Owlerton Football Club was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

club, founded in 1873. The club was based in the northwest

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

suburb of Owlerton.

History

Owlerton was founded in 1873, probably as an offshoot of the Owlerton Cricket Club,and played under the Sheffield rules until the latter's congruence with

Football Association The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world an ...

laws. The first reference to the club in the media is a report of the club's annual elections in 1874, at which the club also resolved to join the

along with its membership of the

Sheffield Football Association The Sheffield and Hallamshire Football Association is a County Football Association in England. It was formed in Sheffield in 1867 as the Sheffield Football Association, and is the second-oldest football governing body after the Football Associ ...

. On Christmas Day in 1877, the club was playing a match at the St Philip's club, alongside Dark Lane, when a clearance sent the ball over a stone wall and into a quarry. James Beaumont of Owlerton jumped on top of the wall to retrieve the ball, but some of the stones on top were loose, and Beaumont fell sixty feet into the quarry to his death. Although the club did not enter the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

until 1887–88, it had an inadvertent impact on an earlier tournament.

Mexborough F.C. Mexborough F.C. was an English association football club based in Mexborough, Doncaster, South Yorkshire. The club's name was often given in the form Mexbro' or Mexboro. History The club was formed in 1876. The club won the prestigious Sheffi ...

was forced to scratch from the FA Cup in 1885–86 as the Sheffield FA ordered the club to play its Senior Cup tie with Owlerton in preference to its replay with

Staveley F.C. Staveley F.C. was a football club in Staveley, a village in Derbyshire, England. History The club was founded in 1875 and originally played under the Sheffield rules. The first known matches for the club were in 1876. Key players for the club ...

The club's first FA Cup appearance was in the final year before qualifying rounds. In the first round, the club beat Eckington Works F.C. 2–1, gaining revenge for a defeat in the Hallamshire Cup the previous year. The club's run ended in the third round at Derby County in front of a disappointing crowd of 2,000. The club entered the competition for the next three years, but, after reaching the fourth qualifying round in 1888–89, the club never won another tie; the rise of national leagues wiped out most of the senior clubs in Sheffield. In 1892, the club amalgamated with the Montrose club, and changed its name to Owlerton and Montrose Football Club, playing at Owlerton. The club seems to have reverted to its former name at a later stage, and was still attracting crowds of 1,000 to its matches in 1896; however, it was advertising for players for the 1896–97 season, and does not seem to have lasted beyond that.

Colours

The club's original colours were scarlet and black hoops. By 1887 they had changed to blue and white stripes.

Famous players

William Carr was the club's only

England international The England national football team has represented England in international football since the first international match in 1872. It is controlled by The Football Association (FA), the governing body for football in England, which is affiliat ...

player, earning one cap in 1875.England Football Online
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References

{{Reflist Association football clubs established in 1873 Defunct football clubs in England 1869 establishments in England Defunct football clubs in South Yorkshire Sports clubs and teams in Sheffield Sheffield & District Football League