Sunday, 3 February 2013

Spartans (Scotland)


Spartans FC is a Scottish non league football club based in the north of Edinburgh, having being formed in 1951 with the original intention of the players being made up of former students of Edinburgh University although the rule was later relaxed.



The club immediately joined the East of Scotland League and won their first title in 1971-72. In 1976 Spartans became full members of the Scottish FA and moved into City Park on Ferry Road when it was vacated by Ferranti Thistle, who became Meadowbank Thistle on joining the Scottish League. Spartans also began competing in the Scottish Qualifying Cup at the same time in the hope of progressing in the competition proper.



In 1978-79 Spartans competed in the Scottish Cup for the first time, receiving a bye before knocking out East Stirlingshire. A second league title was added in 1996-97 and a third in 2001-02 and fourth in 2003-04. However their fifth title in 2004-05 also coincided with an amazing Scottish Cup run as Alloa Athletic and then Arbroath were defeated setting up a fourth round clash with Livingston at City Park, which attracted a capacity crowd of 3,200. Livi ran out 4-0 winners after being held until the interval.



The following season saw Spartans embark on another fine Cup run. Berwick Rangers and then Queen's Park were beaten at City Park leading to a fourth round tie against first division St Mirren. The Buddies escaped from City Park with a scoreless draw in front of 3,346 with some placed on temporary seating to increase the capacity following the demolition of the rotting old stand. Spartans went down 3-0 at Love Street while backed by nine hundred of their travelling fans.



In July 2008 Spartans applied for the space in the Scottish League vacated by Gretna, but they lost out in the vote to Annan Athletic. In November of that year the club left City Park to move five hundred yards to a new facility at Ainslie Park. Spartans didn't look back winning the league at the end of the season and going on to retain it twice to complete a hat trick, while developing their youth and women's teams at the club through their thriving academy.



The club almost made it four in a row but Dougie Samuel's side lost out on goal difference at the end of the 2011-12 season. The club joined the newly formed fifth tier Lowland Football League for the 2013-14 season, while retaining their place in the East of Scotland League for their reserve team.



Spartans embarked on a terrific Scottish Cup run in 2014-15 as league clubs Clyde and Greenock Morton were dispatched to set up a fifth round clash against Berwick Rangers at Ainslie Park. A huge crowd of 2,504 attended the game in which a last minute equaliser from Ally MacKinnon sent the game to a replay. Rangers eventually went through 1-0 at Shieldfield Park.



Spartans FC will compete in the Lowland Football League in the 2015-16 season.



My visit

Tuesday 29th January 2013

Spartans FC was one of several clubs I earmarked for a visit once it was apparent that I'd have a day to kill in Edinburgh. Having called in at a few venues on the hill up to Ferry Road I'd taken some shots of the abandoned City Park 

http://worldgroundhoptwo.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/City%20Park%20%28Edinburgh%29.



I continued up Pilton Drive across a bridge which once ran over a railway and into the entrance to the Ainslie Park Leisure Centre. By walking around the south end of the building I came to the gates of the Spartans Community Football Academy. I passed a full sized 3G artificial pitch, which could also be divided into smaller side pitches and through an open gate to the main arena.



Again the pitch was a 3G surface which looked in pristine condition, unlike the pitch surrounds which were waterlogged. The two storey building housing the clubhouse, changing rooms and offices were the first structure I came across by the entrance with a turnstile for spectators opposite. On the ground floor the shutters concealed a snack bar for use on match days. Further behind the goal was a five a side court and then beyond it a small grass bank, which continued down the far touchline and behind the far goal. On the fourth side there was flat hard standing and then a neat seated grandstand dividing the two pitches.



Ainslie Park was a much used venue, with Hibernian's development side using it for their fixtures.

I was extremely impressed by the set up at Ainslee Park, as the club had made it extremely homely plus there was room for expansion should they wish to try again to apply for Scottish League membership. I continued on my way along the disused railway to catch a bus heading towards Saughton in search of my next ground.












