Orion F.C.

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Orion Football Club were a Scottish football team who played in the city of Aberdeen between 1885 and 1903.

They were one of the three clubs who merged on the 14th of April 1903 to form the current Aberdeen FC; the other two being Aberdeen F.C. (1881) and Victoria United.^[1]

[edit] The Mix-up

Bon Accord F.C. were another football team from Aberdeen, Scotland who suffered the worst defeat in any British senior football match, losing 36-0 to Arbroath F.C. on September 12, 1885 in a first round match of the Scottish Cup. Thirteen goals were scored by centre-forward John Petrie, a Scottish Cup record.

Arbroath were an established team whereas Bon Accord were in reality a cricket team, Orion Cricket Club, who were mistakenly invited to enter the Scottish Cup instead of Orion FC, an Aberdeen football club. The name "Bon Accord" was used to commemorate the watchword that initiated the storming of the Castle of Aberdeen during the Wars of Scottish Independence. At the time, any Scottish-based team could enter the Cup without any previous experience. Today however, the requirements for entering senior competitions such as the Scottish Cup mean that the record is unlikely ever to be beaten.

Bon Accord do not seem to have had a single shot at goal. James Milne, the Arbroath goalkeeper, spent most of the match sheltering from the rain under an umbrella he borrowed from a spectator. Some accounts say he never touched the ball during the entire match.^[2] At the other end, Andrew Lornie, was beaten at least 36 times.

Amazingly, in the same competition on the same day, Dundee Harp beat Aberdeen Rovers 35-0. The referee had counted the score as 37-0 but the club secretary of Dundee Harp recorded only 35 goals. Ironically, the lower figure was agreed upon.^[3]