Scottish Football Reminiscences and Sketches Part 4

I now proceed to the Vale of Leven men who played in this tie, and goalkeepers, beware! and, let me tell you, don't think too much of yourselves nowadays! We had a great man who stood between the posts a dozen years ago, quite equal at all points to you, and his name was Parlane. Who did not know Mr. Robert Parlane a decade ago? In the early history of a.s.sociation football some of the best players ever Scotland produced were also good cricketers, and Parlane was one of these, and a grand wicketkeeper. Without saying too much of the men who have over and over again distinguished themselves, I cannot help saying that a better goalkeeper never chucked out a ball. Mr. Parlane did very well in this match, his only fault being a disposition to go away too far from his charge. He kept goal for Scotland against England in 1879, and is now in Belfast.

~H. M'Lintock.~

For six years no man ever did better work for his club than Mr.

M'Lintock. In fact, the Vale of Leven would as soon have scratched altogether in a cup tie as entered into a doubtful contest without him and their other great back, Mr. Andrew M'Intyre. M'Lintock did more than any of the old school now living to popularise a style of back play which ten years ago was emulated to a large extent all over the country.

He had a most graceful way of turning the ball when it came dangerously near the goal, and running it out by dodging an opponent. He used both feet with equal freedom, and was decidedly the cleanest kicker that ever played in the Vale of Leven. It is a curious fact, and one worth noting, that Mr. Forbes adopted much the same style. M'Lintock played against England in 1875 and 1876.

~Andrew M'Intyre.~

Mr. Andrew M'Intyre was a terrible fellow to meet in a hot scrimmage, and no matter the forwards who opposed--and I have seen three at him in a close tussle in front--M'Intyre generally had the best of it and got the ball clear. His powerfully-knit frame served him in good stead in all the great matches in which he took a prominent part. In the one under review M'Intyre was sorely beset by the pick of the Rangers'

forwards, but was always in the right place. No player of his day could work as well in so little s.p.a.ce, and get the leather away safely. His only fault was to be a little demonstrative in the field with opponents, and tell them a bit of his mind during the game. In 1878 he was chosen to play against England.

~J. Macintyre.~

The play of the two namesakes was as different as the poles asunder. Of a fair height and good appearance, Mr. J. Macintyre was one of the most excitable men that ever stood in front of a goal. He generally warmed up at bit, however, and even showed more daring when his old club were playing an uphill game, and I know for certain that in the great drawn matches for the a.s.sociation Challenge Cup, between the Vale of Leven and Rangers, no man ever did harder work. He was slow to get on the ball, and at times very erratic, but rarely if ever lost an opportunity. Very rough in tackling, he, above all others in the club, was severe on the opposing forwards.

~J. M'Pherson.~

Among the Vale of Leven back division, which was so powerful long ago, none was more devoted to the game than Mr. M'Pherson, who held his place for several years as one of the backs of whom Caledonia felt proud.

Without the least show or fussiness, M'Pherson did his work quietly, and had the credit (and a good one, too) of being next to Mr. John Ferguson, the best-natured footballer in Dumbartons.h.i.+re. He could play a magnificent game when he liked, and one season particularly--that of 1883--when he was one of the Scottish Eleven against England at Sheffield, ably a.s.sisted his team to win a hard match by three goals to two.

~J. Macfarlane.~

The Vale of Leven at the time this tie was played had a rare forward combination, and in some of their best matches the dribbling and pa.s.sing among them were something to be remembered. Macfarlane, however, was certainly not the best of the lot, but a very safe man, and could play equally well on the left wing or the centre, and, if I mistake not, work excellently as a backer-up to J. M'Gregor. Now, when I think of it, he was severely tackled in this match by H. M'Intyre, and was not in such good form as some of the other forwards.

~R. Paton.~

There are few, if any, old players in Dumbartons.h.i.+re, and, I should say, spectators as well, who cannot remember the familiar figure of Mr.

Robert Paton. A nicely-featured little fellow, with a joke for every acquaintance, he was full of vivacity, and an intense love for his old club, the Vale. Yes, "The Vale." n.o.body ever called it anything else.

Paton, above all the other forwards who did so much to make the Leven men beloved at home and feared "abroad," even to the next parishes and the big city of Glasgow, was a fine player, and never kept the ball longer than was necessary if he saw a chance. He played against England in 1879.

