The early years of the Scottish League 1890 to 1930 - now digitised

I have just added to my collection of digitised sports books with this 1930 history of the Scottish Football League. It was written by John McCartney, who had just retired from a long career in football as player and manager.
   You can read this book by clicking on the cover image above to download a pdf, or visit my Digitised books and articles page where you can read a wide range of rare material.
   In the light of recent controversy about the league's organisation and its member clubs, McCartney's interesting account makes it clear that discord and argument are nothing new, in fact they have been a feature of Scottish football since the beginning.
   He was able to speak from long personal experience as a player and manager on both sides of the border. His playing career included Rangers, Cowlairs, Newton Heath (Manchester United), Luton Town and Barnsley, where he first went into management. He continued his managerial career with St Mirren, Hearts, Portsmouth and Luton Town before ill health forced his retiral.

His 48 page book has a number of excellent illustrations, notably the panoramic stadium views of Hampden Park, seen here packed to capacity, as well as Ibrox and Tynecastle.

McCartney also drew, from memory, this image of the original pavilion at Renton FC when they were founders of the Scottish League in 1890. It was a bittersweet moment for the Dunbartonshire club, who had been declared 'World Champions' two years earlier, as they were summarily ejected from the League for professionalism after just five matches.

Even the adverts are interesting, such as this one from Paddy Crossan's Bar in Edinburgh city centre. Crossan was a legendary former Hearts player who saw active service in WW1. The pub retained his name for many years after his death in 1933.