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Cowdenbeath
Cowdenbeath crest.png
Full name Cowdenbeath Football Club
Nickname(s) The Blue Brazil
Cowden
The Miners
Founded 1881; 144 years ago (1881)
Ground Central Park
Ground Capacity 4,309
Chairman Donald Findlay
Manager Paul McLean
League Scottish League Two
2015–16 Scottish League One, 9th (relegated via play-off)

Cowdenbeath Football Club is a Scottish semi-professional football team. They are based in Cowdenbeath, Fife. The club is often called "The Blue Brazil," "Cowden," or "The Miners."

Cowdenbeath FC is part of the Scottish League Two league. This is the fifth level of the Scottish football league system. They were moved down from Scottish League Two on May 14, 2022. This happened after they lost 4–0 to Bonnyrigg Rose. The club was formed in 1881. They have played at Central Park since 1917. Cowdenbeath first joined the Scottish Football League (SFL) in 1905. They have won lower league titles five times. The team played in the top division of the SFL from 1924 to 1934. They have only had one more season in the top league, in 1970–71.

Club History: From Founding to Today

Early Days and Mergers

Cowdenbeath Football Club started when two local teams joined together. These were Cowdenbeath Rangers (formed 1880) and Cowdenbeath Thistle. This merger happened in 1881. However, some research suggests the name Cowdenbeath Rangers was still used. The club's true founding might be 1882. This is when Rangers combined with another local team called Raith Rovers. This Raith Rovers was not connected to the current Kirkcaldy club.

Creating one club for the town happened at the same time. The Fifeshire Football Association was also set up that year. Cowdenbeath is the oldest football club still playing in Fife. They lost the first Fife Cup final in 1883. But they won the Cup for the first time in 1885.

Joining the Scottish Football League

In 1888, the club moved to North End Park. In 1905, they joined Division Two of the Scottish Football League. They won Division Two in 1913–14 and 1914–15. But they were not moved up to Division One either time. The SFL stopped playing due to World War I in 1915. The club then moved to Central Park in 1917.

When Division Two started again in 1921, Cowdenbeath was placed there. They finished second in 1923–24. This led to their first promotion to Division One.

Top Division Years and World War II

The club stayed in Division One until the end of the 1933–34 season. They were then moved down. But they won their third Division Two championship in 1938–39. This was helped a lot by Rab Walls, who scored 54 league goals. This is the second-highest number of goals in a Scottish League season.

However, World War II began, stopping Cowdenbeath's return to Division One. The club closed down during the war. When football started again in 1946, the club was placed in the new B Division. This was the second tier.

Post-War Challenges and Promotions

A big moment after the war was a League Cup win in 1949. They beat Rangers at Ibrox. But Cowdenbeath found it hard to get back to the top level of Scottish football. They finally did this under manager Andy Matthew in the 1969–70 season. However, they only stayed in Division One for one season. This was their only time in the top league since the 1930s.

Later, hopes grew when Cowdenbeath was promoted to the First Division in 1991–92. But they soon fell back to the bottom of the Scottish League. They had a tough time, going 38 league games without a win at Central Park.

New Management and Recent Successes

Things became more professional when former Scotland player Craig Levein became manager in 1997. He had started his playing career at Cowdenbeath. The team was promoted from the Third Division in the 2000–01 season. But they were moved down again two years later. After finishing third in the 2004–05 season, they had a great year.

The 2005–06 season saw the team win their first league title in 67 years. This was under player-manager Mixu Paatelainen, when they won the Third Division. In the 2008–09 season, Danny Lennon's team almost got promoted. They lost in a penalty shoot-out after a scoreless match against Stenhousemuir. However, they were promoted to the Second Division for the 2009–10 season. This happened because Livingston was moved down for breaking league rules.

Cowdenbeath started tough in the Scottish Second Division. But they soon played well and finished third. They then beat Alloa and Brechin in the play-offs to get promoted.

