Information sought on the Larne Mineral Water Company Cup?

The museum holds over 17,500 items relating to the history of the borough and a significant proportion of these are sporting artefacts and memorabilia. As 2012 is the year for all things sporting, staff at Larne Museum & Arts Centre are keen to hear from anyone who can shed some light on their latest acquisition.

The item in question came into the hands of the museum when the Eagle Bar sadly called time on last orders a few weeks ago. The proprietors left a football trophy into the museum, of which they had been the proud winners, in 1995.

The Larne Mineral Water Company donated the trophy as a prize for inter-club competitions in mid and east Antrim. The inscription on the trophy reads, “Larne Mineral Water Company’s Cup presented for competition between Mid and East Antrim Football Clubs, January 1897”.

Winners engraved on the trophy indicate that Eagle Rangers FC were the final winners in 1994 – 1995, and it can be inferred that the competition was not held again after this date.

Staff at Larne Museum and Arts Centre would like to try and discover any additional information about the league or competition in which it was used.

Do you know anything about this piece of Larne’s sporting history? Do you know how often the competition was held, how it was organised or which teams took part?

If you can help, telephone Larne Museum on 2827 9482, email [email protected] or drop in at 2 Victoria Road, Larne.