30 August 1913: The first ever match played at the Gillespie Road ground, later renamed Highbury. It was the third training match of the pre-season, with the previous two being played at Fulham and Millwall as the pitch was not ready. This game was played behind closed doors, and was probably between the first team and the reserves although no exact details are available.
30 August 1919: Arsenal started the longest run in the top division in the history of English football, by coincidence playing the same team that they played in their first league game. The match was lost 0-1 to Newcastle. It was also the first match as manager for Leslie Knighton plus the first appearance of Alfred Baker, Henry White and Ernie Williamson. Although Arsenal’s rise to the 1st Division is often told as being corrupt, it actually came about in part through revelation by Arsenal’s chairman of the match-fixing of other teams and his demand for the corruption to be resolved.
