Category Archives: 1914-15

Record Average Crowds

I’ve not done one of these for a while but I know they always prompt a bit of debate, so here goes… a feature on Manchester City FC attendances. It is a fact that the Blues have, generation after generation, been one of the English game’s top attractions. Like all – and I do mean all – English clubs there have been some average attendance lows over the years, but when the entire history of Manchester City is reviewed and the club’s average figures are compared with the national average it is clear that the Blues have consistently been one of football’s most attractive draws.  Take a look at the following:

  • Since the beginning of the Football League in 1888 only nine sides have topped the table for average attendances.  In chronological order of their first appearance at the top of the average table they are: Everton (1888-9), Villa (1898-99), Newcastle (1904-05), Chelsea (1907-08), Tottenham (1909-10), City (1910-11), Liverpool (1922-23), Arsenal (1929-30), & Manchester United (1956-57) 
  • As early as 1895-96 City were the third best supported side in the entire League despite being a Second Division side.  Only First Division sides Everton & Aston Villa could better the Blues.  Modern day giants Arsenal were 10th; Liverpool were 19th; United were 21st and Chelsea had yet to exist.
  • In 1900-01 City were the 2nd best supported side in the entire League with only 400 people separating Villa (1st) and City 
  • The 1910-11 season saw Manchester’s Blues top the attendance charts for the first time.  City’s average was 26,000 and was the 8th highest average of all time at that point (all clubs, all seasons). 
  • Regularly amongst the best supported sides throughout the inter war period, City’s average exceeded 37,000 for the first time in 1927-28 when the Blues established a record average crowd for the Second Division.  This was also the entire League’s highest.
  • In 1947-48 City’s average crowd exceeded 42,000 for the first time.  Prior to that season only Chelsea (1919-20 & 1946-7), Arsenal (1934-5, 1936-7, 1937-8, & 1946-7) , Newcastle (1946-7), Liverpool (1946-7), United (1946-7), and Wolves (1946-7) had exceeded that figure.
  • From 1975 to relegation in 1983 City were always one of the top 4 best supported sides, usually third behind United and Liverpool.
  • Since the 1980s whenever City have played outside of the top division, they have tended to be the best supported side in that division.  
  • Since moving to their current home in 2003, the increased capacity has allowed City to re-establish itself as one of best supported clubs again. Maine Road’s capacity from 1994 onwards was extremely low compared to the club’s entire history and prevented the Blues from staging games in front of attendances of approximateley 35,000 upwards.

In general many people believe success increases support, and while that is undoubtedly true to some extent, for City it is often periods of adversity that prove the loyalty of the Club’s fans.  It is highly significant, for example, that the first time City were the best supported side in the entire League (1910-11) Manchester United (6th best supported side) won the League title for the second time in 3 seasons.

Similarly, in 1925-26 when City were the best supported side in Division One and had established a new record average, the Blues were actually relegated.  This coupled with significant poverty and hardship in Manchester at the time should have reduced support but loyalty increased!  In my book “Manchester A Football History” I explore the relationship between attendances and Manchester’s major sides and it is fair to say that City fans can feel immensely proud of their loyalty throughout the history of the game.  Something that cannot be said by all of the League’s biggest names.  

In fact, it is worth highlighting that City have never been the worst supported side in their division but, of today’s so-called giants, Arsenal (1912-13 – average = 9,100) and Manchester United (1930-31 – average = 11,685) have.  City’s worst average of the Twentieth Century came in the desperate 1964-65 season and was 14,753 (half the average of 1960-61 and a 3rd of the 1957-8 figure).  However it is significant that for every League season City’s average has always been above the divisional average and, apart from 17 seasons, has always been in the top 11 nationally.  Again, few of today’s giants can’t say that – United’s 20th Century low stands at 4,650 and Chelsea averaged 15,731 as recently as 1988-89. In fact City’s lowest League attendance is more than double United’s lowest League attendance at Old Trafford (United have several crowds of less than 4,000 at Old Trafford, including top flight games; City’s lowest in the League was a little over 8000 in the second tier).

