On Sunday 15 May 1994, in front of almost 9,000 football spectators, Largs Thistle Football Club won the Scottish Junior Cup at Ibrox Park, Glasgow, against hot favourites Glenafton Athletic, 1-0, with the winning goal being scored by Pat McCurdy.
The winning team consisted of Kenny Barnstaple, Frank Morrison, Andy Elliot, Barclay Feeney, Jimmy Murray, David Elliot, Adam Russell, Alan Rodgers, Pat McCurdy, Archie Halley and Stephen Quigg. The substitutes were Stephen Phairs and George Wall. The team were wearing their brand new black and gold football strip with Fry-Fare emblazoned across them, presented by their sponsor Giancarlo Bertozzi, owner of the Fry-Fare Restaurant in Nelson Street, Largs.
In Largs, the pubs organised buses to transport the club’s supporters to Ibrox Park. Organisations such as the Boys Brigade and the Largs Golf Club also arranged buses. On the day of the match, The Smugglers Bar and Flannigan’s Bar both organised face-painting events in the club colours starting at noon until the buses left at 1.15pm. Flannigan’s Bar sold over 1,000 specially printed helium balloons at £1 each with the proceeds being donated to Largs Thistle. Over 20 buses left Largs with supporters, plus additional buses left from Cumbrae, Skelmorlie, Fairlie, West Kilbride, Kilbirnie and Greenock. The Largs shops draped their windows in the new team colours of black and gold and throughout the town football paraphernalia was sold.
At Ibrox Park, Largs Thistle were given the Rangers dressing room, although their supporters were seated at the Celtic end of the field. The football game was televised by STV. The team were led onto the Ibrox football field by their mascot, nine-year-old David Cunningham of Largs, who was kitted out in a replica kit. David had won the chance to be their mascot out of a large number of applicants. Along with his parents, he was treated to a special lunch at Love Street, Paisley and got to meet the Largs Thistle Football team prior to the match.
In the second half of the game, four red cards were issued to Kennedy, Murray, Gray and Andy Elliot of Largs Thistle which resulted in the Largs Thistle Football Club later being fined £1,500. To help pay the costs, Labour MP Brian Wilson held a lottery for a bottle of House of Commons Whisky which was signed by the Largs Thistle team.
The Largs Thistle team returned to a triumphant welcome around 7pm, with the residents of Largs packing the streets. The team carried the Scottish Junior Cup Trophy into the bars as they made their way to ‘The Fiddlers’ where the official celebration disco was being held. Along the way the team posed for photographs with their supporters.
The Largs pubs organised several forms of entertainment and applied for late licences enabling them to stay open until 2am. The Overdraught Bar (now Sharps) organised a barbecue and buffet; Flannigan’s Bar hosted an evening of live Scottish and Irish music and the Clachan Bar employed a DJ for the evening. The partying continued into the night as the townsfolk of Largs celebrated Largs Thistle’s biggest win.
Following the disco at The Fiddlers, the Thistle team and their wives and partners stayed at ‘The Queens Hotel’, Largs (which was demolished in 2021). On 16 June 1994 Cunninghame District Council held a civic reception at the Inverclyde National Sports Centre to honour the Largs Thistle team. Thistle team manager, John Crawford, was awarded the Manager of the Year trophy. A gala dinner was held to honour the Largs Thistle football club on Friday 01 July 1994 at Nardini’s restaurant.
A full break-down of the football game can be found in the Largs & Millport Weekly News archives held at the Irvine Townhouse. Largs Thistle has since reached the Scottish Junior Cup final twice. In 2010 when Linlithgow Rose won 1-0 and again in 2019 when Auchinleck Talbot won 2-0.