The new series on Manchester City in the 1940s continues with this article on the 1940-41 season. The season ended with Manchester United sharing Maine Road after bomb damage to United’s ground. The image shows sites where bombs damaged property close to Maine Road on that same night.
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On this day in 1947 Manchester City faced Manchester United at Maine Road. This was a home game for City against their tenants United.
Here for subscribers is a flashback piece detailing what features were in the MCFC match programme that day:
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You can help the authorised history of the Manchester Corinthians get published by subscribing now. You will get your name included in a special roll of honour published within the book if ordered by 31st March 2024 here:
Manchester Corinthians: The Authorised History
The story of a pioneering women’s club as told to Gary James by those who were there
£19.95
Opportunities to buy multiple copies, sponsor the book or donate to ensure it’s published to the size and standard the women who played deserve exist. Please email Gary@GJFootballArchive.com for more information on those opportunities.
This book is a must for anyone interested in Manchester or women’s football and will consist of over 300 pages. It will be fully illustrated throughout and subscribers can order it now for £19.95 (including UK postage and packaging). All orders received before 31st March 2024 will have the purchaser’s name included within the special roll of honour at the back of the book. You can order the book for someone else – all details will be checked and confirmed before publication.
The book will be published this summer.
If you live outside the UK then please contact for details of additional postage costs.
You do not need to have a PayPal account to order – use the ‘Pay with PayPal’ button above and it will give you the option to pay by credit/debit card without creating a PayPal account.
The book will include the story of the club as told by the women involved, alongside a significant amount of archive material. Myths will be corrected and the facts of this pioneering club will be told in an easy to read format.
Guided by founder Percy Ashley, the club went on to represent Manchester, football and female endeavour for decades, winning major international tournaments in Europe and South America. The Corinthians are, without doubt, one of the most important football clubs ever to come from Manchester and they were a prominent and pioneering club in so many ways.
As well as the interviews and dozens of archive trips there’s been a concerted effort to compile as comprehensive list as possible on women who played for the club. I’ve managed to compile a list of around 300 women who played for the club. Objects and trophies have also been rediscovered. This is the type of detailed research I enjoy. It’s time consuming, difficult and often frustrating but occasionally you find a little gem that adds significantly to our knowledge. There have been quite a few of those.
I’m still keen to hear from any former player who can add their voices to the history of the club, though the research and writing stage will be ending soon, so please get in touch as soon as possible. Please email Gary@GJFootballArchive.com with your name, rough dates you played and contact details.
Those subscribing to the book will receive a copy signed by author Gary James and posted out to subscribers before it appears in any shop or is distributed to any retailer. This is the ONLY way to guarantee your copy.
Manchester Corinthians: The Authorised History will include interviews with players from every era of the club from a founding player back in 1949 through to those playing for the club in its final days over 40 years later (yes, that’s right – over 40 years later!). The book will finally tell the story of the club from start to finish via the voices of the women who played. Via these voices the entire history of the club will be explained with the key figures identified and remembered. There’s a remarkable trail of women linking the first game with the last.
The book will be published to a similar style and quality to the acclaimed Manchester City Women: An Oral History and is destined to be another landmark publication on a major, pioneering women’s football club. Dozens of former players have been interviewed for this book and their remarkable stories and memories will be supported with an amazing array of photographs, newspaper articles, match programmes, trophies and other items of memorabilia from every era of the club’s existence.
Alongside chapters chronicling the history of the club there will also be features on founder Percy Ashley, who dedicated his life to promoting women’s football, and on Gladys Aikin (a key figure not only with the Corinthians but also with the early years of the Women’s Football Association) and George Aikin, who continued to take the Corinthians on tours into the 1980s. There will be special features on the major tours of the 1950s and 1960s when Percy Ashley led the Corinthians to major international success.
The cover of the book will be worked on by the designer over the coming months but following feedback from former players the maroon has been replaced with a darker blue, more reminiscent of the colour most frequently worn by the Corinthians (based on the reports, programmes and other material found so far and the majority of comments from players). This may still change of course (‘The Authorised History’ will probably change colour too). The back will contain later images and wording.
If you’d like to purchase my earlier book on women’s football then a limited number of copies, signed by me, are still available. You can order here:
Manchester City Women: An Oral History book
The first history of Manchester City’s women’s team, taking the story of the club from formation in 1988 until 2019-20 season.
