Morning Advertiser 18.01.1869

The County Ground at Islington (also known as The Cattle Market Ground) was no longer in use for cricket in 1869. 
Some familiar names in the line ups.

President's XIV v Secretary's XIV

THE FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION.

The gentlemen who have expended so much time in arranging the new code of laws for the regulation of the game of football had the gratification of seeing them put to practical and highly-satisfactory test on Saturday last, when the members of the association mustered in good round numbers at Battersea Park, and played a friendly game, there being fourteen on each side. A large muster of spectators, attracted the fine bracing weather and the novelty of the proceedings, attended, and, in common with those who took active part in the game, expressed their entire satisfaction at the working of the new laws. The sides were chosen the Messrs.Alcock, and were distinguishable as President’s and Secretary's,and included following :—Messrs. J. F. Alcock, E. C.Morley, C. M. Tebbutt, C. Hewett, G. T. Wawn, J. P. Phillips, Innes, M'Calmont, Needham, H. Baker, A. Baker, Lloyd, Hughes, Jackson, C. W. Alcock, A. Pember, H.W. Chambers, A. M. Tebbut, Gray, Drew, Graham, Cutbill, Morton, J. Turner, Morris, Renshaw, Lenchars, and Scott. The game commenced shortly alter half-past two, and some very spirited play ensued, which only concluded when twilight was far advanced, and resulted in the President’s Side obtaining two goals. It would be invidious to mention the names of any of the players having distinguished themselves where all were active; suffice it to say, that the afternoon was very pleasantly spent, and so was the evening, by portion of the members and their friends, who retired to the Grosvenor Hotel, Pimlico, where a capital dinner and some excellent wines were discussed the satisfaction of all concerned.The complete list of fixtures of the Barnes Club will appear in Saturday’s paper, and we shall be glad if the secretaries of other clubs will forward lists of their matches to come by Thursday’s post at latest.

 Sporting Life - 06.01.64

Alcock on Lancashire

Though the introduction of Association football into Lancashire about the same period as the establishment of the Cup, the first of an innumerable succession of trophies of a similar kind, was a mere coincidence and in no way connected, it is curious, considering the conspicuous part Lancashire clubs have played in the competition of late years, that their origin should have been coeval The paternity of the Association game in Lancashire may be claimed by Mr. J. C. Kay, an old Harrovian, who subsequently made himself a reputation in another branch of sport, as a lawn tennis player of no small ability, as well as manager of perhaps the best organized lawn tennis meeting in the kingdom" that which takes place annually on the ground of the Liverpool Cricket Club. Educated at Harrow, it was only natural that the primitive game in use in Lancashire should have been based very much on the eccentric admixture of different codes to which young Harrow had been used for generation after generation. The introduction of the Association game into Lancashire was, in fact, in a very great measure the work of an old Harrovian, as, some twenty years before, the initiation of the movement which practically led to the revival of football on a proper basis was to a considerable extent the work of a few keen athletes who had graduated at his School. To East Lancashire, in particular, belongs the credit of fostering the game in its infancy, as well as of assisting in the development which has resulted in making Lancashire one of the most powerful influences in Association football Bolton, I believe, was the first place which took at all kindly to the new sport, and, under Mr. Kay's watchful eye, the Harrow game, or perhaps as near a reproduction as could be devised to suit local requirements, for a time supplied all the wants of the lads who were undergoing their novitiate in football. Practice took place in the evenings, and, in fact, the game was of a very primitive kind, followed after the hard work of the day had been completed. It was not long, though, before an attempt was made to evolve something like system out of the rough efforts of these pioneers of Lancashire football. The first result of this organization, I have reason to believe, was the Bolton Wanderers club, which has outlived the many, and some of them excellent, changes through which football has gone during the last quarter of a century, and still remains a power in the land; in fact, one of the most influential combinations of the same kind in the north of England.

C.W Alcock  Football: The Association Game  (1906) 

Bolton Wanderers

C.W Alcock is correct in that it was John Charles Kay, along with his brother, who took the Harrow game to Lancashire, but it was first played at Turton, rather than Bolton.

Mr Alcock  overlooks the 'first wave' of Lancashire clubs (Turton, Darwen) who sowed the seeds that produced illustrious clubs such as Blackburn Rovers (f.1875).
Bolton Wanderers came into being in 1877, evolving from  Christ Church F.C (f.1874).

