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

Corinthians for England

Corinthian FC were formed very much along the lines of an Old Boys club. A de facto England XI for ex Varsity men, who were invariably products of the public schools' system.
Corinthian came into being in 1882. Professionalism was still outlawed, but the influence of the  northern and midland clubs who gave assistance to their working class players was on the rise. 6 of the England team to face Scotland in 1882 came from Lancashire, Sheffield or midlands clubs- the regions in which professional football was about to flourish.
N.L Jackson's reasoning for the founding of Corinthian FC is often reported as being to ensure that England were able to keep pace with Scotland on the international front. Their role, however, was also to preserve an amateur foothold in the higher reaches of the English game.
Amateurs, of course, could play for whomsoever they wished to. We read of England XIs in the 1890s as being 'entirely Corinthians' but one could be a member of Corinthian FC and play occasionally or go on tour with them whilst still being primarily a member of another club.
There have, however, been 17 men who represented England whilst Corinthian was their primary club.


Cecil White (left half) 

	apps
1888	2

Henfrey

Arthur Henfrey (half back / forward) 

	apps	goals
1891-96	5	2

Anthony  Hossack (right half) 

	apps
1892-94	2

Smith

Gilbert Oswald Smith (centre forward) 

	apps	goals	capt
1893-1901	20	11	14

Smith has been described as the greatest player of the 19th century.

Lodge 

Vaughan Lodge (fullback) 

	apps
1894-96	5

Lodge's parents were Welsh. It appears that he drowned himself whilst suffering from depression.

W.J. Oakley (fullback)   

	apps		capt
1895-1901	16		1

Middleditch 

Bernard Middleditch (right half) 

	apps
1897	1

Geoffrey Wilson (inside left) 

	apps	goals
1900	2	1

Foster

• Reginald Erskine 'Tip'  Foster  (inside forward) 

• 	apps	goals	capt
  1900-02	5	3	1

  
  
• The only man to captain England at football and cricket.

Fry

C B Fry (right back) 

	apps
1901	1

The legendary great all rounder.

Corbett

Bertie Corbett  (outside left)

	apps
1901	1

Corbett was the author of The Annals of the Corinthian F. C. (1906).

K.E Hegan (outside forward)

	apps	goals
1923	4	4

Later to become Lieutenant-Colonel Kenneth Edward Heg

Norman Creek (forward) 

	apps
1923	1

Creek was a  decorated pilot from the 1914-18 war and the author of  The History of the Corinthian Football Club (1933) 

  Basil Patchitt  (fullback or half back)

	apps
1923	2

Bower

Alfred George 'Baishe'  Bower (fullback)

• 	apps		capt
  1923-27	5		3

  
  

Bower was the last amateur to captain England and the last amateur to play for England in the Home Championship.

Doggart

Graham Doggart (inside left)

	apps	goals	capt
1923	1		1

I read a description of Graham Doggart as being a 'useful' footballer. His goalscoring record for Corinthian (1919-1933) suggests a degree of understatement there:  appearances 203 goals 207.

Ashton

• Claude Ashton (centre forward)   

• 	apps		capt
  1925	1		1

•