£16.95 including UK postage (outside UK contact for additional postage costs)
It’s a great tribute with quotes from many Corinthians. Have a read if you can.
I’m writing the authorised history of the club. As well as all the great stuff about the women who played fans of Manchester City and Manchester United may be interested to learn of the role Matt Busby, Johnny Carey, Bert Trautmann & Dave Ewing played in the history of the Manchester Corinthians.
There’s some fascinating information about those four men and other Manchester footballing legends – including the Corinthians themselves of course! – getting involved with the club.
If you’re interested in the book then you can order it below.
This book is a must for anyone interested in Manchester or women’s football and will consist of over 300 pages. It will be fully illustrated throughout and subscribers can order it now for £19.95 (including UK postage and packaging). All orders received before 31st March 2024 will have the purchaser’s name included within the special roll of honour at the back of the book. You can order the book for someone else – all details will be checked and confirmed before publication.
The book will be published this summer.
If you live outside the UK then please contact for details of additional postage costs.
You do not need to have a PayPal account to order – use the ‘Pay with PayPal’ button above and it will give you the option to pay by credit/debit card without creating a PayPal account.
Manchester Corinthians: The Authorised History
The story of a pioneering women’s club as told to Gary James by those who were there
£19.95
The book will include the story of the club as told by the women involved, alongside a significant amount of archive material. Myths will be corrected and the facts of this pioneering club will be told in an easy to read format.
Guided by founder Percy Ashley, the club went on to represent Manchester, football and female endeavour for decades, winning major international tournaments in Europe and South America. The Corinthians are, without doubt, one of the most important football clubs ever to come from Manchester and they were a prominent and pioneering club in so many ways.
As well as the interviews and dozens of archive trips there’s been a concerted effort to compile as comprehensive list as possible on women who played for the club. I’ve managed to compile a list of around 300 women who played for the club. Objects and trophies have also been rediscovered. This is the type of detailed research I enjoy. It’s time consuming, difficult and often frustrating but occasionally you find a little gem that adds significantly to our knowledge. There have been quite a few of those.
I’m still keen to hear from any former player who can add their voices to the history of the club, though the research and writing stage will be ending soon, so please get in touch as soon as possible. Please email Gary@GJFootballArchive.com with your name, rough dates you played and contact details.
Those subscribing to the book will receive a copy signed by author Gary James and posted out to subscribers before it appears in any shop or is distributed to any retailer. This is the ONLY way to guarantee your copy.
Manchester Corinthians: The Authorised History will include interviews with players from every era of the club from a founding player back in 1949 through to those playing for the club in its final days over 40 years later (yes, that’s right – over 40 years later!). The book will finally tell the story of the club from start to finish via the voices of the women who played. Via these voices the entire history of the club will be explained with the key figures identified and remembered. There’s a remarkable trail of women linking the first game with the last.
The book will be published to a similar style and quality to the acclaimed Manchester City Women: An Oral History and is destined to be another landmark publication on a major, pioneering women’s football club. Dozens of former players have been interviewed for this book and their remarkable stories and memories will be supported with an amazing array of photographs, newspaper articles, match programmes, trophies and other items of memorabilia from every era of the club’s existence.
Alongside chapters chronicling the history of the club there will also be features on founder Percy Ashley, who dedicated his life to promoting women’s football, and on Gladys Aikin (a key figure not only with the Corinthians but also with the early years of the Women’s Football Association) and George Aikin, who continued to take the Corinthians on tours into the 1980s. There will be special features on the major tours of the 1950s and 1960s when Percy Ashley led the Corinthians to major international success.
The cover of the book will be worked on by the designer over the coming months but following feedback from former players the maroon has been replaced with a darker blue, more reminiscent of the colour most frequently worn by the Corinthians (based on the reports, programmes and other material found so far and the majority of comments from players). This may still change of course (‘The Authorised History’ will probably change colour too). The back will contain later images and wording.
If you’d like to purchase my earlier book on women’s football then a limited number of copies, signed by me, are still available. You can order here:
Manchester City Women: An Oral History book
The first history of Manchester City’s women’s team, taking the story of the club from formation in 1988 until 2019-20 season.
