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The Blue Brazil Hall of Fame
Hall of Fame - The inductees
Teams
1914 & 1915 Championship Team. Cowden were denied election to the 1 st Division on the casting vote of the League chairman in 1913. Thus they were doubly determined to establish their claim for elevation to the top flight in the following season. Cowden went on to enjoy a string of victories that took them to the top of the table. The Miners were 4 points clear of the second placed side Dundee Hibs as the New Year began. On March 7, Cowden travelled to play Dundee Hibs at Tannadice. Unfortunately, the team was injury hit. Bob Birrell missed a penalty in the 1 st half and Dundee Hibs ran in 3 goals in the second half. However, dismay at this 3-0 setback soon turned to joy when it was learned that Albion Rovers had lost to hand the championship to Cowden. A week later, Dundee Hibs came to North End Park for the return fixture. Cowden made amends for their previous ignominious defeat with a championship style display as they ran out 7-0 victors. Willie Philp scored 5 with Jim Frew notching the other 2 on a stormy day at North End Park. Cowdenbeath again applied for election to Division 1 but once more were turned down. However, the Scottish League agreed that automatic promotion and relegation would be introduced for 1914/15. Cowden had ended as champions with a league record of P 22 W 13 D 5 L 4 F 34 A 17 Pts 31.
The start of season 1914/15 was overshadowed by the onset of the 1 st World war albeit it was decided that League football should continue. Lochgelly United’s first ever League game ended unhappily for the Recreation Park side as Cowden romped home 4-0 victors with Willie Philp 3 and Bobby Tait counting for the visitors. The 1913/14 league flag was then unfurled at North End Park a week later and Cowden celebrated by sweeping Dunfermline aside by 3-1 (Philp, Jock McKenzie, Bob Birrell). Cowden went 9 league games without defeat.
Cowden eventually finished the season with 37 points but level with both St Bernards and Leith Athletic. A tripartite play off for the title was required. The first play off game saw Cowden meet Leith at East End Park, Dunfermline. Bob Taylor and Bobby Tait scored for Cowden while Paddy Savage was the hero by saving a penalty to secure a 2-1 win for the Miners. Cowden then beat St Bernards 3-1 at Easter Road with Philp scoring twice and for the second time in a row Cowden were the proud champions of Division 2. However, yet again Cowden were denied the 1 st Division status their fine team deserved as the Scottish League decided that the plan for automatic promotion should be suspended and that Division 2 should be disbanded for the rest of the War. Cowden then joined the regional Eastern League where they were to be twice champions in the next 3 years. Cowden’s League record for 1914/15 was P 26 W 16 D 5 L 5 F 49 A 17 Pts 37. A regular line up during these 2 seasons was: Savage, Gillespie, MacKenzie: R Birrell, W Birrell, Mitchell; Lancaster, Tait, Philp, Brownlie, Taylor.
Best ever season – 5th best in Scotland – 1924/25. Season 1924/25 was the culmination of many years of striving by Cowdenbeath to claim a place in the game's elite. Ex-Ayr, Sunderland and Third Lanark centre forward Jimmy Richardson was named as Cowden’s new manager and the side was astutely strengthened for the top-flight campaign. Ex-Cowden hero Willie Paterson returned on payment of a £1,000 fee to Derby County, Motherwell’s highly rated League internationalist inside man Willie Rankin was purchased for a similar fee as was forward Andy Rankine from Aberdeen.
On a wet, miserable August day Cowden made their 1 st Division bow before 18,000 fans at Central Park v Hearts. Hearts won 2-1 in a game watched by Cowdenbeath’s founder John Pollock who had travelled especially from Cardiff for the big day. Thereafter Cowden had some ups and downs but gradually began to come onto their game. There was a 5-0 win over Morton (Devlin 3) and a 5-4 thriller v St Mirren (Leonard 2) in consecutive home matches. Away victories though were elusive. Rangers visited Central Park and another large crowd saw a hard fought 2-2 draw with Leonard and Wilson scoring for the Miners. The next home fixture produced a 5-2 win over Kilmarnock (Devlin 3) and then the long awaited away breakthrough came with a 3-0 win at Motherwell – Devlin yet again claiming the honours with a threesome.
Andy Rankine moved to centre half as the season moved on and this allowed Hooky Leonard who had not been in the Directors’ good books to reclaim the inside-left berth. Cowden thereafter continued to play in fine style. A most memorable win before the end of the campaign was a 3-0 hammering of Celtic (Devlin 2, Pullar). At the end of the season Cowden were proudly perched in 5 th spot in Division 1. Cowden’s record was P 38 W 16 D 10 L 12 F 76 A 65 Pts 42. Devlin had finished as top scorer in Division One, 1 goal ahead of Hughie Gallagher. Average crowd at Central Park was 9,211, a phenomenal level for a town with 14,000 population. Cowden’s normal line up consisted of: Falconer; Murray, Hopewell; Letham, A Rankine, Chambers; Pullar, W Rankin, Devlin, Leonard & Wilson.
1938/39 Championship Team. Mention season 1938/39 to any Cowden supporter over the age of seventy five and he will immediately start reciting: Hill; Jordan, Rougvie; Gillies, Rhodie, Hillan; Watters, Milne, Walls, Reid and Boag. This was the team that won the Second Division championship with a record number of points and scored 120 goals in the process. Cowden went nine games unbeaten from the start of the season and had then gone a club record of twenty league games unbeaten. By then Cowden were two points ahead of Alloa and East Fife at the top of the table. Their record fell at Alloa after a 2-1 defeat. The return game soon after v Alloa saw a game played with cup-tie fervour. Cowden enjoyed a thrilling a 4 - 2 victory. The close of 1938 saw Cowden proudly perched on the top of the table. They were undefeated at Central Park for over a year and had an overall record for 1938 of: P 40 W 27 D10 L3 F123 A54.
