Historical Football Kits

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Stranraer

Formed 1870

Elected to Scottish Division “C” (South West) 1949

Kit History

Background

The market town and port of Stranraer is the main sea artery connecting Scotland with Ireland: situated in the far south-west of Scotland, it is one of the most remote and picturesque locations represented in the Scottish League.

The team was formed in 1870, which makes Stranraer one of the oldest clubs in Scotland, but they did not join the Scottish FA until 1877. Indeed, they were not SFA members between 1882-1899 and 1907-1910 and may have been inactive or playing at junior level during these periods. The club played friendlies and in the many cup competitions that proliferated in southern Scotland where small, dispersed communities made regular leagues difficult to organise. It was not until 1928 that Stranraer joined the Southern Counties League where they played until 1935. They then joined the Scottish Combination (1935-37) followed by the Scottish Alliance (1939-40).

When organised football resumed after the Second World War, the Blues became members of the South of Scotland League. They first came to national attention in 1948 when Rangers visited Stair Park for a Scottish FA Cup tie. Stranraer acquitted themselves very well indeed, being narrowly defeated 0-1. Two seasons later, Stranraer were invited to join Division “C.” This had been created in 1946 as a mainly reserve league with one or two non-reserve sides: in 1949 the division was enlarged and split into two regional sections. In 1955 this level was abolished and Stranraer joined the expanded Division “B” (second level).

Stranraer's first crest appeared at around this time, a simple cypher o a red shield. This was replaced in 1961 with a sailing ship, signifying the town's importance as a port. Like it's predecessor, this was red, the team's accent colour since the mid 50s' A variation appeared in the mid 1980s when gold was briefly adopted as a third colour.

The club remained a very modest outfit, finishing around the middle of the table until the reconstruction of 1975 took them down into the new Second Division (now the third tier). Here they languished until 1994 when they won their first ever senior honour, the Second Division championship. The following season they finished last, 12 points adrift and returned to the bottom flight. History repeated itself in 1998 and 1999.

A modern crest was designed in 1988 which featured the familiar sailing ship on a shield mounted on a roundel.

In 2003 the Blues were relegated to Division Three (tier four), won successive promotions in 2004 and 2005 to return to Division One (tier two). In a remarkable turn of events, the club then made the return journey, successive relegations taking them back into the basement in 2007.

Stranraer spent their 150th anniversary in Scottish League Two after finishing a distant last on points-per-game in the truncated 2019-20 season. It would have been nice if they had commissioned a strip based on their original 1870 colours but these are lost so a style that was worn between 1955 and 1985 was adopted instead, complimented by the 1961 crest. The familiar badge was restored in 2021.

Sources

• (a) Alick Milne
• (b) SNSPix
• (c) Brian McColl
• (d) London Hearts
• (e) relichtieplus
• (f) Ayr United FC - Images of Sport (Duncan Carmichael 2002)
• (g) Old Football Shirts
• (h) Ralph Pomeroy
• (i) These kits were not registered with the Scottish FA but are described in Stranraer FC - Centenary 1870-1970
• (j) Donald Gellatly
• (k) @Club25Football
• (l) Ian McConnel
• (m) Through the Lens: Glimpses of Stranraer FC (D Nelson 1999) submitted by Nish Walker

Crests are the property of Stranraer FC.