Thanks Ivor that`s good of you I am trying to find schoolboy records from back then and the Hopkins family to see if they would like his items including diary and his marraige service booklet and a 1945 war time booklet i know a few old timer swans fans who think they can help as they know people who may know more. I never looked into the history of the swans from way back then before and its really intresting to see how things evolved from the begining i will get more books on the subject now . And thanks to a mate on here for lending me Mel Charles autobiography "in the shadow of a giant "a great read Thanks again Terrorwitt great extracts there that David Farmers book looks a good read i will try and get a copy. Did you notice some similarities there to now ? During the previous season the Swans had been acclaimed wherever they went for the quality of their football. Haydn Green's contribution to Swansea soccer was considerable. In local folklore his tenure is thought of, simply, as the prelude to the success achieved by Billy McCandless. with regard to the team that the Irishman inherited. ( martinez & Rogers ? ) The team had played highly attractive football and had been acclaimed both by opposing managers and by the press wherever they went. I only hope amongst all the stuff ive got to look through there are some of Ivor Allchurch`s in there !
Really interesting reading about our early history. I am interested in the history of our formation, who was behind it, the players and where they came from. And the games between the wars. Not much information out there though on the Internet, any suggestions ? Was thinking about approaching the club itself
Exactly what I was thinking Swantastic. The other similarity is that the golden era of the 1950s could only be achieved after the finances had been sorted in the 40s. I see Green as a mixture of Martinez and Flynn. Let's hope Laudrup doesn't drop the baton.
Valley this link gives some info thebeautifulhistory.wordpress.com/clubs/swansea-city/ - 56k And there are newspaper archives i am looking through on line which may be usefull. The Beautiful History Of Club Crests, Club Colours & Nicknames FeedsostsComments Swansea City Being in the south of the Principality, football came relatively late to the Swansea area, the non-handling code of soccer being overwhelmingly unpopular in this hotbed of rugby. Always in the shadow of rugby the lack of public knowledge was such that in 1894 a local paper felt obliged to publish an outline of the rules and a sketch of standard pitch markings. It is generally accepted that the current football club was started around 1900 when a number of ex-schoolboys abandoned their rugby traditions and set about forming a number of sides which led to the creation of the Swansea and District League. By 1909 a number of these players got together with the intention of forming a senior team. A number of open areas were used, notably the Recreation Ground. Eventually, in 1912, a patch of land was secured by the name of The Vetch Field. Children would play on this dirt ground which had vetch growing on it. This was a cabbage like plant cultivated for cattle feed. By 1911, the field became available for rent as the owners of the land, the Swansea Gas Light Company, had failed to use a Parliamentary sanction to utilise it for the installation of a gas plant. A committee of the Swansea League, which had been formed in the same year, rented the field and subsequently the present football club, then Swansea Town, emerged. The first competitive match was, appropriately, against Cardiff City on September 12th 1912 ending in a 1-1 draw. Swanseaâs first season at The Vetch, playing on a clinker surface, was a great success, finishing 3rd in the second division of the Southern League and also lifting the Welsh Cup. The Vetch Field will see itâs swan song when the club moves to a purpose-built stadium at Morfa, a couple of miles out of town. Whilst âThe Swansâ is classed officially as the nickname of the club, the term âJacksâ has long been associated with the people of Swansea, as well as with the football club. It is derived from a black labrador named Jack, who lived on the seafront in Swansea in the Thirties, who actually saved the lives of over 30 people in rough seas. Obviously long gone, he has lived on in the memories of Swansea people. There is a monument on the promenade erected in his honour, and also a pub near the seafront and the ground named âThe Swansea Jackâ, and the sign is of course a picture of Jack. The name âSwansea Jackâ has become a generic term for all Swansea people over the years, known throughout Wales. Cardiff City fans have changed it in a slightly different version. If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery Swansea City should be pleased. For many years the Swans (of goodly hue, so purely whiteâ¦to quote Spense), having adopted the same all-white strip as their rivals in the other code, were the only team in the Football League playing in one colour from top to toe. Swansea favour their traditional white. However, a point which may have escaped even their longest devoted fans, is that when League football was resumed after the last War, Swansea were not strictly all-white a la Real Madrid!!. According to the Leagueâs official list of club colours for 1946-47 Swansea wore stockings displaying black and white rings. Their first emblem was the coat of arms, granted in 1922. The original device of Swansea seems to have been an osprey, now used as a crest in the arms. Prior to the granting of the arms the Corporation used insignia said to have been bestowed on it in 1306 by William de Braose, Lord of Gower, who is recorded as having issued the following instructions to his herald: the arms of my Borough of Swansea shall be a castle with two towers and a portcullis; on each tower erect a banner charged with my lion rampant; and to prove that it is a town of some standing place its ancient arms, the Osprey and Fish, on a shield in the chief.
If you are after anymore informtion, try speaking with Gwyn, the guy who sells the programms inthe club shop. He has the biggest collection of swans programs and memorabilia around. He as converted his attic into a small museum as such. If any one would know their historical and monetay value it will be him.
Valley i have`nt been able to find any names of players and owners who started the 1912 season yet but i`m sure the info`s out there somewhere. I wonder who scored for us in the very first game against cardiff ? I did find a site that buys programmes so i am waiting to hear back from them some around the years i have are for sale on there at £75 ! bet mine are about £6 haha .
