Late in 1879, the Pollock family from Cumnock came to Cowdenbeath to work at the Little Raith Colliery. Their mother Mrs Margaret Pollock kick-started football in Cowdenbeath as her son Davie recalled in 1952. ‘Mither decided that we’d got tae hae a ba’ so she went tae Glesgae and brocht ane back. That ba’ was really the start o’ footba’ here’. The club was founded as Cowdenbeath Rangers in June 1880 by James (pictured) and John Pollock and featured many of their playing colleagues from the Cowdenbeath Albert Cricket Club. Another Cowdenbeath club entitled Raith Rovers was formed in 1881. Cowdenbeath Rangers and Raith Rovers amalgamated to become Cowdenbeath FC in 1882 when the Fifeshire Football Association was established. Cowdenbeath are the oldest surviving football club in Fife. They lost in the inaugural Fife Cup final in 1883 but won the Cup for the first time in 1885.

The club was a dominant force in local football for years before being elected to join the Scottish Football League in 1905. Cowden won their first ever League game at their then ground North End Park v Leith 1-0 with Willie Mercer scoring. Cowden later won the 2 nd Division championship in both 1914 and 1915 but were denied a top flight place due to the election system that then applied as opposed to automatic promotion.

After the Great War, there was a successful spell in the rebel Central League before ‘the Miners’ at last won promotion in 1923/24. They went on to enjoy a proud decade in the 1 st Division. Indeed, in 1924/25, the Central Park club finished 5 th in the top division. Cowden’s average home gate that season was a remarkable 9,211. During this decade 3 Cowden men were capped by Scotland - Jim Paterson, Bob Middleton and Alex Venters. All-time record scorer for the club Willie Devlin (pictured) scored 120 League goals in this era.

Relegation in 1934 was a setback but the club bounced back with a record breaking championship success in 1938/39. Rab Walls (pictured)scored a remarkable 54 League goals that year. Unfortunately, Adolf Hitler’s antics meant the club was closed down during the War and thereafter unjustly allocated to the lower league on the post war resumption.

It was 30 years before Cowden would again appear in Division 1 (although in 1949 they became the first ever lower League side to defeat Rangers, in a League Cup tie at Ibrox). Andy Matthew’s fondly remembered side of 1969/70 took Cowden back up for a season and into the Scottish League Cup semi-final for the second time. Goalkeeper Raymond Allan (pictured) also made his bow for Cowden in the early 1970’s as a prelude to a record 422 League games for Cowdenbeath.

Promotion was squandered in both 1972 and 1981 before 1992 at last brought an upgrade to Division 1. Disaster followed as Cowden endured a 38 League game barren run at Central Park and plunged to the basement of Scottish football. New boss Craig Levein though reinvigorated the club and promotion from Division 3 was earned in 2001.

The Club was relegated back to Division 3 at the end of season 2002/03 after two seasons in the 2nd Division. The first two season back in the bottom league saw 5th and then 3rd place achieved. Rookie Boss Mixu Paatelainen was appointed at the beginning of season 2005/06 which featured 3 memorable milestones. It marked the club’s 125th anniversary as well as 100 years since it first joined the Scottish League. In addition, the 14th League goal of the new campaign was the 5,000 th goal scored by the club in the Scottish League, scored by Robert Downs away to Albion Rovers. This historic season was capped off in memorable style with the team clinching the League Championship, the first since 1939, on the last day of the season at home to Elgin City - all the more remarkable given that Cowden trailed then league leaders Stenhousemuir by eleven points in early March!

The Blue Brazil secured a very creditable sixth place in their return to 2nd Division football and will be hoping that season 2007/08 is just as successful.

David Allan.