1903–04 Bradford City A.F.C. season

Bradford City
1903–04 season
Chairman Alfred Ayrton
Manager Robert Campbell
Stadium Valley Parade
Football League Second Division 10th
FA Cup Fourth Qualifying Round
Top goalscorer League: Johnny McMillan (14)
All: Johnny McMillan (16)
Highest home attendance c. 16,000 (v Bristol City, 19 September 1903)
Lowest home attendance c. 3,000 (v Leicester Fosse, 19 December 1903)
1904–05 →

The 1903–04 season was the first season in Bradford City A.F.C.'s history, having been founded on 29 May 1903 and then elected into the Football League to replace Doncaster Rovers in the Second Division. They finished in 10th position in the league and reached the fourth qualifying round of the FA Cup.

Bradford City were formed following a series of meetings during the first half of 1903 and replaced the former rugby league club of Manningham, whose Valley Parade ground they used. The club had already signed six players before they were accepted into the league before the rest of the side were later signed by a five-man committee. The board directors appointed Robert Campbell as the club's first manager. Bradford City's first game ended in a 2–0 defeat at Grimsby Town and the first home game resulted in another loss to Gainsborough Trinity. Club captain Johnny McMillan finished the top goalscorer with 14 league and two FA Cup goals.

Background

Organised league football had been played in the West Riding of Yorkshire since 1894 in the West Yorkshire League,[1] but no side from the county had played in the Football League. So on 30 January 1903, Scotsman James Whyte, a sub-editor of the Bradford Observer, met with Football Association representative John Brunt at Valley Parade, the home of the city's rugby league side Manningham Football Club, to discuss establishing a Football League club within Bradford. In May, Manningham's committee decided to swap codes from rugby to association football[2] and so the Football League decided to invite Bradford City to join their league in a bid to introduce association football to the West Riding, the main sport in which was rugby league.[3] The League voted in favour of replacing Doncaster Rovers,[3] who had finished the 1902–03 season in 16th position in the Second Division,[4] with Bradford City even though Bradford had yet to play a single game.[3]

Review

Bradford City's first squad. Back row: Campbell (manager), Wilson, Bright, Seymour, Halliday, Robinson, Cutts (trainer). Middle row: Guy, Millar, McMillan, Farnall, Carter, O'Rourke. Front row: Beckram, Forrest, Prosser.

Pre-season

Even before Bradford City were guaranteed a place in the Football League, the club made its first acquisitions by signing Jack Forrest and Ben Prosser from Stoke on 1 May. These were followed by four more players joining the club; Sam Bright, George Robinson, Peter O'Rourke and Jimmy Millar.[5] Despite not having enough players to field a full side, four club representatives travelled to London by the end of May for a league management committee meeting, when the club was elected into the Second Division.[3] Money was raised to fund the club, including at least £2,000 from sponsors, a balance of £500 from Manningham FC[3] and proceeds from a summer archery tournament.[6] Bradford City also took over Manningham's Valley Parade ground for their home fixtures.[7]

The four-strong party which visited London,[3] as well as newly elected Alfred Ayrton made up five members of a 13-man sub-committee which controlled club affairs. The first five, who also included J. Brunt, J.E. Fattorini, A.J. Foxcroft and J.T. Whyte, were responsible for first team matters. On 20 June, the club directors appointed former Sunderland secretary-manager Robert Campbell as Bradford City's first manager from a shortlist of 30 applicants.[8] Campbell's role was to coach the players,[8] helped by trainer George Cutts.[9] Ayrton, who had been president of Manningham FC, became the club's first chairman.[10]

Bradford played no recorded pre-season friendlies. Instead, Campbell and Cutts, decided on the first selection for the opening game of the season with Grimsby Town by playing a series of Whites v Stripes games between professionals already signed by the club and amateur players. The first squad was signed at a cost of £917 10s 0d, with the players choosing Johnny McMillan as their own captain.[9] Millar, a defender signed from Middlesbrough, was chosen as vice-captain.[11]

