Scottish Football League 7th | Scottish Cup Second Round | |
Top goalscorer League: Lawrence Bell (9)All: Lawrence Bell (11) | ||
Season 1892–93 was the 20th Scottish football season in which Dumbarton competed at a national level, entering the Scottish Football League for the third time, and the Scottish Cup for the 20th time.
Contents
Overview
Despite the growth of the professional game, Dumbarton defiantly continued to maintain its amateur status, and it was no surprise that many of the previous year's championship winning side would seek to ply their trade in the professional ranks - indeed during the season the club lost the services of eight of its first team to English clubs. A slip down the league was therefore hardly unexpected, and a 7th place was all that could be achieved with 17 points, 12 behind champions Celtic.
In the Scottish Cup, Dumbarton were unsurprisingly defeated in the second round by Rangers.
Elsewhere, Dumbarton retained the Dumbartonshire Cup, defeating Levendale in the final, but lost out to Celtic in the semi final of the Glasgow Charity Cup.
During the season, 12 'other' matches were played, including fixtures against Linfield in Belfast, and Arsenal in London. Of these matches, 7 were won, 1 drawn and 4 lost, scoring 26 goals and conceding.
The fall from the heights of the previous season due to the loss of so many players made the decision in May 1893 to adopt professionalism unavoidable.
Results
All results are written with Dumbarton's score first.
International Caps
Three Dumbarton players were selected to play for Scotland in the 1893 British Home Championship.
John Bell, John Taylor and William Thomson all earned their second caps against Wales.
In addition, John Bell and John Taylor earned their second 'League' caps in the Scottish League XI vs. the English League match - the game finishing in a 4-3 win for the English, with Taylor scoring one of the goals.
County Caps
On 12 November 1892, John McLeod, Tom McMillan, William Thomson, John Taylor, Abe Hartley and James McNaught were all selected to play in the Dumbartonshire representative team against a Renfrewshire XI. The match was drawn 2-2 with Taylor scoring one of the goals.
Transfers
Amongst those leaving the club to play 'professional' were the following internationalists:
- John Bell (the league's top scorer in the previous two seasons), Dickie Boyle and Abe Hartley, all to Everton.
- James Galbraith to Middlesbrough.
- James McNaught to Aston Villa.
- John Miller to Liverpool.
- William Thomson to Newton Heath.
Reserve Team
Dumbarton were defeated in the third round of the Scottish Second XI Cup by Clyde, but again retained the Dumbartonshire Second XI Cup, beating Dumbarton Union in the final.
This was to be the final year of the Dumbartonshire Second XI Cup, and in the eight years of its existence, Dumbarton won the trophy five times.