1914–15 Sheffield United F.C. season

March 2015 March 2015 Sheffield United 1914–15 Sheffield united facup 1915.jpg The FA Cup winners None(John Nicholson acted as club secretary) Tom Bott Bramall Lane Division One 6th FA Cup Winners Kitchen (12) Kitchen (16) 32,000(vs Blackburn Rovers) 5,000(vs Burnley) 14,947 _white_stripes _whitestripes _white_stripes _2 red stripes FF0000 FF0000 FF0000 000000 000000 1913–14 1915–16 The 1914–15 season was the 26th season in existence for Sheffield United, during which they played in Division One. At this time the club did not employ a manager, with the team being selected by the Football Committee although the club secretary, John Nicholson, undertook many of the duties now associated with a team manager. The club continued to establish itself as one of the top sides in the country, finishing sixth in the First Division and beating Chelsea 3–0 in the final to become winners of the FA Cup. Season overview After a solid end to the previous season there was an amount of optimism for what the club could achieve in the coming term. Reserve players Bob Barnshaw, Bert Pearson and Sam Bagnall were allowed to leave during the close season but it was thought that only a few good additions to the squad would turn the side into genuine contenders for the league title. The football committee duly signed Harry Pantling and Jack Thompson but it was the signing of Wally Masterman for £800 from Gainsborough Trinity that proved their most astute purchase. The season was played under the shadow of war from the European continent and attendances dwindled as the country moved onto a war footing. The team's pre-season optimism was dealt a massive blow in their first game when star player Billy Gillespie broke his leg and did not feature again that term. This loss unsettled the team and they made a miserable start, winning only three games up until the start of December. The loss of Gillespie had an unforeseen effect however, as it allowed other players to come into their own. Joe Kitchen was the main goal threat but David Davis and particularly Masterman began to score regularly. The change in fortune came in December from when the team embarked on an impressive run of form, losing only once more until the start of April. During this time the club also had another successful run in the FA Cup. Beaten semi-finalists the season before, this time round they reached the final at Old Trafford where they beat Chelsea 3–0 to lift the cup for the third time. Unfortunately the hoped for challenge for the championship never really materialised. Ironically the team's success in the cup would begin to have a detrimental effect on their league form as the resulting fixture pile up meant that they were required to play nine competitive games during April 1915, including the FA Cup Final, and results suffered accordingly. This, coupled with their poor start, saw the side eventually finish sixth in the table in what turned out to be the final season before the league and cup competitions were abandoned whilst the country was at war. Players Squad yes yes ENG GK Ernest Blackwell yes ENG DF Bill Brelsford yes ENG DF Bill Cook yes WAL 1807 FW David Davies yes ENG DF Jack English yes ENG MF Robert Evans yes ENG FW Stan Fazackerley yes IRE FW Billy Gillespie yes ENG GK Harold Gough yes ENG DF Fred Hawley yes ENG FW Harry