Author Archives: garyjamesfootballarchive

The Smart Set – Club Colours 90 Years Ago

On this day (28th November) in 1931 the Liverpool Echo published this George Green cartoon of the kits worn by several leading clubs of the period. I thought I’d post it here to show how these things were often portrayed in the newspapers of the day. Thanks.

While you’re here I’d like to thank you for taking the time and trouble to visit my website. I have been researching and writing about Manchester football for a long time (no wonder I’m going grey!) with my first book published in 1989. I am not employed by anyone and I do not have sponsorship either and so I’ve set up this website to help share my 32 years plus writing and research. The intention is to develop the archive and to provide access to as much of my material as possible over the coming weeks, months & years. Subscribers can already access hundreds of articles/posts including the entire Manchester A Football History book and various audio interviews (including John Bond, Malcolm Allison & George Graham). 

It costs £20 a year (it works out £1.67 a month) or £3 if you’d like to sign up a month at a time to get full access for as long as you subscribe. Thanks for the support, Gary.

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Manchester City November 1914

This is a squad photo of Manchester City, who then led the League and Central League, from November 1914. There are many, many things to say about this image and the people featured but sadly I don’t have time today. A couple of brief points though – look out for Albert Alexander senior (City director) in bow tie crouching and Pat McGuire (3rd player from left on back row) who was sadly killed in WW1. There are a few men on here who were also significant at MUFC including Ernest Mangnall (manager) and Leslie Knighton (assistant manager).

Historic Name That Ground – Week 23 Answer

On Monday I asked you to name this ground. I said: ‘This is from the 1920s and is a ground that’s been featured before but this is a different photo and a different decade. The only other clue I’ll give is that this was a Premier League stadium into the 2010s.’

Well, did you get it?

It was Tottenham Hotspur’s White Hart Lane Stadium photographed in 1928.

There’ll be another ground to identify on Monday.

The Birth Of Manchester City Women

On this day (25th November) in 1988 the South Manchester Reporter featured Manchester City’s new women’s team for the first time. Neil Mather had set up the team and staged some training/selection sessions and, when this news article appeared, the women were about to face Oldham Athletic in their first ever fixture.

You can read all about those early days and the history of the club in my book Manchester City Women: An Oral History. You can buy the book here:

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Review of Barnes Biography

For those still wondering whether my biography of Peter Barnes is worth getting, here’s a fairly typical review that appeared last month. Enjoy! Also thanks to Ian Farrell for reviewing this in When Saturday Comes. Ta!

On This Day in 1913 – MCFC v MUFC

A ticket that may interest a few MCFC & MUFC collectors. This is for the Lancashire Cup semi final replay between City and United played at Hyde Road on this day (November 24) in 1913.  Both the initial semi final and the replay were played at Hyde Road with the first game ending in a 1-1 drawn before approximately 8,000. The replay was watched by 12,000 and ended in a United 2-0 win.

Milan 2 Manchester City 2

On this day (November 23) in 1978 Manchester City drew 2-2 with Milan at the San Siro. Here is a 1100 word piece plus rare colour photos from that highly significant UEFA Cup game (which should have been played a day earlier – details below).

The following piece is available to subscribers to this site. It costs £3 per month or £20 a year to subscribe. Subscribers get full access to all the material on the site. Have a search to see what’s available. Thanks.

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November 1920 and A Controversial Offer by MUFC

Back in November 1920 Manchester City’s main stand at Hyde Road was destroyed by fire. City asked United if they could move to Old Trafford but their terms were prohibitive according to the media of the day. This report was typical of the reaction. You can read the full story in Manchester A Football History which subscribers to GJFootballArchive.com get as part of their subscription. For more details see: https://gjfootballarchive.com/2021/01/09/manchester-a-football-history-part-one/

Historic Name That Ground – Week 23

Continuing the weekly quiz… here’s the latest. This is from the 1920s and is a ground that’s been featured before but this is a different photo and a different decade. The only other clue I’ll give is that this was a Premier League stadium into the 2010s.

As usual, leave your comments below and on Friday I’ll post the answer.