London FA Senior Cup

The London FA was established in 1882, effectively as a branch of the actual Football Association with the purpose of overseeing club football in the metropolitan area. This was to enable the FA to focus on administering the Laws of the Game, the FA Cup  and international football. Any clubs within 12 miles of Charing Cross fall under the jurisdiction of the London  Association.
The following clubs were members in the inaugural season:

Acton	Hermits	Olympic	Vulcans
Alexandra	Hotspur	Olympic Rangers	West End
Alpine Rovers	Kildare	Park	Westminster Club
Argus	Lennox	Pilgrims	Woodford Bridge
Clapham Rovers	Lyonstown	Prairie Rangers
Clapton	Melrose	Rangers
City Ramblers	Minerva	St Alban’s
Dreadnought	Morton Rangers	St Bartholomew’s Hospital
Excelsior	Mosquitoes	St Bride’s
Finchley	Oakshott	St Peter’s
Grove House	Old Brightonians	Somerset
Hanover	Old Etonians	Union
Hatton Rovers	Old Westminsters	Upton Park
Hendon	Olympian	Upton Rangers

The first President was A.F Kinnaird, Vice presidents were C.W Alcock and R.A Ogilvie. Hon. sec. was N. L Jackson (founder of Corinthian F.C, who eschewed 'competitive' football). London followed the example of provincial associations and instituted a cup competition for member clubs.
Southern Football was essentially amateur up until the 1890s (Royal Arsenal and Brentford  are the only teams featured here to play League football until Wimbledon and Barnet graduated to the League in the 1970s and 1990s).
The early years of the competition were dominated by venerable amateur clubs that regularly saw players capped by  England.
Old Carthusians had won the FA Cup in 1880-81 and were semi-finalists in the following 2 seasons.  Their wins in  1894 and 1897 were 'doubles' in which they also won the FA Amateur Cup.

                                                                         Clapton 1889

1882-83	Upton Park	4	0	Old Foresters
1883-84	Upton Park	4	1	Old Foresters
1884-85	Old Foresters	2	1	Upton Park
1885-86	Ashburnham Rovers	2	1	Hotspur
1886-87	Old Westminsters	1	1	Casuals
	Shared
1887-88	Old Westminsters	1	0	Casuals
1888-89	Clapton	4	2	Casuals
1889-90	Old Westminsters	1	0	Royal Arsenal
1890-91	Royal Arsenal	6	0	St Bartholomew’s Hospital
1891-92	Old Westminsters	2	1	Ilford
1892-93	Old Westminsters	3	0	Casuals
1893-94	Old Foresters	2	1	Old Carthusians
1894-95	Old Carthusians	6	0	Casuals
1895-96	Old Carthusians	3	1	Casuals
1896-97	Old Carthusians	5	2	3rd Grenadier Guards
1897-98	Brentford	5	1	Ilford
1898-99	Old Carthusians	2	1	London Caledonians
99-00	London Caledonians	1	0	Old Westminsters
1900-01	Ilford	2	1	Clapton
1901-02	Civil Service	3	2	Shepherds Bush
1902-03	Old Malvernians	4	2	Clapton
1903-04	Leyton	1	0	Ilford
1904-05	Ilford	2	1	Ealing
1905-06	New Crusaders	2	2	Dulwich Hamlet
		3	1
1906-07	West Norwood	4	1	West Hampstead
1907-08	London Caledonians	1	0	Dulwich Hamlet
1908-09	Clapton	1	0	Nunhead
1909-10	Bromley	1	0	Clapton
1910-11	Clapton	2	0	Ilford
1911-12	Barking	3	0	London Caledonians
1912-13	Tufnell Park	2	0	Metrogas
1913-14	Ilford	1	1	Nunhead
		2	0
1914-15	London Caledonians	4	1	Clapton
1919-20	Leytonstone	5	2	Barking Town
1920-21	Barking Town	4	1	Dulwich Hamlet
1921-22	Ilford	3	1	Nunhead
1922-23	Nunhead	1	0	Bromley
1923-24	Tufnell Park	2	1	Kingstonian
1924-25	Dulwich Hamlet	2	0	Clapton
1925-26	London Caledonians	3	1	Kingstonian
1926-27	Barking Town	4	2	London Caledonians
1927-28	London Caledonians	2	0	Dulwich Hamlet
1928-29	Ilford	4	1	London Caledonians
1929-30	Ilford	4	1	Walthamstow Avenue
1930-31	Wimbledon	1	0	Kingstonian
1931-32	Hayes	3	1	Ilford
1932-33	Finchley	2	0	Barnet
1933-34	Wimbledon	1	1	Leyton
		2	1
1934-35	Enfield	2	0	Metropolitan Police
1935-36	Walthamstow Avenue	1	0	Golders Green
1936-37	Walthamstow Avenue	6	3	Hayes