It seems to have had some wealthy benefactors, as the club contributed £4 to the cost of the Cup, £1 more than the well-backed Alexandra Athletic F.C.

[3] In the first round of the first competition, in the 1873–74 season, the club lost 1–0 to eventual semi-finalists Blythswood.

The club took notice of the defeat and recruited a number of the Blythswood players for 1874–75.

This was put down in part to the Western club losing several first team players for the tie, despite its high profile, and having to rely on several reserves, who had "an almost total lack of knowledge of the passing game".

[10] The club's colours were black and white stripes,[11] which in the context of the time referred to hoops.