1912–13 British Home Championship
The 1912–13 British Home Championship was an international football tournament between the British Home Nations. An evenly matched tournament, all four sides won at least one game and the competition could have gone any way, as Ireland showed the following year when they won their first undisputed tournament. In the event, the trophy went to England courtesy of a single goal victory over Scotland at Stamford Bridge in the final match. Scotland shared second place with Wales after both teams achieved three points and Ireland finished last with two.
Tournament details | |
---|---|
Host country | England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales |
Dates | 18 January – 5 April 1913 |
Teams | 4 |
Final positions | |
Champions | England (12th title) |
Runners-up | Wales |
Tournament statistics | |
Matches played | 6 |
Goals scored | 13 (2.17 per match) |
Top scorer(s) | Grenville Morris (3 goals) |
Wales began the strongest team, beating Ireland 1–0 in Belfast. Ireland responded well to this defeat, winning against eventual champions England 2–1 in a tough game at Windsor Park. Wales and Scotland played out a scoreless draw in their match, leaving Wales on top of the table temporarily and Scotland flagging. The Scots recovered in their match against Ireland with a 2–1 victory away in Dublin (which featured a riot among supporters after the final whistle)[1][2] before England recovered after a faltering start to win a gripping match against Wales 4–3 in Bristol. In the final game of the competition, England were trailing Scotland by a single point and knew that a loss could give the trophy to Scotland and Wales while a draw would leave all three teams sharing the championship. In another tough game, both sides played well but England snatched victory 1–0 and became champions for the third year in a row.
Table
Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
England (C) | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 5 | +1 | 4 |
Wales | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 3 |
Scotland | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
Ireland | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 | −1 | 2 |
Rules for classification: 1) points. The points system worked as follows: 2 points for a win and 1 point for a draw.
(C) Champion.
Results
Ireland | 0 – 1 | Wales |
---|---|---|
15' James Roberts |
Ireland | 2 – 1 | England |
---|---|---|
43', 75' Billy Gillespie | 10' Charles Buchan |
Ireland | 1 – 2 | Scotland |
---|---|---|
James McKnight 42' | 16' William Reid 32' Alex Bennett |
England | 4 – 3 | Wales |
---|---|---|
27' Harold Fleming 30' Eddie Latheron 35' Joseph McCall 55' Harry Hampton |
10' Walter Davis 70' Ernest Peake 52' Billy Meredith |
England | 1 – 0 | Scotland |
---|---|---|
42' Harry Hampton 37' |
References
- Ireland v Scotland 1913, Before The 'D'...Association Football around the world, 1863-1937, 17 March 2014
- McLaughlin, Martyn (3 January 2015). "The Scotland game that was nearly life and death". The Scotsman. Retrieved 4 January 2015.
- "British Championship 1913". EU-Football. Retrieved 9 April 2020.
- Guy Oliver (1992). The Guinness Record of World Soccer. Guinness. ISBN 0-85112-954-4.