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Minmi Rangers Football Club, Minmi, Newcastle, Northern NSW
Minmi Rangers was one of first football clubs formed in Australia and the second in Northern NSW
Minmi Rangers occupies an important place in the early history of soccer in New South Wales. Based in the coal-mining community of Minmi, near Newcastle, the club became one of the most successful football teams in the colony during the late nineteenth century. Its achievements included a remarkable run as Northern NSW champions from 1886 to 1892 and victory in the prestigious Gardiner Cup in 1892, when the Rangers defeated Sydney's Pyrmont Rangers 3–0.
Yet, despite the club's considerable achievements, the story of its beginnings is less certain than many historical accounts suggest.
Several versions of the club's formation have emerged over the years, each offering a slightly different explanation of how soccer came to Minmi. While these accounts provide fascinating insights into the early development of the game, their distance from the events they describe means they must be treated with some caution.
There is an important distinction between the traditional story of Minmi Rangers' foundation and what can actually be established from the historical record.
The foundation story: 1884
The foundation story: 1884
The most widely repeated account of Minmi Rangers' formation comes from The History of Soccer in New South Wales, written by Sid Grant and Harry Hetherington.
According to this history, Minmi Rangers was formed on 9 September 1884 in the coal-mining town of Minmi. The inspiration reportedly came after a group of local miners read about the Scottish Football Association Cup final, which had not been played because one of the competing teams, Vale of Leven, failed to appear against Queen's Park.
The miners reportedly believed that a Minmi team would never have failed to turn up for such an important match. Inspired by the incident, they decided to establish their own football club.
The first committee was reportedly made up of:
President: Mr Gardiner
Secretary: Bill Ritchie
Treasurer: Mr Stevenson
Ball stewards: Winning and Frame
Umpire: Mr Stevenson
The club's colours were said to be all white.
The same account describes the considerable community effort required to establish a football ground. Volunteers removed two large gum trees, cleared scrub and shifted hundreds of barrow-loads of soil to level the playing surface.
Once the goalposts were erected, the paddock began to resemble a football ground.
A notice was distributed around Minmi, particularly in its many hotels, inviting residents to attend football practice at Kelly's Paddock. The response was enthusiastic, with experienced players and curious newcomers turning up to try the new game.
It is an appealing account of a community coming together to establish a new sporting tradition. However, it is not the only version of the story.
Four accounts of the club's formation
Four accounts of the club's formation
The difficulty with establishing the foundation date is that four different accounts have appeared, all written many years after the events they describe.
Account 1: The History of Soccer in New South Wales
Account 1: The History of Soccer in New South Wales
The account described above, published by Sid Grant and Harry Hetherington, places the formation on 9 September 1884.
Interestingly, Jack Pollard's Soccer Records (1974), compiled by Sid Grant, gives 1883 as the year Minmi Rangers was founded. This introduces another variation in the club's traditional foundation date.
Account 2: The Newcastle Sun, 1940
Account 2: The Newcastle Sun, 1940
An article published in the Newcastle Sun on 1 October 1940 offers a different explanation.
According to this version, five Scotsmen contributed money to purchase a football. They sent 2 shillings and 6 pence to Sydney for a ball, and within three days approximately 20 players were practising in Brown's Paddock.
Unlike the account in The History of Soccer in New South Wales, this version identifies Brown's Paddock rather than Kelly's Paddock as the location of the early practices.
Account 3: The Newcastle Sun, 1947
Account 3: The Newcastle Sun, 1947
A further article in the Newcastle Sun, published on 8 September 1947, provides more detail about the five Scotsmen.
Charlie Fitzpatrick, Jack Winning, Bill McCroary, Jack McCroary and Bob Frame reportedly met by chance on School Hill. They agreed that Minmi needed some form of recreation and decided to establish a football club.
The club was named Rangers after the football club Charlie Fitzpatrick had supported in Scotland.
Each of the five men contributed sixpence towards the purchase of a football. Bob Frame was entrusted with sending the money to Sydney, where a ball costing 2 shillings and 6 pence was purchased.
The following day, Frame also ordered six-panel footballs from Glasgow.
