| Full name | Southfield Football Club | |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1879 | |
| Dissolved | 1883 | |
| Ground | Slamannan Glebe | |
| Hon. Secretary | Gavin Black | |
| Match Secretary | James Connelly | |
Southfield Football Club was aScottishassociation football club based in the village ofSlamannan,Stirlingshire.
The club was founded in October 1879 and it joined theScottish Football Association in 1881,[1] despite only playing 5 matches the previous season.[2] With 18 members for its two senior seasons, it was the smallest senior club in Scottish football history.[3] It had links to the local mining industry; the club's first honorary secretary, Gavin Black, was a coal master at Easter Moffat inPlains, North Lanarkshire, and its second, William Black, worked at Stanrigg colliery.
With few opportunities to play, as there were no local competitions, the club's only competitive football came in theScottish Cup. The club entered twice. Its first entry, in1881–82, ended with a 3–0 defeat in the first round toMilton of Campsie. Southfield sought to protest the result - the only protest in the round - but, perhaps as a sign of the straitened resources of the tiny club, it did not send the 10s deposit, so the Scottish FA refused to consider the protest.[4]
In the1882–83 Scottish Cup, Southfield obtained the benefit of a walkover into the second round, asAberfeldy Breadalbane did not travel to Slamannan[5] for the first round tie. For the second round draw, which was on a regional basis, the Scottish FA agreed to a motion that the 5 surviving clubs of Stirlingshire be included in a division with the 4 surviving clubs ofDumbartonshire.[6] This proved disastrous for the Stirlingshire clubs, as the standard of football in Dumbartonshire was much higher, with factories providing sinecure jobs for leading players.[7] The consequence was that, apart fromFalkirk which had the good fortune of a bye, the 4 Stirlingshire clubs all suffered heavy defeats to the Dumbartonshire clubs. Southfield - the only one of the quartet drawn at home - had to play the risingRenton side, and lost 14–1, conceding six in the first half.[8]
The club gave up the unequal struggle in 1883, not renewing its membership of the Scottish FA.[9]
The club played in blue.[10]
The club's ground was Slamannan Glebe, half-a-mile fromSlamannan railway station, and it used the Crown Hotel for facilities.[11] The ground was described as being "in the most primitive description, there being no touch line nor ropes".[12]
