Scottish Football Reminiscences and SketchesBone, David Drummond
History
Scottish Football Reminiscences and Sketches
Bone, David Drummond
Football
As the International of 1887 is, so to speak, a thing of yesterday, I
have only introduced it here for two reasons. The first of these is to
give me an opportunity of bringing new faces into my reminiscences, and
shortly criticising their styles of play, and the second to show you how
the admittedly best eleven sent out by England in all her matches with
Scotland were vanquished on their own soil by three goals to two. The
event came off at Blackburn in presence of some 10,000 spectators--a
much larger crowd than ever appeared in London to see the International.
The weather was dry overhead during the early stages of the tussle, but
a heavy shower of hail fell later on, and this, added to a mud-covered
ground, made matters anything but pleasant. The Scotchmen were the first
to score, which they did through Mr. M'Call against the wind,
half-an-hour from the start; but the Englishmen soon bore down on the
Scottish lines, and Mr. Lindley equalised, so that at half-time both
nationalities were on terms of equality. Not long after ends were
changed, the Scotchmen made one of those determined charges for which
they have been famed in many of the International games, and shoved both
goalkeeper and ball through between the posts. No sooner, however, had
the leather again been started than Mr. Dewhurst, the crack English
forward, sent in a shooter, and once more squared the game. It was now
"night or Blucher" for Scotland, and after a grand run between Messrs.
Marshall and Allan, which was loudly cheered, even though an enemy did
it, the young Queen's Park forward made Scotland one goal up. Till the
close the Englishmen had several brilliant sallies on the strangers'
goal, but the backs--Messrs. Arnott and Forbes--held their own, and
Scotland won by three goals to two. Mr. Macaulay kept goal in fine
style, and was the captain of the victorious team. The Englishmen chosen
to meet the Scotchmen on the occasion were--Messrs. Roberts, A. M.
Walters, P. M. Walters, N. C. Bailey, G. Howarth, J. Forrest, E. C.
Bambridge, W. N. Cobbald, J. Lofthouse, F. Dewhurst, and T. Lindley.
Besides the six who are mentioned below, Messrs. Arnott, Macaulay,
Kelso, J. M'Call, and W. Sellar (who have already been noticed) also
appeared against England in the same contest.
~J. Forbes (Vale of Leven).~
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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