Football writing, thoughts and more by Gary James
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ABSTRACT: Association football had become a prominent part of Manchester’s sporting landscape by 1904 when Manchester achieved its first national success. Its journey had been difficult, relying on the efforts of several key individuals whose relentless determination to widen the sport’s participation ensured the game succeeded. This paper provides an analysis of three pioneering figures, John Nall, Fitzroy Norris, and Joshua Parlby, who took the game from its formalized inception in the region through to its first national successes, considering their class, experience, shared history, and connections, while analyzing what these narratives add to the wider origins of football debate. The author concludes that football’s emergence depended primarily on the activities of key individuals from varying backgrounds who provided the energy, enthusiasm, and organizational structures necessary, while relying on cross-class connections, to establish the game within a region.
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I’m delighted that today it can be revealed that Sheikh Mansour has bought the oldest surviving FA Cup, ensuring it will stay in England – and importantly Manchester. This is absolutely brilliant news as there had been fears the trophy would leave the city and the country when it was put up for auction by its previous owner.
This trophy is the first major trophy won by either of today’s Manchester giants. When Manchester City won this in 1904 it set the tone for everything that has followed and helped transform Manchester from a rugby playing city to a football one.
The homecoming was remarkable and meant that, for the first time ever, football mattered to the wider population of the city.
I could go on but Earlier I posted articles on the significance of this trophy and Manchester’s first success on this website for subscribers. Take a look at:
https://gjfootballarchive.com/2021/01/08/manchesters-first-great-season/
FA Cup success, football infrastructure and the establishment of Manchester’s footballing identity
Manchester City have posted their story here:
https://www.mancity.com/news/mens/fa-cup-1904-his-highness-sheikh-mansour-bin-zayed-63745630
League Overview
During the close season Chairman Peter Swales gave Peter Reid an extension to his contract and publicly backed his manager. He also took the unprecedented step of appointing a former newspaper sports editor as City’s new General Manager. This was not viewed positively by supporters and there were rumours circulating that the Chairman had appointed John Maddock simply to divert attention away from himself.
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Busy Close Season
Following the takeover by Francis Lee, Lee & the Managing Director Colin Barlow, another former player, uncovered some serious issues within the Club. City’s financial arrangements seemed complex and there had been underinvestment for a number of years in many areas of the Club. One of the biggest issues was the state of Maine Road itself. The Kippax Stand had to be demolished and a new all-seater stand developed, but the existing plans were far from suitable. Lee & Barlow spent considerable time creating new plans with an ultimate aim to redevelop the entire stadium into a 50,000 capacity venue. The new Kippax Stand was the first stage of this plan and built at a rapid pace throughout the 1994-95 season.
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Background
Once Brian Horton had been dismissed as manager in May 1995 rumours circulated that George Graham, Franz Beckenbauer and a whole host of other big name managers would be appointed. When the news broke that former World Cup winner Alan Ball was to be appointed supporters felt disappointed. Fans wanted him to succeed but it was fair to say that his managerial record had not impressed them. Before the season even started questions were being asked, and supporters needed to see positive performances in the Blues opening games to reassure their scepticism.
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Previous Season
The Blues were relegated from the Premier League at the end of 1995-96.
Manager
The season started with Alan Ball as manager, but ended with Frank Clark. In between Steve Coppell had been appointed (7 October) but resigned (8 November) while Asa Hartford and Phil Neal both had long spells – or at least longer than Coppell’s permanent period – as caretaker managers.
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Where did the name Maine Road come from? For years I’ve been researching the site and what’s published here is the latest material I have on the ground. I’ve now found mention of ‘Maine Road’ in the 1890s. Subscribe to this site to find out more (it costs £20 a year – about £1.67 a month – or £3 a month if subscribing a month at a time. For that you get full access to everything posted on this site and all new posts until your subscription ends. You’ll also be supporting my writing and research – Thanks. It is appreciated).
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Abstract
This paper will focus on the origins and subsequent development of school football in Manchester and its surrounding conurbation between 1880 and 1919. Archival evidence, drawing mainly on the Manchester Schools Football Association (MSFA) collection, will be used to chronicle the expansion of organized competition and sporting opportunities. It will demonstrate that football’s growth in Manchester’s education system owed much to dedicated teachers who encouraged participation at their own schools and organized inter-school competitions. Association football became prominent right across Manchester as young teachers, most notably George Sharples, encouraged pupils to play, leading to a widening of participation and interest that helps to explain how Manchester transitioned from a rugby to a soccer city. Also discussed is the important role of the Manchester and Salford Playing Fields Society (MSPFS) which assisted the game’s growth in schools and amongst schoolchildren more generally by making suitable fields and pitches available. Without the Society’s efforts facilities may have been insufficient to satisfy growing demand at a critical point in soccer’s development.
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ABSTRACT
This paper provides an overview of an oral history project focusing on the experiences of female footballers, in particular those playing for Manchester City Women since its formation as a community initiative in 1988, through to its modern-day position as a leading Women’s Super League club. It discusses the development of the project, analysis of the methodology employed and provides high-level findings on the club’s history, the participants and the research process. For too long female participation, even at England’s most famous clubs, has not been widely recognised, reported on or understood. This project, supported by a professional football club, begins to address these omissions. It does so by focusing on personal testimonies, together with archive material to generate an historical account of how a team, established as a community initiative, developed into a major trophy-winning club.
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Gary James' Football Archive 