~J. Baird.~

Mr. James Baird was a fair average player, without anything very remarkable about him. The combination, as I have already said, was so good among the Vale of Leven at the time when this great contest took place that an inferior or selfish player would soon have found his level. The forwards, in fact, were all pretty much alike, but with clearly defined degrees of brilliancy, and Mr. James Baird was one of the lesser lights. He was a good runner and smart at following up, but his dribbling was sometimes too wide for the others when following up on the enemy's lines. When hard pressed he often lost the ball, but in a scrimmage in front of the posts he was a rare shot at goal, and scored a good many for his club.

~J. C. Baird.~

Of all the forwards who learned the game at Alexandria, on the old ground belonging to the Vale, perhaps, in many respects, Mr. J. C. Baird was the most distinguished, and, at the same time, the most gentlemanly.

When the Vale of Leven beat the Queen's Park for the first time in one of the ties for the a.s.sociation Challenge Cup, on Hampden Park, Mr. J.

C. Baird played a perfect "demon." On the slippery ground he kept his feet against all comers, dribbled and pa.s.sed on splendidly, and fairly took the breath away from John d.i.c.kson when scoring the goal which gave his club the victory. Mr. Baird was chosen to face England in 1876, and again in 1880.

~J. M'Gregor.~

If one had met Mr. M'Gregor off the football stage, so to speak, they would never for a moment have taken him for a brilliant and accomplished player at all points. He was all nerve and sinew, and always in grand form. His disadvantages in appearance and weight, however, were kind of blessings in disguise to his club, for the opposing backs sometimes treated him with indifference, and even contempt. This was M'Gregor's opportunity, and never man used it better. If ever he made his way past the backs, and was alone with the goalkeeper, ten to one but his team was a goal to the good in a few minutes. He played against England in 1877, 1878, and 1880.

~J. M'Dougall.~

Two years previous to this final tie, Mr. M'Dougall was the most brilliant forward in Scotland, and he and Mr. J. T. Richmond (Queen's Park) were the first two forwards selected to play against England. A fine figure on the field, and a capital dribbler, without being showy, M'Dougall was always near the ball when wanted, and it sometimes took a couple of opponents to get the leather away from him. For three years in succession he was selected to appear against England. In the tie with the Rangers, Mr. M'Dougall was captain of the team, and scored the only goal made for the defeated club.

~The Great International of 1882.~

The eleven who were chosen to do battle for Scotland in this contest, close upon nine years ago, were considered in many respects the best that had ever donned International caps in any tussle before or since, and a better ill.u.s.tration of the wisdom of the a.s.sociation Committee in their selection could not have been given than the result itself--viz., Scotland, five goals; England, one. Hampden Park was the meeting-place, and as one of the football giants of the day (E. Fraser) is, like some of my dear old friends, now lying in the grave, and others who took part in the memorable event divided by thousands of miles from those with whom they fought and won for Scotland, I should like to pay a tribute of respect to their football ability, and let the young and rising generation of players know that such men appeared in the arena, and played the game as well as it is done now. The match took place on the 11th March, 1882, and as England mustered a very powerful eleven, the issue was doubtful. About a quarter of an hour, however, after the start, Mr. Ker and Mr. Harrower had a fine run, and Harrower made the first point for Scotland but at half-time the score stood--Scotland, two goals; England, one--Ker having added the second, and Vaughton the one for England. In the last round, the Scotchmen, although playing against a good breeze, had it all to themselves, and scored other three points by Messrs. M'Pherson, Ker, and Kaye. In giving short sketches of the International eleven, I have only to deal with eight of the players, as Messrs. Charles Campbell, A. M'Intyre, and G. Gillespie have already been noticed in previous articles while engaged in other matches. I shall accordingly begin with

~Andrew Watson (Queen's Park).~

Mr. Watson did a great deal for football in the Glasgow district a dozen years ago, both with his ready purse and personal ability in the game.

It was in a great measure owing to his interest and energy that the young Parkgrove Club obtained proper ground, and was fairly put on its way rejoicing. The Parkgrove had a lot of very fine young fellows in its ranks, and for several years made a capital record in numerous matches under the captaincy of Mr. Watson. In this International he played as right-side back in company with Mr. Andrew M'Intyre, and, as an indication of how he and his companion behaved, it is necessary to say that only one goal was got against them. Mr. Watson was a rare "header-out," and was famed for his fine tackling and neat kicking. He had one fault, however, and this consisted in kicking over his own lines occasionally when hard pressed by a das.h.i.+ng forward. In the previous year he was the Scottish captain against England, in London, and led his team to victory by 6 goals to 1.

