1951–52 Dumbarton F.C. season
| 1951–1952 season | |
|---|---|
| Manager | William Irvine |
| Stadium | Boghead Park, Dumbarton |
| Scottish League B Division | 10th |
| Scottish Cup | Third Round |
| Scottish League Cup | Prelims |
| Top goalscorer | League: Jimmy Scott (14) All: Jimmy Scott (20) |
Season 1951–52 was the 75th Scottish football season in which Dumbarton competed at national level, entering the Scottish Football League for the 46th time, the Scottish Cup for the 57th time and the Scottish League Cup for the 6th time.
Overview
Another slow start to the league campaign, with only a single win from 9 attempts, meant that Dumbarton were never seen as challengers for the title but improving performances during the season resulted in a mid-table 10th-place finish with 28 points, 16 behind champions Clyde.
The season however had started brightly, with Dumbarton winning their first national silverware in 41 years, by triumphing in the St Mungo Quaich - a competition for B Division sides to celebrate the Festival of Britain.
In the Scottish Cup, Dumbarton lost to Falkirk in the third round.
Qualification from the League Cup sectional games was again unfruitful, with Dumbarton finishing 4th and last, recording a win and a draw from their 6 games.
After a year's absence, the Supplementary Cup returned for one last season, with Dumbarton reaching the second round before losing out to Alloa Athletic.
In the Stirlingshire Cup, Falkirk defeated Dumbarton in the semi final.
Results
| Win |
| Draw |
| Loss |
All results are written with Dumbarton's score first.
Scottish League
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 September 1951 | Falkirk | H | 0-1 | 4,000 | |
| 15 September 1951 | Kilmarnock | A | 1-2 | Donegan | 12,000 |
| 22 September 1951 | Alloa Athletic | H | 1-2 | Forbes | |
| 29 September 1951 | Hamilton | A | 2-3 | Forbes;Scott | |
| 6 October 1951 | Queen's Park | H | 1-0 | Smith | |
| 13 October 1951 | St Johnstone | A | 1-2 | Scott | |
| 20 October 1951 | Dunfermline Athletic | H | 0-0 | ||
| 27 October 1951 | Albion Rovers | A | 1-1 | Scott | |
| 3 November 1951 | Cowdenbeath | A | 2-2 | Tait(2) | 3,000 |
| 10 November 1951 | Forfar Athletic | H | 3-1 | Murphy(2);Frame | 4,000 |
| 17 November 1951 | Ayr United | H | 4-2 | Scott(3);Frame | |
| 24 November 1951 | Arbroath | A | 2-1 | Scott(2) | 2,200 |
| 1 December 1951 | Stenhousemuir | H | 4-1 | Murphy(2);Frame;Scott | |
| 8 December 1951 | Clyde | H | 2-2 | Frame(2) | |
| 15 December 1951 | Dundee United | A | 1-4 | Frame | 8,000 |
| 22 December 1951 | Falkirk | A | 1-1 | Beaton | 9,000 |
| 29 December 1951 | Kilmarnock | H | 4-2 | Frame(2);Forbes;Smith | |
| 1 January 1952 | Alloa Athletic | A | 1-4 | Beaton | |
| 2 January 1952 | Hamilton | H | 2-2 | Murphy;Scott | |
| 5 January 1952 | Queen's Park | A | 1-0 | Tait | 12,000 |
| 12 January 1952 | St Johnstone | H | 3-1 | McNee;Murphy;Frame | |
| 19 January 1952 | Dunfermline Athletic | A | 2-3 | Finnie(2) | |
| 26 January 1952 | Cowdenbeath | H | 1-5 | McNee | |
| 16 February 1952 | Forfar Athletic | A | 3-1 | Scott(2);McNee | |
| 27 February 1952 | Ayr United | A | 1-4 | Scott | |
| 1 March 1952 | Arbroath | H | 0-2 | ||
| 8 March 1952 | Stenhousemuir | A | 1-1 | Finnie | |
| 15 March 1952 | Clyde | A | 3-3 | Donegan(2);Beaton | |
| 22 March 1952 | Dundee United | H | 2-1 | Shaw;Beaton | 2,500 |
