1898–99 Rangers F.C. season
Rangers 1898–99 football season
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The 1898–99 season was the 25th season of competitive football by Rangers.
| 1898–99 season | |
|---|---|
| President | James Henderson |
| Match Secretary | William Wilton |
| Ground | Ibrox Park |
| Scottish League Division One | Winners |
| Scottish Cup | Runners-up |
| Top goalscorer | League: Robert Hamilton (21) All: Robert Hamilton (25) |
Overview
Rangers played a total of 39 competitive matches during the 1898–99 season.[1] They finished top of Scottish League Division One with a one hundred percent record of 18 wins from 18 matches.
The club ended the season without any other trophies: in the Scottish Cup, despite beating Hearts and St Mirren en route to the final, they lost to Celtic 2–0.[2][3] Earlier in the season they had also lost in the final of the less important Glasgow Cup 1–0 to Queen's Park,[4][5] and at its end they lost in the minor Glasgow Merchants Charity Cup final, another 2–0 loss to Celtic,[6] also finishing as runners-up to the same opponents in the supplementary Glasgow Football League.[7]
Regardless of these setbacks, the perfect league campaign of 1898–99 remains a unique achievement in the annals of British football.[8][9][10][11]
Results
All results are written with Rangers' score first.
Scottish League Division One
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 August 1898 | Partick Thistle | H | 6–2 | 7,000 | Hamilton (3), Sharp, Neil, Millar |
| 27 August 1898 | St Mirren | A | 3–1 | A.Smith, Hamilton, McPherson | |
| 3 September 1898 | Heart of Midlothian | A | 3–2 | 17,500 | Hamilton (2), Wilkie |
| 10 September 1898 | Third Lanark | H | 4–1 | 18,000 | Millar, McPherson, Campbell, Neil (pen.) |
| 19 September 1898 | St Bernard's | A | 2–0 | 8,000 | A.Smith, Neil (pen.) |
| 24 September 1898 | Celtic | A | 4–0 | 45,000 | Neil (pen.), McPherson, Campbell, Millar |
| 26 September 1898 | Third Lanark | A | 3–2 | 14,000 | Campbell (2), McPherson |
| 1 October 1898 | Heart of Midlothian | H | 3–1 | 25,000 | Hamilton (2), A.Smith |
| 8 October 1898 | Dundee | A | 2–1 | 7,500 | Hamilton, Wilkie |
| 5 November 1898 | Partick Thistle | A | 5–0 | 5,000 | Hamilton (2), Millar (2), Sharp |
| 19 November 1898 | Hibernian | A | 4–3 | 10,000 | Millar, A.Smith, Hamilton, Neil (pen.) |
| 26 November 1898 | Clyde | H | 8–0 | 4,000 | Millar (3), Sharp (2), Gibson (2), Watson (o.g.) |
| 3 December 1898 | St Bernard's | H | 5–2 | 3,000 | Campbell (4), Hamilton |
| 17 December 1898 | Dundee | H | 9–0 | 3,000 | Hamilton (3), A.Smith (2), McPherson (2), Gibson (pen.), Campbell |
| 24 December 1898 | Hibernian | H | 10–0 | 7,000 | A.Smith (4), Hamilton (2), McPherson, Millar, Gibson (pen.), Campbell |
| 31 December 1898 | St Mirren | H | 3–2 | 5,000 | Campbell (2), A.Smith |
| 2 January 1899 | Celtic | H | 4–1 | 30,000 | Hamilton (3), Campbell |
| 7 January 1899 | Clyde | A | 3–0 | 4,000 | A.Smith, Millar, Neil (pen.) |
Scottish Cup
| Date | Round | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 January 1899 | R1 | Heart of Midlothian | H | 4–1 | 25,612 | Gibson (2), Neil (pen.), Hamilton |
| 11 February 1899 | R2 | Ayr Parkhouse | A | 4–1 | 5,000 | Hamilton (2), Campbell, A.Smith |
| 18 February 1899 | QF | Clyde | H | 4–0 | 6,000 | Low, McPherson, Gibson (pen.), Hamilton |
| 15 April 1899 | SF | St Mirren | A | 2–1 | 10,000 | McPherson, Millar |
| 22 April 1899 | F | Celtic | N | 0–2 | 25,000 |
Appearances
| Player | Position | Appearances | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
 Matthew Dickie |
GK | 23 | 0 |
| Robert Hamilton |
FW | 23 | 25 |
| Robert Neil |
DF | 22 | 7 |
| Alex Smith |
FW | 22 | 13 |
| David Crawford |
DF | 22 | 0 |
| Neilly Gibson |
MF | 22 | 6 |
| John Campbell |
MF | 21 | 13 |
| Jimmy Millar |
FW | 21 | 12 |
| John McPherson |
MF | 20 | 8 |
| David Mitchell |
MF | 18 | 0 |
| Nicol Smith |
DF | 17 | 0 |
| Jock Drummond |
DF | 6 | 0 |
| Jimmy E. Millar |
DF | 5 | 0 |
| Andrew Sharp |
MF | 4 | 3 |
| Jack Wilkie |
FW | 4 | 2 |
| James Sharp |
MF | 1 | 1 |
| Tommy Low |
MF | 1 | 1 |
| Jimmy Oswald |
FW | 1 | 0 |
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rangers (C) | 18 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 79 | 18 | +61 | 36 | Champions |
| 2 | Heart of Midlothian | 18 | 12 | 2 | 4 | 56 | 30 | +26 | 26 | |
| 3 | Celtic | 18 | 11 | 2 | 5 | 51 | 33 | +18 | 24 | |
| 4 | Hibernian | 18 | 10 | 3 | 5 | 42 | 43 | −1 | 23 | |
| 5 | St Mirren | 18 | 8 | 4 | 6 | 46 | 32 | +14 | 20 | |
| 6 | Third Lanark | 18 | 7 | 3 | 8 | 33 | 38 | −5 | 17 | |
| 7 | Clyde | 18 | 4 | 4 | 10 | 23 | 48 | −25 | 12 | |
| 7 | St Bernard's | 18 | 4 | 4 | 10 | 30 | 37 | −7 | 12 | |
| 9 | Partick Thistle (R) | 18 | 2 | 2 | 14 | 19 | 58 | −39 | 6 | Relegated to the 1899–1900 Scottish Division Two |
| 10 | Dundee | 18 | 1 | 2 | 15 | 23 | 65 | −42 | 4 |
Rules for classification: Teams finish equal if level on points. Points system: 2 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, 0 points for a loss
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated