Blythswood F.C.

History

Blythswood F.C. came into being on 14 August 1873, spun off from the Blythswood Cricket Club. That cricket club had itself been known as the Bellegrove club until 1866, and had played its matches at Queen's Park until 1869. The football club was one of the sides that entered the very first Scottish Cup competition in 1873–74, and that debut campaign proved to be its most successful. Blythswood won two matches to reach the semi-final.

In the second round, they beat Alexandra Athletic 2–0 away, though the match stirred a minor dispute: Blythswood appointed one of its own members as umpire, and he spent the game offering tactical advice. Despite this, the two clubs shared a friendly toast after the final whistle. The semi-final saw Blythswood trailing Clydesdale 4–0 after 80 minutes when poor light forced the match to stop; the score was allowed to stand. The club kept entering the Scottish Cup until 1878–79, but never matched that early run, partly because several players had moved to the Western club before the 1874–75 season.

In its final cup entry, Blythswood was drawn away to Clyde, but before the tie could be played, the club merged with Derby. In 1880, some former members started a junior side that became a founder member of the Scottish Junior Football Association. Blythswood itself played in the first Scottish Junior Cup that season, beating Luton 1–0 in the first round. Luton protested, a replay was ordered, and Blythswood eventually lost after a second replay.

The club’s last recorded match was a 9–0 defeat to Hawthorne in 1882; a fixture scheduled against Glenburn the following month appears never to have taken place.