September

Bradford City's first league game was at Blundell Park against Grimsby Town on 1 September 1903, on a sunny Tuesday evening in front of 10,000 fans. The pioneering team consisted of Arthur Seymour in goal, defenders Willie Wilson, Fred Halliday, George Robinson, Jimmy Millar and Thomas Farnall with Richard Guy, John Beckram, Jack Forrest, Johnny McMillan and John Graham in attack. Graham, Beckram and Guy all came close to giving City an opening day lead, but Grimsby scored through Archie Dunn. After City were reduced to ten men because of an injury to Guy, Fred Rouse doubled Grimsby's lead in the second half; Grimsby finished the victors 2–0.[12] Four days later,[13] City hosted their first home at Valley Parade against Gainsborough Trinity.[7] The game attracted 11,000 spectators[13] even though there was no covered accommodation for fans.[7] Among the spectators was Bradford's Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress.[14] City lost 3–1 with Guy scoring the club's first ever league goal,[7] but they also had a goal disallowed and missed a penalty.[14] The Bradford Daily Argus reported that the goal was "greeted with a shout which awoke babies on the distant hillsides of Bolton and Eccleshill.[15] The match highlights were shown in Bradford's St George's Hall later in the same evening.[14]

Bradford won their first game in the league in their third game of the season, with a 2–0 victory against Burton United at Peel Croft. A week later, they won their first game at their Valley Parade home by defeating Bristol City 1–0.[9] McMillan scored in each game, with Forrest also scoring against Burton. They finished the month with a 3–1 loss at Manchester United.[13]

October

Bradford played only two league games during October. The first ended in a 5–2 defeat to Burslem Port Vale; the second – on 24 October – finished in a 3–1 victory to Bradford against fellow Yorkshire side Barnsley. Instead, City played their first games in the FA Cup in the club's history. The first qualifying round match and the club's debut in the competition was a 6–1 victory against Rockingham Colliery with six different City players on the scoresheet. City progressed through the following two qualifying rounds against Mirfield United and Worksop Town, with all three games being held at Valley Parade.[13]

During October, City also hosted an inter-league game between the English and Irish Leagues at Valley Parade. Although the ground was not up to high standards, the Football League was keen to encourage football in Bradford. An estimated 20,000 supporters attended the match which finished with a 2–1 victory for the Football League.[16] The club also made their first signing since the start of the season, bringing in forward Thomas Drain from Scottish side Maybole.[17]

November and December

City went another two weeks before playing again when their FA Cup run came to an end with a 2–1 defeat at their fellow Second Division side Chesterfield in the fourth qualifying round. They returned to league action on 21 November against Bolton Wanderers, nearly a month since their win against Barnsley. Drain, who had scored on his debut against Barnsley, scored Bradford's first ever hat-trick, but the game finished in a 3–3 draw. A week later, Drain scored for the third successive league match but City lost 3–2 to Burnley.[13]

Bradford played six games during December, with the first two ending in draws against Preston North End and Stockport County. On 19 December, City defeated Leicester Fosse 4–0 at Valley Parade. It was City's highest league victory of the season with McMillan scoring his side's second hat-trick of the campaign. City finished the month with three games in the space of four days. They first lost 4–1 to Woolwich Arsenal on Christmas Day, before a 1–0 victory at Blackpool. The year finished with a draw against Port Vale.[13]

January, February and March

At the turn of the new year, City were defeated by Gainsborough Trinity, before they completed their first double by defeating Burton United 3–0. Two draws followed – against Bristol City and Manchester United. City extended their unbeaten run by winning all three matches during February, with victories against Glossop, Barnsley and Lincoln City. Each victory finished 2–1 with Beckram, Drain and Robinson all scoring twice during the month. The club's six-game unbeaten run came to an end in the return fixture at Glossop, with further defeats following against Stockport County and Chesterfield. The three-game losing streak was overturned with a 3–0 win over Burnley; Graham scored twice to become the third player to score more than one goal during a league game.[13]

April

City packed in eight games during April to complete the league season. On 1 April, they lost to Lincoln City and then the following day they lost to Preston North End. A third game in four days finished in a 1–1 draw with Chesterfield. The first victory of the month came in the reverse fixture against the club's first ever league opponents Grimsby Town. City lost 1–0 to Bolton Wanderers before a 2–1 victory followed against Leicester Fosse, with McMillan scoring one of the goals. The final two matches both ended in defeats without City scoring; first to Arsenal, then to Blackpool.[13] City finished 10th at the end of the first season recording 31 points from 34 games.[4]

