HISTORY

 

Formation and early years (1891–1933)

Originally named Leeside FC (founded in 1891) and joining the junior ranks in 1892, the club were later renamed, Clyde Rovers in 1896 before merging with Cambuslang Rovers and another Cambuslang based side, Halfway FC in 1899. In their first year The club shared grounds with the now defunct Cambuslang FC. Following Cambuslang FC's demise in 1897, Clyde Rovers took control of Bogshole Park, later to be renamed Mains Park which would be retained following the merger. Cambuslang Rangers FC would also play matches at Westburn Park where Cambuslang Hibernian were previously situated.

In 1904 Cambuslang Rangers moved to their new home ground, Somervell Park, which has remained their home since. In the 1910–11 season, Cambuslang Rangers achieved their first successes by winning the Glasgow Junior League and Glasgow Junior Cup double. That would kick off the club's first spell of success as they went on to win the league in 1911–12, 1914–15 and 1915–16 before the Glasgow Junior League dissolved in 1927. The Lang would also win the Glasgow Junior Cup three more times (in 1920–21, 1926–27 and 1932–33 respectively) during this period.

First Scottish Junior Cup (1933–59)

The club would win their first Scottish Junior Cup in the 1937–38 season. They had previously reached the final twice before, finishing runners up in 1919–20 & 1926–27. This time though it would be Cambuslang who would lift the trophy after two goals from Taylor and another from McGhie secured a 3–2 win over Benburb FC infront of a crowd of 28,000. The Glasgow Junior Cup was lifted once again in the 1946–47 season.

Cambuslang Rangers Celebrate Winning the Scottish Junior Cup in Season 1973/74

Dominance (1959–1974)

The 1959–60 season would set the foundations for a spell of dominance in the Junior game as Cambuslang Rangers beat Thorniewood United 2–0 to win the West Of Scotland Cup. In the 1960-61 season, Cambuslang lost in the finals of five different competitions, including the West of Scotland Cup and the Scottish Junior Cup. The club would again lift the Glasgow Junior Cup in 1963–64, doing the same again in two consecutive seasons between 1965 and 1967 before the club achieved four more Scottish Junior Cup triumphs in the space of just six years. The first of these ended a 31-year wait, having lost in three previous finals during that time (1944–45, 1960–61 and 1963–64). Cambuslang Rangers would face Kirkintilloch Rob Roy in the 1968–69 final, with a single goal from Keith Nelson being enough to separate the sides and give Cambuslang their second Scottish Junior Cup. This achievement proceeded two consecutive Central League Cups (in 1968–69 and 1969–70), four Central League titles in a row (1970 to 1974) and the Central Sectional League Cup in the 1970–71 season.There was also three further Scottish Junior Cups won between 1970 and 1974 taking the club's tally to five. The club would beat Newtongrange Star 2–1 in 1971 before repeating the achievement, this time overcoming Bonnyrigg Rose 3–2 after goals from Cummings, McCallum and Brown. Cambuslang's string of trophies only split by a single defeat in the 1972–73 final second replay by the hands of Irvine Meadow, losing by 1–0 after the previous two matches were drawn 2–2 and 3–3. However, despite the setback Cambuslang Rangers completed the Junior Cup dominance in the following season, defeating Linlithgow Rose 3–1 with Cummings again getting on the scoresheet twice and Morrison also bagging a goal to complete The Lang's Scottish Junior Cup triumphs to date.

The dormant years (1975–1999)

Cambuslang struggled to replicate their achievements and it took over ten years for them to win another trophy. In 1986 the club won the Central District First Division title, and managed to repeat this in the 1989–90 and 1990–91 seasons – that 1990–91 side also won the Evening Times Cup Winners Cup making it a double for that season.

Millennial era (2000–2018)

Despite winning the Central Sectional League Cup again in the 2000–01 season Cambuslang Rangers again continued to struggle in terms of success during the 2000s. As the 2010s began a spell of success seemed to be returning after the club's Central District Second Division league win in 2013 was later followed by a Glasgow Junior Cup in the 2015–16 campaign under the leadership of former player Paul McColl. During a match against Wishaw, 2017 Under McColl's management, Cambuslang Rangers would continue to succeed on the park as they won back-to-back promotions in the 2016–17 and 2017–18 seasons before he left his position in January 2019.

Financial difficulties and re-emergence (2019–Present)

Whilst all was seemingly going well on the park behind the scenes, Cambuslang Rangers had financial difficulties which culminated in the club being on the verge of extinction at the end of 2018. This led to the club having to let go of most of their players, with only two opting to stay, and committee members resigning from their positions. In January 2019, local businessman David Kerr stepped up and took charge of the club. Following the departure of McColl, the club would have to appoint a new manager and draft in players to see out the 2018–19 season.After successfully completing the season, the club introduced an academy set-up with the aim to develop local young players for the first team with age groups ranging from 'Camby Cubs' to U21s. In May 2020, the club announced that under-21 players Scott Williamson and Campbell Gray would be the first players in the club's history to graduate from the youth academy to the first team. The club also announced that Billy Campbell and Paul McColl would be co-managers for the 2020–21 campaign.