Aberdeen Harp F.C.
| Full name | Aberdeen Harp F.C. | |
|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Granite City Irishmen[1] | |
| Founded | 1904 | |
| Dissolved | 1911 | |
| Ground | Central Park | |
|
| ||
Aberdeen Harp F.C. was an association football club from Aberdeen, active in the 1900s.
History
[edit]The earliest record of the club is from 1904;[2] it was unrelated to a previous Aberdeen Harp which played in the 1889–90 season.
The club's earliest competitive football came in the Aberdeenshire Cup in the 1904–05 season, and it entered the competition every season until 1911–12. Its first season in the competition was its best, as it won through to the final, only losing 3–2 to the new combination Aberdeen F.C. side, albeit a reserve Aberdeen XI. [3] Harp repeated the run to the final in 1906–07 but this time lost 3–1 to the same outfit.[4]
These entries encouraged the club to join the Scottish Football Association in 1907[5] (an application the previous year had been refused),[6] and it entered the Scottish Qualifying Cup in 1907–08 for the first time. Its first match as a senior club was a 5–3 win at Montrose in a friendly,[7] and it followed this up by beating Peterhead 3–2 in its first Qualifying Cup tie,[8] a Peterhead protest that linesman William Jeffrey (of Aberdeen F.C.) was a suspended player not getting any traction.[9] However McIntyre was suspended for a month for rough play in the tie.[10] Harp lost in a replay at Elgin City in the second round, having conceded a last-minute equalizer in the original tie.[11]
In 1909–10, Harp reached the third round of the qualifying cup, one round short of earning automatic qualification to the Scottish Cup proper, but lost 3–0 at East Fife, Willie Wilkie scoring a first-half hat-trick;[12] Wilkie had scored a hat-trick two weeks earlier in a Scottish League match, which had been the Fifers' first-ever hat-trick in the competition.[13]
1910–11 was the club's final season at a competitive level. It gained its biggest win - 8–2 over Peterhead Hibernian in the Qualifying Cup first round[14] - and it was struck from the Scottish FA's membership roll in August 1911.[15]
Colours
[edit]The club wore maroon jerseys.[16]
Ground
[edit]The club's ground was Cental Park,[17] but it often played home Cup ties at Pittodrie,[18] or ceded home advantage for Cup ties, for instance in its record win over Peterhead Hibs and in the Aberdeenshire Cup in 1909–10.[19] Harp lost its ground for the 1908–09 season, which almost caused it to lose its Scottish FA membership.[20]
External links
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "Dundee Football Official". Dundee Courier: 6. 6 October 1909.
- ^ "Fraserburgh". Aberdeen Press: 9. 19 December 1904.
- ^ "A near thing". Scottish Referee: 1. 20 March 1905.
- ^ "Aberdeen v Harp (Aberdeen)". Aberdeen Press and Journal: 8. 4 February 1907.
- ^ "Scottish Association". Kilmarnock Herald and North Ayrshire Gazette: 7. 16 August 1907.
- ^ "Athletic gossip". Dundee Evening Telegraph: 5. 5 September 1906.
- ^ "Montrose v Aberdeen Harp". Aberdeen Press and Journal: 7. 19 August 1907.
- ^ "Aberdeen Harp v Peterhead". uchan Observer and East Aberdeenshire Advertiser: 4. 10 September 1907.
- ^ "A Peterhead protest". Aberdeen Press and Journal: 8. 12 September 1907.
- ^ "Rough play". Dundee Evening Telegraph: 5. 11 September 1907.
- ^ "Harp v Elgin City". Aberdeen Press and Journal: 8. 23 September 1907.
- ^ "The Fifers' victory". Scottish Referee: 4. 4 October 1909.
- ^ "An A to Z of East Fife Football Club". Away from the numbers. Retrieved 9 October 2023.
- ^ "Aberdeen Harp v Peterhead Hibernian". Aberdeen Press and Journal: 7. 29 August 1910.
- ^ Scottish FA Minutes 1911–12. Glasgow: Hay Nisbet. 8 August 1911. p. 18.
- ^ "All-time Scottish club directory". Scottish Football Historical Archive. Retrieved 24 August 2023.
- ^ "County Cup semi-final". Aberdeen Press and Journal: 8. 14 January 1907.
- ^ "Harp v Elgin City". Aberdeen Press and Journal: 8. 23 September 1907.
- ^ "Football". Banffshire Advertiser: 8. 23 December 1909.
- ^ Scottish FA Minutes 1908–09. Glasgow: Scottish Football Association. 30 March 1909. p. 83.