City Park (Edinburgh)

City Park in its prime


City Park was a football ground located on Ferry Road in the Crewe Toll area in north Edinburgh, which had a very rich history. Originally, the land was used for farming and an orchard, before it was made into a football ground for amateur and youth matches.

Edinburgh City, a Scottish League club of the time, moved into City Park in 1935, arriving from their previous Marine Gardens home in Portobello, building up banking around the pitch and constructing a Main Stand. The capacity was said to be around 30,000 at the time. 


The original City club eventually folded in 1955, when the Edinburgh Corporation refused to renew their lease at the ground. Whether the current incarnation of Edinburgh City is connected to this club is open to debate. The ground reverted to staging amateur and youth football. 

In 1969, Ferranti Thistle, a works side, was told by the Corporation that a new college was to be constructed on their Crewe Toll ground,  but they could move into City Park. A new changing room block was built, leading to Hibernian Reserves playing their home matches there.


In 1974, Ferranti were elected into the Scottish League, changing their name to Meadowbank Thistle and moving into Meadowbank Stadium, as City Park was deemed not up to the required standards. They would later relocate to Livingston and adopt the name of the new town. In 1976, The Spartans moved into the ground.

They were joined by Craigroyston, later to become Edinburgh Community FC, who remained at City Park until 1998, when they moved to their new St Mark's Park venue. In 2004, the grandstand was closed while in a decaying state. A crowd of 3,346 attended the Scottish Cup fourth round tie between Spartans and St Mirren in February 2006.


The reformed Edinburgh City played in the last match at City Park as Spartans' visitors in May 2009 for a game in the East of Scotland League. By then, Spartans had opened their nearby home, Ainslee Park, while City Park lay empty as the Link Housing Association and Smart builders looked to build flats on the disused site.

A group of local residents formed a Save City Park group to try and keep it as a recreational area, which was said to be home to wildlife, youngsters playing sport, as well as people picnicking. Their efforts were forlorn, as the development went ahead. Apartments now occupy the land, with the road serving them being named City Park Way.

Later midfield action at City Park


My visit

Tuesday 29th January 2013

After reading the situation regarding City Park online, the hopes of trying to salvage it, and realising its history and the chances that it could be swallowed up, I put it on my must-do list while visiting several clubs on a day out in Edinburgh. 

I'd had a good walk between Meadowbank, Hibernian and Craigroyston, going past where the famous Powderhall Stadium once stood, before taking a bus a bit of the way along Ferry Road. A hundred yards over the other side of the road from City Park was the home of Stewart's Melville Former Pupils Rugby Club with its fine stand.


The iron gates to the park were locked, but I could see along the side where the stand once stood, which was replaced by portable buildings as a substitute. I walked round and managed to see through the wooden hoardings on Picton Drive, looking down to the pitch from the top of the banking, which continued behind the goal. 

The railings around the overgrown but not unrepairable pitch remained. City Park certainly looked like a fine venue and oozed character, even in its dilapidated state. Reports said that the pitch was very rarely flooded. 


It seemed such a shame that it was no longer in use and that the council seemed intent on allowing housing to replace it, especially when clubs that played in the city could have really done with a compact, specially designated football ground to call home. Alas, money won out in the end.


Edinburgh City (Scotland)


Edinburgh City FC is a semi-professional football club from the Scottish capital. The current incarnation of the club was formed in 1966 under the name of Postal United FC.

The original club was formed back in 1928 and was a totally amateur outfit, gaining them the title of 'The Queen's Park of the East'. In 1931, City were elected to the Scottish League, where they joined city neighbours Heart of Midlothian, Hibernian, St Bernard's and Leith Athletic. 


City struggled during their time in Division Two, finishing bottom in six out of eight seasons between 1931 and 1939, moving into City Park in 1935. They did pull off one huge shock when knocking Hibernian out of the Scottish Cup 3-2 at Easter Road during the 1937-38 season.

At the end of World War II, City were placed in Division C of the League, but after another three seasons of struggle, they departed to join the Edinburgh & District Junior League. The local council refused to renew their lease at City Park in 1955, so the club ceased to exist.

