By The Shaggy Dog
October 16 2002

He's back! The Shaggy Dog returns with some more incredible research into the history of Hartlepool - and discovers that the first ever International Match came about because of the town... The role of Hartlepool in history is one that has any number of surprises for those prepared to research it. Football is also tied up in the history of the town in unexpected and often unlikely ways.

For example, did you know that in the 13th Century, Hartlepool was owned by one Robert Bruce? If the name seems familiar, it may be because his Grandson, who adopted "the" as his middle name, was the famous Scottish King who fought King Edward the Second. But did you know that Hartlepool was one of the sources of friction between the two kings?

You see, while the Bruce family had been in charge of Hartlepool for many years, as soon as young Robert was offered the Scotland job he was forced to give Hartlepool up. He wasn't very happy about this, and decided to try and win the town back from the English. His chosen method was a Football Match....

And so, on 23rd June 1314, the first International Match took place between England and Scotland in a field near Bannockburn. Both kings turned up to watch, together with a large following of supporters from both countries. The baying of the crowd greeted the two teams as they trooped onto the pitch, and reached a crescendo as the Umpire threw the ball into the air and promptly got trampled to the ground underneath a scrum of Scots in Blue and English in White - soon to become more than a little muddy.

As with all early football matches, the supporters didn't have much to see; and the scrum of human flesh gradually moved one way and the other as both sides looked to find a way through. Before long the English gained possession, and advanced down the pitch; just as star striker Michael FitzOwen was about to shoot though he was crudely beaten down from behind by David the Keeper of the Weir and play continued with the Scots on the attack - until their forward Donald son of Hutch was similarly felled by Gareth of the South Gate.

The match continued on in this vein for a couple of hours without score, but finally the English thought they had their breakthrough. Alan the Smith wrestled his way past the Scottish defence and finished superbly to put the English into the lead - or did he? The Assistant Umpire looked at the massed Scottish beards behind him, and promptly raised his flag; and the goal was disallowed.

Uproar followed; fighting broke out all over the pitch, and Edward accused the Bruce of being a Cheat. This didn't go down well, and the Bruce in turn landed one on the English King. This was the signal for both sets of supporters to attack each other, and so shortly after the first International Football Match came the first International Football Violence as the reprehensible scenes carried on almost until dusk.

No conclusions had been reached as the shadows lengthened, but neither side was prepared to let it rest. In true playground fashion both sides threatened the other that they'd be back tomorrow - and they'd be ready. The following day, 24th June, saw both sides meeting up with weapons at the ready, and what became known as the Battle of Bannockburn saw the Scots win a famous victory over the English.

Robert the Bruce was to say the least annoyed though to discover that Edward not only refused to give him Hartlepool back, but went there himself and started spreading rumours about the Bruce having cheated; feeling very hard done by, he went on to raid the town the following year.

It's a sad fact that from it's earliest roots some people have used football as an excuse for violence, but let's hope that matters continue to get better - and let's face it, after the repercussions of the Bannockburn match things have improved out of sight!