Long-lost historical artefact resurfaces. Your opportunity to own a copy of this rare, almost forgotten 100+ year old collectible booklet covering the teams that won the English FA Cup in its first 30 years and available again after many years.
Your chance to obtain a genuine piece of football history for yourself
In 1872 the Football Association announced the introduction of the Football Association Challenge Cup. It was the first knockout competition of its type in the world. Only 12 clubs took part in the competition: Wanderers, Royal Engineers , Queens Park, Hitchin, Barnes, Civil Service, Crystal Palace, Hampstead Heathens, Great Marlow, Upton Park, Maidenhead and Clapham Rovers. This history of the early years of the competition gives a unique and compelling first hand view of how the competition, and football in general, has developed from its humble and unasuming beginnings to the world's favourite competition.
Tottenham Hotspur, Bury, Sheffield United, Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa, Sheffield Wednesday, Notts County, Wolverhampton Wanderers, West Bromwich Albion, Blackburn Rovers and Preston North End were all proud winners of the FA Cup in its inaugural years, along with long gone but not forgotten clubs like Wanderers, Oxford University, Royal Engineers, Old Etonians, Clapham Rovers, Old Carthusians and Blackburn Olympic.
First published in 1902 in the auspicious Strand magazine, The Teams that Won the World's Greatest Football Competition 1871 - 1901 is a classic reprint of one of the earliest historical reference materials of the early years of the FA Cup and gives football historians and club supporters the opportunity to own a really important historical account of the world's greatest football competition - an essential part of anyone's football library.
- a
treasure trove of information either for supporters of the clubs involved or historians of the game
- personal memoires and reminiscences of a player and official who atended the early finals
- rarely available - this classic reprint makes the booklet - normally expensive on ebay - affordable to fans of the game
Well-written, The Teams that Won the World's Greatest Football Competition 1871 - 1901 is an immensely readable title which remains a entertaining observation on the world of football of a bygone age.
You can order this piece of football history now for only £12.47 and download the digital facimile in PDF format in minutes.
The author, C.B. Fry, was one of the greatest all-round sportsmen ever, and one of the great victorian sportsmen, Fry played cricket for England, and was capped for England at football. Shortly after publishing this history of FA Cup finals he appeared in the 1902 final with Southampton.
The great man reports on the first thirty FA Cup Finals, mostly personal reminiscences, from the very earliest finals to the start of the 20th Century.
The competition began when the great amateur teams, drawn from the public schools, ruled the game. The Wanderers, from London, dominated the first few finals, winning five of the first eight finals. Only seven clubs took part in the first nine finals, showing the south's stranglehold on the competition. Oxford University, Royal Engineers, the Old Etonians, Clapham Rovers, Old Carthusians also graced the early finals.
| "The final-ties in these early years were fought out with tremendous vigour. The first final of all, in 1872, between the Wanderers and the Royal Engineers, at Kennington Oval, provided an historic struggle. They were the two most powerful clubs of the day, and the meeting between them excited great interest. The Engineers, owing to the more limited extent of their resources, were favoured by popular sympathy: indeed, they were considered to have the better chance of winning, on the supposition that they were fitter and had better combination. It is curious to note that even in these early days, when the force of individual play was paramount and combined tactics had been reduced to no sort of system, the idea of the advantage of combination was present to the minds of critics. The Wanderers, however, whose forwards were rather heavier and faster than those of the opposing club, had much the best of the play, and won by one goal to none." |
In 1882 saw the first signs of end of southern domination when Blackburn Rovers reached the final, losing to Old Etonians, but the following year the Etonians were beaten by Blackburn Olympic - the first northern team to win the famous trophy. The remainder of the 19th century saw Blackburn Rovers dominate, winning the cup five times. Aston Villa, West Bromwich Albion, Preston North End, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Notts County and Nottingham Forest, United and Wednesday from Sheffield, and Bury all recorded glorious cup victories.
| "As a matter of fact, the Cup final between the Rovers and Queen's Park in 1884 was invested with practically the full interest of an international encounter in addition to its own. The unprecedented number of 12,000 spectators attended the match at Kennington Oval. The Scotchmen were expected to win. Although the idea of combination and passing had already been partially exploited. Queen's Park appears to have been the first team to introduce a real system of systematic short passing such as was afterwards perfected by Preston North End, and has since become the fundamental principle of forward play. In the match in question the Scottish forwards appear to have overrun the Rovers, who, however, were very strong in defence, and succeeded in preserving their goal in spite of close pressure. Gradually the tide turned, and the Rovers in their turn attacked with such success that they won the match by two goals to one." |
In 1901 Tottenham Hotspur ended the run of northern victories by beating Sheffield United in a replay but although this game ended C.B. Fry's account of early Cup Finals, this win didn't end the north's dominance of the FA Cup. It would be another 20 years before the next southern triumph - Spurs in 1921.
| "The honour of Southern football was thoroughly vindicated ... when Sheffield United was defeated in the final by Tottenham Hotspur. The first attempt at deciding the match ended in a draw. The game excited unprecedented interest; over 114,000 people attended the game at the Crystal Palace. The replay at Bolton was some-what of an anti-climax; but the Southern team won with some ease. The winning team well deserved its success, for it maintained a high degree of excellence throughout the Cup ties. Its main source of strength was the admirable understanding between the half backs and forwards, and the ability of the former to set the latter going and to back up their efforts near goal." |
Fry's contemporary reports give an insight into the way the game was played. The echoes of a bygone age showing how football developed from its amateur roots to a professional future.
Details of finals included are: 1872 Wanderers v Royal Engineers |
1887 Aston Villa v West Bromwich Albion |
Copies of C.B. Fry's football writings in Strand magazine are now rare and in demand from collectors, commanding high prices on ebay and from memorabilia dealers and difficult to find on library shelves.
However, at last you have the chance to buy an affordable, digital facimile of this highly collectable item, for just £12.47. C.B Fry's remarkable writings capture an approach to football that has long passed and is now scarcely believable.
And you don't just get Fry's original writings. This new digital version now includes illustrations of the victorious teams, and an extra statistical bonus. You'll also receive an appendix including details of every match played in the FA Cup between 1871 and 1902, absolutely free.
You can order The Teams that Won the World's Greatest Football Competition 1871 - 1901 - this piece of football history now for only £12.47 and download in PDF format in minutes.
Why would you buy a digital version?
This reprint makes the booklet, normally expensive on ebay, much more affordable to fans of the game.
The new digital version has a huge benefit over a traditional paper version (if you could find and afford one). The inbuilt search function allows you to type in your search term and each mention of your term will be found - no need to scan through pages to find your information.
Why is the price so cheap for such a historical rarity? Because this is a digital facimile - a PDF file - I have no inventory and no fulfillment costs. I don't need to pay anyone to take the orders over the phone and, because my products are entirely electronically delivered, I don't carry the inventory and distribution costs. So this way I can pass along my cost savings to you.
Order now for only £12.47 and download the digital facimile in PDF format, with all bonuses, in minutes.
Guarantee - if you aren't 100% satisfied, let me know and I'll issue you an immediate, no-hassle refund right away.
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