6.7.13

Canada Tour of the British Isles 1888

The above is a 50 cent coin minted in 1998 celebrating Canada's first overseas football tour.
In 1888 the Ontario based Western Football Association ( founded in 1880, this was the body behind Canada's earliest representative sides) sent a team to the British Isles.

Ireland
01.09.88
County Antrim
2
6
Canada
03.09.88
Distillery
2
3
Canada
04.09.88
Clarence
2
3
Canada
05.09.88
Belfast  YMCA   
1
1
Canada
Scotland
08.09.88
Glasgow Rangers
1
1
Canada
11.09.88
Queen’s Park
3
1
Canada
13.09.88
Ayr United
4
0
Canada
15.09.88
Heart of Midlothian
0
3
Canada
18.09.88
Scotland XI
4
0
Canada
England
22.09.88
Sunderland
0
3
Canada
26.09.88
Middlesbrough
2
3
Canada
29.09.88
Lincoln City
1
3
Canada
01.10.88
Sheffield FC
1
1
Canada
04.10.88
Notts County
2
0
Canada
06.10.88
Newton Heath
0
2
Canada
08.10.88
Blackburn Rovers
4
1
Canada
13.10.88
Swifts (London)
2
2
Canada
15.10.88
Northampton
2
3
Canada
17.10.88
Oxford University
1
1
Canada
20.10.88
Old Carthusians
1
0
Canada
22.10.88
Aston Villa
4
2
Canada
27.10.88
West Bromwich Albion
1
0
Canada
31.10.88
Swifts (London)
1
0
Canada

P
W
D
L
F
A
23
9
5
9
39
41


The players:
The players were largely from the professional and academic class. The tour required them to take a 2 month break from employment and also to be in a position to pay $200 per man towards the cost of the tour. 


Club
Position
Played*
Goals**
Alexander Garrett
Toronto Varsity
goalkeeper
23

Carl Kranz
Berlin Rangers
full back
18
3
Solomon Brubacher,
Berlin Rangers
full back
21

Fred Killer
Berlin Rangers
full back
19

Dr. Harry Pirie
Queen’s University, Dundas F.C
half back
20
1
Dr. William Burnet
Galt F.C.
half back
1

T.W. Murray
Galt F.C
half back
4

Dr. Wilfrid P. Mustard
Toronto Varsity
half back
6

Dr Edward P. Gordon
Toronto Varsity
half back
14

Harry Bewell
Norwood High School. 
half back
2

David Forsyth
Berlin Rangers
forward
8
2
Walter Bowman
Berlin Rangers
forward
22
3
Alex Gibson
Berlin Rangers
forward
19
3
Dr Walter P. Thomson
Toronto Varsity
forward
21
10
E.H. Webster
Galt F.C
forward
21
3
Harry P Bingham
Berlin Rangers. 
forward
4
1
Tom Gibson
Berlin Rangers
forward
21
4



*The lines ups for some of the games are not known in full.
** The scorers in 3 games (7 goals) are unrecorded.  There was also an own goal.

Noteworthy participants included Walter Bowman, who later became the first overseas professional to play in the Football League, and the leader of the party, David Forsyth.
David Forsyth was born in Scotland, but moved to Canada as a baby. He is often referred to as the Father of Canadian (Soccer) Football. He was a mathematician and high school principal  responsible for the foundation of  Berlin Rangers. He was also involved in the foundation of  The Western Football Association of Ontario.
Despite the strong influence of Scotsmen on football throughout the British Empire, Forsyth was the only member of the touring party who was not actually born in Canada. 

Berlin is now known as Kitchener.