The 1936 National Challenge Cup was the annual open cup held by the United States Football Association now known as the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup

Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup

The Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup is a knockout tournament in American soccer. The tournament is the oldest ongoing American soccer competition and is presently open to all United States Soccer Federation affiliated teams, from amateur adult club teams to the professional clubs of Major League...

. This edition featured the fifth of six consecutive final appearances for Alex McNab's

Alex McNab

Alex "Alec" McNab was a Scottish-U.S. soccer player and coach. He began his career in Scotland before moving to the United States. In the U.S., he won six consecutive U.S. Open Cups with teams from both the American Soccer League and St. Louis Soccer League...

 team. The Shamrocks not participating in their local league

St. Louis Soccer League

The St. Louis Soccer League was a soccer league based in St. Louis, Missouri, that existed from 1907 to 1938. At its founding, it was the only fully professional soccer league in the United States.-History:...

 that year were playing inter city matches with top competition primarily from Cleveland, Chicago

Chicago

Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

 and Detroit. One of their only losses during the season was to Heidelberg, eventual Western Final opponents of the Shamrocks. Early in the season Heidelberg took the first game of a three game set, the second match ended in a draw and McNab's men evened up the series by pulling out a victory in the third game. Both teams eventually made their way to the Western Final, Heidelberg led by the lone scorer for the USA

United States men's national soccer team

The United States men's national soccer team represents the United States in international association football competitions. It is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF...

 at the 1934 World Cup

1934 FIFA World Cup

The 1934 FIFA World Cup was the second FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in Italy from 27 May to 10 June 1934....

 Aldo Donelli

Aldo Donelli

Aldo "Buff" Teo Donelli was an American football and soccer player. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.-Club:...

. The Shamrocks with their World Cup veterans including William Lehman

William Lehman (soccer)

William Lehman was an American soccer half back who was on the U.S. roster at the 1934 FIFA World Cup. He played professionally in the St. Louis Soccer League.-Professional career:...

, Billy Gonsalves

Billy Gonsalves

Adelino William Gonsalves was an American soccer player, sometimes described as the "Babe Ruth of American Soccer". He spent over 25 years playing in various American professional leagues and was a member of the U.S...

, Werner Nilsen, and Bert Patenaude

Bert Patenaude

Bertrand "Bert" Arthur Patenaude was an American soccer player. Although earlier disputed, he is now officially credited by FIFA as the scorer of the first hat-trick in World Cup history. He is a member of the United States Soccer Hall of Fame.-Club career:...

 overcame the Pennsylvanians with a 3-2 aggregate over two games. The final showcased still further US nationals. The Philadelphia German-Americans roster boasted a quartet of their own including Bill Fiedler

Bill Fiedler

William "Bill" John Fiedler was an American soccer midfielder who played seven seasons in the American Soccer League. He was on the U.S. national soccer team at both the 1934 FIFA World Cup and 1936 Summer Olympics...

, Al Harker

Al Harker

Albert “Al” Harker was a U.S. soccer player who was a member of the U.S. team at the 1934 FIFA World Cup. During his Hall of Fame career, he won three American Soccer League championships, two league cups, a U.S. Amateur Cup title and the 1935 U.S...

, Peter Pietras

Peter Pietras

Peter Pietras was a U.S. soccer player who was a member of the U.S. national team at the 1934 FIFA World Cup and the 1936 Summer Olympics. He also played five seasons in the American Soccer League.-Professional career:...

, and Francis Ryan

Francis Ryan

Francis John “Hun” Ryan is a deceased U.S. soccer midfielder. He earned three caps, scoring one goal, with the U.S. national team between 1928 and 1936. He was also a member of the U.S. teams at the 1928 Summer Olympics, 1936 Summer Olympics and the 1934 FIFA World Cup...

. After a two all draw in the first leg of the final in St. Louis, Philly took home the trophy by blanking the Shamrocks 3-0 in the second leg.

Eastern Division

Western Division

a) aggregate after three games

First game

Second game