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Queen of the South F.C.

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Queen of the South
File:Queen of the South FC logo New.png
Full nameQueen of the South Football Club
Nickname(s)The Doonhamers, Queens, QoS
FoundedMarch 1919; 105 years ago (1919-03)
GroundPalmerston Park, Dumfries, Scotland
Capacity8,690[1]
ChairmanBilly Hewitson
ManagerGavin Skelton (caretaker manager)
LeagueScottish Championship
2015–16Scottish Championship, 7th
Websitehttp://www.qosfc.com
Current season

Queen of the South Football Club are a Scottish professional football club founded in 1919 and located in Dumfries. The club currently plays in the Scottish Championship, in the second tier of Scottish football. They are officially nicknamed The Doonhamers but are usually referred to as Queens or QoS.[2][3] Their home ground since their formation has been Palmerston Park.

The club's national honours include winning the Division B Championship in season 1950–51, the Second Division Championship in season 2001–02 and in season 2012–13 and also the Scottish Challenge Cup in season 2002–03 and in season 2012–13. Queens led Scotland's top division up until New Year in season 1953–54 and Queens highest finish in Scotland's top division was 4th in season 1933–34. The club reached their first major cup final in 2008 when they reached the final of the Scottish Cup, where they were runners-up to Rangers. The club's caretaker manager is Gavin Skelton. [4]

History

Stadium

Club Culture

Robbie Neilson, currently head coach at Heart of Midlothian, said about Queens from his loan period at the club in 2002: "It's a well-run club and a real family club with a good spirit about the place."[5]

Marc Horne wrote in The Scotsman following Queens' appearance in the 2008 Scottish Cup Final: "In the Palmerston Park club's songbook, it is clear there is no room for songs which feature religion, violent vendettas or centuries-old battles that took place in other lands."[6]

Historic table positions of Queen of the South in the League.

In the 2008 UEFA Cup qualifying trip to Denmark Queen of the South fans were hailed as "a great credit both to their club and to Scotland" by Danish police. About 850 supporters of the Dumfries club travelled to Denmark to watch the UEFA Cup clash with FC Nordsjaelland. Despite the fact that their team was eliminated, local police said their behaviour was impressive. Insp Rune Hamann said: "It was a pleasure hosting such a visit by Queen of the South whose supporters were extremely well behaved and a great credit both to their club and to Scotland. Copenhagen was particularly busy in the build up to and after the match with a carnival, party atmosphere being evident. I look forward to welcoming Queen of the South and their terrific supporters back in Denmark in the future."[7]

Ch Insp Mickey Collins from Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary said the fans were a "pleasure to work along with". He added: "Despite the huge numbers of supporters who travelled to Denmark there were no arrests, incidents or issues of any concern. Great praise should be passed on to those fortunate enough to be at the match."[7]

Club Mascot

Dougie the Doonhamer at Palmerston for the celebration of the 2007–08 QoS run to the Scottish Cup Final.

The club mascot is 'Dougie the Doonhamer', a human sized border collie dog.The character has been played for many years by supermarket worker Brian Harkness.[8]

Biblical References

Queen of the South are often humorously cited as the only league club in the United Kingdom to be mentioned in the Bible. Luke 11:31 states "The Queen of the South shall rise up at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them..."[9] Queen of the South is similarly quoted under Matthew 12:42.[10] In the biblical quote the "Queen of the South" is considered to be the Queen of Sheba. In 2005 the issue was investigated by The Guardian website in their series "The Knowledge" who also found full references to Arsenal, Bury and Reading as well as partial references to "hearts", "wolves", "forest", "hammer", "spurs" and "man's field".[11]

Honours

National League Competitions

Highest Finish in Top Division – 4th; Division 1; 1933–34

Division 2 – Champions 1950–51, 2001–02, 2012–13; Runners Up – 1932–33, 1961–62, 1974–75, 1980–81, 1985–86

Division 3 – Runners Up 1924–25

National Cup Competitions

Scottish League Challenge Cup – Winners 2002–03, 2012–13; Runners Up 1997–98, 2010–11; Semi Finalists 1991–92