For fans average attendances are often used as an indicator of size of club and so a number of people over the years have tried to produce a definitive ‘all-time’ attendance table.  Several years ago analysis by a member of the Association of Football Statisticians claimed that if stadium capacity was not an issue for any club City would be the fourth biggest side in terms of attendance.  That analysis compared postwar attendance detail with performance on the pitch.  

In 2002 writer Brian Tabner calculated an all-time attendance table based on each club’s average attendance position during seasons 1925-2002.  His top ten were:  Arsenal, Liverpool, United, Everton, Tottenham, Newcastle, City, Chelsea, Villa and Sunderland.  Since 2002 several clubs have increased their capacities of course and this will have a positive impact on each club’s standing in a more up to date analysis.   

Figures can be manipulated in many different ways, but City should feel proud that they have many attendance firsts that can never be matched by today’s perceived biggest clubs.  

The Seasons City Have Topped the Divisional Charts

The following figures show the seasons when City were the best supported side in their division and the Club’s highest individual crowd that season.  Those crowds marked in italics were also the highest individual crowds for the entire division that season (crowds pre-1925 are inconsistently recorded and so have not been highlighted).  It is fair to say that when an average crowd is within 4,000 of the highest then the stadium is likely to have been full for the majority of games with the size of away support varying.     

Average         Season          Highest Crowd                                  

10,000            1895-96         30,000 (Liverpool)                

10,000            1898-99         25,000 (N. Heath)    

16,000            1902-03         30,000 (United)        

18,275            1909-10         40,000 (Oldham)

26,000            1910-11         40,000 (Liverpool)    

21,000            1914-15         40,000 (Oldham)

32,000            1925-26         62,994 (United)

30,848            1926-27         49,384 (Bradford C)

37,468            1927-28         59,500 (Preston)

31,715            1928-29         61,007 (United)

35,016            1950-51         45,842 (Hull)

27,739            1965-66         47,171 (Huddersfield)

24,220            1984-85         47,285 (Charlton)

23,500            1988-89         40,070 (Chelsea)

26,753            1996-97         30,729 (Oldham)

28,273            1998-99         32,471 (York)

32,001            1999-00         33,027 (Blackburn)

33,059            2001-02         34,657 (Portsmouth)

With the increase in capacity at the Etihad coming this year it will be interesting to see how attendances develop. No doubt I’ll post more on this as the season progresses. Undoubtedly City will establish a new record average attendance in 2026-27.

The 1910s: 1914-1915 Uncertain Times

The new series of features on Manchester City in the 1910s continues today with an article on the 1914-15 season – a season that was completed despite the outbreak of war. City and Oldham mounted title challenges too! If you’re a subscriber you can read all about this season below. If you’re not a subscriber then why not sign up for a month and see what you think?

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Starting Tomorrow: MCFC in the 1910s

Starting tomorrow a new series of articles and features on Manchester City in the 1910s. Most decades in the history of the club are already featured on this site but the seasonal review of the 1910s is not complete. Over the next week or so every season of that decade will be covered here. The 1910s is a decade that’s often overlooked but it did include title challenges; record attendances; and much more. It was also a decade that saw war lead to the suspension of the Football League BUT – and this is important – football did continue with crowds gathering at games across Manchester (and the nation) throughout the war.

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The 1920s: Ernest Mangnall

Continuing the series on Manchester City in the 1920s here’s a free to read 1300 word article on 1920s City (and 1900s United) manager Ernest Mangnall. Enjoy!

Although JAMES ERNEST MANGNALL is usually remembered as the first man to bring Manchester United trophy success – with a side containing the key members of City’s 1904 FA Cup triumph – he actually spent more years managing the Blues and saw City as the bigger club with more potential.  

People tend to focus on his successes at United but his commitment to the Blue cause and determination to move City to the best stadium in English football, are perhaps the most interesting aspects of his life.  His United successes are clearly significant moments in Manchester football, however City fans prefer to remember his Blue achievements.  