A notice was then nailed to the entrance of the Minmi Colliery tunnel:
Football practice tomorrow afternoon, 4.15 at Kelly's Paddock.
This account provides a more personal explanation of the club's beginnings, identifying the individuals involved and describing how they organised the first practices.
Account 4: The Daily Telegraph, 1947
Account 4: The Daily Telegraph, 1947
The Daily Telegraph of Sydney, on 1 September 1947, published a similar account, although with some important differences.
It identified four Scotsmen: Jack Winning, Bill McCrorie, John McCrorie and Bob Frame.
According to the newspaper, the men received a newspaper from Scotland describing the growth of soccer there. They decided that the game should also be introduced to Newcastle.
They ordered a book of football rules and a five-panel ball from Scotland. These reportedly took 12 months to arrive.
The four men then posted a notice at the pit top at Lambton, inviting anyone interested in the new game of football to attend practice in a nearby paddock.
After several weeks of practice, the players were sufficiently familiar with the rules to arrange a match against a Sydney team, Caledonians. The game was reportedly played at Lambton on 17 August 1885, with the Newcastle team winning 3–2.
This account is particularly interesting because it appears to confuse the early history of Lambton football with the later establishment of Minmi Rangers.
Separating Minmi Rangers from Lambton's football beginnings
One of the most important issues in examining Minmi Rangers' foundation is the distinction between the beginnings of soccer at Lambton and the formation of the Minmi club.
A plaque at Lambton Park commemorates a game regarded as the first organised soccer match in Northern NSW. The traditional story associates this game with a match between South Lambton, representing Hamilton and surrounding areas, and North Lambton, representing Minmi.
According to The History of Soccer in New South Wales, the Minmi team was:
J. Winning, W. McCroarie, C. Kilpatrick, J. Wilson, W. McIlroy, J. McCroarie, J. Reid, R. Frame, A. Bryden, S. Mitchell and J. Laverty.
However, an important problem remains: there are no contemporary newspaper reports establishing that this particular match took place at Lambton in 1885.
The description appears to have similarities with a match played between Minmi and Hamilton at Hamilton in 1886.
There is, however, contemporary evidence of soccer being played at Lambton in 1885. This is where the history becomes particularly significant.
Lambton Thistle: The first recorded club in Northern NSW
Lambton Thistle: The first recorded club in Northern NSW
The Maitland Mercury and Hunter River General Advertiser reported on 13 June 1885 that a football club playing under British Association rules had been established at Lambton.
The club was known as Lambton Thistle.
It arranged a match against Caledonians, a Sydney club, at Lambton Reserve. The game was advertised in the Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate as the introduction of British Association rules to the district.
The match was played on 13 June 1885.
Reports gave differing scores, but Lambton Thistle was recorded as the winner, with accounts indicating either 3–1, 3–2 or 3–0.
The team named in the Newcastle Morning Herald report of 17 June 1885 included:
D. Reed
J. Wilson
A. Bryden
W. McIlroy
P. Reed
M. Scobie
R. Osborne
D. Currie
W. McCrorie
J. Conley
B. Doyle
This is important because several of these players subsequently appeared in Minmi Rangers teams.
Lambton Thistle did not survive beyond 1885, but its players and its contribution to the introduction of football in the Newcastle district should not be overlooked.
Indeed, the connection between the two clubs may provide the explanation for Minmi Rangers' eventual formation.
The contemporary evidence: 1886
The contemporary evidence: 1886
Earliest contemporary evidence
The first clear contemporary newspaper reference to Minmi Rangers appears in the Daily Telegraph of Sydney on 9 March 1886.
The newspaper reported:
A football club under the British Association rules has been formed at Minmi, known as the Minmi Rangers.
This is a particularly important reference. It establishes that Minmi Rangers existed by March 1886 and that the club was sufficiently organised to be recognised as a football club.
It also identifies the club secretary as M. McIlrory, rather than Bill Ritchie, who is named in the later account published by Sid Grant and Harry Hetherington.
Further evidence comes from the Globe of Sydney on 16 April 1886, which reported on the annual general meeting of the British Association.