Scottish Qualifying Cup – Winners 1923–24

Scottish Cup – Runners Up 2007–08; Semi Finalists 1949–50

Scottish League Cup – Semi Finalists 1950–51, 1960–61[12]

B.P. Youth Cup Runners Up – 1985–86

Invitational Tournaments

1936 Algiers Invitational Tournament – Winners

Border Cup – Winners 1991–92, 1992–93

Scottish Brewers Cup – Winners 2000–01, 2001–02, 2006–07

Regional League Competitions

Scottish League South and West (Wartime League) – Runners Up 1939–40

Western League – Champions 1922–23

Southern Counties League – Winners 1996–97

Regional Cup Competitions (Competed for and won by the reserve team)

Southern Counties Charity Cup – Winners 1920–24, 1926, 1930–32, 1934, 1937

Southern Counties Cup – Winners 1921, 1924, 1935, 1936, 1962, 1966, 1972, 1976, 1982, 1983, 1987, 1988, 1991, 1997, 2003, 2004

Southern Counties League Cup – Winners 1996–97

Southern Counties Consolation Cup – Winners 1922

Potts Cup – Winners 1921, 1960, 1961

Individual Awards

PFA Scotland Manager of the Year Award – Allan Johnston – 2012–13[13]

PFA Second Division Player of the Year Award – Jimmy Robertson – 1980–81, Andy Thomson – 1991–92, 1993–94, John O'Neill – 2001–02, Nicky Clark – 2012–13[13]

Bell's SFL Fan of the Season Award – Ian Black – 2003–04

SFL Phenomenal Achievement Awards

Recognition of Queens' remarkable Scottish Cup run – Gordon Chisholm – 2007–08[14]

Second Division Player of the Year Award – Nicky Clark – 2012–13[15]

SFL Goalkeeper of the Season Award – Lee Robinson – 2012–13[15]

SFL Second Division Manager of the Year Award – John Connolly – 2001–02, Allan Johnston – 2012–13[15]

Ginger Boot Award – Nicky Clark – 2012–13[15]

Bell's SFL Angels Award – 2003–04[16]

SFL Team of the Season Award – 2012–13[15]

Records

Club

One of Palmerston's record-breaking floodlights

Record victory: 11–1 versus Stranraer; Scottish Cup; 16 January 1932[17]

Record defeat: 2–10 versus Dundee at Dens Park; Scottish First Division; 1 December 1962. Queens played for 78 minutes with 10 men after goalkeeper George Farm was injured in the 12th minute and was carried off. Dundee's Alan Gilzean scored 7 that day. Dundee were reigning Scottish League Champions at the time and would make the European Cup semi-finals that season where they lost to eventual winners AC Milan.[18]

Record home attendance: 26,552 versus Heart of Midlothian; Scottish Cup 3rd Round; 23 February 1952; Queens 1 Hearts 3[19]

Record home league attendance: 21,142 versus Rangers; 6 October 1962; Queens 0 Rangers 4

Record attendance (any venue): 58,975; 5 April 1950; Hampden Park; 3–0 Scottish Cup semi-final replay defeat to Rangers; 52,924 watched the 1–1 draw with Rangers four days earlier, also at Hampden Park.[20]

Most league points (2 points for a win system): 55; Scottish Division 2; 1985–86

Most league points (3 points for a win system): 92; Scottish Division 2; 2012–13

First ever Scottish League Match under floodlights: Rangers versus Queen of the South; Ibrox Park; 7 March 1956; Rangers 8 Queens 0; Rangers player Don Kitchenbrand scored five goals in this match.[21]

Highest free standing floodlights in Scottish football: Queens floodlights were first used on 29 October 1958 and at 85 feet (26 m) high they are the tallest in Scotland. To mark the occasion Preston North End sent a team north for a friendly match.[17]

Highest terrace in Scottish football: Following the trend towards all seater stadiums the height differential between the lowest and highest step on the Portland Drive terrace makes this now the highest remaining terrace in Scottish football.