He joined City in 1912 but the most interesting aspect of his arrival is the way it was carried out.  Mangnall had been United’s leader since 1903 and had achieved so much that no one could ever have expected him to move.  As well as the trophy successes (promotion, two League titles and the FA Cup) he was also credited with being instrumental in United’s move from Clayton (where the Velodrome’s BMX track is today, close to the Etihad Stadium) to Old Trafford.  

City were still regarded as the region’s number one club despite the problems they had faced in the period 1905-1912, and they stunned the football world when they lured Mangnall away from the Reds.  Never before had a manager left a major club for its biggest rivals after so much success, but what made the story more of a sensation was the fact Mangnall had agreed to become City manager while still in office at Old Trafford, and that he had watched the Blues’ opening game at Notts County when he was supposed to be with United at Arsenal.  He actually remained in charge of United for the Manchester derby of 7th September 1912 at Old Trafford.  

Occasionally United historians dispute that Mangnall was officially their manager on the day of the derby but leading newspapers of the period, most notably the Umpire and the Daily Dispatch, are perfectly clear that he was officially in charge.  City won the Old Trafford match 1-0 despite being down to ten men for most of the game.  Mangnall, according to one report, was delighted with the City win despite, officially at least, still being a Red.  “United speeded their manager rejoicing with two points to his new club” read one article. 

The following Monday Mangnall moved into his Hyde Road office, and within a few weeks his side were looking like Championship contenders:  “Manchester City stand out boldly as the only first class team in the two divisions of the League, the Southern and the Scottish Leagues, with the highest possible points to their credit.  The Citizens of Manchester have earned every point in September.  Other clubs have remained undefeated, but they have not annexed the maximum marks.  Nine years have passed since Manchester City commenced a campaign in this stimulating style.”

The title didn’t arrive, however Mangnall did develop a decent-looking side by the time of the First World War – they missed the 1914-15 title by three points.  City were also proving a highly popular side to watch, so much so that the ground could hardly cope.  A notorious cup match with Sunderland in February 1913 had to be abandoned due to overcrowding.  Incredibly – and this is difficult to appreciate today – the team manager was also responsible for the management of the ground at this time, and so Mangnall was held responsible for all matters concerning safety and crowd control as well as picking the team and buying the players.  A reporter named Veteran accused Mangnall of spending too much time with the team and said:  “I am rather surprised at Mr. Mangnall being caught napping, but it may be that he has been away with the team and had had little to do with the home management.”

During the hostilities Mangnall kept the Club alive and brought some trophy success in the wartime tournaments that replaced the League.  

After the war, Mangnall’s side became very popular and he had to focus on ground issues as well as team matters.  With the Blues filling the 40,000 capacity on a regular basis, Mangnall regular had to face the press, the FA, the Football League, Manchester City Council, and the police to explain why chaotic scenes were being experienced game after game in the streets around the ground.  

In 1920 fire destroyed the Main Stand and exacerbated the problems Mangnall faced.  He approached his former club United about using Old Trafford, the ground he had been primarily responsible for, but they met his request with exorbitant terms that were ridiculed in the press.  Perhaps they still felt a little aggrieved about his departure almost a decade earlier?

Mangnall’s view was that City had to move from Hyde Road.  Its forty thousand capacity was far too small, and the manager worked with club officials, most notably another former City manager Lawrence Furniss, to plan the development of a new ground.  One with potential.

At the same time as the ground debates, Mangnall guided the Blues to second place in the League and their popularity increased further.

By the start of 1921-22 far too many people were missing out on watching Manchester’s favourite team.  That season he created plans for an “English Hampden” on the Moss Side/Rusholme border.  

In 1923 City moved to the 85,000 capacity Maine Road, and in Mangnall’s final season (1923-24) he almost managed to guide the Blues to the FA Cup Final.  With the 49 year old Billy Meredith back in Mangnall’s side, City were defeated by Newcastle.  That run was important as it perhaps demonstrated the reason why Mangnall had been determined to join the Blues back in 1912 for his City side attracted a few magnificent attendances including over 76,000 for a cup tie with Cardiff.  At the time this was the largest crowd for any footballing fixture played in Manchester including three FA Cup finals (1893, 1911 replay & 1915).  Mangnall knew all about City’s popularity and he must have felt a great deal of satisfaction at seeing such a large crowd in the stadium he had pushed for.