The meeting identified the clubs that had been established in NSW during 1885. These included Caledonians, Canterbury, Friendly Society, Granville, Thistle (Lambton), Pyrmont Rangers, Katoomba College, Wanderers and Arcadians.
The meeting also reported correspondence from Hamilton Rangers and Minmi Rangers indicating their interest in joining the association.
The significance of this report is that Lambton Thistle was already recognised among the clubs established in 1885, while Minmi Rangers and Hamilton were appearing as new clubs in 1886.
There is further contemporary evidence of Minmi's activities during that year.
On 24 April 1886, Minmi played Granville at Minmi, winning 3–2 before a large crowd. The Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate reported the result on 26 April.
The Minmi team was recorded in the Cumberland Mercury on 1 May 1886 as:
G. Winnering, J. Wilson, A. Bryden, J. McCrorie, J. R. Kirkwood, M. McCrorie, McIlroy, J. Laverty, J. Spiers, R. Conley and C. Kirkpatrick.
On 8 May 1886, Minmi played Hamilton Athletic at Turnbull's Paddock, Hamilton. The match ended in a 2–2 draw.
Minmi also travelled to Sydney to play Caledonians at Moore Park on 24 May 1886. The match attracted approximately 2,000 spectators and ended in another 2–2 draw.
By this stage, there can be little doubt that Minmi Rangers was an established and active football club.
The connection between Lambton Thistle and Minmi Rangers
The connection between Lambton Thistle and Minmi Rangers
The evidence linking the two clubs is particularly compelling.
W. McIlroy, who played for Lambton Thistle in 1885, subsequently played for Minmi Rangers. J. Wilson, A. Bryden and W. McCrorie also appeared for both clubs.
This suggests that the demise of Lambton Thistle may have contributed directly to the formation of Minmi Rangers.
There was also an industrial connection between the two communities.
The Lambton Colliery experienced an ongoing industrial dispute during 1885. Contemporary reports in the Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate in November of that year document the dispute and the difficulties surrounding the colliery.
It is possible that miners moved from Lambton to Minmi seeking employment and that some of the former Lambton Thistle players helped establish the new club.
This is a plausible explanation for the appearance of Minmi Rangers in 1886, although the precise circumstances of the transfer of players have yet to be conclusively established.
There is also an important piece of historical testimony from W. McIlroy himself.
In a letter published in the Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate on 1 September 1893, McIlroy stated that Lambton Thistle was the first club formed to play British rules, followed by Minmi Rangers and then Hamilton Athletic.
His statement is particularly valuable because he was directly involved in the early football scene. He had played for Lambton Thistle and Minmi Rangers and subsequently became the first president of the Northern British Football Association when it was established in 1887.
His account supports the sequence of events indicated by the contemporary newspaper reports.
Hamilton Athletic and the early competition
Hamilton Athletic and the early competition
Another historical discrepancy concerns Hamilton Athletic.
The History of Soccer in New South Wales gives 1884 as the year Hamilton Athletic was formed. However, an article in the Newcastle Sun on 8 September 1947, recalling the early football clubs of the district, identifies March 1886 as the date of its formation.
The club was reportedly established by Jocky Stevenson, Bill Currie and Jack Dixon.
The first recorded match between Hamilton Athletic and Minmi Rangers took place on 8 May 1886 at Turnbull's Paddock, Hamilton, and ended in a 2–2 draw.
John Stevenson, who played for Hamilton Athletic in 1886, later recalled that the match was only the second soccer game played in the district. The first, he remembered, had taken place at Lambton Park in 1885.
His recollection appeared in the Newcastle Sun on 14 December 1921.
A further article, published in the Newcastle Sun on 3 August 1922 under the heading Early Soccer: First Northern Club, recorded the recollections of A. Gray of West Wallsend. Gray also referred to the early Scottish influence on football in the district, although his recollection of the dates was uncertain.
Taken together, these accounts reinforce the importance of Lambton Thistle in 1885 and Minmi Rangers and Hamilton Athletic in 1886.
Conclusion: When was Minmi Rangers formed?
