The Old Etonians Association Football Club is an English

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...

club whose players are alumni of

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

, in

Eton, Berkshire Eton ( ) is a town in Berkshire, England, on the opposite bank of the River Thames to Windsor, Berkshire, Windsor, connected to it by Windsor Bridge. The civil parish, which also includes the village of Eton Wick two miles west of the town, had ...

. Having been a member of

The Football Association The Football Association (the FA) is the Sports governing body, governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest footb ...

and played several editions of the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

, Old Etonians currently play in the Premier Division, the highest level of the

Arthurian League The Arthurian League is an English association football Sports league, league for clubs comprising old boys of Public school (United Kingdom), public schools founded in 1961. It is affiliated to the Amateur Football Alliance and is not part of t ...

History

The first reference to football clubs consisting of Old Etonians relates to matches between the former pupils at

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

and those at

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

, starting in 1859. These matches were played to the Eton Field Game rules. Sides made up of former pupils played annual matches against the school in the Field Game over the next few years. The first match for an Old Etonian side against non-Etonian opposition was at

Westminster School Westminster School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school in Westminster, London, England, in the precincts of Westminster Abbey. It descends from a charity school founded by Westminster Benedictines before the Norman Conquest, as do ...

in 1863, probably to that school's rules. At the start of 1866, an Old Etonian side, chosen by Arthur Kinnaird, drew with the Wanderers in an association match. Possibly in relation to preparations for this match, the Old Etonians in period gave the club's foundation date as 1865. The Etonians entered the FA Cup for the first time in 1873–74. However, having been drawn to play

High Wycombe High Wycombe, often referred to as Wycombe ( ), is a market town in Buckinghamshire, England. Lying in the valley of the River Wye, Buckinghamshire, River Wye surrounded by the Chiltern Hills, it is west-northwest of Charing Cross in London, ...

, the club scratched; at this time, the best Old Etonians were playing for Wanderers in the competition. The following season, the club reached the final, beating Shropshire Wanderers at the Kennington Oval in the semi-final. The Countrymen were without their star half-back John Denning, and the Etonians won 1–0. The final against the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

went to a replay. At the time, ends were only changed after each goal; the original match had a stiff breeze, and the Old Etonians had it at their backs for all but the five minutes when the Sappers were 1–0 behind. The law was changed as a result of the unfairness. However, the Etonians were missing several key players for the replay, including Ottaway and William Kenyon-Slaney, and the Sappers won 2–0. In 1875–76, the club reached the final again, and again suffered from injuries before a final replay, with Kinnaird and A.C. Thompson, amongst others, missing from the original match. This time the opponents were the Wanderers, whose 3–0 win persuaded the Etonians that the Wanderers was still the better option to play for in the Cup, and the Old Etonians did not enter for the next two years. The club was brought back to prominence in 1878 under the auspices of Francis Marindin, an Old Etonian who had played for the Engineers. When the club did enter next, however, in 1878–79, there was a sea-change. The growth of other clubs and "old boy" teams starting up encouraged the Etonians to play for the old school club rather than the Wanderers, so, when the clubs were drawn together in the first round, prominent Wanderers Kinnaird and Edgar Lubbock switched their loyalties from the Cup holders to the Etonians, and Marindin took over in goal. The Etonians were also bolstered by Cambridge undergraduates opting for the Etonians rather than the university, whose first round tie kicked off at one end of the Kennington Oval shortly before the Etonians v Wanderers match kicked off at the other. The Etonians beat the Wanderers 7–2, and went on to win the Cup for the first time; Marindin had to miss the final through illness, and the game was of poor quality, but the Etonians scored the only goal of the game, after a

Goodhart Goodhart is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Al Goodhart (1905–1955), American composer * Arthur Goodhart Altschul (1920–2002), American banker * Arthur Lehman Goodhart (1891–1978), American-born British academic jur ...

run down the left wing saw him cross for Clerke to shoot under the bar. In 1879–80, the Etonians beat the Wanderers in the third round, which proved to be the effective death knell for the Wanderers as their players abandoned the more cosmopolitan club for their specific old school sides. Oldetonian v blackbrovers

The Old Etonians were the last amateur or "true blue" club to win the

on 25 March 1882 when they beat

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second level of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. Th ...

1–0 at

The Oval The Oval, currently named for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club sinc ...

with a goal from William Anderson. They lost 2–1 after extra time to another Blackburn club, Blackburn Olympic, the following year. In all, they reached the final six times in nine years between 1875 and 1883, winning twice. They also supplied a number of players for the England team, including three in one match against

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

in 1879. Old Etonians' last participation in the FA Cup was the 1887–88 edition. In modern times, Old Etonians are members of the

(affiliated to the

Amateur Football Alliance The Amateur FA (Football Alliance) is a county football association in England. It is unusual among county FAs in not serving a particular geographical area. It was founded in 1906 as the Amateur Football Defence Council, was briefly known as t ...

