Preparations are well underway as Vale of Leven FC mark 150 years of football in the valley.
Originally founded in 1872, the Vale enjoyed plenty of success in the early years of Scottish football – when West Dunbartonshire was known nationwide as a hotbed of footballing talent.
The Alexandria side won the Scottish Cup in 1877, 1878 and 1879, becoming the first club other than Queen’s Park to win the country’s most prestigious trophy, and were founder members of the Scottish Football League in 1890.
Along with fellow founder members Queen’s Park and Third Lanark, Vale teams toured Scotland in the Victorian era in an attempt to generate more interest in football.
Near neighbours Renton and Dumbarton also experienced plenty of success – with six Scottish Cup wins between the three clubs in the first 15 seasons of the competition.
After initial success, however, survival became a struggle for the Vale with the emergence of the big two in Glasgow and Edinburgh and the increased professionalism of football.
Many rival clubs from the time such as Renton, Thornliebank and Helensburgh, failed to survive. However the Vale remained. Even after withdrawing from the Scottish League between 1893 and 1905.
After a tumultuous number of seasons that brought a record points tally but also relegation to the Third Division, the Vale lost their league status for good in 1926 amid soaring match and travel costs.
While this marked the official demise of the 1872 founded club, the Vale of Leven Old Church Old Boys Association (Vale OCOBA) used the Millburn Park ground that the club have called home since 1888.
An unofficial continuation of the original club, the Vale OCOBA eventually took on the Vale of Leven Football & Athletic Club name, joining the Scottish Junior FA ranks in 1939 after plans to join the Scottish Football Alliance were scuppered by World War II.
The Vale’s early days in the junior ranks proved a success, with the club memorably winning the 1953 Scottish Junior Cup in front of more than 50,000 people at Hampden Park.
And that rich history is something that the club is keen to celebrate, as they mark 150 years of football in the valley.
Glamour friendlies with representatives from historic rivals Rangers, Dumbarton and Queen’s Park are lined up, with a commemorative kit and other events also in the pipeline, as treasurer and secretary Angus Wallace explained.
He told the Lennox: “We have had positive responses back from Dumbarton and Rangers who are also celebrating their 150th anniversary. They are both keen to share that with us.
“We’ve also had a positive response from Queen’s Park. There’s a lengthy history going back between the Vale and Queen’s Park, including the fall-outs of the 1880s over amateurism.
“We’ve got various games lined up.”
Angus explained the challenge facing clubs like the Vale. He said: “It’s been very difficult over the years.
“There was professionalism that saw players depart and the club plunge through the ranks. The original club went out of business for a period of time and played under the guise of the Vale OCOBA for a few years. That was just the Vale under another name.
“The main thing we’re celebrating is 150 years of football in the valley. The valley stretches all the way from Balloch to Dumbarton, it’s an area with a great footballing history.
“It’s been difficult keeping the club afloat over the years. There’s so much competition now for players. Even at a young age you have teams looking to poach players away.
“I suppose that will always happen. But it’s a credit to everyone who has been involved that the club is still here.
“There are some fantastic stories from down through the years; from fallouts with Queen’s Park with letters going back and forward. Things that wouldn’t happen nowadays.
“There are fantastic stories of players. The famous Johnnie Ferguson especially.”
Ferguson, a Jamestown lad, was a hero from Vale’s early days.
The forward played in all three of the club’s Scottish Cup wins and earned six Scotland caps in some of the first matches of international football.
However his prowess as a runner, which had seen him earn money through the sport, saw the Vale banned from competing in the first two Scottish Cup tournaments – with Queen’s Park and Dumbarton insisting that being paid for competing in a sport went against the amateur values of football.
In more recent times, other Vale players have gone on to enjoy success on a bigger stage, as Angus explained.
He said: “We’ve had the Carsons (Tom and Joe), Drew Busby, Columb McKinlay, John O’Hare, Bobby Kerr to name but a few.
“Fantastic names with fantastic stories.
“Our history matters more than anything else. We have a sense of pride, and a local community who back the team because of that.”
That history is something that current Vale boss Brian Brown is keen for his young side to buy into, as he explained how much it meant to be the gaffer leading the club through its 150th anniversary celebrations.
Brian told the Lennox: “It’s brilliant for the club and brilliant for myself to be the manager at this time.
“There’s a load of hard work that goes on down there, and sometimes you don’t get the rewards back from that.
“To be the manager as we go into the 150th year is a bit of a reward for what’s been a difficult couple of seasons.
“Sometimes I think the players forget that history, and it’s something I’m guilty of being flippant with as well.
“The club down there is one of the places where football started.
“I’m exceptionally proud all the time to be the manager of the Vale. It’s important that we try and get the younger guys to buy into a bit of the history.
“We can show them everything that the club has done, and everything that it’s been through over the last 150 years.
“I think once everyone gets to the Millburn they buy into that history.”
And Angus hopes that more young footballers visiting the Vale’s historic home will be helping to build a solid future for the club.
They boast teams across all age groups, and have training for players as young as five .
He added: “Teams will always come along and outspend us. But will they be there in 50 years time, 100 years time? Will they be there in 10 years time even? Who knows.
“It’s testament to the work of everyone throughout the years who has kept the club afloat.
“The academy is helping to build a sustainable future.
“We want young boys and girls to come in and enjoy the experience around the club. Enjoy their football, learn from their football and learn life experiences through that.
“Some won’t make it to the first team, some will get caught up in whatever the fad of the moment is and drift away. But hopefully they can come back and support or play for the club.
“We’re hoping that the number of players we have will stand us in good stead. Not everyone can get into the first team, not everyone will come through. But we don’t want to lose anyone from the club.
“We want people to be able to enjoy their football at whatever level they can with the Vale.”
And after 50 years involved with the club, Angus revealed what keeps him – and others who have dedicated decades of service to the Vale – involved.
“Madness” he joked.
“It’s an enjoyable club to be at, I get a lot of enjoyment out of football at the Vale.
“It’s not all about winning, sometimes it’s more important than that.
“It’s about providing people in the area with a platform to enjoy football.”