Team captain McMillan finished as the club's top scorer with 14 goals.[18] He played 32 games, with goalkeeper Seymour, half-back Robinson and forward Graham all being ever-presents.[18] With the advent of league football in Bradford, thousands of people came to home games, resulting in the club's end-of-season receipts totalling £3,896. It resulted in a small operating loss from the first season, but donations helped the club record a profit of £39 in their first season in the Football League.[9] Following the end of the season, the club released six players and also sold Guy to Leeds City.[17]

Match results

Legend

Win Draw Loss

Football League Second Division

Source: Frost[13]
GameDateOpponentVenueResultAttendance[A]Goalscorers
11 September 1903Grimsby TownAway0–210,000
25 September 1903Gainsborough TrinityHome1–311,000Guy
312 September 1903Burton UnitedAway2–03,000Forrest, McMillan
419 September 1903Bristol CityHome1–016,000McMillan
526 September 1903Manchester UnitedAway1–330,000McMillan
610 October 1903Burslem Port ValeAway2–5[B]Graham, Prosser
724 October 1903BarnsleyHome3–112,000Drain, Graham, McMillan
821 November 1903Bolton WanderersHome3–37,000Drain (3)
928 November 1903BurnleyAway2–31,000Drain, McMillan
105 December 1903Preston North EndHome1–113,000McMillan
1112 December 1903Stockport CountyHome0–06,000
1219 December 1903Leicester FosseHome4–03,000McMillan (3), own goal
1325 December 1903Woolwich ArsenalAway1–420,000McMillan
1426 December 1903BlackpoolAway1–0[B]Forrest
1528 December 1903Burslem Port ValeHome1–113,000McMillan
162 January 1904Gainsborough TrinityAway0–33,000
179 January 1904Burton UnitedHome3–012,000Drain, Forrest, McMillan
1816 January 1904Bristol CityAway1–17,000Farnall
1923 January 1904Manchester UnitedHome3–312,000Beckram, Forrest, O'Rourke
206 February 1904GlossopHome2–15,000Beckram, Robinson
2120 February 1904BarnsleyAway2–15,000Beckram, Drain
2227 February 1904Lincoln CityHome2–17,000Drain, Robinson
231 March 1904GlossopAway0–2[B]
245 March 1904Stockport CountyAway0–24,000
2512 March 1904ChesterfieldHome2–610,000Drain, Forrest
2626 March 1904BurnleyHome3–010,000Beckram, Graham (2)
271 April 1904Lincoln CityAway0–1[B]
282 April 1904Preston North EndAway0–45,000
294 April 1904ChesterfieldAway1–13,000Graham
309 April 1904Grimsby TownHome1–010,000McMillan
3111 April 1904Bolton WanderersAway0–110,000
3216 April 1904Leicester FosseAway2–14,000Graham, McMillan
3319 April 1904Woolwich ArsenalHome0–315,000
3423 April 1904BlackpoolHome0–27,000

FA Cup

Main article: 1903–04 FA Cup
Source:Frost[13]
RoundDateOpponentVenueResultAttendance[A]Goalscorers
1Q3 October 1903Rockingham CollieryHome6–18,000Forrest, Graham, Guy, McMillan, Prosser, Robinson (pen)
2Q17 October 1903Mirfield UnitedHome3–15,000McMillan, Prosser (2)
3Q31 October 1903Worksop TownHome5–05,000Beckram (2), Farnall, Forrest, Prosser
4Q14 November 1903ChesterfieldAway1–26,000Drain
A. a b All attendances are approximate.
B. a b c d Attendance is unknown.