A long-abandoned City Park on my visit in January 2013


The Edinburgh City Football Club Ltd (Social Club) continued to trade from their headquarters near the junction of London Road and Leith Walk, and in 1986, Postal United asked permission to use the name of Edinburgh City, which was approved. 

The club started out playing at Saughton Enclosure in the west of the city and then Paties Road, which would later become the home of Edinburgh United. After spells at City Park and then Fernieside City moved into Meadowbank Stadium when Meadowbank Thistle were uprooted and became Livingston FC in 1996.


The club continued playing in the East of Scotland League, and in the 1997-98 season, City defeated East Stirlingshire in the Scottish Cup before going down 7-2 to Dunfermline Athletic. The club continued to make regular appearances in the Cup after performing well in the Qualifying competition until it was scrapped in 2007.

In 2002 and 2008, City applied for a place in the Scottish League, but they lost out in the votes as first Gretna and then Annan Athletic were elected. In between those disappointments, the club lifted the East of Scotland title at the end of the 2005-06 season. City continued to develop their youth and women's sections in the hope of progression in the future.

The Citizens became founder members of the Lowland League in 2013, going on to lift the league title in 2014-15 and 2015-16. The second of the triumphs saw the side defeat Highland League champions Cove Rangers and then East Stirlingshire to become members of the Scottish League under manager Gary Jardine.

From the start of the 2017-18 campaign, the team decamped to Ainslie Park, home of Spartans, as Meadowbank was due to be demolished and rebuilt with the stadium on a far smaller scale. James McDonaugh took over as manager in September 2017.

Meadowbank Stadium in 2013

After a couple of lowly finishes, City ended in the play-offs in 2018-19 as Blair Henderson top scored. Clyde proved too strong in the semi-final before the following season’s second place, offering no return as no play-offs were played owing to the outbreak of Covid-19.

McDonaugh moved upstairs to be replaced by Gary Naysmith in March 2021, as the side again ended as league runners-up. On this occasion, Elgin City were dispatched before Dumbarton won the final, leaving the club just short of promotion once again. 

Meadowbank Stadium in 2013

Alan Maybury was chosen as interim manager in March 2022, carrying out a tremendous job, taking the team to promotion after Dumbarton and then Annan Athletic were defeated in the play-offs. City was dropped from the club title in the summer of 2022, as Edinburgh FC returned to Meadowbank and finished the season in sixth place, with John Robertson scoring regularly.

The City moniker was restored in the summer of 2023 following the sale of the club, while Michael McIndoe replaced Maybury within a few months of the rebranding, with the side bottom of the League One table. The team was relegated at the end of the 2023-24 season, before finishing in the playoffs twelve months later, which ended in semi-final defeat to East Fife.


Edinburgh City will play in the Scottish League Two in the 2025-26 season.

My visits

Tuesday 29th January 2013

I was in Edinburgh for a three-night break to be joined by my Dad on Tuesday evening. This meant I had a day to fill, and I could think of no better way to walk off a splendid pub crawl than to fulfil another great love of mine and visit some football clubs and their grounds. 


Our hotel was on Windsor Road, just off London Road and a goal kick away from City's social club on Baxters Place, so Meadowbank Stadium was an obvious starting point. It took around fifteen minutes to walk from the start of the A1 to the stadium. I was struggling and relieved to stumble across the customer facilities in Meadowbank Shopping Park nearby.

I was delighted to see signposts to show that City had some presence at the stadium, unlike some multi-purpose venues I'd visited in the past. I continued past the Main Stand and Sports Centre and around the far end, where I found an open gate to snap away.


The stadium had been built for the 1970 Commonwealth Games and was now showing signs of age. The Main Stand was a fine, cantilevered 7,500 seater construction down one side. Around ten rows of open terracing and bench seating curved around the track around the rest of the arena. A huge scoreboard dominated the far end behind the goal.