The following May his contract was not renewed, although It seems likely he chose to step down feeling that there was little more he could achieve at Maine Road.  After leaving the Blues he became a director of his home town team, Bolton, and was a significant figure within the PFA.  He died of a cerebral embolism in 1932 at St. Annes. 

In addition to his roles at Burnley – his first club as secretary, United, City, and Bolton, he was also recorded as the man responsible for founding the Central League and the Football Managers’ Association.  

Modern day football rarely remembers men like Mangnall, however his place in the history of Manchester must always remain a significant one.  He restored pride and passion to the Blues and was the key figure in City’s move to Maine Road.  That move enabled City to rediscover their ambition, drive, and natural position as one of England’s elite.

Football historians tend to focus on Mangnall’s United career but that does the man a great disservice.  He may have won trophies at Old Trafford but his entire career was packed with achievements.

Mangnall should always be remembered as the catalyst for City’s regeneration during a difficult period.  The fact that he walked out on United to take on the City challenge adds an angle that Blues love.  Mangnall was a great Blue.   

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Ten Years On

Ten years ago this month I was awarded my PhD. It’s been a remarkable decade since. there were two areas I wanted to make significant progress in during the time that followed. One was the establishment of an annual conference where those researching the history of football (of all codes) could meet and share ideas in a positive and supportive environment. the other was to perform detailed research into the history of women’s football in Manchester.

Both aims have been met with the establishment of the International Football History Conference and the setting up of a self funded project into women’s football. The next football conference is in Belfast next month and the women’s football history project has seen two books, a booklet, a chapter and lots of articles published.

I’ll be posting features on both soon. Thanks to all who have helped with these initiatives.

The Death of a City Player

On this day (30 October) in 1916 the death of Manchester City defender Pat McGuire was reported in the Manchester Evening News (image) and the Athletic News. McGuire’s story is a tragic one as he was killed in battle but his wife had previously been told of his death several months earlier. Understandably there was a lot of confusion on the battle field but imagine being told your husband had been killed and then a short while later told he’s alive and then only a few weeks after that being told for the second time that he has been killed.

The report in the Athletic News read:

‘It was with very deep regret that news was received at Grimsby on Saturday of the death in action in France of Lance-Corporal P. M’Guire [sic], of the Manchester Regiment, the brilliant young full-back of the Manchester City club, who played for Grimsby Town throughout last season. Last winter he played better football than at any period of his career, and Grimsby regarded him as the best defender who had worn their livery for a decade. He was clear-headed, resourceful, and a master of defensive tactics. Now he has given his life in the greatest of all causes. That something had befallen him had been feared for three weeks past, as Mr. Hickson did not receive any acknowledgement of the letters and parcels of comfort which he and his wife make a practice of dispatching regularly to the “boys” at the front. On Saturday came the sad official news that M’Guire was no more.‘

McGuire joined City from Hurst on 18 Aug 1912 and made his debut v Chelsea (a) 1.3.1913

Former City historian John Maddocks wrote this about him:

Pat McGuire was a full-back who was used mainly as an understudy to the regular backs in the years immediately before WW1, Bill Henry and Eli Fletcher, and as these two were consistent players Pat rarely got a look in. He joined the armed forces for the duration and guested for Grimsby Town, making 31 appearances and scoring six goals. Sadly he was killed in action in October 1916.

Appearances: 15 in the League (plus at least 85 in the reserves)

The story is an incredible one and the following website tells it much better than I can here:

Patrick McGuire

History Video: Joshua Parlby and the Launch of MCFC

As promised, here for subscribers is my presentation on Joshua Parlby and the launch of Manchester City FC. It lasts about 58 minutes and was recorded on 1 March 2023. There are lots of myths out there, but I focused on the facts and my latest research. 

The presentation is all about the visionary who promoted a new club to represent Manchester, Manchester City and about the steps taken in 1894. This talk is now only available to subscribers (see below for details of how to subscribe).

Subscribers can also see the previous history talk on St Mark’s and City’s development in the Gorton area during the 1870s and 1880s below.

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History Talk Video: Joshua Parlby and the Launch of MCFC

Here’s my presentation on Joshua Parlby and the launch of Manchester City FC. It lasts about 58 minutes and was recorded on 1 March 2023. There are lots of myths out there, but I focused on the facts and my latest research. 

The presentation is all about the visionary who promoted a new club to represent Manchester, Manchester City and about the steps taken in 1894. This talk was free to download until this morning (9 March). Now it is available to subscribers (see below for details of how to subscribe).

Subscribers can also see the previous history talk on St Mark’s and City’s development in the Gorton area during the 1870s and 1880s below.

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True Blues – Joshua Parlby

Continuing the weekly series of ‘True Blue’ figures associated with the early years of Manchester City, here’s an article on Joshua Parlby who was the visionary who was the main figure behind the creation of Manchester City. He was also a former Stoke footballer and committeeman. As an appetizer for my forthcoming talk (1 March – see below). You can find out why this man was such an important figure in Manchester City history below:

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There will be another ‘True Blue’ featured next Monday. Use the tag ‘True Blues’ to find other profiles in this series. If you want to join my free online talk concerning Parlby and City see:

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/joshua-parlby-the-launch-of-manchester-city-tickets-537769542177

The full series of True Blue profiles will feature:

Lawrence Furniss, John Allison, Joshua Parlby, Walter Chew, William Sumner, Tom Maley, St Mark’s community leaders, Billy Meredith, John Chapman, William Beastow and James Moores.

A WW1 Death

On this day (17 November) in 1915 former Manchester City, Oldham Athletic and Hyde forward Frank Hesham was killed in action in Belgium (often reported as northern France at the time of his death). The Gorton born player was on City’s books for 5 years during the late 1890s. Here’s a profile of his life and career:

Frank Hesham began his football career at St Francis (the well-known Catholic monastery and related school in Gorton) before joining City in November 1896. He made his debut at Newcastle United in February 1897. Sadly, the game ended in a 3-0 defeat and Hesham was unable to establish himself in the team. 

In total he only made three first team appearances for the Blues and one reserve game over a period of about five years.

Brief spells at Crewe and Accrington followed before he signed for Stoke in May 1904. 17 Stoke appearances followed before he moved to Leyton Orient, returning north to join Oldham in August 1907.

He made his Oldham debut in a 3-0 victory over Hull City on 28 September 1907 and it finally looked as if he’d found the right club. He stayed at Boundary Park for a couple of years, playing 29 first team games before joining Preston North End in 1909.

The move to Preston was not a success and two months later he joined Croydon Common in the Southern League where he scored 27 in 55 appearances. Another return north came – he clearly had reasons for wanting to alternate between southern and northern clubs so frequently which have yet to be identified – and he joined Hyde.

Hesham also played for Newton Heath Albion but was working as a clerk in Manchester when war broke out. 

The following details of his military service and death are from the website: https://www.footballandthefirstworldwar.org

First World War Service

Gunner 53546 Hesham, who had pre-war service with the 4th Volunteer Battalion of the Manchester Regiment (time-served), enlisted in the Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) on 18 November 1914 and was subsequently sent for basic training. After leaving Number 2 Depot, Gosport, Gnr Hesham was posted to 21 Siege Battery RGA and landed in the French port of Boulogne on 25 May 1915. On 29 September 1915, Hesham was granted short leave before returning to his unit on 3 October 1915 – just two weeks before the Second Battle of Ypres. On 17 November 1915, Gnr Hesham was killed in action and subsequently buried at La Clytte Military Cemetery, located 8km south-west of Ypres. He left a widow and a 14 year-old son who lived in Longsight, Manchester.