1875 Scottish Cup Final

Queen's Park began their defence of the cup in the first round on 24 October 1874. In the competition's early years, the first few rounds were regionalised so Queen's had been drawn away to fellow Glasgow club Western and, in a tightly contested match, they won 1–0 at Regent's Park.[4][5] The second round saw a home tie with West End which was a much easier tie for the defending champions who equalled the tournament record for the largest margin of victory as they won 7–0 at Hampden Park.[6] They then didn't play a match in the quarter-finals as their opponents Rovers, who hadn't played a match in the tournament following a walkover against Hamilton in the first round and a bye in the second round, scratched from the tie meaning Queen's Park advanced to the semi-finals.[7] This set up a replay of the 1874 final against Clydesdale. The first match at Clydesdale's Kinning Park finished scoreless on 20 March 1875[8] and the replay a week later at Hampden Park also ended in a draw.[9] However, in the second replay on 3 April, the stalemate was finally broken as Queen's Park won 1–0 to reach the final for the second year running.[10]

After receiving a walkover against Glasgow side Blythswood in the first round, Renton faced fellow Dunbartonshire club Helensburgh.[7] The exact date of the match is unknown, however, it was played in Renton sometime between 21 and 28 November 1874 and the home side won 2–0.[7][11] Renton were then involved in one of just two quarter-final matches as they defeated the Glasgow side Eastern 1–0 at home on Boxing Day.[7] In the semi-finals, they face Dunbartonshire rivals Dumbarton. The first match, played in Renton, finished in a 1–1 draw[12][13] before Renton eliminated their rivals with a 1–0 away win.[14][15]

Renton won the toss and elected to play with the slight breeze to their backs. In the first half, Queen's Park soaked up pressure from a Renton side who elected to play the ball long and tackle hard. Despite this, they were unable to breakdown Queen's Park who created chances for Jamie Weir, Harry McNeil and Tom Highet. However, referee A. Campbell ended the half with the game scoreless.[2][16]

After the interval, a change of ends saw the wind now in Renton's faces. Queen's Park were on the front foot but couldn't find a breakthrough and the spectators had to wait until the last 15 minutes for the three goals. Angus MacKinnon opened the scoring from a Weir corner before, five minutes later, McNeil ran forward and set up Highet for 2–0. Shortly before full time, Billy McKinnon sealed the win with a fine shot.[2][17]

Edinburgh newspaper The Scotsman reported after the game that the match was "an exceptionally rough one" with "charging which seems to be the speciality of the Renton men".[17]