The new year was brought in with a 4-1 drubbing of the Pars at East End Park. The first round of the Scottish Cup then provided a temporary respite from league business and 11,000 witnessed a thrilling 3 - 3 draw versus First Division Partick Thistle at Central Park. Thistle were favourites in the Wednesday replay but two goals by Alex Milne helped Cowden to a 2 - 1 win. For the next round 3,000 Cowden supporters travelled to Cathkin Park to cheer on ‘the Miners’ in the second round of the cup. 18,696 saw Cowden dominate the game until goalkeeper Hill went off injured with concussion in the 40th minute. Thereafter Third Lanark notched three goals to win 3 - 0.
Cowden dropped only one point in their remaining ten league games. Among the highlights on the run-in to the title was Cowden’s 7 -1 drubbing of Stenhousemuir when Rab Walls scored six goals. On 18th March 1939, Cowden clinched promotion by defeating St. Bernards 3 - 1 at Central Park. Walls scored 26 goals in these last 10 games. He scored 54 league goals that year to end up as Scotland’s leading scorer. Overall, Cowdenbeath finished twelve points clear of runners-up Alloa with the marvellous record of P 34 W 28 D 4 L 2 F 120 A 45 Pts 60.
The Miners 49ers beat the Gers – 1949/50. The season began with the League Cup sectional ties and Cowden finished top of their group (which included Morton, Ayr and Alloa) on goal average to qualify for a 2-legged tie v Rangers. Cowden then limbered up for the big Cup games with the opening League fixture v Forfar. Tom Mackie showed his worth in this game by bagging all 4 goals in a 4-2 win over the Loons. Next came the 2 League Cup ties which passed into local football legend. At Ibrox, Cowden won 3-2 to become the first ever lower league side to beat Rangers. Frank Armstrong 2 and George Dick were the scorers. The 2 nd leg at Central Park before a record 25,586 opened sensationally when Big Alex Menzies made it 4-2 to Cowden. A titanic struggle then ensued which agonisingly culminated in Rutherford’s last gasp equaliser for the visitors (Cox had earlier scored for Rangers). In extra-time, the brave ‘miners’ were edged out in the gathering gloom by another Cox counter.
Unabashed by this defeat Cowden comfortably beat Dunfermline 2-0 (Armstrong, Mackie) and Dumbarton 2-1 (Ellis, Cameron) to sit at the head of the table. Willie McGurn in particular was showing up well in the frontline whilst Alex Holland and Alex Menzies were mainstays in a resolute defence. At the end of 1949, Willie McGurn turned down a £5,000 move to Cardiff City and St Johnstone were blitzed 5-1 at Central Park (Gilfillan 2, Dempsey 2, McGurn).
The rest of the season brought a mixture of good and bad results. Most pleasing of these in the League was a 6-1 win over Stenhousemuir (Willox 3, Mackie, Dick, Dempsey). The semi-final tie v Forfar ended 1-1 with Jimmy Ellis on the mark for Cowden – it was decided that the replay and the final of this competition would be held over until the next season. Thus a good season for Cowden both financially and on the pitch saw the club finish 5 th in the League with a record of P 30 W 16 D 3 L 11 F 63 A 56 Pts 35. Normal line up this season was: Moodie; Hamilton, Cameron; Menzies, Holland, Durie; McGurn, Dempsey, Armstrong, Mackie & Dick.
Matthew’s Miracle Workers – 1969/70. On the eve of season 1969/70 manager Andy Matthew felt it was Cowden's turn to at last taste success. The League Cup ties produced little to indicate that this was to be an exceptional season and Cowden failed to qualify. However, the partnership of John Dickson and Billy Mullen was beginning to gel up front while 'wee' Davy Ross on the left wing was establishing himself as Cowden's answer to George Best. The opening league fixture against Berwick Rangers saw Cowden win 3-0 (Bostock 2, Dickson). Cowden went straight to the top of the league and stayed put as the weeks passed. After fifteen games Cowdenbeath were three points clear at the top with 23 points.
In December, John Dickson scored his second hat-trick of the season in a 3-1 win over Berwick. A week later Arbroath held Cowden 2-2 at Central Park and on Ne'erday there was a bruising encounter at Methil. John Dickson's goal took the points back to West Fife. Two days after this the hapless Stenhousemuir were visitors and were hammered 7-2. Mullen and Dickson each scored three. Crowds were flocking back to Central Park. As the season wore on Falkirk though began to rapidly gain ground as they played off several games in hand. The scene was thus set for a titanic clash with in-form Falkirk. This game remains one of the best remembered matches ever played at Central Park. A crowd of well over 10,000 gathered. Cowden won 2-1 with an 87 th minute winner headed home by Billy Bostock to Central Park mad with joy.
4,000 fans at Central Park saw a single point won from Queen of the South to clinch promotion. The conclusion brought a pitch invasion and the ensuing scenes of celebration were featured later in the evening on Scotsport. The celebrations went on in Cowdenbeath for weeks. Cowden had at last reclaimed their unjustly deprived First Division status. Cowden’s runner up spot was won with a record of P 36 W 24 D 7 L 5 F 81 A 35 Pts 55. Cowden’s regular side was Wylie; McLaughlan, Jack; Millar, Kinnell, Moore; Sugden, Dickson, Mullen, Bostock & Ross.