Ayr United

Kit History

1875 n

1876-1879 n

1872-1879 n

1879-1884 k n

1884-1894 n

1894-1895 n

1895-1896 n

1896-1899 n

1899-1903 n

1901-1903 a k

1909-1910 k

1890-1892 n

1892-1894 n

1894-1898 a n

circa 1899-1910 k n

1910-1914 a k

1914-1916 n

1916-1919 n

1919-1920 k n

1920-1922 n

1922-1923 n

1923-1925 n

1926-1931 k n

1931-1933 n

1933-1934 n

1934-1938 j k n

1938-1940 n

1945-1948 k

1948-1950 k

1950-1951 n

1952-1956 a k m n

1956-1958 n

1958-1962 n

1962-1963 n

1963-1964 k n

1964-1965 n

1965-1967 n

1965-1968 b n

1968-1973 a g k n

1973-1975 k n

1975-1977 d k

Umbro

1977-1978 n

Umbro

1979-1980 h k

Umbro

1980-1981 m

Umbro

1981-1982 l

Umbro

1984-1987 d k

Umbro

1987-1988 a k

Bukta

1988-1990 h k

Ribero

1990-1991 k

Ribero

1991-1992 k

Ribero

1992-1993 k

Ribero

1993-1994 h k

Core

1994-1995 k l

1996-1997 a l

circa 1997 l

circa 1998 l

1999-2000 h

2000-2001 e

2001-2002 l

2002-2003 a h

2003-2004 d

2004-2005 d l

2005-2006 c

2006-2007 a l o

Lotto

2007-2008 a

Surridge

2008-2009 a

Background

Ayr FC was formed when Ayr Thistle FC and Ayr Academicals merged in 1879. In 1885 they won the Kilmarnock Charity Cup and Ayr Charity Cup. In May 1888 the club played the prestigious Aston Villa at their new Somerset Park ground, recording a very creditable 2-0 win. In 1893, having turned professional, Ayr joined the Ayrshire Combination League. They were elected to Scottish League Division Two in 1897 at the third attempt.

Ayr had to seek re-election in 1899 and 1900 but their fortunes improved after they won the Ayrshire Cup in 1901 and they finished third three times in succession between 1901 and 1904. Meanwhile their local rivals, Ayr Parkhouse were seeking re-election to the Second Division. The Ayr directors campaigned against Parkhouse’s application and they duly lost their place.

It was generally accepted that the town of Ayr could not support two senior sides and there was certainly no prospect of First Division football coming to the town unless the two clubs joined forces. After protracted negotiations, a merger was agreed. On 9 April 1910, Ayr beat Parkhouse 1-0 in the Ayrshire Cup Final, the last time the two clubs played as independent entities.

Ayr Parkhouse took its name from Parkhouse Farm where the players trained. After becoming a senior side in 1889, a fierce rivalry was sparked when an official from Ayr FC tried to poach Parkhouse’s best players. The club joined the Ayrshire League in 1891 but, unlike their rivals, they remained an amateur team. In 1893 they joined Ayr FC in the Ayrshire Combination League and won the Ayrshire Charity Cup, going on to retain the trophy a remarkable five times in succession.

By the turn of the century Parkhouse’s initial hostility to the introduction of a national league had waned. Their fellow amateurs, Queen’s Park had been admitted to the First Division and in 1901 the Parkhouse directors applied to join Scottish Division Two but were turned down. The following season, after winning the Ayrshire Cup for the first time and finishing runners-up in the Scottish Amateur League, Ayr Parkhouse were succesful, beating St Johnstone by a single vote.

The season was a disaster and, after finishing in last place, Parkhouse failed re-election. When the machinations of the Ayr FC directors came to light the bitterness between the two clubs reached a new pitch.

In 1905 the club decided to embrace professionalism and in 1906 they were elected back into an expanded Second Division. In 1910 the acrimony between the two clubs was finally laid to rest with the decision to merge and form Ayr United.

The creation of Ayr United is the only occasion on which two Scottish League clubs have combined. The new club played in crimson and gold jerseys (the colours of Ayr FC) and navy knickers (the colours of Ayr Parkhouse) and moved into Somerset Park, the previous home of Ayr. The club is nicknamed “The Honest Men” from the poem “Tam O’Shanter" by Robert Burns, Scotland’s national poet and a native of Ayrshire.

The wisdom of the merger soon became evident: United were elected to Scottish Division One in 1913 having finished as runners-up once (1911) and champions twice (1912 and 1913). (This was before automatic promotion and relegation).

They stayed in the top flight until 1925 achieving their highest ever position of fourth in 1916. In 1928 they won the Second Division championship thanks to their prodigious forward Jimmy Smith (66 league goals and a total of 84 in 50 games - a record that stands to this day) but Ayr dropped into the Second Division again in 1936. They returned immediately, again as divisional champions. When competition was suspended with the outbreak of the Second World War, Ayr United were a well-established First Division team. It therefore came as a shock when they were placed in Division B (i.e. tier two) when the league programme was reinstated in 1946.

It was not until 1956 that United returned to Division One only to be relegated after one season. They won the Second Division title again in 1959 only to drop back down immediately once more and by 1964 they were in danger of going out of business altogether.

The appointment of Ally McLeod, first as player and then as player-manager marked a turning point in the club’s fortunes. Promoted in 1969, United more than held their own and in 1975 they were placed in the new ten-team Scottish Premier League by virtue of their league position despite a playing staff of part-timers. They remained in the top flight until 1978.

Times since then have been hard and in 1985 Ayr were in the Second Division (third tier). With Ally McLeod again in charge, they won promotion as champions in 1988 and two years later the club turned fully professional. During the 1990s the club struggled to make ends meet and spend four seasons back in the third tier but since 1998 they managed to consolidate in the First Division and harbour ambitions of returning to the Premier League. Plans to build a new stadium and retail development were finally scuppered by the Scottish Executive in 2002 after four years of planning appeals.

The club has developed a formidable reputation as Cup team and has a strong youth policy but has been unable to hold on to its league position and are currently playing in Division Two (third tier).

Historical Football Kits

Kit History

Background

Sources