1884 Scottish Cup Final

1884 Scottish Cup Final
Event	1883–84 Scottish Cup
	Vale of Leven did not appear for the final in protest and the cup was awarded to Queen's Park
Date	23 February 1884
Venue	Cathkin Park, Crosshill
	← 1883 1885 →

The 1884 Scottish Cup Final was scheduled to be the 11th final of the Scottish Cup and the final of the 1883–84 Scottish Cup, the most prestigious knockout football competition in Scotland. Six-time winners Queen's Park were due to face three-time winners Vale of Leven at Cathkin Park in Crosshill (today part of Glasgow) on 23 February 1884.^[1]^[2]^[3]

Following a bereavement, illness and injury, Vale of Leven requested that the match be postponed but this was refused by the SFA. In protest, Vale of Leven did not appear for the final. A subsequent meeting of an SFA committee narrowly decided to award the cup to Queen's Park rather than reorganising the final.^[1]^[2]

Background[]

Queen's Park had reached the final on six previous occasions and had gone on to lift the trophy each time, most recently in 1882.

Runners-up in 1883, Vale of Leven reached the final for the second season in succession. This was their fifth appearance in the final and they had previously won the competition three times consecutively between 1877 and 1879.

Prior to the final, Queen's Park and Vale of Leven were the most successful teams in the competition having lifted the trophy in nine of the previous 10 seasons between them. However, they had only met twice previously in the competition. Queen's Park won 2–1^[4] on their way to winning the trophy in 1875–76 before Vale of Leven recorded a 2–1^[5] on their way to winning the cup the following season.

Route to the final[]

Queen's Park[]

Round	Opposition	Score
First round	Partick	8–0
Second round	3rd Lanark RV	4–2
Third round	Cowlairs	5–0
Fourth round	Partick Thistle	4–0
Fifth round	bye
Quarter-final		6–1
Semi-final	Hibernian	5–1

Vale of Leven[]

Round	Opposition	Score
First round		12–0
Second round	bye
Third round	Renton	4–1
Fourth round	Dundee Harp	6–0
Fifth round	Arthurlie	0–0
Fifth round replay	Arthurlie	3–1
Quarter-final	Pollokshields Athletic	4–2
Semi-final	Rangers	3–0

Match details[]

As a result of a bereavement, illness and injury, three of Vale of Leven's players were set to miss the final. With their replacements also unavailable, Vale appealed to the SFA on the Wednesday before the final to have the match postponed but this was refused. The club then asked opponents Queen's Park to agree to a postponement but failed to notify them of their situation. With no reason to postpone the game and an upcoming FA Cup final, Queen's Park refused and the game was expected to go ahead as planned.^[1]^[2]

After Vale failed to appear for the final, an SFA committee was tasked with deciding what should happen next. Chaired by the president of the SFA - a Queen's Park man^[2] - the committee decided by seven votes to six to award the cup to Queen's Park rather than reorganising the match.^[1]^[2] Following the decision, there were reports in the press that the SFA should be renamed the "Queen’s Park and Rangers Association" because of a perceived Glasgow bias.^[2]

23 February 1884^[1]^[2]

Queen's Park	w/o	Vale of Leven

References[]

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f "Scottish FA Cup final results". Retrieved 25 February 2019.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h "Vale of Leven Football in the 1880s". Retrieved 8 April 2019.
^ "Scottish Cup Past Winners". Scottish Football Association. Retrieved 25 March 2019.
^ "Queen's Park 2 - 1 Vale of Leven, Scottish Cup (08/01/1876)". Fitbastats.com. Retrieved 1 April 2019.
^ "Queen's Park 1 - 2 Vale of Leven, Scottish Cup (30/12/1876)". Fitbastats.com. Retrieved 1 April 2019.

[Steve-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f "Scottish FA Cup final results". Retrieved 25 February 2019.

[VoL-2] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h "Vale of Leven Football in the 1880s". Retrieved 8 April 2019.

[3] "Scottish Cup Past Winners". Scottish Football Association. Retrieved 25 March 2019.

[4] "Queen's Park 2 - 1 Vale of Leven, Scottish Cup (08/01/1876)". Fitbastats.com. Retrieved 1 April 2019.

[5] "Queen's Park 1 - 2 Vale of Leven, Scottish Cup (30/12/1876)". Fitbastats.com. Retrieved 1 April 2019.

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[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

v t Scottish Cup
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Domestic cups	Scottish Cup Final
Non-Scottish competitions	FA Cup Final
Related to national team	Results British Home Championship
Club seasons
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v t Queen's Park F.C. matches
Scottish Cup Finals	1874 1875 1876 1880 1881 1882 ~~1884~~ 1886 1890 1892 1893 1900
FA Cup Finals	1884 1885
Other matches	'World Championship' (1876, 1881, 1882, 1893) 1899 Sheriff of London Charity Shield

v t Vale of Leven Football Club
Club	Players Millburn Park Dumbartonshire Cup
Matches	1877 Scottish Cup Final 1878 Scottish Cup Final 1879 Scottish Cup Final 1883 Scottish Cup Final ~~1884 Scottish Cup Final~~ 1885 Scottish Cup Final 1890 Scottish Cup Final 'World Championship' (1878, 1879)
Seasons	1874–75 1892–1905 1915–21