) and field two teams there.League tables
on Arthurian league, retrieved 22 Mar 2020 The 1st XI have won the league's Premier Division title on two occasions.

International players

Several Old Etonians players were capped for

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, either while with the club or subsequently. The following eight scholars played for England whilst with the club (with the number of caps received whilst registered with Old Etonians F.C.): * Rupert Anderson (1 cap) * Lindsay Bury (1 cap) * Edward Christian (1 cap) * Arthur Dunn (2 caps) *

Harry Goodhart Harry Chester Goodhart (17 July 1858 – 21 April 1895) was an English amateur footballer who played as a forward in four FA Cup Finals for Old Etonians, before going on to become Professor of Humanity at the University of Edinburgh. Early li ...

(3 caps) * Robert Cunliffe Gosling (5 caps) * John Hawtrey (2 caps) * Herbert Whitfeld (1 cap) Anderson, Bury and Whitfeld made their only appearances together, on 18 January 1879 against

. Whitfeld scored in a 2–1 victory. Other Old Etonians who later played for England include: * Alexander Bonsor * Percy de Paravicini *

Alfred Lyttelton Alfred Lyttelton KC (7 February 1857 – 5 July 1913) was a British politician and sportsman from the Lyttelton family who excelled at both football and cricket. During his time at university he participated in Varsity Matches in five sport ...

* Reginald Macaulay * Cuthbert Ottaway * John Frederick Peel Rawlinson Club founder Lord Kinnaird made one appearance for

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

in 1873, the second ever international match.

Records

*Best

performance: Champions, 1878–79, 1881–82 *Best

FA Amateur Cup The FA Amateur Cup was an English football competition for amateur clubs. It commenced in 1893 and ended in 1974 when the Football Association abolished official amateur status. History Following the legalisation of professionalism within footb ...

performance: Quarter-finals, 1893–94, 1894–95

Honours

** Winners (2):

1879 Events January * January 1 ** The Specie Resumption Act takes effect. The United States Note is valued the same as gold, for the first time since the American Civil War. ** Brahms' Violin Concerto is premiered in Leipzig with Joseph Joachim ...

, 1882 **''Runners-up (4)'':

1875 Events January * January 1 – The Midland Railway of England abolishes the Second Class passenger category, leaving First Class and Third Class. Other British railway companies follow Midland's lead during the rest of the year (Third C ...

1876 Events January * January 1 ** The Reichsbank opens in Berlin. ** The Bass Brewery Red Triangle becomes the world's first registered trademark symbol. *January 27 – The Northampton Bank robbery occurs in Massachusetts. February * Febr ...

, 1881,

1883 Events January * January 4 – ''Life'' magazine is founded in Los Angeles, California, United States. * January 10 – A fire at the Newhall Hotel in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States, kills 73 people. * January 16 – ...

** Premier Division Champions (2): 1992–93, 2004–05 ** Division One Champions (1): 1985–86 ** Division Two Champions (2nd XI) (4): 1992–93, 1997–98, 1999–2000, 2003–04 ** Division Three Champions (3rd XI) (2): 1995–96, 2004–05 ** Division Four Champions (4th XI) (2): 1989–90, 1993–94 * Arthur Dunn Cup ** Winners (2): 2004–05, 2009–10

Eton Ramblers

The Eton Ramblers cricket club, also made up of Old Etonians, occasionally played the existing students in the Eton Field Game in the cricket off-season. In 1882–83 the Ramblers also entered the FA Cup, being drawn at home to

Romford Romford is a large List of places in London, town in east London, east London, England, located northeast of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Havering, the town is one of the major Metropolitan centres of London, metropolitan centr ...

in the first round. The tie was played at the ground of Windsor Home Park F.C. and the Ramblers won 6–2. In the second round, the club lost 7–0 to the Old Carthusians, this time playing on the Brocas at Eton College itself. Because of a lack of regulation footballs, the tie was played using an Eton Field Game ball, which was much smaller than the Association standard. The Ramblers' colours have been purple, gold, green, and red since 1863.

Notes

References

External links

* * {{coord, 51, 29, 41.73, N, 0, 35, 49.61, W, region:GB_type:landmark, display=title Association football clubs established in 1865 FA Cup winners Football clubs in Berkshire 1865 establishments in England Football clubs in England University and college sports clubs in England Alumni sports clubs Arthurian League clubs