Walking behind the far end along Wishaw Terrace afterwards gave me the opportunity for extra photos through the metal railings before I headed back to Sainsbury's for some much-needed liquid and bananas to bring me round as I embarked on the walk up the hill to Easter Road.


I was quickly learning that Edinburgh was a large and hilly city!

Thursday 29th July 2021

Click here for a full description of a wonderful day out in Edinburgh, which included a walk to Meadowbank on my way between Easter Road and Arthur's Seat.

Basically, it was impossible to see inside the stadium, which was a long way from being completed. Fences all the way around blocked the view, while construction workers went about their tasks. 

I know from reading reviews from those who’ve attended games since that they have made a poor job of it, with a long, low grandstand down one side offering poor views, while the club hope to construct something else across the far side of the pitch in the future.

The images of the new Meadowbank Stadium have been sourced from the internet.




Edinburgh Community (Scotland)


Edinburgh Community FC, who were formerly known as Craigroyston FC until 2023, is a Scottish football club from the capital, Edinburgh. The club were formed as recently as 1976, as the manager of Eyemouth United, Rab Melrose, had built a side consisting of players mainly from Edinburgh. 

They reasoned that it would be easier to form their own club and base themselves near home. Their original club name was decided when they arranged to play their home games at Craigroyston Community Centre. They were soon successful, having a good run in the Scottish Qualifying Cup, leading to a move to share City Park with Spartans. 


They remained there until 1998 when they moved into their own home ground at St Mark's Park in the Warriston district of the city. Craigroyston won promotion from the First Division in 2005-06 as champions, but they were relegated from the Premier League at the end of the 2007-08 season as a result of financial difficulties. 

'Craigie' continued to try to regroup and win promotion back to the higher status under the managership of Ross McNeil, which led to a fifth-place finish at the end of the 2011-12 season before clinching the league title the following season to move up to the Premier Division. They finished third in their debut campaign.


The club made a surprising switch for the 2016-17 season, moving to play in the SJFA East Region South Division, returning in 2018-19, when the clubs in the Junior set-up followed suit. Michael Wilson had a short spell as manager before being replaced by Jordyn Sheerin, before Darren Affleck succeeded him.

Craigroyston were relegated from the Second to the Third Division at the end of the 2022-23 campaign, at which point they changed their name to their current title, appointing Chris Scott as manager. The team finished bottom of the competition in 2024-25.


Edinburgh Community FC will play in the East of Scotland League Third Division in the 2025-26 season.

My visit

Tuesday 29th January 2013

Google Maps are a tremendous tool when trying to put together a day's groundhopping in a major city, and as with Maryhill in Glasgow a few years previously, I came across an unmarked football ground in Edinburgh that needed further research. How we managed before the internet continues to baffle me, as after more reading, I found out all about Craigroyston, a club I'd never even heard of before.


I had just been inside the Easter Road home of Hibernian and had taken a good uphill walk across Leith Walk, up McDonald Road near to where the old Powderhall Stadium once stood and into St Mark's Park. Craigroyston's clubhouse and changing rooms were a few yards just outside the ground, adjacent to a kids' playground. 

A path led to the grounds entrance, which was locked, but I could see inside to see the basic venue, which consisted of nothing more than a railed-off pitch, dugouts and a thick metal railed fence around the arena. As a man was walking an Alsatian inside I didn't want to attract too much attention!


Satisfied that I'd seen another new venue, I continued past some allotments and a crematorium up to Ferry Road, ready to visit the decaying former shared home of Craigie's at City Park.


Hutchison Vale (Scotland)


Hutchison Vale FC is a Scottish football club based in the west of the city of Edinburgh. Their origins go back to 1969 when Lloyds & Scottish was formed as an amateur works team before renaming itself Lothian Thistle FC. The club progressed to senior status when they joined the East of Scotland League in 1995.

In 1997, Thistle won promotion to the league's Premier Division and began a link-up with Hutchison Vale youth football club to produce players through its own system. The club changed its name before the 2011-12 season to Lothian Thistle Hutchison Vale FC to reflect the partnership with Grant Carnie, who was given the manager's job.


