| Full name | Bo'ness Football Club | |
|---|---|---|
| Nicknames | the Half Nabs,[1] the Blues[2] | |
| Founded | 1878 | |
| Dissolved | 1945 | |
| Ground | Newtown Park,Bo'ness | |
Bo'ness Football Club was afootball club based inBo'ness, Scotland. The club was a member of theScottish Football League from 1921 to November 1932,[3] and played atNewtown Park. Their home kit consisted of royal blue shirts and white shorts.[4]
The club claimed a foundation date of 1881, although there is reference to a Bo'ness Football Club existing in 1878.[5] The earliest record of a match is of a pair of fixtures against theGrasshoppers club's second XI ofBonnybridge in late 1881.[6] The club moved to Newtown Park in 1886, opening the ground with a fixture againstDumbarton F.C., losing 4–0.[7]
It joined the Eastern Football Alliance in 1891, but the league failed to complete its first season. After winning theEast of Scotland Shield in 1894–95, Bo'ness returned to competitive league football in 1901 as a member of theCentral Football Combination and eventually ended up in theCentral Football League. Along with much of the membership of the group, Bo'ness were admitted to the newly expandedScottish Football League Second Division in 1921.[3] After five seasons of mid-table finishes, the club won the Second Division championship in 1927 and were promoted to theFirst Division.[3]
The club was relegated back to the Second Division after just one season. Bo'ness then struggled financially, like many other clubs in the region, due to the decline of the local coal and shale oil industries.[8] Bo'ness offered free admission to local unemployed people after 30 minutes of play.[9] The club struggled to raise the £50 match guarantee to visiting clubs in 1931, but was surprisingly re-elected.[10] The failure to pay the match guarantees toStenhousemuir F.C. andBrechin City F.C. in October 1932 meant that the club was expelled from the League; the blame was put on "industrial depression and the opposition of dog racing in neighbouring towns". The club had an overdraft at the time of £500 and the club's record of 4 wins, 2 draws, and 8 defeats was expunged.[11]
Bo'ness continued as a non-league side until 1939,[3] appearing in theScottish Football Alliance, Edinburgh and District League, Scottish Football Combination and theEast of Scotland Football League. FutureScotland internationalAlex Munro also came through the ranks at this time. The club survivedWorld War II but merged with local sideBo'ness Cadora to form junior clubBo'ness United in 1945.[3]
| Season | Division[13][14] | P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | Pos |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1921–22 | Division Two | 38 | 16 | 7 | 15 | 56 | 49 | 39 | 6th |
| 1922–23 | Division Two | 38 | 12 | 17 | 9 | 48 | 46 | 41 | 7th |
| 1923–24 | Division Two | 38 | 13 | 11 | 14 | 45 | 53 | 37 | 13th |
| 1924–25 | Division Two | 38 | 16 | 9 | 13 | 71 | 48 | 41 | 6th |
| 1925–26 | Division Two | 38 | 17 | 5 | 16 | 66 | 70 | 39 | 8th |
| 1926–27 | Division Two ↑ | 38 | 23 | 10 | 5 | 86 | 41 | 55 | 1st |
| 1927–28 | Division One ↓ | 38 | 9 | 8 | 21 | 48 | 86 | 26 | 19th |
| 1928–29 | Division Two | 35 | 15 | 5 | 15 | 62 | 62 | 35 | 10th |
| 1929–30 | Division Two | 38 | 15 | 4 | 19 | 67 | 95 | 34 | 13th |
| 1930–31 | Division Two | 38 | 9 | 4 | 25 | 54 | 100 | 22 | 20th |
| 1931–32 | Division Two | 38 | 15 | 4 | 19 | 70 | 103 | 34 | 14th |
| 1932–33 | Division Two | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | —[a] |
Players at the club who were also full internationals:
