1899–1900 in English football

The 1899–1900 season was the 29th season of competitive football in England.

Football in England
Season1899–1900
Men's football
First DivisionAston Villa
Second DivisionThe Wednesday
Southern LeagueTottenham Hotspur
Northern LeagueDarlington
The CombinationChirk AAA
Western LeagueBristol Rovers
FA CupBury
Sheriff of London Charity ShieldShared between Aston Villa and Queen's Park
← 1898–99 England 1900–01 →

Events

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Chesterfield and Middlesbrough replaced Blackpool and Darwen in the Football League.[citation needed]

Glossop debuted in the First Division, becoming the smallest town ever to compete in the highest English football division. The team finished in bottom place and was relegated, becoming the first of six clubs that so far have only completed one season in the top flight.[note 1]

Honours

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Competition Winner
First Division Aston Villa (5*)
Second Division The Wednesday
FA Cup Bury (1)
Home Championship   Scotland

Notes = Number in parentheses is the times that club has won that honour. * indicates new record for competition

League tables

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GAv Pts Relegation
1 Aston Villa (C) 34 22 6 6 77 35 2.200 50
2 Sheffield United 34 18 12 4 63 33 1.909 48
3 Sunderland 34 19 3 12 50 35 1.429 41
4 Wolverhampton Wanderers 34 15 9 10 48 37 1.297 39
5 Newcastle United 34 13 10 11 53 43 1.233 36
6 Derby County 34 14 8 12 45 43 1.047 36
7 Manchester City 34 13 8 13 50 44 1.136 34
8 Nottingham Forest 34 13 8 13 56 55 1.018 34
9 Stoke 34 13 8 13 37 45 0.822 34
10 Liverpool 34 14 5 15 49 45 1.089 33
11 Everton 34 13 7 14 47 49 0.959 33
12 Bury 34 13 6 15 40 44 0.909 32
13 West Bromwich Albion 34 11 8 15 43 51 0.843 30
14 Blackburn Rovers 34 13 4 17 49 61 0.803 30
15 Notts County 34 9 11 14 46 60 0.767 29
16 Preston North End 34 12 4 18 38 48 0.792 28
17 Burnley (R) 34 11 5 18 34 54 0.630 27 Relegation to the Second Division
18 Glossop (R) 34 4 10 20 31 74 0.419 18
Source: World Football
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal average; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GAv Pts Promotion or relegation
1 The Wednesday (C, P) 34 25 4 5 84 22 3.818 54 Promotion to the First Division
2 Bolton Wanderers (P) 34 22 8 4 79 25 3.160 52
3 Small Heath 34 20 6 8 78 38 2.053 46
4 Newton Heath 34 20 4 10 63 27 2.333 44
5 Leicester Fosse 34 17 9 8 53 36 1.472 43
6 Grimsby Town 34 17 6 11 67 46 1.457 40
7 Chesterfield Town 34 16 6 12 65 60 1.083 38
8 Woolwich Arsenal 34 16 4 14 61 43 1.419 36
9 Lincoln City 34 14 8 12 46 43 1.070 36
10 New Brighton Tower 34 13 9 12 66 58 1.138 35
11 Burslem Port Vale 34 14 6 14 39 49 0.796 34
12 Walsall 34 12 8 14 50 55 0.909 32
13 Gainsborough Trinity 34 9 7 18 47 75 0.627 25
14 Middlesbrough 34 8 8 18 39 69 0.565 24
15 Burton Swifts 34 9 6 19 43 84 0.512 24
16 Barnsley 34 8 7 19 46 79 0.582 23 Re-elected
17 Luton Town (R) 34 5 8 21 40 75 0.533 18 Not re-elected
18 Loughborough (R) 34 1 6 27 18 100 0.180 8
Source: [citation needed]
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal average; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated

National team

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For the last round of international matches in the Victorian era, the England national football team played all three matches in the 1900 British Home Championship away from home.

Ireland

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For the match against Ireland, played at Lansdowne Road, Dublin on 17 March 1900, the England team were confidently expecting an easy win after five successive victories, including winning 13–2 the previous year.[1] The England selectors chose five debutantes, including four of the five forwards. Dan Cunliffe of Southern League Portsmouth, made his solitary England appearance at inside right, with his Portsmouth teammate Matt Reilly in goal for the Irish. Another Southern League player, Archie Turner of Southampton played the first of his two internationals at outside right, while on the left were Charlie Sagar of Bury and Fred Priest of Sheffield United, with the experienced Gilbert Smith in the centre. Priest's Sheffield United colleague, Harry Johnson played the first of his six internationals at Right-half.

In the event, the game was far more difficult than expected, with England only managing a 2–0 victory,[1] with goals from debutantes Johnson and Sagar.[2]

Wales

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Nine days later, the England team travelled to Cardiff to compete against Wales with four new players. Arthur Chadwick of Southampton represented the Southern League, playing the first of his two internationals at centre half. The other three debutantes were up front, with Corinthians Geoffrey Plumpton Wilson and Tip Foster, lining up alongside their club captain, G. O. Smith, and Alf Spouncer of Nottingham Forest making his only England appearance on the left wing.

While the visitors were expected to win with ease, the Welsh "fought magnificently"[1] to hold the English to a draw with Billy Meredith's 55th-minute strike cancelling out Wilson's third-minute goal.[3]

Scotland

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As Scotland had defeated both the Welsh and Irish by large scores, England needed a victory at Celtic Park if they were to retain the British Home Championship. They made only three changes from the side that had defeated the Welsh, bringing in Jack Plant of Bury to replace Alf Spouncer on the left, and recalling Ernest Needham (replacing Howard Spencer in defence) and Steve Bloomer in place of Tip Foster.

Scotland were "determined to succeed against the visitors"[1] following defeats in the two previous meetings. In front of a world record crowd of 63,000, the Scots did not disappoint their supporters with Robert McColl scoring a hat trick (his third for Scotland), with Bloomer scoring England's consolation.[4] Scotland thus defeated all three of their competitors, enabling them to take the championship.

Date Venue Opponents Score* Comp England scorers
17 March 1900 Lansdowne Road, Dublin (A)   Ireland 2–0[2] BHC Harry Johnson (Sheffield United) (12 mins), Charlie Sagar (Bury) (16 mins)
26 March 1900 Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff (A)   Wales 1–1[3] BHC Geoffrey Wilson (Corinthian) (3 mins)
7 April 1900 Celtic Park, Glasgow (A)   Scotland 1–4[4] BHC Steve Bloomer (Derby County) (35 mins)

* England score given first

Key

Notes

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d Gibbons, Philip (2001). Association Football in Victorian England – A History of the Game from 1863 to 1900. Upfront Publishing. pp. 462–463. ISBN 1-84426-035-6.
  2. ^ a b "Ireland 0 England 2 (match summary)". www.englandstats.com. 17 March 1900. Retrieved 21 January 2009.
  3. ^ a b "Wales 1 England 1 (match summary)". www.englandstats.com. 26 March 1900. Retrieved 21 January 2009.
  4. ^ a b "Scotland 4 England 1 (match summary)". www.englandstats.com. 7 April 1900. Retrieved 21 January 2009.