English Cup (Christchurch)
The English Cup, is an annual New Zealand knockout football competition for Mainland Football men's first teams. First played during the 1913 season, it has been running on for 10 years longer than the Chatham Cup.[1] It is organised by and named after Mainland Football. It has been known as the Morrison Mitsubishi English Cup after its headline sponsor. A concurrent Women's Cup has been held since 1974 called Reta Fitzpatrick Cup.
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| Organising body | Mainland Football |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1913 |
| Region | Canterbury |
| Number of teams | 14 (2023) |
| Domestic cup(s) | Chatham Cup |
| Current champions | Christchurch United (7th title) |
| Most successful club(s) | Western A.F.C. (26 titles) |
| Website | Mainland Football |
The tournament consists of 2 randomly drawn rounds followed by the semi-finals and the final. All quarter-final, semi-finals and final games are hosted at English Park during the week, generally on a Tuesday at 7:00pm. Entrants are not seeded, and depending on the amount of teams there are, teams can receive byes.
History
The cup is named after Robert English (1874-1934). Robert English was born in England and arrived in Christchurch in 1903 to work as an engineer for the Christchurch Gasworks and was president of the Canterbury Football Association from 1911 until 1928. He was largely responsible for the acquisition of English Park for the Canterbury Football Association code and the park was given his name in 1915 as a compliment to his work. He donated the English Cup for the knock-out competition in Canterbury first-grade Association football.[2]
The first Cup Final, between Sydenham and Burnham, was played at the Canterbury Show Ground and required a replay before the Sydenham came back from 1 - 0 down at the break to win 3 - 2 to become the first name engraved on the trophy.
Winners
Since its establishment, the English Cup has been won by 23 different teams. Teams shown in italics are no longer in existence.
| Club | Wins | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Western | 26 | 1925, 1930, 1931, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1946, 1949, 1950, 1954, 1955, 1961, 1965, 1967, 1980, 1988, 2001, 2005, 2014 |
| Christchurch Technical | 12 | 1928, 1947, 1952, 1953, 1956, 1966, 1969, 1971, 1974, 1993, 1996, 1999 |
| Nomads United | 11 | 1914, 1916 1919, 1920, 1922, 1924, 1960, 1962, 1963, 2006, 2008 |
| Rangers AFC | 7 | 1917, 1918, 1921, 1923, 1979, 1994, 1995 |
| Christchurch United | 7 | 1982, 1983, 1985, 1989, 1990, 1991, 2023 |
| Cashmere Technical | 7 | 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 |
| Thistle | 6 | 1929, 1930, 1933, 1934, 1945, 1948 |
| Christchurch City | 6 | 1957, 1958, 1959, 1964, 1968, 1972 |
| Halswell United | 6 | 1992, 1997, 1998, 2003, 2004, 2011 |
| Ferrymead Bays | 4 | 2009, 2012, 2013, 2016 |
| RNZAF Wigram | 2 | 1943, 1950 |
| New Brighton | 2 | 1986, 1987 |
| Sydenham | 1 | 1913 |
| Christchurch United | 1 | 1915 |
| Sunnyside | 1 | 1926 |
| Villa | 1 | 1927 |
| Divisional Signals | 1 | 1942 |
| YMCA | 1 | 1951 |
| Burndale | 1 | 1970 |
| Timaru United | 1 | 1981 |
| Shamrock | 1 | 1984 |
| Christchurch City | 1 | 2000 |
| Woolston Technical | 1 | 2007 |
| Club | Wins | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Western A.F.C. | 26 | 1925, 1930, 1931, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1946, 1949, 1950, 1954, 1955, 1961, 1965, 1967, 1980, 1988, 2001, 2005, 2014 |
| Cashmere Technical[upper-alpha 1] | 21 | 1928, 1947, 1952, 1953, 1956, 1966, 1969, 1971, 1974, 1993, 1996, 1999, 2000, 2007, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022 |
| Christchurch United[upper-alpha 2] | 14 | 1951, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1964, 1968, 1972, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1989, 1990, 1991, 2023 |
| Nomads United | 11 | 1914, 1916, 1919, 1920, 1922, 1924, 1960, 1962, 1963, 2006, 2008 |
| Coastal Spirit[upper-alpha 3] | 9 | 1917, 1918, 1921, 1923, 1979, 1986, 1987, 1994, 1995 |
| Thistle | 6 | 1929, 1930, 1933, 1934, 1945, 1948 |
| Halswell United | 6 | 1992, 1997, 1998, 2003, 2004, 2011n |
| Ferrymead Bays | 4 | 2009, 2012, 2013, 2016 |
| RNZAF Wigram | 2 | 1943, 1950 |
| FC Twenty 11[upper-alpha 4] | 2 | 1970, 1984 |
| Sydenham | 1 | 1913 |
| Christchurch United[upper-alpha 5] | 1 | 1915 |
| Sunnyside | 1 | 1926 |
| Villa | 1 | 1927 |
| Divisional Signals | 1 | 1942 |
| Timaru United | 1 | 1981 |
Steve Summer Medal
| Season | Club | Player |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Danny Boys | Cashmere Technical |
| 2018 | Sean Liddicoat | Coastal Spirit |
| 2019 | Benji Lapslie | Cashmere Technical |
| 2020 | Lyle Mattysen | Cashmere Technical |
| 2021 | Fraser Angus | Cashmere Technical |
| 2022 | Garbhan Coughlan | Cashmere Technical |
| 2023 | Matt Tod-Smith | Christchurch United |
Notes
- First 12 Wins as Christchurch Technical, 2000 as Christchurch City (Briefly merged from Christchurch Technical and Woolston Working Men's Club in 200-2002), 2007 as Woolston Wanders (Merge from Christchurch Technical and Woolston Working Men's Club), and last 7 wins as Cashmere Technical (Merge from Cashmere Wanders and Woolston Wanders).
- First 7 Wins as Christchurch City (1951 Win as YMCA), Last 7 as Christchurch United (Amalgamated with Christchurch City in 1973).
- Coastal Spirit has not won an English Cup, but the two merging club have (Christchurch Rangers and New Brighton merged in 2008). 1986 and 1987 wins are from New Brighton, while the other 7 are from Rangers.
- FC Twenty 11 has not won an English Cup, but the two merging club have (Avon United (Merger from Riccarton and Shamrock in 1996) and Burnside (Used to be know as Burndale United) in 2011). 1970 Burndale won and 1984 Shamrock won
- Unknown if its Christchurch United, mostly likely not due to the dates.
References
- "Busy weekend and ANZAC Day as Cups Football starts". mff.nz. 20 April 2023. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
- "Morrison Mitsubishi English Cup 2023". mff.nz. Retrieved 13 September 2023.