Thistles vs. Seattle at Madison Street Park
A tight, 1-0 match between the Ballard Thistles and a Seattle team ends in a contentious, injury-marred struggle.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
The opening game of an association football tournament between the Thistles, of Ballard, and the Seattle team at Madison Street Park was a contest for the ages. Seattle won the toss, and the Thistles kept the ball rushed into the Seattle goal for the greater part of the first half-hour. Seattle steadied the game and would have scored but for the quickness of the goal tender, George Pines. The play was marked by a stubborn resistance on each side, the deadlock being broken by Seattle securing the ball on a long shot of the Thistles' goal. On a quick, combined rush, the ball was sent through the goal, counting one. The last ten minutes of play saw the Thistles struggle desperately, but time was called with the score 1-0 in favor of Seattle. The close of the game was unfortunate for the Thistles, as their goal tender, Joseph Donohue, suffered a severe injury to the knee. He was taken from the field, but it is expected he will play soon.
“The play was marked by a stubborn resistance on each side, the deadlock being broken by Seattle securing the ball on a long shot of the Thistles' goal.”
This early 1890s match captures a formative moment for Seattle's sports culture. Today, Madison Street Park no longer hosts competitive soccer, but the city's obsession with the sport remains a defining civic trait, linking the amateur matches of the 19th century to the professional landscape of the Sounders.
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