Individuals

Longest serving player: Iain McChesney – 1960 to 1981 (615 appearances and scored 79 goals)[22]

Record league scorer in a season: Alexander "Jimmy" Gray – 37 goals in season 1927–28

Record scorer (all competitions) in a Season: Jimmy Rutherford – 41 goals in season 1931–32; Nicky Clark – 41 goals in season 2012–13

Most capped player: Billy Houliston (3 caps; 1948–49 season; 3–2 v Northern Ireland at Hampden (scoring 2 goals on his debut in 30 & 89 minutes), 3–1 v England at Wembley and 2–0 v France at Hampden.[20]

Andy Aitken

First Queens players to earn four senior Scottish football medals while playing for the clubJim Thomson and Andy Aitken (winners of the 2001–02 Second Division and 2002–03 Scottish Challenge Cup; runners up in the 1997–98 Scottish Challenge Cup and 2007–08 Scottish Cup).[17]

Record transfer fee received: Andy Thomson; £250,000; Southend United; 1994[23]

Fastest hat trick: Tommy Bryce; 1 minute 46 seconds Guinness World Records in the 6–0 win versus Arbroath on 18 December 1993. Bryce's hat trick was recorded in 8, 9 & 10 minutes and he also scored a 4th goal in the match.[24]

Longest distance goal by an outfield player: Ryan McCann – 84 yards (77 m) in the Scottish Cup Quarter Final 2–0 win versus Dundee on 8 March 2008.[17]

First player to collect a complete set of all four senior Scottish football winners medals: Andy Goram when he played in the 2002–03 Scottish Challenge Cup final 2–0 win for Queens against Brechin City to add to his medals haul gathered elsewhere.[17]

Oldest player to play for the club: Ally MacLeod versus St Mirren in the Reserve League West in April 1992. With Queens short of players the manager named himself as a trialist and played the whole 90 minutes. During the second half Queens were awarded a penalty and the ex-Scotland manager converted the kick. The final score was 7–1 to St Mirren and MacLeod received a standing ovation from the small crowd at the end of the game. He was 61 years old at the time.

European record

UEFA Cup/Europa League:[17][25]

Season Competition Round Opponent Home Away Aggregate
2008–09 UEFA Cup Second qualifying round Denmark FC Nordsjælland 1–2 1–2 2–4

Players

Current squad

As of 20 April 2016[26]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Scotland SCO Robbie Thomson
2 DF Scotland SCO Lewis Kidd
3 DF Scotland SCO Richard Murray
4 DF Scotland SCO Andy Dowie
5 DF Scotland SCO Darren Brownlie
6 DF Scotland SCO Chris Higgins (captain)
7 MF Scotland SCO Alex Harris (on loan from Hibernian)
8 MF Scotland SCO Mark Millar
9 FW Scotland SCO Derek Lyle
10 MF Scotland SCO Ryan Conroy
11 FW Scotland SCO Iain Russell
12 DF Scotland SCO Shaun Rutherford
14 MF South Africa RSA Kyle Jacobs
15 MF Scotland SCO Callum Tapping
No. Pos. Nation Player
16 MF Scotland SCO Kyle Hutton
17 MF England ENG Jake Pickard
18 MF Scotland SCO Andy Murdoch (on loan from Rangers)
19 MF England ENG Owen Moxon
20 GK England ENG James Atkinson
21 FW Scotland SCO Dale Hilson
22 DF Scotland SCO Scott Hooper
23 DF England ENG Jordan Marshall
24 FW Scotland SCO Aidan Smith
25 DF England ENG Jack Dickinson
28 FW Scotland SCO Gary Oliver
29 DF England ENG Gavin Skelton
35 FW Scotland SCO Dean Brotherston

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player

No players currently on loan

Notable Players

The following players were inducted into Queen of the South's Hall of Fame on 29 October 2011, 19 January 2013 and 24 October 2015 respectively:[27]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
GK England ENG Allan Ball
FW Scotland SCO Bobby Black
MF Scotland SCO Tommy Bryce
MF Scotland SCO Paul Burns
GK Scotland SCO Roy Henderson
FW Scotland SCO Billy Houliston
DF Scotland SCO Jim Kerr
No. Pos. Nation Player
FW Scotland SCO Derek Lyle
DF Scotland SCO Iain McChesney
FW Scotland SCO Jim Patterson
FW Scotland SCO Jimmy Robertson
FW Scotland SCO Andy Thomson
DF Scotland SCO Jim Thomson

