1887–88 British Home Championship
The 1887–88 British Home Championship was the fifth edition of the annual international football tournament played between the British Home Nations. It was the first edition of the tournament in which Scotland did not at least share in the trophy and was also notable for a record flood of goals, 46 in six games, 26 of them conceded by Ireland, who suffered a disastrous competition.
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country | England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales |
| Dates | 4 February – 7 April 1888 |
| Teams | 4 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions |  England (2nd title) |
| Runners-up |  Scotland |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 6 |
| Goals scored | 46 (7.67 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Jack Doughty (6 goals) |
England began the tournament in the same vein as they finished it, winning the opening match 5–1 against Wales at the Alexandra Recreation Ground in Crewe. Wales responded to this, and to their shock defeat by Ireland the year previously with an 11–0 thrashing of the visiting Irish, a Welsh record scoreline which remains standing after 135 years. Any hopes of a recovery for the Welsh were however dashed in their final game when Scotland administered a 5–1 beating in Edinburgh.
England returned to the fray and gained revenge for their narrow defeat in the deciding match of the previous year when they in turn thrashed Scotland 5–0 in Glasgow, leaving only the weak Irish in between them and the trophy. Before this however, Ireland received another massive defeat at the hands of Scotland, who beat them 2–10 in Belfast to take second place. In the final game, England needed only a draw to secure the title but managed a win by five goals to one to take their first undisputed championship.
Table
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England (C) |
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 2 | +13 | 6 |
| Scotland |
3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 8 | +7 | 4 |
| Wales |
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 13 | 10 | +3 | 2 |
 Ireland |
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 26 | −23 | 0 |
Results
| England | 5–1 | Wales |
|---|---|---|
J. Doughty  |
| Scotland | 5–1 | Wales |
|---|---|---|
| J. Doughty 41' |
Winning squad
| Name | Apps/Goals by opponent | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 WAL[3] |
IRE[4] |
SCO[5] |
Apps | Goals | |
| Fred Dewhurst | 1/3 | 1/1 | 1/2 | 3 | 6 |
| Tinsley Lindley | 1/1 | 1/1 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| Dennis Hodgetts | 1 | 1 | 1/1 | 3 | 1 |
| Harry Allen | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| John Goodall | 1 | 1/1 | 2 | 1 | |
| George Woodhall | 1/1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | |
| Percy Walters | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | |
| Cecil Holden-White | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | |
| Bob Howarth | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | |
| Billy Moon | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | |
| Albert Allen | 1/3 | 1 | 3 | ||
| George Haworth | 1/1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| Frank Saunders | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Charlie Mason | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Bob Roberts | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Albert Aldridge | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Bob Holmes | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Charlie Shelton | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Billy Bassett | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
References
- Reyes, Macario; Morrison, Neil (1 October 1999). "British Home Championship 1884–1899". The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 17 August 2019.
- "British Championships 1888". Scotland Football Stats. Retrieved 6 October 2022.
- Saturday, 4 February 1888 | Wales 1 England 5, England Football Online
- Saturday, 7 April 1888 | Ireland 1 England 5, England Football Online
- Saturday, 17 March 1888 | Scotland 0 England 5, England Football Online
- Guy Oliver (1992). The Guinness Record of World Soccer. Guinness. ISBN 0-85112-954-4.
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