The 1887–88 English football season was Aston Villa's 9th season in the Football Association Cup, the top-level football competition at the time. It was not as successful ending. As late as 1901, in the warm weather months, Villa would forgo their heavier woollen club colours in favour of thin cotton red shirts .Aston Villa, Sports Argus, 14 September 1901
With competitive football at a premium, William McGregor (Villa's President) worked to create a competition involving regular matches and wrote to the leading clubs of the time (all based in the North of England and the Midlands). After some discussion the clubs agreed to set up a twelve team league. Each club would play the other home and away, for a total of twenty-two matches each. Villa were to be joined in the inaugural competition by Stoke, Wolves, West Brom, Notts County, Burnley, Blackburn Rovers, Derby County, Bolton Wanderers, Everton, Accrington (no relation to the present-day Accrington Stanley) and Preston North End. The league was never styled 'the English League' as McGregor envisioned that Scottish clubs would one day wish to join.
FA Cup
3rd Round: Aston Villa received a bye
Birmingham Senior Cup
Birmingham Charity Cup Walsall Town F.C. and Walsall Swifts F.C. had amalgamated. Walsall Town Swifts' inaugural match was a 0–0 draw against Aston Villa in the Birmingham Charity Cup final on 9 April 1888. A disagreement over the venue of the replay meant Aston Villa were awarded the trophy. Players There were debuts for Gershom Cox, Harry Devey, Tommy Green and Albert Allen. Inside-forward Allen became Villa's first England international p10, The Aston Villa Miscellany David Woodhall, 2007. scoring three goals in a 5–1 victory over Ireland in April 1888. References
External links Aston Villa official website