~Peter Miller (Dumbarton).~

When Mr. Miller played in this match, the Dumbarton Club was a power in the land, and not easily beaten. He was left half-back, and had as his companion Mr. Charles Campbell, who captained the victorious eleven. Mr.

Miller was remarkable for his magnificent tackling at close quarters, and possessed weight, which told against England in the contest. Again and again I saw him shake off both Mr. Cursham and Mr. Parry, two of the Southrons' ablest forwards, and once Mr. Mosforth and he had an amusing bit of play near the Scotch goal, in which the Sheffielder came off best. Mr. Miller was, altogether, a very fine back, and when he retired a few years ago the Dumbarton Club had considerable difficulty in getting a good man properly trained to supply his place. Next season (1883) he was also chosen to play against England and Wales.

~E. Fraser (Queen's Park).~

Lost to his club and the thousands of delighted spectators who witnessed his brilliant ability as a right-wing forward, but not forgotten by the members of the old Q.P., Fraser, "though dead, yet speaketh." I question very much if any forward of that time among the mediaeval cla.s.s of players, so to speak, exercised such a potent influence over the spectators, and no style of play was more followed by the younger dribblers than that of Fraser. A son of the manse, he was a highly cultured young fellow, and loved football so devotedly that no amount of hard training was ever s.h.i.+rked by him when under probation for the first eleven. Dribbling beautifully up the side of the field, he had the knack of "middling" the ball at the proper time, and for six years no man ever a.s.sisted at the scoring of more goals. He was also included in the following season's eleven against England, and in 1880 did duty for Scotland in the Welsh match. Poor Fraser died in Australia, a few years ago, shortly after arriving there.

~William Anderson (Queen's Park).~

In the International of 1882 Mr. Anderson and Mr. Fraser played on the same side, and made a very good pair. The former, although not above the medium height, was powerfully built, and few, if any, of his formidable opponents were able to bring him down to mother earth. When he did fall, however, he was never in a hurry to rise, and took matters easy. If one could imagine such a thing as an easy-going football player, it was Anderson, but his failing sometimes came in handy, for he would occasionally make a gallant spurt, and pilot his way through the opposing backs in a way that completely astonished his team and their friends. He showed very well in this match, and the manner in which he and his companion dodged the Englishmen, not even excepting Mr. Bailey, the crack Clapham Rover half-back, will be easily remembered by those who were present. Mr. Anderson is now abroad, and it is something to his credit to say that he played four times against England.

~J. L. Kaye (Queen's Park).~

Like a good many fine players of the glorious past, Mr. Kaye received the best of his football training in the ranks of the 3rd L.R.V., and a couple of years, I think, before this big event, joined the forward division of the black and white stripes. Of a good-natured disposition, and a genial fellow to meet both on the field and at the social board, Mr. Kaye was a great favourite all round, and much sought after outside the pale of his own club. He was a very fine forward; a good dribbler, but was much more easily tackled than Anderson, and occasionally felt shy at meeting an opponent who had frightened him in a previous match.

He must have done well in this contest, as he is highly spoken about in the newspaper reports, and scored the fifth and last goal got for Scotland. He was also an old and tried hand at Internationals, as he faced the English division three times, and Wales also in the same number of matches.

~R. M'Pherson (Arthurlie).~

What might be honestly termed the ill.u.s.tration of a fair field and no favour, Mr. M'Pherson's name was added to the International players of that season through sheer force of ability. I saw him play in several matches that year, and his style and smart pa.s.sing up from the left wing was justly admired. He was Mr. Kaye's companion in this contest, and ably a.s.sisted that player to bring up the ball in several splendid runs.

Since M'Pherson's retiral from active duty, and also the fact of Mr.

Turner, their famous goalkeeper, giving up the game, the Arthurlie have gone back a bit in football ability, but during two seasons they were able to have two nominations for International honours, as Mr. Turner kept goal against Wales in 1882. Possessing great speed and judgment, M'Pherson was a very neat and steady player, and for two seasons at anyrate, a star among all the Renfrews.h.i.+re forwards.