Category Archives: Hyde Road

A Rare Action Photo From 1913 – MCFC V LFC

Here’s an image I found a few years back while researching Manchester City’s games against Liverpool. I know it’s a poor quality photo and so was unable to use it in the piece I was doing back then. However, I think it’s worth posting here to highlight that there are photos out there that appeared in newspapers of key games involving both clubs.

This photo shows City attacking the Liverpool goal. The game ended 1-0 to City with Fred Howard the goalscorer. Howard had scored two goals against Liverpool the previous day (yes, Christmas Day) at Anfield as well.

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.

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 21 Answer

On Monday I asked if you could name this ground. I said: ‘I know it’s a tough one BUT… there’s a reason I’ve chosen this week to post this image plus eagle-eyed visitors to this site may notice that I have actually used part of this image before in connection with another story. So where is it?’ The answer is…

Manchester City’s old Hyde Road ground. So did you work out why I’ve posted the image this week and what the previous story I’d used part of this image for was in connection with? Well this equivalent week in 1920 saw the stand featured being built. This is the only known surviving photo of Hyde Road’s temporary Main Stand built in the week following the Hyde Road fire.

The Main Stand was destroyed on the night of the November 6 by fire and, after attempts to move to United’s Old Trafford failed as a result of United demanding an exorbitant rent. For the full story of this see this chapter of Manchester A Football History (available with the rest of the book as a download for subscribers):

Manchester A Football History part 13

City didn’t think the rent was fair (neither did the media – again see that chapter of Manchester A Football History) and so they decided to soldier on at Hyde Road. A new stand – the one seen from the back here – was constructed using wood.

So, what about the previous story part of the image was used for? That was a piece about Billy Meredith returning to City in July 1921. Meredith is the player on the far right and this photo was taken to show him back at Manchester City.

Watch out for another Historic Name That Ground on Monday.

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MCFC Attendances Sequences

Lots of people talk incorrectly of Manchester City’s support and so for today’s subscriber feature I’ve decided to focus on the growth in City’s average attendance from the club’s first season in the League through to recent years, alongside other crowd related statistics. Hopefully, this will help to answer any questions raised on the loyalty of City’s support (but somehow I doubt it!).

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The Sporting Broads: A Family’s Journey from Pedestrianism to Football

By the time professional football came to prominence as the leading working class sporting activity in the late nineteenth century the sport of pedestrianism was in decline. Pedestrians and trainers had to find alternative means of income and, for some, football provided a new focus for their skills, crafted through experience and passed on through familial and community links. This paper considers the life of Jimmy Broad, a competitor in pedestrian challenges, who went on to establish a career as a successful football trainer, and highlights how his career adapted. It also provides commentary on the training techniques utilized by Broad and goes on to outline the careers of his sons, one of whom also became a football trainer. The story of the Broads is of importance to those studying sport’s development during the late 1800s and early 1900s, and provides an understanding of one of the influential figures behind Manchester’s first footballing success. It adds to the research into athletic entrepreneurs which has seen the construction of individual biographies to aid understanding of sport’s development. 

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On this day: Manchester City Break-In

Newspapers reported a break-in at City’s Hyde Road ground…

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