| 21 April 1952 | Albion Rovers | H | 1-4 | Scott |
Scottish Cup
| Date | Rd | Opponent | Venue | Result | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 February 1952 | 2 | Queen's Park | H | 1-0 | Scott | 10,000 |
| 23 February 1952 | 3 | Falkirk | H | 1-3 | Scott | 17,000 |
Scottish League Cup
| Date | Rd | Opponent | Venue | Result | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 August 1951 | P | Forfar Athletic | H | 3-4 | Frame(2);Finnie | 5,000 |
| 15 August 1951 | P | Ayr United | A | 0-5 | ||
| 18 August 1951 | P | Kilmarnock | H | 1-0 | Beaton | 5,000 |
| 25 August 1951 | P | Forfar Athletic | A | 1-1 | Scott | |
| 29 August 1951 | P | Ayr United | H | 1-3 | Finnie | |
| 1 September 1951 | P | Kilmarnock | A | 0-2 | 12,000 |
| Date | Rd | Opponent | Venue | Result | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 March 1952 | 1 | Dundee United | H | 1-0 | Frame | 2,000 |
| 12 April 1952 | 2 | Alloa Athletic | A | 3-4 | Donegan(2);Scott |
Festival of Britain St Mungo Quaich
| Date | Rd | Opponent | Venue | Result | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 July 1951 | 1 | Kilmarnock | H | 2-1 | Finnie(2) | 5,000 |
| 28 July 1951 | 2 | St Johnstone | A | 5-2 | Beaton(3);Shaw;Finnie | |
| 1 August 1952 | SF | Airdrie | H | 2-1 | Scott(2) | 8,500 |
| 6 August 1951 | F | Ayr United | A | 2-1 | Beaton;Finnie | 10,000 |
| Date | Rd | Opponent | Venue | Result | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 September 1951 | 1 | East Stirling | H | 4-3 | Johnston;Irwin;Smith;Finnie | |
| 26 April 1952 | SF | Falkirk | A | 0-3 |
Appearances
Club
Dumbarton used 25 players for the 44 League, Scottish Cup, Scottish League Cup, Supplementary Cup and St Mungo Quaich matches, as detailed below. Jack McNee and George Paton were both to feature in all but one of these matches.[1]
| Player | Position[2] | Appearances | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
 Eddie Beaton
|
FW | 22 | 9 |
| Jack Cameron
|
DF | 2 | |
| Tom Donegan
|
FW | 16 | 5 |
| George Ferguson
|
DF | 37 | |
| Jim Finnie
|
FW | 16 | 9 |
| Flaherty
|
DF | 1 | |
| Jimmy Forbes
|
FW | 21 | 3 |
| Jimmy Frame
|
FW | 38 | 12 |
| Tommy Irwin
|
MF | 20 | |
| Willie Johnston
|
FW | 6 | |
| Ally Johnstone
|
DF | 4 | |
| Gerry McCaffrey
|
FW | 2 | |
| Willie McLaren
|
MF | 3 | |
| Jack McNee
|
DF | 43 | 3 |
| Wallace Murdoch
|
GK | 1 | |
| Peter Murphy
|
FW | 19 | 6 |
| George Paton
|
GK | 43 | |
| Jim Peden
|
MF | 1 | |
| Jimmy Scott
|
FW | 41 | 20 |
| John Sharp
|
MF | 1 | |
| Hugh Shaw
|
MF | 41 | 2 |
| Duncan Smith
|
FW | 36 | 2 |
| John Stewart
|
DF | 1 | |
| Andy Tait
|
MF | 32 | 3 |
| Jimmy Whyte
|
MF | 37 |
International
Duncan Smith was selected to play for the Scottish League B XI against the Irish League B side on 15 April 1952 - and scored a goal in the 6-0 win.
Reserve Team
Dumbarton played a reserve team in Division C (South West) and finished 12th out of 16, recording 11 wins and 4 draws from 30 matches. Note that in addition to the reserve sides of the bigger Division A teams in South and West Scotland, the first teams of East Stirlingshire (relegated from Division B three seasons previously) and Stranraer also competed in this league.
In the Second XI Cup, Dumbarton lost in the second round to Dundee United.
Finally in the Reserve League Cup, Dumbarton could only manage a win and a draw from their 6 sectional matches and failed to progress to the knock-out stages.