OCs TAKE UP THE BATON

As I was pulsating to Stravinsky's "The Rite of Spring" in Sheffield City Hall this evening, performed by the Halle Orchestra, I was enjoying the conducting of Sheffield born, Ryan Wigglesworth, an Old Carthusian.

Ryan joined the school for sixth form, as a music scholar, and from there he ventured to Oxford University and Cambridge too, as a fellow of Corpus Christi College.
So Charterhouse can admit to sculpting two years of his life and this evening, I enjoyed reflecting on famous Old Carthusians.

Tomorrow is an important day for Carthusian football.
It is the First Round of The Arthur Dunn Old Boys' Cup. (I have to qualify Old Boys as those attending the Public Schools of the time). The Old Carthusians play the Old Foresters at Godalming.

The Dunn was first played for in 1902-3 and the competition was designed to revive old boys' football in the country, which was being overtaken by professionalism. Teams below are OCs.

Arthur Tempest Blakiston Dunn, an Old Etonian, who played in the FA Cup winning Old Etonian team in 1882, was behind the formation of this historic competition.
Before the Cup could get seriously under way, he tragically died, but his friends ensured that the Cup became a fitting memorial to Arthur Dunn. It has.

The following "Public" schools entered the first competition:
Bradfield, Brighton, Charterhouse, Eton, Felsted, Forest, Harrow, Lancing, Malvern, Radley, Repton, Rossall, Shrewsbury, Westminster and Winchester.

Forest School in Snaresbrook, Essex, produced two internationals namely Percy Fairclough in 1878 and FRED PELLY in 1893-4. Present Old Carthusian, Fred Palley, may be amused.
Forest School is the only school to have played in the FA Cup, reaching the quarter-finals in 1993-4 and losing to Great Marlow. The boys also played ties against Preston North End (lost) in their pomp, Grimsby Town (won) , Middlesbrough (lost) and Watford Rovers (lost) through till 1888-9.
The school would claim to be very much part of the foundation of the FA, just as Charterhouse can.
The Old Carthusians have won the cup more than any other team.
Last season the 100th Arthur Dunn Cup Final took place at the Imperial Sports Ground, Teddington and the OCs beat the OFs 3-0 after extra time. Good game! Matthew Bailey hold aloft the ADC.