Ups and Downs in Recent Years

Before the 2010–11 season, Jimmy Nicholl became the new manager. They were moved down from the First Division to the Second Division on May 14, 2011. This was after losing their play-off semi-final to Brechin City. It was a big disappointment, especially after being 2–0 up in the first game.

Under new manager Colin Cameron, Cowdenbeath quickly got promoted again the next season. They won the league with two games left. The season after, they stayed in the league by winning 3–1 against Hamilton Academical. The next season, they avoided being moved down again. They beat local rivals Dunfermline Athletic 4–1 in the Championship Play Off final.

The following season, they finished last in the Championship. They lost 3–0 to Alloa Athletic on the final day. Jimmy Nicholl resigned soon after. Colin Nish took over, but Cowdenbeath was moved down again. They lost to Queen's Park in the play-offs. Nish was fired in May 2016 and replaced by Liam Fox.

Cowdenbeath continued to struggle, finishing 10th in the 2016–17 Scottish League Two. They avoided a third straight relegation by winning a play-off against East Kilbride. The 2017–18 season was also tough. Cowdenbeath finished last again and had to play in the play-offs. They survived again by beating Cove Rangers. The 2018–19 season was much better. The club finished sixth, far from the play-off spot. This improvement continued into the shorter 2019–20 season. The club finished fourth after 27 games.

In June 2020, fans donated over £14,000 through the 'Club 135' plan. This helped the club financially during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Club Records: Biggest Wins and Losses

Biggest win: 12–0 vs Johnstone in Scottish Cup on January 21, 1928

Biggest loss:

  • 1–11 vs Clyde on October 6, 1951
  • 0–10 vs Hearts on February 28, 2015

Biggest home attendance: 25,586 vs Rangers on September 21, 1949

Youngest player to debut: Peter McKean vs Forfar Athletic on November 11, 2014 (15 years and 60 days old in Scottish Championship)

Playing Squad

No. Position Player
Scotland GK Dion Gear
Scotland GK Josh Blair
Scotland GK Owen Hayward (on loan from Falkirk)
Scotland DF Conley Adamson
Scotland DF Paul McLean
Scotland DF Jack Allan
Scotland DF Jack Denham (captain)
Scotland DF Jackson Innes
Scotland DF Scott Cameron
No. Position Player
Scotland MF Danny Swanson
Scotland MF Dylan Mauchlan
Scotland MF Gary Fusco
Scotland MF Liam Watt
Scotland MF Finlay Ness
Scotland MF Jack Fisher
Scotland MF Sean Newman
Scotland MF Stuart McDowell
Scotland MF Max Williamson
England MF Nat Wedderburn
Scotland FW Darren Downie
Scotland FW Raymond Reddington
Scotland FW Zack Tomany

Club Officials

Board of Directors

Position Name
Chairman Donald Findlay
Club President Bob Brownlie
Honorary Presidents Alex Anderson & Sandy Ferguson
Finance Director David Allan
Operations Director John Cameron
Investment Director Neil Fentie
Club Director Craig Scott
Club Director Alan Smart
Club Director Aaron Dougan
Governance & Compliance Director Margaret Steven
Youth & Community Development Director Thomas Ewing
Commercial Director Malcolm Slora

Coaching Staff

Position Name
Player/Manager Paul McLean
Player/Assistant Coach Gary Fusco
Goalkeeping Coach vacant
Football Operations Co-ordinator Colin Nelson
Community Coach Dean Ewing
Sports Therapist Toni Ross
Kit Manager Dale Smart
Assistant Kit Manager Michael Dunster
Groundsman Craig Surgeon

Noted Players

These former Cowdenbeath players are in the club's Hall of Fame. Some recent players are also listed who play at a higher level in Scotland.

