25.6.13

Penarol vs Albion 1900


Peñarol did not officially adopt the name of the suburb in which they played until 1913-14, but it seems that the name was used as a shorthand for the The Central Uruguay Railway Cricket Club long before that.
This poster advertisePeñarol vs Albion at Gran Parque Central, Montevideo on 29th July 1900. Admission free...
Why these two clubs should be contesting  la Gran Copa de Oro de la Liga Argentina is a mystery to me...or is my Spanish letting me down?
The two sides played each other in the first round of the Tie Cup  on  5.8.1900, Albion winning 1-0 after extra time at Deutscher's ground.1900 was also the first season of league football in Uruguay and CURCC were undefeated  (they played Albion on June 10th. I'm not sure of the date of the second meeting).
Albion and CURCC were the original big two in Uruguay football. Both founded in 1891 they met on 25 occasions between 1892 and 1899. Albion generally enjoyed the upper hand in these 19th century encounters.
Peñarol, of course, went on to be a continuing major force, whereas Albion dropped out of the top flight in 1908 and have been involved in minor leagues ever since.