The club continued to try and upgrade their home Saughton Enclosure ground with proposals being put forward to re-align the floodlights and the addition of a seated grandstand. Grants were being sourced from the relevant authorities. The side won the East of Scotland League title in 2013-14 and 2014-15, but were ineligible to win promotion to the Lowland League.

The 2016-17 season saw LTHV win a third league title, before going on to reach the third round of the Scottish Cup the following season under new boss Raymond Carr. Stirling Albion were defeated before St Mirren ended the run with a 7-1 win at Saughton, as well as ending as league runners-up. 


The club was joined by the mass ranks of former SJFA clubs for the 2018-19 season. Ryan Harding was appointed as manager for the 2021-22 season, as the side narrowly avoided relegation. The club had moved to Ainslie Park, the home of The Spartans, while Saughton Enclosure was revamped.

The club dropped Lothian Thistle from their name ahead of the 2023-24 campaign, finishing fifth. Steve Craig arrived as manager in September 2024 before departing at the end of the season. Hutchie returned to Saughton Enclosure for the 2025-26 season.


Lothian Thistle Hutchison Vale FC will play in the East of Scotland League Premier Division in the 2025-26 season.

My visit

Tuesday 29th January 2013

A visit to the Saughton Enclosure was possible on my circular tour of the football grounds of Edinburgh, thanks to the superb bus network. The £3.50 all-day pass was now proving extremely beneficial, especially after the long walks I'd already undertaken. 


After calling into Ainslie Park, the home of Spartans, who would later act as landlords for Hutchison Vale, a short walk to Crewe Toll allowed me to take a direct service, which arrived with a couple of minutes, past Murrayfield and to the gates of Saughton Park.

The park itself was very nice, with the Water of Leith running to the south and playgrounds and football pitches of both grass and 3G surfaces filling the large grassy area. The enclosure was, in fact, an athletics track at the far end. The gates were closed, but viewing was easy through the railings of the basic but neat venue. 


It had a shallow grass bank around the track and the changing rooms behind the goal at the near end. It would have improved no end if a stand could have been erected. My day continued with another bus ride, this time up to Tynecastle to buy the tickets for the match the following evening.



Bo'ness United (Scotland)


Bo'ness United is a Scottish non-league football club who were formed in 1945 following the merger of Bo'ness FC and Bo'ness Cadora FC. The town of Bo'ness is located on the south bank of the Firth of Forth, around seventeen miles north west of Edinburgh. Borrowstounness, to give the town its proper, but seldom used, proper name, was once a mining town and major port, but later became a commuter town.

Bo'ness FC had been formed in 1882, playing in regional competition at a ground by the Parish Church and then Soo & Cra Park. In 1886, the club moved into Newtown Park, before joining the expanded Scottish League Second Division in 1921. In 1927, the team lifted the title and were promoted to the First Division, but their spell there lasted just one season.


The club struggled as the industries suffered, and many locals were unemployed. During the 1932-33 season, Bo'ness were expelled from the League, but they continued as a non-league club until the merger after World War Two.

In their second season, United went thirty-five games unbeaten, but lost out in the Scottish Junior Cup Final to Shawfield Juniors. However, they returned to Hampden Park to lift the cup in 1948 when Irvine Meadow were seen off as thousands of fans greeted the team's homecoming. 'The BU's' went many years without any further major honours, but the Junior Cup returned to Newtown Park in 1975 following victory against the Ayrshire outfit Darvel Juniors.

The old stand at Newtown Park
Image taken from Wikipedia


Two losing final appearances came in 1978-79 and 1982-83 when Cumnock Juniors and then East Kilbride Thistle broke Bo'ness hearts. However, United returned to the final at Ibrox the following year, as many experts made them massive underdogs against Ballieston Juniors. The BUs clearly hadn't read the script, as the team won 2-0 as they were inspired by a superb Lex Shields performance.