£16.95 including UK postage (outside UK contact for additional postage costs)
This month (January) marks the 75th anniversary of the Manchester Corinthian Ladies Football Club and this year will see the publication of my authorised history of the club. As well as all the great stuff about the women who played fans of Manchester City and Manchester United may be interested to learn of the role Matt Busby, Johnny Carey, Bert Trautmann & Dave Ewing played in the history of the Manchester Corinthians.
There’s some fascinating information about those four men and other Manchester footballing legends – including the Corinthians themselves of course! – getting involved with the club.
If you’re interested in the book then you can order it below.
This book is a must for anyone interested in Manchester or women’s football and will consist of over 300 pages. It will be fully illustrated throughout and subscribers can order it now for £19.95 (including UK postage and packaging). All orders received before 31st March 2024 will have the purchaser’s name included within the special roll of honour at the back of the book. You can order the book for someone else – all details will be checked and confirmed before publication.
The book will be published this summer.
If you live outside the UK then please contact for details of additional postage costs.
You do not need to have a PayPal account to order – use the ‘Pay with PayPal’ button above and it will give you the option to pay by credit/debit card without creating a PayPal account.
Manchester Corinthians: The Authorised History
The story of a pioneering women’s club as told to Gary James by those who were there
£19.95
The book will include the story of the club as told by the women involved, alongside a significant amount of archive material. Myths will be corrected and the facts of this pioneering club will be told in an easy to read format.
Guided by founder Percy Ashley, the club went on to represent Manchester, football and female endeavour for decades, winning major international tournaments in Europe and South America. The Corinthians are, without doubt, one of the most important football clubs ever to come from Manchester and they were a prominent and pioneering club in so many ways.
As well as the interviews and dozens of archive trips there’s been a concerted effort to compile as comprehensive list as possible on women who played for the club. I’ve managed to compile a list of around 300 women who played for the club. Objects and trophies have also been rediscovered. This is the type of detailed research I enjoy. It’s time consuming, difficult and often frustrating but occasionally you find a little gem that adds significantly to our knowledge. There have been quite a few of those.
I’m still keen to hear from any former player who can add their voices to the history of the club, though the research and writing stage will be ending soon, so please get in touch as soon as possible. Please email Gary@GJFootballArchive.com with your name, rough dates you played and contact details.
Those subscribing to the book will receive a copy signed by author Gary James and posted out to subscribers before it appears in any shop or is distributed to any retailer. This is the ONLY way to guarantee your copy.
Manchester Corinthians: The Authorised History will include interviews with players from every era of the club from a founding player back in 1949 through to those playing for the club in its final days over 40 years later (yes, that’s right – over 40 years later!). The book will finally tell the story of the club from start to finish via the voices of the women who played. Via these voices the entire history of the club will be explained with the key figures identified and remembered. There’s a remarkable trail of women linking the first game with the last.
The book will be published to a similar style and quality to the acclaimed Manchester City Women: An Oral History and is destined to be another landmark publication on a major, pioneering women’s football club. Dozens of former players have been interviewed for this book and their remarkable stories and memories will be supported with an amazing array of photographs, newspaper articles, match programmes, trophies and other items of memorabilia from every era of the club’s existence.
Alongside chapters chronicling the history of the club there will also be features on founder Percy Ashley, who dedicated his life to promoting women’s football, and on Gladys Aikin (a key figure not only with the Corinthians but also with the early years of the Women’s Football Association) and George Aikin, who continued to take the Corinthians on tours into the 1980s. There will be special features on the major tours of the 1950s and 1960s when Percy Ashley led the Corinthians to major international success.
The cover of the book will be worked on by the designer over the coming months but following feedback from former players the maroon has been replaced with a darker blue, more reminiscent of the colour most frequently worn by the Corinthians (based on the reports, programmes and other material found so far and the majority of comments from players). This may still change of course (‘The Authorised History’ will probably change colour too). The back will contain later images and wording.
If you’d like to purchase my earlier book on women’s football then a limited number of copies, signed by me, are still available. You can order here:
Manchester City Women: An Oral History book
The first history of Manchester City’s women’s team, taking the story of the club from formation in 1988 until 2019-20 season.
