Historical Grounds: Tontine Park

Despite being defunct for 96 years now, Renton FC are one of the most memorable names from the early days of Scottish football. They were much vaunted as the proclaimed “Champions of the World” in 1888 when as reigning Scottish Cup Champions, they defeated FA Cup winners West Bromwich Albion 4-1 at Cathkin Park (known as Hampden Park at the time.) Renton, for most of their history, played at Tontine Park in the village.

Renton moved into Tontine Park in 1878, after playing their first six years at South Park. Initially the ground had no stands, and the only structure was a pavilion situated about 100 yards away from the pitch, adjacent to one of the corners. By 1886, the ground had become fully enclosed and a new pavilion was erected closer to the playing surface. A small grandstand was built in the next couple of years, being present for the home ties the club played in the 1887-88 Scottish Cup winning season. The first league match played at the ground was a 2-2 draw with St Mirren in August 1890.

By 1897, Renton had been expelled from the Scottish Football League they helped to create. The last league match played at Tontine was a 3-1 defeat to Leith Athletic in October 1897. The club continued to play in minor leagues, including the Western League until 1922 when they finally went bust and folded. The site of Tontine Park was sold to the local council for housing that still stands to this day, with the streets in the development carrying the Tontine name. The centre circle of the pitch at Tontine Park is commemorated in one of the gardens in the housing scheme.

Today, football is played in the village on a site across the road from the original ground. Local youth side Renton Craigandro have recently taken over the lease of what is alternately known as Tontine Park and Wylie Park (I’ve always known it as the Tontine since I played there as a youngster.) The football legacy is still strong in this village, and the people of Renton will never forget Tontine Park and when they were World Champions.

Stadium Series: Tacoma Dome

The Tacoma Dome is more of an arena than a true stadium, but given that it is the largest (by volume) wooden domed arena in the world and is large enough to hold American Football on a full size field, I’m willing to overlook that technicality.

The Tacoma Dome opened in 1983 and was inaugurated with a concert by David Bowie on August 11th that year. It can seat up to 23,000 people, and unlike similarly sized arenas, has little in the way of fixed seating. Instead, the venue can be configured for a variety of different sports and events in a way that can maximise the seating capacity. The arena holds 17,100 for basketball, 20,0824 for indoor soccer and around 10,000 for American Football.

The Dome played home to the Seattle SuperSonics of the NBA for the 1994-95 season, while the KeyArena was under renovation, and also to the Seattle Sounders for the 1994 season. The arena has also been home to two minor league hockey teams over the years and is a frequent home for Washington State high school sports finals. The venue is used frequently for large scale indoor concerts.

The Dome strikes a familiar figure in the Tacoma skyline with it’s distinctive shape being one of the most noticeable features of the city. The shape has also led to it being known colloquially by locals as “the Tit of Tacoma.”

Historical Grounds: The Original Hampden

It’s an unassuming site, situated across from Queen’s Park Recreation Ground and just off Cathcart Road. But this is where the first ground to be adorned with the Hampden Park name once sat.

In 1873, Queen’s Park FC moved from playing across the road in the “Reccy” to their new home stadium. Named Hampden Park due to it’s proximity to Hampden Terrace, the new ground would be home to Queen’s for the next ten years.

It’s incredible to think that this was where the first Scottish Cup Final was played back in March of 1874. Queen’s Park defeated Clydesdale 2-0 that day in a truly historic moment in Scottish Football. It would go on to host nine more Scottish Cup Finals (including four replays) and six Scotland internationals. The first international being held at the ground was the famous 7-2 win over England in March 1878.

Queen’s Park vacated the ground in 1883 in order for what is now the Cathcart Circle railway line to be built on part of the site. Hampden Bowling Club (named to keep the legacy of the site alive) sits on the remainder of the footprint that is not occupied by the railway lines. It’s amazing to think that when you’re on a train on the way to the current Hampden that you pass over the site of the original stadium, where so much history took place.

Historical Grounds: Hamilton Crescent

Hamilton Crescent is a bit of an outlier in the Historical Grounds series, as it is still very much in use for it’s original purpose. Opened in 1862 as home for the newly established West of Scotland Cricket Club, who still call the ground home to this day, it is one of the most widely used cricket grounds in Scotland. It is a frequent venue for the Scottish Cup Final in cricket, and has hosted many international games and touring teams over the years. Situated in the heart of Partick, surrounded by beautiful, historic buildings in their own right, Hamilton Crescent is a gorgeous setting for a game on a summer’s day.

The interest for this blog though has absolutely nothing to do with cricket. No, the reason I’m classing Hamilton Crescent as a Historical Ground is down to the fact that on the 30th November 1872, Scotland played England in the first ever international football match.

While both nations had played “representative” fixtures against each other in the preceding years, the Scottish players were mainly London based ex-pats, and Scottish teams had no input into these games. Following a series of challenges in the media, the English FA decided to send a team to Glasgow to play a Scottish team. The match was scheduled for St Andrews Day, and Hamilton Crescent was chosen as the venue.

After a 20 minute delay to the scheduled 2pm kick off, 4,000 spectators saw Scotland and England play to a 0-0 draw. All eleven players on Scotland’s team played for Queen’s Park, who were very much the top team in the country at the time. It may have been a 0-0 draw, but the first international football match is a historic moment that will forever seal the legacy of Hamilton Crescent.

Historical Grounds: Cathkin Park

Nestled just a few hundred yards away from Hampden, in Glasgow’s Crosshill district, sits what is now known as Cathkin Park Recreation Centre. On the surface, it looks like any other public park. A small pavilion, two sets of goalposts, and if you’re not careful, dog muck on your shoes. But for those looking a bit closer – or those who know the history – it’s clear that the site is something much more than that.

Cathkin Park was originally known as Hampden Park – the second ground to go by that name – and was home to Queen’s Park from 1884 to 1903, when they upped sticks and moved to the site of the current Hampden. It was renamed Cathkin Park, and Third Lanark, who would go on to win the Scottish Football League that season moved in. They would stay there until the dissolution in 1967, and the stadium had an official capacity of 50,000. The record attendance of 45,455 was set in 1954 at a Scottish Cup game against Rangers.

The old wooden grandstand is long gone, and trees have reclaimed most of the terracing, but walking round, you can still get a feeling for the scale of the place. Terracing crush barriers are still visible through the trees, and the steps, while overgrown are noticeable if you know that you’re looking for them. The park is still used by the Jimmy Johnstone Academy, and the amateur reincarnation of Third Lanark have used it in the past. There’s a charitable foundation who are invested in the redevelopment of the ground, and it will be interesting to see what happens in the future. For now though, Cathkin sits as an intriguing, semi-abandoned former fortress.