League table

Source:Butler[4]
P WDLFAGAPts
1Preston North End342010462242.58350Promotion to the First Division
2Woolwich Arsenal34217691224.13649
3Manchester United34208665331.97048
4Bristol City341861073411.78042
5Burnley341591050550.90939
6Grimsby Town341481250491.02036
7Bolton Wanderers3412101259411.43934
8Barnsley3411101338570.66732
9Gainsborough Trinity341431753600.88331
10Bradford City341271545590.76331
11Chesterfield341181537450.82230
12Lincoln City341181541580.70730
13Burslem Port Vale341091554521.03829
14Burton United341171645610.73829
15Blackpool341151840670.59727
16Stockport County348111540720.55627Failed re-election
17Glossop341061857640.89126
18Leicester Fosse346101842820.51222

P = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GA = Goal average; Pts = Points

Player details

Source: Frost[18]
Pos. Name League FA Cup Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
FWJohn Beckram 23412246
DFSam Bright 600060
FBTony Carter 7040110
CFThomas Drain 229112310
HBThomas Farnall 25111272
CFJack Forrest 27532307
FWJohn Graham 34641387
ORRichard Guy 613192
FBFred Halliday 23010240
ORJohn Harper 200020
DFJimmy McLean 100010
ILJohnny McMillan 3214423616
HBJimmy Millar 24040280
FWEveritt Moore 300030
ORJohn Murphy 100010
CHPeter O'Rourke 25140291
IRBen Prosser 15144195
HBGeorge Robinson 34231373
GKArthur Seymour 34040380
RBWillie Wilson 30030330

Transfers

Source: Frost[17]

In

DatePosNameFromFee
May 1903CFJack ForrestStoke
May 1903ILJohnny McMillanSmall Heath
May 1903IRBen ProsserStoke
June 1903ORRichard GuyManchester City
June 1903FBFred HallidayBolton Wanderers
June 1903HBJimmy MillarMiddlesbrough
June 1903FWEveritt MooreRawdon
June 1903HBGeorge RobinsonNottingham Forest
July 1903FWJohn BeckramSheffield United
July 1903DFSam BrightSheffield United
July 1903FBTony CarterSunderland
July 1903HBThomas FarnallWatford
July 1903GKArthur SeymourBarnsley
August 1903FWJohn GrahamNewcastle United
August 1903CHPeter O'RourkeChesterfield
August 1903RBWillie WilsonNewcastle United
October 1903CFThomas DrainMaybole
January 1904ORJohn HarperMaybole
January 1904ORJohn MurphyStoke
April 1904DFJimmy McLeanClachnacuddin

Out

DatePosNameFromFee
May 1904ORRichard GuyLeeds City
1904DFSam BrightReleased
1904ORJohn HarperReleased
1904FWEveritt MooreReleased
1904ORJohn MurphyReleased
1904IRBen ProsserReleased
1904GKArthur SeymourReleased

See also

References

  1. ↑ Frost 1988, p. 9
  2. ↑ Frost 1988, p. 11
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Frost 1988, p. 13
  4. 1 2 3 Butler 1987, p. 50
  5. ↑ Frost 1988, p. 12
  6. ↑ "In the beginning". Bradford City A.F.C. Archived from the original on 18 October 2010. Retrieved 2010-09-30.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Frost 1988, p. 54
  8. 1 2 Frost 1988, p. 65
  9. 1 2 3 4 Frost 1988, p. 14
  10. ↑ "Special guest to attend Oxford fixture". Bradford City A.F.C. 30 October 2010. Archived from the original on 30 October 2010. Retrieved 2010-11-01.
  11. ↑ Frost 1988, p. 124
  12. ↑ Frost 1988, p. 149
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Frost 1988, p. 170
  14. 1 2 3 Bradford City v Gainsborough Trinity (1903). British Film Institute (Mitchell & Kenyon Collection). 5 September 1903. Retrieved 9 October 2010.
  15. ↑ Dewhirst 1998, p. [chapter] 1
  16. ↑ Frost 1988, p. 62
  17. 1 2 3 Frost 1988, pp. 391–410
  18. 1 2 3 Frost 1988, p. 171
Bibliography
  • Butler, Bryon (1987), The Football League 1888–1988 The Official Illustrated History, Macdonald Queen Anne Press, ISBN 0-356-15072-0 
  • Dewhirst, John (1998), City Memories – An Illustrated Record of Bradford City A.F.C., True North Books, ISBN 1-900463-57-1 
  • Frost, Terry (1988), Bradford City A Complete Record 1903–1988, Breedon Books Sport, ISBN 0-907969-38-0 
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