Old St Mark's F.C.

The club was formed for old boys of St Mark's College, Chelsea, an educational establishment which lasted from 1841 to a merger in 1923, and which is now known as Plymouth Marjon University.

The club first made a mark in the London Senior Cup of 1885-86, beating the strong Casuals side in the third round, and losing to Hotspur (why by now had moved to Wimbledon) in the quarter-finals. The club reached the same stage every year until 1888-89, in the last year being a victim of the Royal Arsenal side.[3]

The programme for the London Senior Cup replay with Tottenham Hotspur.

In the same competition, the Saints beat Tottenham Hotspur in the qualifying rounds of 1893-94, by a score of 6-1, in a replay; a match notable for being the first one for which the Spurs issued a programme.[4] However the club lost by a record score of 18-0 to the Old Westminsters at Wembley Park in the first round proper.[5]

It was an uncharacteristically heavy defeat, the club's next biggest being a 5-1 defeat to Wandsworth in the club's last match in the competition in 1902-03.[6]

The Saints entered the FA Cup for the first time in 1887-88, beating East Sheen in the first round 7-2 but losing narrowly to the Old Etonians in the second, having twice been ahead.[7] The club entered the qualifying rounds until 1892-93, its final tie being a 4-0 defeat to Luton Town in the first qualifying round.[8]

In 1892-93, a number of clubs proposed to set up a new league for clubs in the south of England. The Saints were one of the applicants, and, at a meeting in London at which the clubs voted on the applications, the club received 15 votes, and were therefore one of the 12 clubs selected for this new Southern League.[9] However, within a month, the club withdrew its application.[10]

The club played at the Limes, in Barnes, south-west London.

The club played in chocolate and light blue, which was probably in halves, as that was a popular way to combine those colours at the time.[11]