page_title: Lancashire County Rugby Football Union
section_title: Formation of a Football Union
hierarchical_section_title: Lancashire County Rugby Football Union / History / Formation of a Football Union
caption_attribution_description: English: The Lancashire County rugby union team that played Middlesex County at the Jubilee Football Festival, 12 March 1887. See uncropped image for player and club information.
context_page_description: The Lancashire County Rugby Football Union is the society responsible for rugby union in the county of Lancashire, England, and is one of the constituent bodies of the national Rugby Football Union having been formed in 1881. In addition it is the county that has won the County Championship on most occasions.
context_section_description: From 1870 to 1881 the government and arrangement of county matches in Lancashire vested in Manchester Football Club. Though self-appointed, Manchester FC was recognised as the authority by the other great Lancashire club, Liverpool St. Helens. A movement of emerging new clubs, headed by W. Bell, the honorary secretary of the Broughton FC, had an objective to secure a voice in the selection of county teams. Bell was supported by an informal committee consisting of: G. C. Lindsay (Manchester Rangers), A. M. Crook (Free Wanderers), F. C. Hignett (Swinton), Hunter (Birch). 
  Initial approaches to the Manchester Club were declined and in 1881 a general meeting of Lancashire clubs was called at which the following clubs were represented: Manchester Rangers; Free Wanderers; Broughton; Swinton; Walton; Rossendale; Oldham; Manchester Athletic; Rochdale Hornets; Chorley Birch; and Cheetham. Notably, the Manchester Club did not take part, but a resolution to form the Lancashire Football Union was agreed. The initial committee had W. Bell as its honorary secretary and G. C. Lindsay as the honorary treasurer. 
  Two county matches were arranged altogether versus the Midland Counties and Lanarkshire (Scotland). Manchester then decided to wrest control of the county back and on 22 December 1881 met with the new Union and a duly constituted and representative governing body, its club to be called The Lancashire County Football Club, was formed. It was agreed the president, a vice-president, the hon. secretary and treasurer should be elected from the Manchester Football Club, a vice-president and a member of committee from the Liverpool Club, and the remaining eight names to be elected from clubs other than the Manchester and Liverpool clubs. Also, all Home County matches would be played on the ground of the Manchester Football Club. The first officers and clubs elected to represent the newly formed Lancashire County Football Club were:
  PRESIDENT : James MacLaren, Esq. (Manchester).
  VICE-PRESIDENTS : W. Brierley, Esq. (Manchester) ; E. Kewley, Esq. (Liverpool).
  HON. SECRETARY AND TREASURER : W. Grave, Esq. (Manchester).
  COMMITTEE : Manchester, Liverpool, Broughton, Cheetham, Preston, Manchester Rangers, Rochdale Hornets, Oldham, Swinton, and Free Wanderers.
  The first match was versus the Midland Counties (the Lanarkshire match having been cancelled), played at Coventry on 26 March 1882. Albert Neilson Hornby became president after James MacLaren resigned the office on 1 October 1884. Lancashire was part of the Queen's Jubilee celebrations in 1887 when they were asked to play Middlesex at Kennington Oval on 12 March as a representation of Rugby Football, whilst Corinthians played Preston North End as an exposition of Association rules. Lancashire, led by Edward Temple Gurdon, won by a try, gained by Vincent Slater (Salford).
  In February 1889 it was proposed that the county shall be divided out into five districts (Manchester, Liverpool, South-East Lancashire, West Lancashire, and North Lancashire) each with three representatives, removing club based representation on the committee.
caption: The Lancashire team before a match against Middlesex in 1887
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