The club won several cups and leagues over the years, and following the reorganisation of the SJFA, United found themselves in the East Region Super League. The 2006-07 season saw the team being relegated, but they bounced back at the first attempt under manager Eric Sinclair. The Bu's struggled on their return, with Sinclair resigning and then Paul McKinlay having a spell as team boss before Alan McGonigal took over in the summer of 2009.


McGonigal introduced many new players, and his methods paid immediate dividends as United won their first league title since 1969, clinching it in the final game over local rivals Linlithgow Rose. Bo'ness went on to retain the championship in the 2010-11 season. Paul Ronald had a short spell as manager before McGonigal returned in October 2012.

His side won another league title in 2013-14, and then finished runners-up twelve months later. Steve Kerrigan was appointed as manager in January 2018, lasting a year before he was succeeded by Max Christie. 2018-19 saw the club join the SFA East of Scotland League, where their league position saw them placed in the Premier Division the following season.


Another club, Bo'ness Athletic Juniors, relocated to Newton Park and changed their name from Linlithgow Thistle at the same time to maintain a SJFA presence in the town, before also switching in 2021, dropping Juniors from their name, and becoming rivals to United.

United won the league title in 2019-20, moving up to the Lowland League, where Zander Millar scored the goals. The club found the competition far tougher at a higher level, finishing mid-table in their first few seasons, with Ian Little having a spell as manager before the side finished third in 2023-24 under new boss Stuart Hunter.


Bo'ness United will play in the Lowland League in the 2025-26 season.

My visit

Tuesday 29th January 2013

I had a day free in Edinburgh before my Dad was to join me, so rather than just sitting around, I planned a day of groundhopping. Having already covered several clubs in the capital, I had taken the train to Linlithgow to call by the home of Rose before taking a bus down to the coast to Bo'ness.


It was a wild day with winds and occasional scrawly showers keeping me on the move. My map and timetable had shown me that I had just less than thirty minutes to walk from the stop near the leisure centre on Gauze Road through the playing fields, onto Newtown Park and then to Castlehill for the return service.


I got to the ground to find it locked, but I wasn't totally beaten as I found plenty of angles through the fences to view it and take photos. It was a fine arena, but not quite what it had been previously. The Main Stand on Jamieson Avenue had been demolished, apart from its base, which housed the facilities. 


Its roof had been taken down, and a sloping cover put over the old seating deck. A substantial open terracing was at the Linlithgow Road End, while terracing went round the rest of the pitch. A decent cover offered protection opposite the old stand. Having completed my photography, I went in search of Castlehill. a little behind schedule. Fortunately, as I was partaking in my latest get-fit campaign, I jogged and arrived a little ahead of time. 

It was at this point that I got a little confused as I saw a bus stop just around the corner on the main Dean Road. I didn't want to be in the wrong place, so I went to ask the man standing in the shelter. He was explaining as I saw the bus through the houses on Castlehill. I ran to the top of the street where the bus had gone ten yards past the stop and pleaded with the driver to let me on, but he just shrugged his shoulders and drove off.


To say I was not amused was an understatement. The poor bloke at the other stop shook his head and agreed that the driver had been an absolute tosser. I thought I was going to have to wait for an hour for the next bus, in what had to be said was not a particularly pretty place. He calmed me down and said a service was due to go into the town centre and then return to Linlithgow from there.

He then asked the twenty-four million dollar question. "What was I doing there?" I explained and expected him to give me an immediate wide berth. As it happened, he turned out to be a loyal BU fan! We got talking about all things football and, in particular, Scottish Junior football. 


He told me that the old grandstand roof had been removed as asbestos was found in it, so it was necessary under health and safety guidelines. He was also pondering whether to travel north to Dundee Violet in the Junior Cup at the weekend. I was really glad to chat with someone with a mutual interest, and I was a bit sad to see him get out in the centre.

I remained on the bus, complete with a friendly driver, back to Linlithgow Cross so that I could catch my train back to Edinburgh in time for a siesta before meeting my Dad off the train for tea and frivolities! It had not gone as I had planned my visit, but I'm glad it went the way it did. I left knowing a lot more than when I arrived, which is one of the joys of my hobby.