Southampton vs Leicester City

M U S E U M
P I E C E S
Club historian Duncan Holley examines some of the
oldest Saints memorabilia…
IN THE QPR PROGRAMME WE TOLD THE STORY OF THE ST
MARY’S FOOTBALL CLUB’S FIRST FORAY INTO COMPETITIVE
FOOTBALL WITH SUCCESSFUL PARTICIPATION IN THE
1887/88 HAMPSHIRE FA JUNIOR CHALLENGE CUP
COMPETITION AND HOW THEY REPEATED THE FEAT IN 1889.
The following year they
were successful for
a third time, beating
Lymington in the final
and the silver-plated
trophy was given them
to keep permanently.
It had been presented
to the Hampshire FA by
Charles Baring Young
the Conservative MP
for Christchurch. It took
pride of place in the
club’s boardroom and
nearly 50 years later
was on display when
the club celebrated its
golden jubilee with a
dinner at the Guildhall in
1935, by which time the
trophy was being used
by the Southampton
Schools FA who
awarded it annually
36 « SAINTS « WE MARCH ON
to the top school in
the town, starting with
Woolston in 1930.
The cup disappeared
in the 1950s, lying
forgotten in a school
cupboard until 2013
when it was nearly
thrown into a skip
during a clear-out.
Instead, I was asked
for my opinion and I
was able to identify
it as the club’s first
ever trophy. Today it
is back, in its rightful
place at St Mary’s
stadium.
Having won the Junior
Cup three years in a
row the next logical
step was to enter the
Senior Cup and this
the club did for the
1890/91 tournament.
Find out how they
fared in the next home
programme where I
will also be featuring
the first ever match
card – the forerunner
of the matchday
programme.