Hall yes yes ENG GK Ted Hufton yes ENG FW Joe Kitchen yes ENG FW Wally Masterman yes ENG MF Harry Pantling yes ENG MF Jimmy Revill yes ENG DF Tom Richardson yes ENG MF Jimmy Simmons yes ENG MF Albert Sturgess yes ENG FW Jack Thompson yes ENG MF George Utley captain Squad statistics the end of the seasonDenis Clarebrough & Andrew Kirkham A Complete Record of Sheffield United Football Club 1889-1999 Sheffield United 1999 121–122 0-9508588-2-X Division One FA Cup ENG GK Ernest Blackwell 0 0 0 0 ENG DF Bill Brelsford 31 0 6 0 ENG DF Bill Cook 37 0 7 0 WAL 1807 FW David Davies 22 7 3 0 ENG DF Jack English 28 0 6 0 ENG MF Robert Evans 32 1 6 0 ENG FW Stan Fazackerley 25 6 5 2 IRE FW Billy Gillespie 1 0 0 0 ENG GK Harold Gough 37 0 6 0 ENG FW Harry Hall 0 0 0 0 ENG DF Fred Hawley 23 1 2 0 ENG GK Ted Hufton 1 0 1 0 ENG FW Joe Kitchen 29 12 7 4 ENG FW Wally Masterman 26 9 6 2 ENG MF Harry Pantling 6 0 0 0 ENG DF Tom Richardson 0 0 0 0 ENG MF Jimmy Revill 10 0 1 0 ENG FW Jimmy Simmons 37 9 7 2 ENG MF Albert Sturgess 36 1 7 0 ENG MF Jack Thompson 8 2 0 0 ENG MF George Utley 37 1 7 1 |} Transfers In PositionPlayerTransferred fromFeeDateSourceFWMasterman, Wally ENG Wally MastermanGainsborough Trinity ENG Gainsborough Trinity£8002 May 1914Denis Clarebrough & Andrew Kirkham Sheffield United Who's Who Hallamshire Press 2008 223 978-1-874718-69-7MFPantling, Harry ENG Harry PantlingWatford ENG Watford£8503 May 1914Denis Clarebrough & Andrew Kirkham Sheffield United Who's Who Hallamshire Press 2008 249 978-1-874718-69-7MFThompson, Jack ENG Jack ThompsonScunthorpe & Lindsey United ENG Scunthorpe & Lindsey UnitedFree8 July 1914Denis Clarebrough & Andrew Kirkham Sheffield United Who's Who Hallamshire Press 2008 315 978-1-874718-69-7 Out PositionPlayerTransferred toFeeDateSourceFWBarnshaw, Bob ENG Bob BarnshawWatford ENG Watford£5020 May 1914Denis Clarebrough & Andrew Kirkham Sheffield United Who's Who Hallamshire Press 2008 43 978-1-874718-69-7FWBagnall, Sam ENG Sam BagnallWatford ENG South LiverpoolFree1 July 1914Denis Clarebrough & Andrew Kirkham Sheffield United Who's Who Hallamshire Press 2008 38 978-1-874718-69-7MFPearson, Albert ENG Bert PearsonPort Vale ENG Port ValeFree1 July 1914Denis Clarebrough & Andrew Kirkham Sheffield United Who's Who Hallamshire Press 2008 253 978-1-874718-69-7 League table First Division y SHU Matches League 2 September 1914 15:00 Sunderland 3–2 Sheffield United Simmons  David Davies   Roker Park 12,200 L 5 September 1914 15:00 Sheffield United 0–2 The Wednesday Bramall Lane 27,500 L 12 September 1914 15:00 West Bromwich Albion 1–1 Sheffield United Fazackerley   The Hawthorns 6,481 D 19 September 1914 15:00 Sheffield United 1–0 Everton David Davies   Bramall Lane 18,000 W 26 September 1914 15:00 Chelsea 1–1 Sheffield United David Davies   Stamford Bridge 18,000 D 3 October 1914 15:00 Sheffield United 1–1 Bradford City Fazackerley   Bramall Lane 20,000 D 10 October 1914 15:00 Burnley 1–2 Sheffield United Fazackerley  Kitchen   Turf Moor 18,000 W 17 October 1914 15:00 Sheffield United 1–1 Tottenham Hotspur Thompson   Bramall Lane 20,000 D 24 October 1914 15:00 Newcastle United 4–3 Sheffield United Simmons  Sturgess    Thompson   St James' Park 27,500 L 31 October 1914 15:00 Sheffield United 0–1 Middlesbrough Bramall Lane 11,000 L 7 November 1914 15:00 Manchester City 0–0 Sheffield United Hyde Road 25,500 D 14 