There have been games of cricket played by Manchester City over the years and there have been occasions when other sports, such as rugby and tennis, have been played at City’s grounds but it may surprise some to know that cricket has also been played at the club’s venues. Back on 24 July 1891 a Manchester newspaper listed this cricket fixture to be played at Hyde Road (at the time the ground of Ardwick AFC – City’s predecessor). It won’t have been the only cricket match there and the site had been known to stage bare knuckle boxing bouts years before the football ground was built there.
Category Archives: 1891-92
The 1890s: 1891-1892 A Second Manchester Cup
The series of features on Manchester City in the 1890s continues today with a 1100 word article on Ardwick’s exploits in the 1891-92 season. The last season before the club joined the Football League.
Ever wondered how MCFC came into being and what happened to Ardwick AFC? Well, now’s your chance to find out. This series covers the final years of Ardwick and the birth of Manchester City.
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The 1890s: Ardwick and Manchester City
A new series of features starts tomorrow. This series provides a season by season account of Ardwick AFC and Manchester City FC in the 1890s. Some are 2000+ word articles, others are a bit less, but each adds to the story of how the club evolved. So, if you’ve ever wondered how MCFC came into being and what happened to Ardwick AFC, here’s your chance to find out. This series covers the final years of Ardwick, the birth of Manchester City and Manchester’s first national title.
Watch this space tomorrow for details.
Manchester City in the Early 1990s
We hear so much about the Premier League era and how the game has changed, so for today’s feature I’ve decided to take a look at the early 1990s and the birth of the Premier League. It’s almost thirty years since the structure of league football changed forever and during that time some clubs have benefitted from the new structure and others have found life difficult. City have experienced both extremes of course.
The narrative that we often hear about the Blues’ journey over the last thirty years is that they’ve gone from a struggling club to a hugely successful one and, while it is true City are highly successful today and that the Blues entered their lowest ever point in the late 1990s, it is wrong to assume that the position the club found itself in by 1999 was typical of the club’s full history.
So, here for subscribers, I’m taking a look back at the early 1990s and remind ourselves where the Blues were; who their rivals were; and the state of football at that time:
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The First Competitive Manchester Derby (Season 1891-1892)
DATE 3rd October 1891
COMPETITION FA Cup 1st Rd (Qualifying)
VENUE North Road
ATTENDANCE 10,000
NEWTON HEATH 5 (Sneddon, Doughty, Farman 2, Edge)
ARDWICK 1 (Pearson)
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Gary James' Football Archive 