  • Scotland Kenny Adamson
  • Scotland Ray Allan
  • Scotland Eric Archibald
  • Scotland Richard Baillie
  • South Africa Graeme Brown
  • Scotland Liam Buchanan
  • Scotland Fraser Carver
  • Scotland William Devlin
  • Scotland John Dickson
  • Scotland Scott Duncan
  • Scotland John Falconer
  • Scotland Brian Ferrier
  • Scotland Tom Glancy
  • Scotland Charlie Gronbach
  • Scotland Craig Gordon
  • Scotland George Jordan
  • Scotland Andy Kinnell
  • Scotland Bob Law
  • Scotland Thomas Leask
  • Scotland Hookey Leonard
  • Scotland Craig Levein
  • Scotland Duncan Lindsay
  • Scotland John Martin
  • Scotland Andy Matthew
  • Scotland Jim McArthur
  • Scotland Alex Menzies
  • Scotland Willie Mercer
  • Finland Markus Paatelainen
  • Finland Mikko Paatelainen
  • Scotland Bill Paterson
  • Scotland James Pollock
  • Scotland John Pollock
  • Scotland Derek Riordan
  • Scotland Innes Ritchie
  • Scotland Andy Rolland
  • Scotland Davie Ross
  • Scotland Greg Stewart
  • Scotland Alex Venters
  • Scotland Rab Walls
  • Scotland Steven Weir
  • Scotland George Wilson
  • Scotland Craig Winter

Managers

  • Scotland John Young (−1905)
  • Scotland Joe Parker (1905–1906)
  • Scotland Sandy Paterson (1906–1924)
  • Scotland James Richardson (1924–1925)
  • Scotland Scott Duncan (1925–1932)
  • Scotland Sandy Paterson (1932–1933)
  • Scotland John Dougary (1934–1938)
  • Scotland Bill Hodge (1938–1946)
  • Scotland Willie Fotheringham (1946–1948)
  • Scotland George Sweet (1948–1951)
  • Scotland Bobby Baxter (1951–1955)
  • Scotland John Dougary (1955–1958)
  • Scotland Jimmy Mitchell (1958–1959)
  • Scotland Archie Buchanan (1959–1960)
  • Scotland Harry Colville (1960–1964)
  • Scotland Archie Robertson (1964–1968)
  • Scotland Andy Matthew (1968–1974)
  • Scotland Bert Paton (1974)
  • Scotland Dan McLindon (1974–1975)
  • Scotland Frank Connor (1975–1977)
  • Scotland Paddy Wilson (1977–1980)
  • Scotland Pat Stanton (1980)
  • Scotland Andy Rolland (1980–1982)
  • Scotland Hugh Wilson (1982–1983)
  • Scotland Willie McCulloch (1983–1984)
  • Scotland John Clark (1984–1985)
  • Scotland Joe Craig (1985–1987)
  • Scotland Dick Campbell (1987)
  • Scotland John Blackley (1987–1988)
  • Scotland John Brownlie (1988–1992)
  • Scotland Andy Harrow (1992–1993)
  • Scotland John Reilly (1993–1994)
  • Scotland Paddy Dolan (1994–1995)
  • Scotland Tom Steven (1995–1997)
  • Scotland Sammy Conn (1997)
  • Scotland Craig Levein (1997–2000)
  • Scotland Peter Cormack (2000)
  • Scotland Gary Kirk (2000–2002)
  • Scotland Keith Wright (2002–2004)
  • Scotland David Baikie (2004–2005)
  • Finland Mixu Paatelainen (2005–2006)
  • Scotland Brian Welsh (2006–2008)
  • Northern Ireland Danny Lennon (2008–2010)
  • Northern Ireland Jimmy Nicholl (2010–2011)
  • Scotland Colin Cameron (2011–2013)
  • Northern Ireland Jimmy Nicholl (2013–2015)
  • Scotland Colin Nish (2015–2016)
  • Scotland Liam Fox (2016–2017)
  • Scotland Gary Locke (2017)
  • Scotland Billy Brown (2017)
  • Scotland Gary Bollan (2017–2021)
  • Scotland Maurice Ross (2021–2023)
  • Scotland Calum Elliot(2023–2024)

Dougie Hill (2024-)

Honours: Club Achievements

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Cowdenbeath Football Club para niños

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