Founded | 1887 |
---|---|
Abolished | 1931 |
Region | Essex |
Last champions | Leyton reserves (2nd title) |
Most successful club(s) | Clapton (8 titles) |
The West Ham Charity Cup was an annual amateur football tournament which was contested by teams from West Ham and the surrounding area, an area of Essex that is now part of London. Only players that lived locally were eligible to compete. [1] The competition was founded as the West Ham Hospital Cup in 1885 by George Hay, Mayor of the County Borough of West Ham, to raise funds for the local hospital, and ran until 1931. [2]
In March 1893, Castle Swifts faced Barking Woodville in the final, held at Clapton's Old Spotted Dog Ground in Upton Lane. The Swifts were two goals down before coming back to win the tie 4–2, with the goals coming from outside-right Grundy, inside-forwards Mitchell and Taylor and an own goal. A local newspaper made the following account of the final:
Three of the teams in the 1895–96 tournament were Barking, Park Grove and Thames Ironworks, who would later become West Ham United. In a semi-final in Plaistow, Thames Ironworks beat Park Grove 1–0. Park Grove protested a technicality and forced a replay at Beckton Road, which The Ironworks won 3–0. Thames Ironworks faced Barking in the final on 21 March 1896 at the Old Spotted Dog Ground, drawing 2–2. They rematched a week later, and again drew, 0–0. The final was replayed a final time on 20 April 1896 and the Irons won 1–0. [4]
Three of the teams in the 1896–97 tournament were Manor Park, West Ham Garfield and the defending champions, Thames Ironworks, who beat Manor Park in the semi-final, and lost the 20 March 1897 final 0–1 to Garfield. [5] Thanes Ironworks later became West Ham United.
In April 1902, Clapton Orient won the tournament by beating Clapton 1–0. [6]
Clapton is the most successful club, having won the competition eight times. [7]
The tournament was not held between 1915 and 1918. [8]
This section lists every final of the competition played since 1887, the winners, the runners-up, and the result.
Match went to a replay | |
Match went to extra time | |
Shared trophy |
Clapton Football Club is a football club in east London. One of the most successful clubs in non-League football during the first quarter of the twentieth century, they won the FA Amateur Cup five times between 1907 and 1925 and had several players selected by the England national team. In 2019 they were evicted from their long-time home, the Old Spotted Dog Ground in Forest Gate. After playing at other grounds for several seasons, they withdrew from the non-League pyramid at the end of the 2023–24 season.
The 1895–96 season was the inaugural season of Thames Ironworks, the club that would later become West Ham United. The club was founded by Dave Taylor and Arnold Hills in 1895 as the works team of the Thames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Company. Taylor was a foreman at the Ironworks and a local football referee. Thanks to Ironworks owner Arnold Hills' financial backing, he was able to announce on 29 June 1895 the following in the company's weekly journal:
Old Castle Swifts Football Club, the first professional football club in Essex, was formed by Scottish shipowner Donald Currie in September 1892 as Castle Swifts Football Club. The club's first home ground, located in West Ham, was named Dunottar Park, after the Castle Line company's ship Dunottar Castle. In 1894, Old Castle Swifts merged with Old St Luke's and was renamed. The club was wound up the following season. Its demise saw several players join the newly founded Thames Ironworks, the club that was later reformed as West Ham United.
George Sage was an English footballer who played as an outside or inside forward. He was amongst the first players of Thames Ironworks, the club that would later be reformed as West Ham United.
David Furnell was an English footballer who played as a goalkeeper.
The 1896–97 season was Thames Ironworks' second season after the club's formation in 1895.
Thames Ironworks Football Club, the club that later became West Ham United, was founded by Thames Ironworks and Shipbuilding Co. Ltd owner Arnold Hills and foreman Dave Taylor in 1895. Thames Ironworks took over the tenancy of The Old Castle Swifts' Hermit Road ground in Canning Town until their eventual eviction in October 1896. They would briefly play at Browning Road in East Ham, before moving to the Memorial Grounds, a stadium which was situated close to where West Ham station now stands. The ground was built at Arnold Hills's own expense, costing £20,000.
Upton Park Football Club is an amateur football club from Upton Park, then in Essex but now part of the London Borough of Newham, in the late 19th and early 20th century, now defunct. As well as being one of the fifteen teams that played in the inaugural FA Cup in 1871, they also represented Great Britain at the first ever Olympic football tournament in 1900, which they won.
Frederick George Chalkley was an English footballer who played as a full-back for Thames Ironworks, the club that would later become known as West Ham United.
Billy Barnes was a professional footballer from West Ham, Essex. Originally debuting for Thames Ironworks, he moved to Sheffield United and scored the winning goal in the 1902 FA Cup final replay. Later on in his career he won two Southern Football League titles and took part in two Charity Shield matches including the first time it was held. Once his playing career was over, he went on to manage Athletic Bilbao in Spain.
The rivalry between Millwall and West Ham United is one of the longest-standing and most bitter in English football. The two teams, then known as Millwall Athletic and Thames Ironworks, both originated in the East End of London, and were located less than three miles apart. They first played each other in the 1899–1900 FA Cup. The match was historically known as the Dockers derby, as both sets of supporters were predominantly dockers at shipyards on the River Thames. Consequently, each set of fans worked for rival firms who were competing for the same business; this intensified the tension between the teams. In 1904, West Ham moved to the Boleyn Ground which was then part of Essex until a London boundary change in 1965. In 1910, Millwall moved across the River Thames to New Cross in South East London and the teams were no longer East London neighbours. Both sides have relocated since, but remain just under four miles apart. Millwall moved to The Den in Bermondsey in 1993 and West Ham to the London Stadium in Stratford in 2016.
Frank James "Bronco" Burton was an English professional footballer who played as full-back for West Ham United and Charlton Athletic in the Football League, and also for Queens Park Rangers and Grays Thurrock United. He was later head coach of Spanish club Real Oviedo.
Johnny Stewart was an English association footballer who played as a half back.
John Landells was an English footballer who played as a forward.
Charles Thomson Craig was a Scottish professional footballer who played as a full-back. He played for both Dundee and West Ham United during their inaugural seasons, and later played in the Football League for Nottingham Forest and Bradford Park Avenue.
The 1900–01 season was English football club West Ham United’s inaugural season. The club had been founded in 1895 under the name of Thames Ironworks, before being wound up in June 1900 and resigning from the Southern League. On 5 July, West Ham United Football Club Company Limited was registered and the club took the Southern League place vacated by Thames Ironworks. They finished the season sixth in the Southern League Division One. The club also entered the FA Cup, reaching the intermediate round.
Grays Thurrock United Football Club were an association football club from Grays, Essex, England.
The South Essex League was a football league that was held in Essex and East London.
St Luke's Football Club was a football club based in Canning Town, England.
West Ham Garfield Football Club was a football club based in West Ham, England.