game and there was no complacency on this occasion. Queen's opened the scoring in the first minute through Willie Lambie after good play by Bill Sellar. Tommy Waddell scored a second and then a third soon after. Before half-time, Tommy made it four after a fine move. Queen's played some brilliant football in the second half. Walter Arnott scored a fifth with a beautiful shot and then two goals from William Gulliland took the total to seven. Willie Lambie then weighed in with two goals from crosses by Sellar and Gulliland to make the score 9-0. George Watson pulled a goal back for Northern after careless play in the Queen's Park defence. The Spiders played the latter part of the game with ten men, after Bill Sellar suffered a leg injury, but comfortably held on to their 9-1 advantage. 

The Charity Cup Final teams were: -
Queen's Park - Gillespie; Arnott and Smellie; Sillars, Jones and Robertson; Gulliland, Berry, Waddell, Sellar and Lambie.
Northern - Brady; Rankine and Buist; Lindsay, McKinnon and Gormley; Fraser, Mitchell, Henderson, Watson and McNab.

On Saturday 9 May, a Queen's Park select side beat Newmilns 5-2. The match attracted a crowd of 1,500 in the Ayrshire village.

At the AGM of the SFA on Tuesday19 May, it was decided to create a qualifying competition for the Scottish Cup. The 12 leading clubs would be exempt from qualifying and would go straight into the Scottish Cup proper, as would the four semi-finalists in the qualifying competition. There was significant opposition to the change and the vote was 54 for and 54 against. It went through on the casting vote of the chairman, the SFA President George Sneddon. Arrangements for the close season were also agreed at the meeting, with no matches to be played between 31 May and 1 August.

On the same evening as the SFA meeting, a testimonial event was held for Charles Campbell in the Alexandra Hotel in Bath Street. He was presented with a gold watch and chain and a diamond ring. Queen's Park President Archibald Rowan described Mr Campbell, who joined the club in July 1870, as "...  one of the greatest exponents of our national game, one of the ablest counsellors we have ever had."

The Glasgow Merchants' Charity Cup was presented to Queen's Park in Glasgow's Council Chambers on Tuesday 2 June.   

The Queen's Park AGM took place on Friday 29 May 1891. Richard Browne was appointed President and James Allan Secretary. Despite the loss of several lucrative fixtures, the season's financial performance had been relatively strong, with a balance of £496 2s in the bank (a net gain of around £200 on the previous year). Details were provided of the performances of the club's four sides in the course of the season: -

First Eleven - played 31, won 23, lost 3, drew 5 (142 goals for, 50 against)
Second Eleven - played 25, won 18, lost 4, drew 3 (113 goals for, 52 against)
Third Eleven - played 29, won 23, lost 3, drew 3 (139 goals for, 36 against)
Fourth Eleven - played 25, won 14, lost 7, drew 4 (88 goals for, 56 against) 

Queen's Park - Season 1890/91
Back row (from left) - H Jones, J McFarlane, T S Waddell, R Smellie, W Sellar, J Hamilton and 
W Gulliland.
Front row - D Sillars, W Berry, A Rowan (President), W Arnott, J McTavish (Match Secretary) and 
W A Lambie.

The Queen's Park Sports took place at Hampden Park on Saturday 6 June 1891. They were a considerable success, with almost 9,000 spectators in attendance. The gate money of over £247 was a record for an athletic meeting in Scotland.

Celtic, Rangers and 3rd Lanark, the three clubs that refused to play in the Glasgow Merchants' Charity Cup on the dates scheduled, set up their own charity competition, played on three dates in May. Dumbarton were invited to join them in the four-team tournament. The "New Charities Competition" was a success and attracted large crowds. Dumbarton unexpectedly beat Celtic 3-0 in the "final".

There were several significant rule changes agreed at meetings at the end of the season. At the AGM of the SFA, it was decided to introduce a close season, with no games played in June or July and to have a qualifying competition for the Scottish Cup. Sixteen selected clubs would go straight to the final stages, with all other clubs competing at a preliminary stage. Then, at the meeting of the International Board in Glasgow, it was decided to replace umpires with linesmen and to introduce penalty kicks, to be taken from any point 12 yards from the goal line. 

Despite Match Secretary McTavish's comments at the start of the season, Queen's Park did not join the Scottish League for season 1891/92. The reasons for this are not entirely clear. It was suggested that the club was reluctant to commit to a lengthy series of games, due to having a membership largely hampered by business commitments, and by a desire to have sufficient dates free for the continuation of the club's missionary programme. It is believed that Queen's may have favoured two divisions of eight clubs. A more critical view of the Queen's Park position was that the club was stuck in its ways and unwilling to move with the times. As it was, at the Annual Meeting of the Scottish League, the number of league clubs was increased from ten to twelve and there was no mention of Queen's Park. One bright note for the Spiders was the arrangement of a friendly match at Celtic Park on 15 August 1891, so the boycott by the leading league clubs was over. 


