Raith Rovers F.C.

Beginnings and name

The modern Raith Rovers were founded in 1883 in the Scottish town of Kirkcaldy, playing first at Sands Brae, now part of the Esplanade, then Robbie's Park. Though there were other teams who incorporated the town name, such as Kirkcaldy Wanderers and Kirkcaldy United, Raith became the most successful of the local teams, winning five trophies in the 1890s. There had been a much earlier (and unrelated) Raith Rovers which merged with what is now Cowdenbeath in 1882. Although it lends its name to many entities in the region, Raith is not itself a settlement. A Raith Rovers victory in the 1960s led to a BBC commentator's blunder that the fans would be "dancing in the streets of Raith tonight". Although commonly attributed to David Coleman, it was actually said by Sam Leitch. Raith (Scottish Gaelic: rath, "fort" or "fortified residence") as an area once stretched from south of Loch Gelly as far as Kirkcaldy and the Battle of Raith was once theorised to have been fought here in 596 AD. Raith House and Raith Tower sit on Cormie Hill to the west of Kirkcaldy and several parts of the town are built on land formerly of the Raith Estate, although the modern housing estate bearing the Raith name dates from long after the origins of the team. A mixture of local success and ambition took the club into the senior leagues where they established themselves and thereby became the pre-eminent team in the town. The club became a senior team in 1889 around the same…

Managers of the club have included:

1945–1961: Bert Herdman – Oversaw some of the club's most successful seasons and a sustained period in the top flight. 1964–1967, 1971–1974: George Farm – In a career of distinction in both playing and managing, Farm included a promotion success with Raith among the numerous achievements he enjoyed throughout his career. 1986–1990: Frank Connor – Took the club from depths of the Second Division to a solid First Division spot. 1990–1996: Jimmy Nicholl – Manager (and player until 1994) who won two First Division titles, the historic League Cup victory and oversaw Rovers' only foray into European competition. Raith Rovers have appointed 34 permanent managers since World War II:

Scottish Football League Division Two / Scottish First Division Winners: 1907–08, 1909–10, 1937–38, 1948–49, 1992–93, 1994–95 Runners-up: 1908–09, 1926–27, 1966–67, 2010–11 Scottish Second Division / Scottish League One: Winners: 2002–03, 2008–09, 2019–20 Runners-up: 1975–76, 1977–78, 1986–87, 2017–18 Scottish Cup: Runners-up: 1912–13 Scottish League Cup: Winners: 1994–95 Runners-up: 1948–49 Scottish Challenge Cup: Winners: 2013–14, 2019–20, 2021–22, 2025–26 Runners-up: 2022–23 B Division Supplementary Cup: Runners-up: 1946–47, 1948–49 Scottish Qualifying Cup: Winners: 1906–07 Runners-up: 1907–08

Minor honours

Fife Cup: Winners (35): 1891–92, 1893–94, 1897–98, 1898–99, 1905–06, 1908–09, 1914–15, 1920–21, 1921–22, 1922–23, 1924–25, 1929–30, 1947–48, 1950–51, 1955–56, 1956–57, 1961–62, 1966–67, 1967–68, 1968–69, 1971–72, 1975–76, 1980–81, 1986–87, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2001–02, 2003–04, 2011–12 Shared (4): 1952–53, 1954–55, 1959–60, 1965–66 Runners-up (23): 1892–93, 1900–01, 1904–05, 1910–11, 1915–16, 1917–18, 1923–24, 1928–29, 1930–31, 1932–33, 1938–39, 1953–54, 1957–58, 1960–61, 1964–65, 1978–79, 1982–83, 1987–88, 1996–97, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2004–05, 2007–08 King Cup: Winners (3): 1890–91, 1898–99, 1900–01 Wemyss Cup: Winners (8): 1897–98, 1900–01, 1903–04, 1904–05, 1905–06, 1914–15, 1920–21, 1938–39 Shared (1): 1937–38 Stark Cup: Winners (2): 1908–09, 1911–12 Shared (2): 1909–10, 1910–11 Penman Cup: Winners (8):…