The following players are listed on the club's official website as 'Queens Legends':[28]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
DF Scotland SCO Andy Aitken
GK England ENG Allan Ball
DF Scotland SCO Jimmy Binning
FW Scotland SCO Bobby Black
DF Scotland SCO Crawford Boyd
FW England ENG Ivor Broadis
MF Scotland SCO Tommy Bryce
DF Scotland SCO Nobby Clark
MF Scotland SCO George Cloy
GK Scotland SCO Alan Davidson
FW Scotland SCO Jocky Dempster
FW Scotland SCO Ian Dickson
GK Scotland SCO George Farm
MF Scotland SCO Willie Ferguson
FW Scotland SCO Hughie Gallacher
No. Pos. Nation Player
FW Scotland SCO Dave Halliday
FW Scotland SCO George Hamilton
GK Scotland SCO Roy Henderson
FW Scotland SCO Billy Houliston
DF Scotland SCO Jim Kerr
FW Scotland SCO Lex Law
FW Scotland SCO Neil Martin
DF Scotland SCO Iain McChesney
FW Scotland SCO Ted McMinn
FW Scotland SCO Jackie Oakes
FW Scotland SCO Jim Patterson
FW Scotland SCO Jimmy Robertson
DF Scotland SCO Willie Savage
DF Scotland SCO Dougie Sharpe
FW Scotland SCO Andy Thomson

Managers

3

P/C = Player-coach P/M = Player-manager

1 Second Spell

Non-playing staff

References

  1. ^ "Queen of the South Football Club". Scottish Professional Football League. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  2. ^ "Burnsy" www.qosfc.com
  3. ^ "Eva Mendes – the latest Queen of the South" www.qosfc.com
  4. ^ http://www.qosfc.com/news-3162
  5. ^ Young stars should take step back to go forward – Scotsman.com Sport
  6. ^ Horne, Marc (25 May 2008). "Scottish Cup Final: 'Result is irrelevant, we are here to party'". The Scotsman. Edinburgh.
  7. ^ a b "Fans 'credit' to club and country". BBC News. 28 August 2008. Retrieved 30 March 2010.
  8. ^ Border News and Lookaround, 2008
  9. ^ "Luke 11:31; Luke 11:32 (English Standard Version)", BibleGateway.com, retrieved 15 April 2008
  10. ^ BibleGateway.com – Passage Lookup: Matthew 12:42
  11. ^ Which football teams appear in the bible?
  12. ^ "League Cup Doonhamers" www.qosfc.com 21/03/2009
  13. ^ a b Queens Duo Scoop Another Double at PFA Awards
  14. ^ Cup final manager Chisholm receives top award – Dumfries and Galloway Standard
  15. ^ a b c d e Irn Bru Phenomenal End of Season Awards
  16. ^ Official Queen of the South Site
  17. ^ a b c d e f "Club History" www.qosfc.com
  18. ^ George Farm on Queens Legends, www.qosfc.com
  19. ^ Jackie Oakes on Queens Legends, www.qosfc.com
  20. ^ a b Billy Houliston on Queens Legends, www.qosfc.com
  21. ^ http://rangers.co.uk/news/headlines/live-qots-v-rangers-3/
  22. ^ Iain McChesney on Queens Legends, www.qosfc.com
  23. ^ Andy Thomson on Queens Legends, www.qosfc.com
  24. ^ Tommy Bryce on Queens Legends, www.qosfc.com
  25. ^ "Congratulations FC Nordsjælland". www.qosfc.com. Queen of the South F.C. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
  26. ^ "Squad Numbers Confirmed". Queen of the South F.C. 18 July 2015. Retrieved 19 July 2015.
  27. ^ http://www.qosfc.com/news-2994
  28. ^ "Queens Legends" www.qosfc.com