November 1914 15:00 Aston Villa 1–0 Sheffield United Villa Park 14,000 L 21 November 1914 15:00 Sheffield United 2–1 Liverpool Simmons  ,   Bramall Lane 11,500 W 28 November 1914 15:00 Bradford Park Avenue 2–0 Sheffield United Park Avenue 8,000 L 5 December 1914 15:00 Sheffield United 3–0 Oldham Athletic Simmons  Masterman  David Davies   Bramall Lane 8,500 W 12 December 1914 15:00 Manchester United 1–2 Sheffield United Simmons   pen.Masterman   Old Trafford 7,500 W 19 December 1914 15:00 Sheffield United 3–1 Bolton Wanderers Simmons  Kitchen  Masterman   Bramall Lane 5,500 W 26 December 1914 15:00 Sheffield United 1–2 Blackburn Rovers Masterman   Bramall Lane 32,000 L 28 December 1914 15:00 Sheffield United 1–0 Notts County Simmons   Bramall Lane 15,000 W 1 January 1915 15:00 Blackburn Rovers 1–2 Sheffield United Hawley  Kitchen   Ewood Park 10,000 W 2 January 1915 15:00 The Wednesday 1–1 Sheffield United Davies   Hillsborough Stadium 31,500 D 16 January 1915 15:00 Sheffield United 2–0 West Bromwich Albion David Davies  ,   Bramall Lane 14,500 W 23 January 1915 15:00 Everton 0–0 Sheffield United Goodison Park 18,000 D 6 February 1915 15:00 Bradford City 1–1 Sheffield United Masterman   Valley Parade 18,000 D 13 February 1915 15:00 Sheffield United 1–0 Burnley Kitchen   Bramall Lane 5,000 W 27 February 1915 15:00 Sheffield United 1–0 Newcastle United Kitchen   Bramall Lane 17,500 W 8 March 1915 15:00 Sheffield United 1–0 Chelsea Fazackerley   Bramall Lane 5,750 W 17 March 1915 15:00 Middlesbrough 2–2 Sheffield United Masterman  Kitchen   Ayresome Park 5,000 D 20 March 1915 15:00 Sheffield United 3–0 Aston Villa Masterman  Kitchen  ,   Bramall Lane 16,750 W 29 March 1915 15:00 Sheffield United 0–0 Manchester City Bramall Lane 10,000 D 2 April 1915 15:00 Notts County 3–1 Sheffield United Kitchen   Meadow Lane 9,300 L 3 April 1915 15:00 Sheffield United 3–2 Bradford Park Avenue Simmons  Kitchen  Masterman   Bramall Lane 10,500 W 5 April 1915 15:00 Sheffield United 1–1 Sunderland Fazackerley   Bramall Lane 21,000 D 10 April 1915 15:00 Oldham Athletic 3–0 Sheffield United Boundary Park 10,354 L 12 April 1915 15:00 Liverpool 2–1 Sheffield United Kitchen   Anfield 4,000 L 17 April 1915 15:00 Sheffield United 3–1 Manchester United Utley  Evans  Masterman   Bramall Lane 14,000 W 19 April 1915 15:00 Tottenham Hotspur 1–1 Sheffield United Fazackerley   White Hart Lane 7,750 D 26 April 1915 15:00 Bolton Wanderers 0–1 Sheffield United Kitchen   Burnden Park 13,500 W FA Cup 23 January 1915 Round 1 15:00 Blackpool 1–2 Sheffield United Masterman ?, ? Bloomfield Road 9,462 W 30 January 1915 Round 2 15:00 Sheffield United 1–0 Liverpool Kitchen ? Bramall Lane 26,754 W 20 February 1915 Round 3 15:00 Sheffield United 1–0 Bradford Park Avenue Crozier ? o.g. Bramall Lane 30,032 W 6 March 1915 Round 4 15:00 Oldham Athletic 0–0 Sheffield United Boundary Park 18,419 D 13 March 1915 Round 4r 15:00 Sheffield United 3–0 Oldham Athletic Kitchen ? ?Fazackerley ? Bramall Lane 43,157 W 13 March 1915 Semi Final 15:00 Sheffield United 2–1 Bolton Wanderers Simmons ?Utley ? Ewood Park 22,404 W 24 April 1915 Final 15:00 Sheffield United 3–0 Chelsea Simmons ?Fazackerley ?Kitchen ? Old Trafford 49,557 W Friendlies 5 October 1914 The Wednesday 2–0 Sheffield United Hillsborough Stadium 5,500 L References 2 Sheffield United Category:Sheffield United F.C. seasons