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From Scotland’s failures to the triumph of England’s Under-17s, via John Terry, astounding Cup runs and restructuring the women’s game – WSC contributors reflect on the year
Missing: Harry the Hoopo…If anyone has any information on the whereabouts of our mascot's head, please contact us. pic.twitter.com/lL98GmHsBP
— Queen's Park FC (@queensparkfc) January 26, 2016
Amateurs played a major role in professional football well into the 20th century, argues Peter Bateman
Blackburn Olympic’s FA Cup final win over the Old Etonians in 1883 is often seen as a watershed in the game’s history. The Cup was never again won by the amateur ex-public school teams who had dominated the first decade of the competition. In 1885 the FA bowed to the inevitable and sanctioned professionalism. Three years later the formation of the Football League by professional clubs from the midlands and north confirmed the exclusion of amateur clubs from the highest level of the game.