Results 1890/91

First Eleven
23/08/1890 Falkirk 5 Queen's Park 10
27/08/1890 Hibernian 0 Queen's Park 9
30/08/1890 Queen's Park 3 Clyde 2
06/09/1890 Thistle (Glasgow) 3 Queen's Park 5 - Scottish Cup
13/09/1890 St Bernards 2 Queen's Park 2
20/09/1890 Queen's Park 13 Maryhill 1 - Glasgow Cup
27/09/1890 Queen's Park 5 Northern 1 - Scottish Cup
02/10/1890 Nottingham Forest 4 Queen's Park 2
11/10/1890 Queen's Park 2 Third Lanark 4 - Glasgow Cup
18/10/1890 Queen's Park 6 Uddingston 0 - Scottish Cup
25/10/1890 Queen's Park 7 Leith Athletic 1
01/11/1890 Queen's Park 8 Battlefield 2
08/11/1890 Edinburgh University 0 Queen's Park 7 - Scottish Cup
15/11/1890 Thistle (Glasgow) 2 Queen's Park 3
22/11/1890 Queen's Park 6 Edinburgh University 0
06/12/1890 St Mirren 2 Queen's Park 3 - Scottish Cup
13/12/1890 Queen's Park 4 Airdrieonians 2
01/01/1891 Queen's Park 3 Corinthians 1
03/01/1891 Queen's Park 9 Whitefield 2
10/01/1891 Third Lanark 1 Queen's Park 1 - Scottish Cup
17/01/1891 Queen's Park 2 Third Lanark 2 - Scottish Cup replay
24/01/1891 Queen's Park 1 Third Lanark 4 - Scottish Cup second replay
14/02/1891 Corinthians 0 Queen's Park 1
21/02/1891 Queen's Park 2 Northern 0
14/03/1891 Partick Thistle 1 Queen's Park 2
28/03/1891 Queen's Park 4 Kilmarnock 2
04/04/1891 Queen's Park 4 Thistle (Glasgow) 1
13/04/1891 Everton 1 Queen's Park 1
18/04/1891 Queen's Park 2 Partick Thistle 1 - Glasgow Charity Cup
25/04/1891 Queen's Park 1 Northern 1 - Glasgow Charity Cup Final
02/05/1891 Queen's Park 9 Northern 1 - Glasgow Charity Cup Final replay

Second Eleven - The Strollers
23/08/1890 Denny 3 Strollers 6
30/08/1890 2nd Clyde 1 Strollers 4
13/09/1890 Strollers 5 2nd Thistle (Glasgow) 2 - Scottish Second XI Cup
27/09/1890 Dunfermline Athletic 1 Strollers 2
04/10/1890 Strollers 9 2nd Dumbarton 0 - Scottish Second XI Cup
11/10/1890 Ayr Athletic 1 Strollers 3
18/10/1890 King's Park 0 Strollers 3
25/10/1890 2nd Kirkcaldy Wanderers 1 Strollers 11 - Scottish Second XI Cup
15/11/1890 Strollers 3 2nd Kilmarnock 1
06/12/1890 Strollers 4 2nd Annbank 3 - Scottish Second XI Cup
17/01/1891 2nd St Mirren 8 Strollers 3 - Scottish Second XI Cup semi-final
28/02/1891 Jamestown 4 Strollers 4
07/03/1891 Dunblane 1 Strollers 5
14/03/1891 Strollers 2 2nd Partick Thistle 0
21/03/1891 Moffat 4 Strollers 4
28/03/1891 Milton Rovers (Carluke) 0 Strollers 5
04/04/1891 2nd Leith Athletic 3 Strollers 0
13/04/1891 Beeston (Nottingham) 2 Strollers 2
28/04/1891 2nd Partick Thistle 2 Strollers 0

Third Eleven - The Hampden Eleven
23/08/1890 Braidwood Thistle 0 Hampden Eleven 1
13/09/1890 Anstruther (Lanark) 4 Hampden Eleven 8
20/09/1890 Bridge of Allan 2 Hampden Eleven 7
27/09/1890 Bonnybridge Grasshoppers 0 Hampden Eleven 6
18/10/1890 Largs Thistle 3 Hampden Eleven 6
25/10/1890 Stewarton Cunningham 1 Hampden Eleven 6
01/11/1890 Linlithgow Athletic 0 Hampden Eleven 7
08/11/1890 2nd Kilmarnock Athletic 2 Hampden Eleven 1
29/11/1890 Hampden Eleven 5 Stewarton 1
27/12/1890 2nd Motherwell 10 Hampden Eleven 2
01/01/1891 Oban 1 Hampden Eleven 2
14/02/1891 Stenhousemuir 1 Hampden Eleven 8
28/02/1891 Largs Thistle 2 Hampden Eleven 3
07/03/1891 Irvine Strollers 1 Hampden Eleven 7
14/03/1891 Bridge of Allan 2 Hampden Eleven 2
04/04/1891 Hampden Eleven 7 Oban 1

Fourth Eleven - The Victoria Eleven
06/09/1890 Campsie Black Watch 3 Victoria Eleven 4
04/10/1890 Linlithgow Athletic 1 Victoria Eleven 2
25/10/1890 2nd Victoria (Helensburgh) 4 Victoria Eleven 8
01/11/1890 Herriothill Athletic 2 Victoria Eleven 1
14/02/1891 Ardrossan Seafield 1 Victoria Eleven 2
18/04/1891 2nd Stenhousemuir 2 Victoria Eleven 7

Other Match
13/04/1891 Kelso 1 Queen's Park XI 1
09/05/1891 Newmilns 2 Queen's Park XI 5

Representative Matches
15/11/1890 East of Scotland 4 Glasgow 0
21/03/1891 Wales 3 Scotland 4
28/03/1891 Scotland 2 Ireland 1
04/04/1891 England 2 Scotland 1

1 comment:

  1. Jimmy Hamilton was my great grandfather. My mother ( now 91) says she remembers as a child playing with "Grandads pink caps in his front parlour" I wonder what happened to those caps?!

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