The Old Etonians Association Football Club is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

club whose players are alumni of

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

, in

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

. Having been a member of

The Football Association The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the Sports governing body, governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the ...

and played several editions of the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

, Old Etonians currently play in the Premier Division, the highest level of the

Arthurian League The Arthurian League is an English association football league for teams consisting of old boys of public schools. It is affiliated to the Amateur Football Alliance and is not part of the English football league system. The league has existed ...

History

Founded by

Lord Kinnaird Lord Kinnaird was a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1682 for George Kinnaird. The ninth Lord was created Baron Rossie, of Rossie in the County of Perth, in the Peerage of the United Kingdom in 1831, with normal remainder to th ...

, they were the last amateur or "true blue" club to win the

on 25 March 1882 when they beat Blackburn Rovers 1–0 at

The Oval The Oval, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since ...

with a goal from

William Anderson William Anderson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * William Anderson (artist) (1757–1837), painter of marine and historical paintings * William Anderson (theatre) (1868–1940), Australian stage entrepreneur * William Anderson (1911–1986), ...

. They lost 2–1 after extra time to another Blackburn club,

Blackburn Olympic Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the Ribble Valley, east of Preston and north-n ...

, the following year. In all, they reached the final six times in nine years between 1875 and 1883, winning twice. They also supplied a number of players for the England team, including three in one match against

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

in 1879. Old Etonians' last participation in the FA Cup was the 1887–88 edition. In modern times, Old Etonians are members of the

(affiliated to the Amateur Football Alliance) and field two teams there.League tables
on Arthurian league, retrieved 22 Mar 2020 The 1st XI have won the league's Premier Division title on two occasions.

International players

Several Old Etonians players were capped for

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, either while with the club or subsequently. The following eight scholars played for England whilst with the club (with the number of caps received whilst registered with Old Etonians F.C.): *

Rupert Anderson Rupert Darnley Anderson OBE DL, (29 April 1859 – 23 December 1944) was an English footballer who played for Old Etonians, as well as the English national side. He was later a Fruit Broker. Anderson was born in Liverpool, the fifth of six ...

(1 cap) * Lindsay Bury (1 cap) *

Edward Christian Edward Christian (3 March 1758 – 29 March 1823) was an English judge and law professor. He was the older brother of Fletcher Christian, leader of the mutiny on the ''Bounty''. Life Edward Christian was one of the three sons of Charles Ch ...

(1 cap) * Arthur Dunn (2 caps) *

Harry Goodhart Harry Chester Goodhart (17 July 1858 – 21 April 1895) was an English amateur footballer who played as a forward in four FA Cup Finals for Old Etonians, before going on to become Professor of Humanity at the University of Edinburgh. Early life ...

(3 caps) * Robert Cunliffe Gosling (5 caps) *

John Hawtrey John Purvis Hawtrey (19 July 1850 – 17 August 1925) was an English amateur footballer who earned two caps for the national team in 1881 playing as a goalkeeper. Career His football career started with Remnants F.C. and he later played for Ol ...

(2 caps) *

Herbert Whitfeld Herbert Whitfeld (15 November 1858 – 6 May 1909) was an English amateur sportsman who played association football and county cricket. In football, he helped Old Etonians win the 1879 FA Cup Final and was on the losing side in 1881 as well as ...

(1 cap) Anderson, Bury and Whitfeld made their only appearances together, on 18 January 1879 against

. Whitfeld scored in a 2–1 victory. Other Old Etonians who later played for England include: *

Alexander Bonsor Alexander George Bonsor (7 October 1851 – 17 August 1907) was one of the earliest known footballers. Career Bonsor played in the 1872 FA Cup Final – the first ever final in the FA Cup's history – and finished on the winning side. He playe ...

* Percy de Paravicini * Alfred Lyttelton *

Reginald Macaulay Reginald Heber Macaulay (24 August 1858 – 15 December 1937) was an amateur English footballer who won the FA Cup with Old Etonians in 1882 and made one appearance for England in 1880-81 in English football, 1881 playing as a Striker (associati ...

* Cuthbert Ottaway *

John Frederick Peel Rawlinson John Frederick Peel Rawlinson (21 December 1860 – 14 January 1926) was an English barrister, politician and footballer. An amateur, he won the FA Cup with Old Etonians in 1882 and made one appearance for England in 1882 playing as a goalkeepe ...

Club founder

made one appearance for

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

in 1873, the second ever international match.

Honours

** Winners (2):

1879 Events January–March * January 1 – The Specie Resumption Act takes effect. The United States Note is valued the same as gold, for the first time since the American Civil War. * January 11 – The Anglo-Zulu War begins. * Janu ...

1882 Events January–March * January 2 ** The Standard Oil Trust is secretly created in the United States to control multiple corporations set up by John D. Rockefeller and his associates. ** Irish-born author Oscar Wilde arrives in ...

**''Runners-up (4)'':

1875 Events January–March * January 1 – The Midland Railway of England abolishes the Second Class passenger category, leaving First Class and Third Class. Other British railway companies follow Midland's lead during the rest of the ...

1876 Events January–March * January 1 ** The Reichsbank opens in Berlin. ** The Bass Brewery Red Triangle becomes the world's first registered trademark symbol. * February 2 – The National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs i ...

1881 Events January–March * January 1– 24 – Siege of Geok Tepe: Russian troops under General Mikhail Skobelev defeat the Turkomans. * January 13 – War of the Pacific – Battle of San Juan and Chorrillos: The C ...

1883 Events January–March * January 4 – ''Life'' magazine is founded in Los Angeles, California, United States. * January 10 – A fire at the Newhall Hotel in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States, kills 73 people. * Ja ...

** Premier Division Champions (2): 1992–93, 2004–05 ** Division One Champions (1): 1985–86 ** Division Two Champions (2nd XI) (4): 1992–93, 1997–98, 1999–2000, 2003–04 ** Division Three Champions (3rd XI) (2): 1995–96, 2004–05 ** Division Four Champions (4th XI) (2): 1989–90, 1993–94 *

Arthur Dunn Cup The Arthur Dunn Cup is a football cup competition played between the Old Boys of public schools. It started in 1903 and is named in honour of Arthur Dunn who had proposed such a competition but died very suddenly shortly after. Dunn was a leadin ...

** Winners (2): 2004–05, 2009–10

Eton Ramblers

The Eton Ramblers cricket club, also made up of Old Etonians, occasionally played the existing students in the Eton Field Game in the cricket off-season. In 1882-83 the Ramblers also entered the FA Cup, beating

Romford Romford is a large town in east London and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Havering. It is located northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Historically, Romford ...

6-2 in the first round, but lost 7-0 to the Old Carthusians on the Brocas at Eton in the second. Because of a lack of regulation footballs, the tie was played using an Eton Field Game ball, which was much smaller than the Association standard.

Notes

References

External links

Official Twitter
* {{coord, 51, 29, 41.73, N, 0, 35, 49.61, W, region:GB_type:landmark, display=title Association football clubs established in 1865 FA Cup winners Football clubs in Berkshire 1865 establishments in England Football clubs in England University and college sports clubs in England