On Thursday (27 February) evening I’ll be talking at the West Yorkshire branch of the Manchester City Supporters Club (8pm; Morley Cricket Club, Scatcherd Lane Morley, Leeds LS27 0JJ) about the Manchester Corinthians women’s team and, of course, I’ll also discuss Manchester City’s history too. I’ll have copies of the Manchester Corinthians book with me, as well as copies of my Peter Barnes biography if anybody wants one.
You can find out more on the Corinthians book here:
On this day (25 February) in 1956 Bobby Johnstone scored twice as Manchester City defeated Preston 3-0. Joe Hayes scored the other goal.
I’m contemplating writing a series of features on the 1950s as this decade is beginning to slip from living memory. We’ve lost almost all the players who played during that decade for City and maybe it’s time to post some of the interviews I did with the likes of Fagan, Barnes, Clarke, Little? What do you think? I’m always keen to hear from readers/subscribers to the site.
On this day (24 February) in 1940 Denis Law was born. Law who passed away in January, achieved major success in a glittering career for Huddersfield, Manchester City and Manchester United. He would have been 85 years old today.
There are plenty of articles mentioning Law on this site, here are those tagged with his name:
It’s the latest City-Liverpool game this weekend. There are lots of articles on my site about games between these two, so why not have a look at these as preparation for the game? Here are a few links:
There are plenty of other mentions of Liverpool on this site so why not use the tabs or do a search.
If you enjoy all the free material on my website and would like to support my research and keep this website going (but don’t want to subscribe) then why not make a one-time donation (or buy me a coffee). All support for my research is valued and welcome. It allows me to keep some free material available for all. Thanks.
It’s one of those weekends where the Blues and Reds of Manchester and Liverpool meet. Everton v United today and City v Liverpool tomorrow. In terms of football the two cities of Manchester and Liverpool were extremely close for decades but in business and everyday life they have been rivals (bitter at times) for over 150 years. People will talk about all sorts of factors with the main one discussed being about the trade issues Manchester faced because Liverpool basically controlled Manchester’s access to the sea. I don’t want to go on too much about it all but I do want to show these sections from American newspapers which give an indication of what the situation was from another nation’s point of view.
It’s interesting to note that at least one of these articles shows that Manchester tried to ensure the whole of England benefitted from the city’s growing prosperity, suggesting that previously Liverpool only benefitted from this kind of trade.
Crittenden Record, July 04, 1907Americus Times, April 14, 1903,The Morning News, July 23, 1894
There are lots of articles on my site about Manchester’s teams and those from Liverpool. Here are details of articles than are tagged ‘Liverpool’:
Every year, once the domestic season ends I update the table showing the English clubs’ span of success – i.e. the number of years between a club’s first major success (FA Cup, League, League Cup, major European trophy) and their most recent. I last did this after the 2023-24 season ended (see below). There wasn’t much difference between the 2023 final table and the 2024. Both Liverpool and Manchester City increased their span, as did United. Next month there’s a chance Newcastle can leap from 16th place (just behind Chelsea) to joint second with City. Here’s the table as it stands at present:
As I always say, the span of success does not show how many trophies each club has won or how frequently that club has experienced great eras of success, but it does demonstrate how wrong those people are who believe certain clubs were unsuccessful until recent years, or those who think certain clubs have always been giants. The column on first major success helps to show when some clubs first became trophy-winning significant (often after transformational investment too!).
There’s not much difference between 2023 and 2024 – numbers have changed but not positions. In 2023 West Ham, like potentially Newcastle this year, proved that if you’re a club that hasn’t won a major trophy for a while putting your focus on achieving trophy success ahead of the odd Premier League position can bring significant reward. In future decades no one will remember who finished seventh, tenth or fifteenth but they will remember the trophies. Here’s the previous year’s table for comparison purposes:
I know clubs focus on their financials but winning a trophy has longevity, gaining the odd Premier League place provides a bit of extra cash now but no long term kudos. Winning a trophy attracts new fans and brings money-spinning opportunities too.
If I was a supporter of any of the major clubs who have not found significant success in recent decades then I would absolutely want my team to go for whichever cup competition seems the most likely to win. That’s what I always wanted from City before they were able to compete for the League again. Winning the FA Cup in 2011 helped everything that followed happen – it gave confidence and a trophy winning mentality.
While you’re here why not take a look at the wide range of articles available on this site? Such as the 100 day series of features on Maine Road:
If you enjoy all the free material on my website and would like to support my research and keep this website going (but don’t want to subscribe) then why not make a one-time donation (or buy me a coffee). All support for my research is valued and welcome. It allows me to keep some free material available for all. Thanks.
I was interviewed on this day (17 February) in 2021 about the great Joe Mercer for the ‘esk podcast’ – an Everton podcast. I talk about meeting Joe; about writing his biography; about Joe’s time at Everton, Arsenal, Manchester City and so on. I also tell the story of Norah Mercer insisting that Bobby Charlton phones me to apologize (it was somewhat of a shock at the time)! We also discussed Everton and City in preparation for their game that night (17th February 2021). No matter who you support it’s well worth listening to.
If you enjoy all the free material on my website and would like to support my research and keep this website going (but don’t want to subscribe) then why not make a one-time donation (or buy me a coffee). All support for my research is valued and welcome. It allows me to keep some free material available for all. Thanks.
I’m delighted to say that on Wednesday 5 March I’ll be doing a talk/event at Manchester Central Library. It’s free to attend but, the library would like to encourage attendees to book in advance. See the following for details:
Oh and if you need an added incentive… Copies of Manchester Corinthians: The Authorised History will be available on the day at a discounted price of £20 (RRP £25).
You can find out more on the Corinthians’ book here:
I’d also encourage people to watch this film to get a feel for the story too. It’s been put together by Imprint Films (Luke, John – Dennis Tueart’s son – and their team put together a wonderful 18 minute film, treating the Corinthians with respect throughout):
On this day (15 February) in 1958 a highly emotional game was staged in Manchester. In fact it was the first match to be played in Manchester after the Munich disaster, and was between Manchester City and Birmingham City. Many of City’s players had attended the funeral only 3 days earlier of United captain Roger Byrne. The game was called off after 40 minutes with the score at 1-1. The programme for that match featured many tributes to those killed at Munich, including the former City ‘keeper Frank Swift.
Happy Valentine’s Day! Way back in 1911 Manchester City signed a player from Forfar Athletic with the name Valentine. He was born in May 1889, not 14 February as maybe some would expect. He joined City on 5 July 1911 but only made 22 first team appearances in defence before signing for Oldham Athletic on 31 May 1913 (£50 transfer fee). Sadly he only managed one League appearance at Oldham.
A year later he was on his way to Leeds City. War ultimately limited his opportunities and he later played for Southend in 1921 before joining Abertillery in July 1922.
When he signed for City he was expected to be a significant member of the team but it didn’t quite work out like that. His debut was against Oldham on 7 October 1911 and he did play in a goalless Manchester derby. I first wrote about him in The Pride of Manchester, the history of the Manchester derby I co-wrote with Steve Cawley.
If you enjoy all the free material on my website and would like to support my research and keep this website going (but don’t want to subscribe) then why not make a one-time donation (or buy me a coffee). All support for my research is valued and welcome. It allows me to keep some free material available for all. Thanks.
Gary James' Football Archive 