The History of Newtongrange Star
1949/50
STORY OF THE SEASON
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    Star's achievement in reaching the Semi Final of the Scottish Cup the previous year ensured that there was great excitement for the start of the new season. It would turn out to be another good season, although Star had nothing to show for it at the end of the day.

    In the Scottish Cup the First Round draw produced a local derby against Bonnyrigg which Star won 1-0 with a goal by Linten. Linten and Kinghorn were on target as Star defeated Broxburn 2-0 in Round Two, but in Round Three Star lost to Armadale. The final score of 3-0 flattered the West Lothian side and Star had to play most of the game with ten men after goalkeeper Matthews was injured - no substitutes allowed in those days, and an outfield player had to go in goals!

    The Mid / East Division of the Edinburgh and District league was a close-fought contest. Star, Arniston, Tranent and Bonnyrigg were in the mix until the end, with Arniston eventually winning and Star finishing third. One of the best games of the season was a see-saw 4-4 draw against former senior club Edinburgh City who had joined the Juniors for 1949/50. They played at East Pilton Park, sometimes known as City Park , but they did not survive long as a Junior side.

    Star did reach the Final of the East of Scotland Cup. Musselburgh were beaten 2-0 in the Semi Final but Stoneyburn were too strong in the Final, winning 3-0 at Tynecastle. Star also reached the Semi Final of the Thornton Shield when they lost 3-0 against Grange Rovers in a match played at Broxburn. Grange went on to win the Cup.

    The season ended with a convincing 8-2 win over Dunbar United with centre forward Bobby Kinghorn scoring five of them. Kinghorn was a tremendous servant to Star through the late 40s and early 50s and it was a major surprise that he was never picked up by a senior club.

    Right back Willie Pryde was signed on a delayed transfer by Airdrie although he was to remain with Star until the end of 1950/1 before stepping up to Broomfield. But the biggest loss was defender Jackie Neilson who was signed by St Mirren. He went to play almost 300 games in the First Division for the Paisley club.

    1949/50 was also notable for the appointment of Jimmy Kirkwood as Secretary - a post he would hold until he retired in 1972.

    Source: Newtongrange Star FC match programme [20-Aug-2008]
EDINBURGH & DISTRICT LEAGUE MID/EAST DIVISION
Pld W D L F A Pts
Arniston Rangers 26 16 5 5 83 48 37
Tranent Juniors 26 16 2 8 81 50 34
Newtongrange Star 26 13 7 6 64 45 33
Bonnyrigg Rose 26 13 7 6 64 45 33
Musselburgh Athletic 26 13 5 9 65 58 31
Loanhead Mayflower 26 14 1 11 55 54 29
Thorntree United 26 12 3 11 64 69 27
Dunbar United 26 10 5 11 75 63 25
Haddington Athletic 26 10 3 13 60 63 23
Dalkeith Thistle 26 11 1 14 45 58 23
Edinburgh City 26 9 4 13 54 79 22
Rosewell Rosedale 26 9 2 15 46 71 20
Ormiston Primrose 26 6 5 15 43 68 17
Preston Athletic 26 7 1 18 37 59 15
Opponents Venue F A Scorers Team Info
Arniston Rangers H
A
Bonnyrigg Rose H 7 1 ?
A 1 0 OG
Dalkeith Thistle H 2 1 Dixon 2
A
Dunbar United H 8 2 Kinghorn 5, Hope, Jackson, ?
A 2 1 Kinghorn, ?
Edinburgh City H 3 0 ?
A 4 4 Linton 2, Whitelaw 2
Haddington Athletic H 2 1 Hope, OG
A 5 3 Kinghorn 3, Purves, Wright
Loanhead Mayflower H
A 1 2 Dixon
Musselburgh Athletic H
A
Ormiston Primrose H
A 4 0 Hope 2, Dixon, Lennie
Preston Athletic H 1 0 ?
A
Rosewell Rosedale H 7 3 Kinghorn 2, Dixon 2, Wood, ?, Purves
A
Thorntree United H 4 1 Kinghorn 3, Whitelaw
A 3 1 Whitelaw, Linton, J. Neilson
Tranent Juniors H
A 1 0 Kinghorn
SCOTTISH JUNIOR CUP
Round Venue Opponents F A PenF PenA Scorers Team Info
1 A Bonnyrigg Rose 1 0 Linton
2 H Armadale Thistle 0 3 Matthews, Pryde, Bird, Smart, Gordon, Dixon, Linton, Purves, Kinghorn, Neilson, Whitelaw.
THORNTON SHIELD
Round Venue Opponents F A PenF PenA Scorers Team Info
1 H Rosewell Rosedale 3 0 Kinghorn 2, Pryde
2 A Fauldhouse United 5 0 Allan 3, Purvis, Dickson Pryde, Robertson, Dixon, Gordon, Purvis, Wood, Lennie, Dickson, Allan, Linton.
QF A Camelon Juniors 1 1 ?
H Camelon Juniors 2 1 Kinghorn 2
SF N Grange Rovers 0 2
EAST OF SCOTLAND CUP
Round Venue Opponents F A PenF PenA Scorers Team Info
1 Bye
2 H Broxburn Athletic 2 0 Kinghorn, Linton
QF H Armadale Thistle 1 0 Dixon
SF N Musselburgh Athletic 2 0 ?
F N Stoneyburn Juniors 0 3 McKay, Pryde, Robertson, Dixon, Gordon, Purves, Wood, Linton, Kinghorn, Allan, Hope.
ST MICHAELS CUP
Pld W D L F A Pts
Loanhead Mayflower
Newtongrange Star 5 4 0 1 22 3 8
Dalkeith Thistle
Rosewell Rosedale
Edinburgh City
Opponents Venue F A Scorers Team Info
Dalkeith Thistle H 2 0 Wood, Kinghorn
A 5 0 ?
Edinburgh City H 7 1 ?
A
Loanhead Mayflower H 1 2 Wood
A
Rosewell Rosedale H 7 0 ?
A
BROWN CUP
Round Venue Opponents F A PenF PenA Scorers Team Info
1 A Musselburgh Athletic 1 0 Kinghorn
2 H Bo'ness United 0 1