I know mate I've been looking on the web on and off for quite some time, would love to know who played for us, who scored the first hatrick, images from back then, maybe film ? It's a part of history we are missing I think, well at least me lol
Quickly going through David Farmer's excellent book; Senior Swansea amateur Association Football club was formed in 1882. The first Soith Walian to play soccer for Wales was J. R. Morgan, captained Wales v Scotland in Glasgow on 25 March 1882 (played for Derby School and Swansea Schools). In 1877 18 North Wales clubs and 'Swansea' entered the 'Welsh Soccer Cup'. The first senior club established in Swansea was called Swansea Villa, but they were forced to disband in the mid 1880s due to difficulties renting it's ground....the Vetch field. In 1900 ex-schoolboy footballers formed senior clubs of their own and started the Swansea and District League. The first soccer international ever held in South Wales was played at St. Helens rugby ground on 24 February 1894. Wales beat Ireland 4-1 in front of a crowd of 7000. In 1909 the Southern League decided to extend it's influence into South Wales in the form of a second division largely composed of Welsh clubs. Merthyr and Cardiff among them. Swansea enthusiasts wished to join but could not overcome the problem of a suitable ground. The favoured venue, the Vetch field (Vetch is a cabbage type of plant that grew there) was required by the Gas Light Company for a new plant. 18 months later the company were refused permission to build the plant on the site. In the meantime Merthyr had gained promotion to the 1st division. At the end of 1911-1912 season a committee representing Swansea soccer enthusiasts enquirer whether the Southern League authorities would welcome the submission of a side representing the town. The league said yes. A meeting was then arranged at short notice for 14 June 1912 to discuss the matter (I believe this meeting took place in the pub that is now known as the 'Tenby'). A verbal agreement had been made with the gas company to rent the vetch field and all those present were assured that if they could donate £75 the Vetch would be assured. A verbal prospectus was laid out before the prospective shareholders. J.W. Thorpe left the hall as chairman of Swansea Town Association Football Club ltd. The season started in September. They had no kit, players, manager, facilities....they had 11 weeks. Thorpe led the development with the help of his right hand man S.B. Williams. On 13 July Walter Whittaker (former Exeter goalie) was announced as Swansea's first player-manager. First recruits to the playing staff included; Billy Ball (Stoke City), Coleman (Brighton), Emerson (Newcastle), W.Jack Nicholas (Derby). 2 amateurs, Willie Messer and Havard signed after a trial match at Morriston. Whittaker then came on board and made his first signings Hamilton and Cleverley from Brentford. There was a groundswell of opinion favouring the signing of local players, although by this time the best had already gone to other clubs, the brothers Gwylim and Arthur Gimblett, for example had signed for Bolton and Merthyr respectively only weeks before the announcement of the formation of Swansea Town. By mid August the frenetic work at the Vetch was beginning to show results but a great deal still needed to be done; the proper levelling of the pitch, development of banks, fences and changing facilities. On 3 September the Leader was able to publish a photo of men at work under the vetch under the supervision of Whittaker. Swansea played 2 trial matches before the season started and a reserve team fixture at Merthyr. Havard had the distinction of scoring the club's first ever goal in competitive football (the loss to Merthyr) The first League game was at the Vetch against Cardiff City. A gala day. The mayor of Swansea E.G. Protheroe kicked off on the Vetch field's cinder pitch, 8000 people crowded the ground. The match ended in a 1-1 draw and the name on the lips of the crowd as they streamed away from the Vetch was Billy Ball. The diminutive centre-forward had endeared himself to the crowd as a result of his bustling play as well as his goal. The Swans went on to draw in a friendly against Leicester Fosse before grabbing their first win at home to Ton Pentre. In the Welsh cup Swansea created a surprise by defeating first Wrexham 3-1 away and then followed this by beating the then mighty Merthyr 3-0 away. By beating Merthyr the Swans found themselves in the semi final of the Welsh cup at the first time of asking. They were to play Cardiff who were by then running away with the second division title. The venue was Ninian Park. In front of the largest crowd Cardiff had yet seen (some reports suggested that 20,000 people were crammed in) the Swans outplayed the home team 4-2. Billy Ball scored 2, Cardiff's Cassidy put through his own net to record the first ever own goal in Swansea's favour. A huge crowd greeted the team on their return at High Street Station. By the end of March the Swans were on target for 3 prizes. They were top of the Welsh League, well placed for promotion in the Southern League and in the final of the Welsh Cup. Whilst promotion was missed the Swans won the Welsh League title and in due course the Welsh cup....beating Pontypridd at Tonypandy after a draw at Cardiff. When the cup winners returned to Swansea's East Dock station at 10 O'clock on 25 April 1913 there was a huge crowd to welcome them. Players and officials stood on a break which was pulled by ardent enthusiasts in place of horses. then at the town's Hotel Royal, speeches were made from the balcony and the crowd cheered every word. Chairman J.W. Thorpe thanked Walter Whittaker for all he had done. The manager must have felt well pleased with himself, yet he was to find that opinions in football are sometimes shorter-lived than memories in politics.
The following season a bloke called Grier scored Swansea's first ever hat-trick in a match against Barry Town.
Also, in the second season we were achieving gates 3 times that which was deemed possible by a Merthyr director at that meeting in the Tenby and we became the first Welsh team to reach the last 32 of the English cup...losing 2-1 at home to QPR in front of 18,000
Thats fantastic Terrorwit thanks for putting it up Thats one hell of a good book, I just ordered it from Amazon .
Dont remember a lot 46 to 49 but I started watching the swans in the 50s, and yes when ford played we scored a lot of goals in those days when a player went up for a corner, if he got his head to the ball it was a goal.goalkeeper as well in the net, and I saw T. Ford score Quiet a few goals like that were the goalkeeper went in the net as well he also had a good Right foot shot, but most of his goals were with his head but as you say once he was sold we slid down the table.I also remember TOM KILEY playing for us a great c/half