There are four different accounts of the formation of Minmi Rangers, but none is supported by a contemporary newspaper report establishing the club's formation in 1883 or 1884.
The stories published in the 1940s are interesting, but they were written more than 50 years after the events they describe. They differ in their identification of the founders, the number of people involved, the location of the first practices and the circumstances surrounding the purchase of the football.
The account in The History of Soccer in New South Wales is also problematic because it appears to combine elements of the early history of Lambton and Minmi.
By contrast, there is substantial contemporary evidence establishing the following chronology:
Date Historical evidence
13 June 1885 Lambton Thistle plays Caledonians at Lambton Reserve.
9 March 1886 The Daily Telegraph reports the formation of Minmi Rangers.
16 April 1886 The Globe records Minmi Rangers' interest in joining the British Association.
24 April 1886 Minmi defeats Granville 3–2 at Minmi.
8 May 1886 Minmi draws 2–2 with Hamilton Athletic.
24 May 1886 Minmi draws 2–2 with Caledonians at Moore Park, Sydney.
1 September 1893 W. McIlroy identifies Lambton Thistle as the first club, followed by Minmi and Hamilton.
The evidence suggests that Minmi Rangers was probably established in late 1885 or early 1886, possibly following the movement of former Lambton Thistle players to Minmi.
The first unequivocal contemporary evidence, however, is the newspaper report of 9 March 1886.
Until further evidence emerges, 1886 should be regarded as the earliest verifiable year in the history of Minmi Rangers.
This does not diminish the club's remarkable achievements. On the contrary, establishing its history through contemporary evidence gives greater recognition to the actual pioneers of soccer in Northern NSW.
Minmi Rangers deserves to be remembered not only for its extraordinary success on the football field, but also for its contribution to establishing soccer in the Hunter region.
Historical sources and further reading
Historical sources and further reading
The principal newspaper references used in this article include:
Maitland Mercury and Hunter River General Advertiser, 13 June 1885.
Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate, 17 June 1885.
Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate, 26 April 1886.
Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 9 March 1886, p. 7.
Globe, Sydney, 16 April 1886, p. 8.
Cumberland Mercury, 1 May 1886, p. 3.
Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate, 8 May 1886, p. 8.
Newcastle Sun, 14 December 1921, p. 8.
Newcastle Sun, 3 August 1922, p. 2.
Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate, 1 September 1893, p. 3.
Newcastle Sun, 1 October 1940, p. 8.
Newcastle Sun, 8 September 1947, p. 18.
Daily Telegraph, Sydney, 1 September 1947.
Also see
Lambton Thistle FC
https://www.lambtonthistlefc.com/home
Dr Jeff Green
jg30713@gmail.com
Minmi Rangers 1886 - Ellis Cup Winners
According to an article in the Newcastle Herald, this is Minmi Rangers in 1886.
Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate, 20 September, 1934, page 5.
The photograph, below, lists the team members and first winners of the Ellis Cup which would confirm it was 1886.
Standing: W. McIlroy, J. Kirkwood, J. Wilson, Arch Gardiner, W. Stevenson, J. Winning, J. Gilchrist, J. McCrorie,
Sitting: J. Curran, W. McCrorie, C. Kilpatrick, J. Mitchell, J. Laverty.
In 1934 Mr. W. J. Ritchie was living in William Street, Jesmond. W. McIlroy was at Waratah. J. Curran and J. Laverty were living in West Wallsend. J. Kirkwood was killed in a mining accident in South Africa. J. Wilson died at Broadmeadow. McCrorie brothers, Charles Kilpatrick and W. Stevenson returned to Scotland in 1888. J. Winning, regarded as one of the greatest goalkeepers of the time, died at Kurri Kurri. Archibald Gardiner, President of the club, was the manager of Minmi Colliery.
The plaque at Lambton Park rotunda.
Minmi about 1900 looking east.
Living Histories @ uon
Newcastle Herald, 1 September 1893. Lambton older than Minmi.
Minmi about 1960. This view looking towards Hexham along the railway line shows Brown's Model Farm in the distance on the right. This is the area referred to as Brown's Paddock.
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