The 1904–05 season was the first season in the history of Hull City Association Football Club, during which they only competitively participated in the FA Cup.
Summary Hull City A.F.C. were founded on 28 June 1904. As the new 1904–05 season was set to begin by the end of the summer, the club had no time to apply for admission to the Football League. As a result, they were left to compete solely in the FA Cup. However, prior to their cup debut, the Tigers faced a District XI, a team composed of players from amateur sides from around East Yorkshire. This was the club's first-ever match, and they won 5–0 at The Boulevard. On 1 September, Hull drew 2–2 with First Division side Notts County, in what was their first official friendly.
In the FA Cup, the Tigers, as they would come to be known, had been drawn at home to Stockton in the preliminary round. However, due to Hull F.C. needing to use The Boulevard, the game was moved to the Victoria Ground. On 17 September, the two teams played out a thrilling 3–3 draw in Hull's first-ever competitive fixture. Although they lost the replay 4–1, the debutants could be certain that they had begun their journey in professional football.
For the remainder of the season, Hull gained fitness and momentum as a club by playing more than 40 friendlies against teams from all over England.
Misconceptions Management There are two prevalent myths that surround Hull City's first season in professional football. One of these concerns local businessman John Ramster. Sometimes referred to as Jack or James Ramster, he is often cited as the club's first-ever manager, supposedly taking charge for the entirety of the 1904–05 season. In reality, he was simply just a member of the board of directors who had helped to establish the team. The confusion likely stems from a prospectus dated August 1904, which published the names and professions of the club's 16 founding directors. Ramster is listed as a "manager", but this actually refers to his ownership of the Arts and Sports Club, a social venue in Hull which had previously held meetings for precursors of Hull City. There is a strong chance that the board did play a role in selecting the team for matches during their inaugural campaign, but it was not solely up to them. Instead, sources often note the importance of trainer Bill Leach, although he was far from the true definition of a manager. Ambrose Langley would eventually become the first to officially fulfil that role, doing so as player-manager the following season.
Kits The other misconception from Hull's 1904–05 season involves the kits that the club wore. An idea exists that Hull wore white home shirts in their earliest years, rather than their traditional black and amber ones. This comes from a photograph frequently captioned as showing the teams of both Hull and Notts County ahead of their friendly on 1 September 1904. One side is dressed in white and black stripes, presumed to be the visitors, whilst the other is seen wearing plain white shirts. However, when analysing the people in the photo, it is clear that it was not taken before this game. In truth, it depicts a charity match held on 22 February 1906, which was played to raise money for the families of two local men who had died in the sinking of a tugboat in the Humber the previous month. Although that photograph is misleading, there is another which adds to the myth of the white shirts. Despite this, it is also clear that Hull definitely wore black and amber from the very beginning. This is because the image is of the Hull team, dressed in white shirts, ahead of their home friendly against Bradford City on 12 November 1904. That game, as highlighted by a post-match news report, saw the hosts forced to change their shirts to avoid clashing with their opponents' traditional claret and amber strip. The report also confirms that, even by this time, Hull were known as "the wearers of amber and black".
Competitions FA Cup
Matches
#DateHomeResultAwayVenueAtt.ScorersPR17.09.04Stockton3–3Hull CityA4,000, Spence, HowePR22.09.04Stockton4–1Hull CityA4,000Spence
Squad Name Position Nationality Place of birth Date of birth (age) Previous club Date signed Fee GoalkeepersGeorge CookGKWelton-le-Wold3 September 1877 (age 26)Brunswick Institute1904UnknownJimmy WhitehouseGKBirmingham14 April 1873 (age 31) Third Lanark1904Unknown DefendersMark AndrewsFBStowmarketDecember 1878 (age 25)Hessle1904UnknownGeorge BrooksHBHull10 May 1880 (age 24)Unattached1904—Michael CarneyHBBeverley8 December 1879 (age 24)Beverley TownApril 1905UnknownHarry DaviesFBTibberton13 December 1875 (age 28)Doncaster Rovers1 April 1905UnknownWalter GoodinFBHull22 April 1883 (age 22)Beverley TownApril 1905UnknownTom Jones (c)FBNewport30 September 1877 (age 26) Belfast Celtic1904UnknownAmbrose LangleyFBHorncastle10 March 1870 (age 34)The WednesdayApril 1905UnknownJoe LeiperFBPartick15 March 1873 (age 31) MotherwellAugust 1904UnknownBill MartinHBPoplar27 April 1883 (age 21)Millwall AthleticAugust 1904UnknownAndrew RaisbeckHBSlamannan10 April 1881 (age 23)LiverpoolAugust 1904UnknownBilly ThorntonHBSheffield16 March 1883 (age 21)Doncaster RoversFebruary 1905UnknownFred WolfeHBWest Ham3 September 1883 (age 20)Colne1904Unknown AttackersPeter HoweCFSunderland18 October 1884 (age 19)Reading1904UnknownOscar MackrillIFHull5 March 1884 (age 20)Old Hymerians1904UnknownJack ManningOFBoston8 March 1886 (age 19)Boston TownApril 1905UnknownGeorge RushtonOFStoke7 October 1880 (age 23)Brighton and Hove Albion1904UnknownGeorge SpenceIFRothesay27 September 1877 (age 26)Southampton1904UnknownHarry WilkinsonOFBury30 April 1883 (age 21)Manchester United1904Loan
Notes
References Hull City 1904–05 Hull City match record: 1905 Hull squad