Cartvale Football Club was a short-lived football club from
Busby, East Renfrewshire
Busby is a village in East Renfrewshire, Scotland. Busby is in the Greater Glasgow urban area, but is administratively separate from Glasgow. It lies on the White Cart Water south of Glasgow city centre and northwest of the outskirts of East ...
that existed from 1878 until 1890. The club regularly competed in the
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,1882
Events January
* January 2
** The Standard Oil Trust is secretly created in the United States to control multiple corporations set up by John D. Rockefeller and his associates.
** Irish-born author Oscar Wilde arrives in New York at the ...
.
History
The club was founded in 1878, originally playing at Overlee Park, moving to Cartsbridge Park by 1879. Its first entry into the
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,1878–79, ending in defeat to
Arthurlie
Arthurlie is an area of the town of Barrhead, East Renfrewshire, Scotland.
History of Arthurlie
The lands of Arthurlie were held in medieval times by the Stewart family, a branch of the noble Stewarts of Darnley. Later the lands became the prop ...
in the first round.
The club's best run in the competition came in 1881–82, thanks in part to an unusual occurrence. The club beat
Renfrew
Renfrew (; ; ) is a town west of Glasgow in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It is the historic county town of Renfrewshire. Called the "Cradle of the Royal Stewarts" for its early link with Scotland's former royal house, Renfrew gaine ...
in the first round, but, thanks to a clerical error, was omitted from the second round draw, and had to be given a bye.
The club reaped the benefits of the bye, as it went on its best-ever Cup run, reaching the semi-finals. However the club was overmatched against
Dumbarton
Dumbarton (; , or ; or , meaning 'fort of the Britons (historical), Britons') is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven, Dunbartonshire, River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. ...
, conceding a goal in the second minute, turning around at half-time 5–1 in arrears, and ultimately losing 11–2.
Cartvale had some consolation in the
Renfrewshire Cup
The Renfrewshire Cup was an annual association football competition between teams in the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. The final was generally a Renfrewshire derby contested between the two largest team ...
in the same season, as it reached the final for the only time in its history. The game was played at Blackstoun Park in Paisley, the home ground of
Abercorn
Abercorn ( Gaelic: ''Obar Chùirnidh'', Old English: ''Æbbercurnig'') is a village and civil parish in West Lothian, Scotland. Close to the south coast of the Firth of Forth, the village is around west of South Queensferry. The parish had a ...
, with Arthurlie as opponent. Cartvale was unlucky to lose the toss, as Arthurlie chose to play with the wind at their backs in the first half, and the wind had dropped for the second; Arthurlie took the trophy with a 2–0 win.
The club reached the final 8 in 1883–84, beating three other Renfrewshire sides, but when drawn to meet Queen's Park at
Titwood
Titwood is a cricket ground in the Pollokshields area of Glasgow, Scotland. It is the home of the Clydesdale Cricket Club and is one of four international grounds in Scotland approved by the International Cricket Council (ICC) as a home venue f ...
in the quarter-finals the club again found the step up too difficult, losing 6–1 after conceding four in the second half.
The club's last entry to the national competition was in 1886–87, losing 6–2 at Johnstone. In 1887, the club changed its name to Busby, which had been the name of an earlier club which had existed from 1873 to 1880. The club seems to have wound up by 1890, as its last entry to the Renfrewshire Cup was in 1889–90. Drawn at home to St Mirren in the second round, Busby took the lead, but lost 11–2. By this time the club was not considered on the same level as the senior clubs it had previously played on an even basis, with Abercorn sending a reserve side to play Busby at the start of the season.
Colours
The club's colours were as follows:
Ground
Cartvale played at Cartbridge Park, 5 minutes' walk from the station, and the Busby Hotel sufficed for facilities.
Notable players
*
Robert Calderwood
Robert Calderwood (4 October 1862 – 13 May 1939) was a Scottish footballer who played as an outside left or centre forward for Cartvale (1878 club), Cowlairs, Bootle, Newcastle West End, Thistle, Cartvale (1892 club) and Scotland.
Calderw ...
, capped three times for Scotland while with the club
*
Michael Dunbar
Michael Dunbar (30 October 1863 – 6 September 1921) was a Scottish footballer. He played for Cartvale, Cowlairs, Hibernian and CelticTom Dunbar, who later played for both
Old Firm
The Old Firm is a collective name for the Scottish football clubs Celtic and Rangers, which are both based in Glasgow. The two clubs are the most successful and popular in Scotland, and the rivalry between them has become deeply embedded i ...
clubs
*John Kelly, goalkeeper, who moved to
Celtic F.C.
The Celtic Football Club, commonly known as Celtic (), is a professional Association football, football club in Glasgow, Scotland. The team competes in the Scottish Premiership, the top division of Scottish football league system, Scottish ...