£16.95 including UK postage (outside UK contact for additional postage costs)
It’s post 82 of my 100 Maine Road countdown and today a reminder of the largest ever Manchester derby crowd for a game at City or United. On 20 September 1947 a crowd of approximately 78,000 witnessed the first post-war Manchester derby. A tense match ended goalless before the derby’s record crowd on a club ground. This attendance remained the highest for a Manchester derby until the 2011 FA Cup semi-final at Wembley Stadium. The return fixture, also played at Maine Road, was watched by 71,690.
Subscribers can read the story of the 1947 game (background, match report, statistics etc.) below:
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You can read this detailed article when you subscriber (plus all other material on the site). It costs £20 a year (£1.67 per month) to subscribe or you can subscribe a month at a time (see below).
You can read this detailed article when you subscribe (plus all other material on the site). It costs £20 a year (above) to subscribe annually or you can subscribe a month at a time for £3 per month (cancel anytime; monthly subscribers get access to everything posted since 1 October 2022).
On this day (20 September) in 1947 a crowd of approximately 78,000 witnessed the first post-war Manchester derby. A tense match ended goalless before the derby’s record crowd on a club ground. This attendance remained the highest for a Manchester derby until the 2011 FA Cup semi-final at Wembley Stadium. The return fixture, also played at Maine Road, was watched by 71,690. Subscribers can read the story of the 1947 game (background, match report, statistics etc.) below:
Subscribe to get access
You can read this detailed article when you subscriber (plus all other material on the site). It costs £20 a year (£1.67 per month) to subscribe
Today’s guest blog follows on from last week’s guest blog in which Steve Bolton talked of the Manchester Ladies (who also went under the name Wythenshawe Ladies, City of Manchester Ladies, Manchester City Ladies the 1940s & 1950s) and their early years. Today is part two of Steve’s research into this pioneering women’s club (part one can be viewed here: https://gjfootballarchive.com/?p=1863 ).
Over the last few years much has been written about pioneering women’s football teams and Steve’s research is certainly adding to that. I’m sure anyone reading this already knows about my book on Manchester City Women (available here: https://gjfootballarchive.com/shop/ ) and about the other articles on this blog discussing other leading women’s clubs, including the Manchester Corinthians (see: https://gjfootballarchive.com/category/womens-football-2/ ).
If you played for a women’s team in the Manchester region during the 1940s to 1960s then please get in touch. I’m writing a detailed history of the Manchester Corinthians to be published in 2024 and your information may help both mine and Steve Bolton’s research. For more on the Corinthians book see:
If you played an active part in developing women’s football prior to the FA ban then please get in touch by emailing gary@GJFootballArchive.com or follow me on twitter: @garyjameswriter or facebook.com/garyjames4
Over the last few years much has been written about pioneering women’s football teams and I’m delighted to say that Manchester has had several of these over the years. I’m sure anyone reading this knows about my book on Manchester City Women (available here: https://gjfootballarchive.com/shop/ ) and about the other articles on this blog discussing other clubs, including the Manchester Corinthians (see: https://gjfootballarchive.com/category/womens-football-2/ ).
Thanks to the Manchester Corinthians the story of pioneering Mancunian female footballers has received some decent coverage in recent years but it would be wrong to think that the women who played for Corinthians were the first women who played football in our region. There are games staged in Manchester going back to the 1880s of course. However, following the 1921 ban (which saw the FA ban women’s football games from FA affiliated pitches) opportunities were restricted significantly.
In Preston the famous Dick Kerr Ladies have been heralded for their efforts and in the 1950s & 1960s Manchester Corinthians found global fame for their exploits, but football tends to overlook many other clubs and in 1940s Manchester, before the Corinthians became established there was another female football club that promoted the sport, charity work and female prowess.
For today’s guest blog researcher Steve Bolton provides the first part of his research into the stories, facts and evidence of this Manchester team:
If you played for a women’s team in the Manchester region during the 1940s to 1960s then please get in touch. I’m writing a detailed history of the Manchester Corinthians to be published in 2024 and your information may help both mine and Steve Bolton’s research. For more on the Corinthians book see:
If you played an active part in developing women’s football prior to the FA ban then please get in touch by emailing gary@GJFootballArchive.com or follow me on twitter: @garyjameswriter or facebook.com/garyjames4
Gary James' Football Archive 