1923–24 Southampton F.C. season

April 2022 Southampton F.C. 1923–24 Tankerville Chamberlayne Jimmy McIntyre The Dell Second Division 5th FA Cup Third round Bill Rawlings (19) Bill Rawlings (23) 20,000 v Manchester United(3 September 1923) 7,000 (multiple games) 10,380 6–0 v Barnsley(19 January 1924) 0–3 v Leeds United(8 March 1924) _red_stripes _redstripes2 _red_stripes _band_red FFFFFF FFFFFF FFFFFF 003366 003366 1922–23 1924–25 The 1923–24 season was the 29th season of competitive football by Southampton, and the club's second in the Second Division of the Football League. Having finished in a mid-table position the previous season, the club made progress towards their goal of promotion to the First Division by finishing fifth in the second flight in 1923–24. The campaign started off relatively poorly, as the club won just two of their opening ten fixtures and found themselves around the middle of the table again. However, the team's performances began to improve, and by the middle of January they had made it to the top five in the division. With tough competition at the higher end of the Second Division, Southampton continued to drop points in key matches and finished the season in fifth place with 17 wins, 14 draws and 11 losses. In the 1923–24 FA Cup, Southampton beat top-flight side Chelsea in the first round, followed by a home win over Second Division rivals Blackpool in the second. In the third round they hosted First Division champions Liverpool, holding them to a goalless draw at The Dell before being eliminated 2–0 at Anfield. The club ended the season with two games against local rivals Portsmouth, for the Rowland Hospital Cup and the Hampshire Benevolent Cup, respectively. Pompey won the former at The Dell 3–2, with Bill Rawlings scoring both for the Saints, and won the second at Fratton Park 2–0. The club also played three friendlies during the course of the season, losing 2–0 to Portsmouth in a benefit for trainer and former right-half Bert Lee in November, followed by two defeats to amateur club Corinthian in December. Southampton used 24 different players during the 1923–24 season and had ten different goalscorers. The club's top scorer was centre-forward Bill Rawlings, who scored 19 goals in the Second Division and two in the FA Cup. Inside-right Arthur Dominy, who had finished as the top scorer the previous season, scored 11 goals in the league and three in the cup. Eight new players were signed by the club during the campaign, with seven released and sold to other clubs. The average attendance at The Dell during the 1923–24 season was 10,380. The highest attendance was approximately 20,000 against Manchester United in the second home game of the season on 3 September 1923; the lowest was around 7,000 for the 6–0 win over Barnsley on 19 January 1924, and for the 5–0 defeat of Clapton Orient on 5 April 1924. The 1923–24 season was Southampton's last with chairman Tankerville Chamberlayne, who died on 17 May 1924, just two weeks after the last league game of the season. It was also the first campaign in almost 30 years without Ernest Arnfield in the position of secretary, after he left the club in August 1923 and his role was given to George Goss. Arnfield remained involved with the club, however, as he was later given a role as a member of the club's executive board. The season was also the club's last full campaign with manager Jimmy McIntyre, who would later leave partway through the following season (his sixth with the club) in December 1924. Background and transfers Southampton manager Jimmy McIntyre bought and sold several players before the start of the 1923–24 season. One of the first departures during the summer was inside-forward John Cooper, who returned to his former club Darlaston after having made just five league appearances with the Saints during two seasons.Chalk Holley Bull 2013 46 Also leaving was outside-left Joe Clark, who was sold to Third Division North side Rochdale after losing his place in the first team to Len Andrews late the previous season.Chalk Holley Bull 2013 42 Two players were brought in to take Clark's place – Elias MacDonald from Burton All Saints in May,Chalk Holley Bull 2013 120 and Jimmy Carr from Reading in June.Chalk Holley Bull 2013 36 Also arriving in the summer were George Harkus, a half-back who joined from First Division side Aston Villa for £250,Chalk Holley Bull 2013 84 and Harold Pearson, a forward who was transferred from Brierley Hill Alliance in the Birmingham & District League.Chalk Holley Bull 2013 148 Half-back Alex Christie also left for Norwich City after just one season at the club, while Jack Elkes was sold to Tottenham Hotspur for a club record fee of £1,050.Chalk Holley Bull 2013 65Chalk Holley 1987 304 Several more players were added to the squad during the season. Inside-forward Jock Salter joined as an amateur in September 1923, signing professional terms the following month.Chalk Holley Bull 2013 165 The club signed another amateur player in November, bringing in outside-forward Stan Cribb from local side Gosport Athletic, although he would not turn professional until the following season.Chalk Holley Bull 2013 48 The same month, winger Bill Henderson was signed for a fee of £500 from Luton Town after Sammy Meston – one of the club's two regular outside-rights – broke his leg during a match against Bristol City on 6 October.Chalk Holley Bull 2013 91 Before the end of the calendar year, inside-left Cliff Price was transferred from Third Division North club Halifax Town.Chalk Holley Bull 2013 153 The club sold two more players in the new year. In January, Herbert Lock left for Bournemouth and Boscombe Athletic, having last played in May.Chalk Holley Bull 2013 116 The next month, Henry Johnson also left The Dell to join top-flight side Queens Park Rangers, after scoring three goals in eleven appearances during the season so far.Chalk Holley Bull 2013 104 Players transferred in NameNationalityPos. Playing positionClubDateFeeRef.George HarkusEnglandHB Half-backENG Aston VillaMay 1923£250Elias MacDonaldEnglandFW ForwardENG Burton All SaintsMay 1923UnknownHarold PearsonEnglandFW ForwardENG Brierley Hill AllianceMay 1923UnknownJimmy CarrScotlandFW ForwardENG ReadingJune 1923UnknownJock SalterEnglandFW ForwardENG Bitterne SportsSeptember 1923FreeJock Salter initially joined on amateur terms in September 1923, before turning professional the next month.Stan CribbEnglandFW ForwardENG Gosport AthleticNovember 1923FreeStan Cribb initially joined on amateur terms in November 1923, before turning professional in September 1924.Bill HendersonEnglandFW ForwardENG Luton TownNovember 1923£500Cliff PriceEnglandFW ForwardENG Halifax TownDecember 1923Unknown Players transferred out NameNationalityPos. Playing positionClubDateFeeRef.John CooperEnglandFW ForwardENG DarlastonMay 1923£200Joe ClarkEnglandFW ForwardENG RochdaleJune 1923UnknownAlex ChristieScotlandHB Half-backENG Norwich CityJuly 1923UnknownJack ElkesEnglandFW ForwardENG Tottenham HotspurAugust 1923£1,050Herbert LockEnglandGK GoalkeeperENG BoscombeJanuary 1924UnknownHenry JohnsonEnglandFW ForwardENG Queens Park RangersFebruary 1924Unknown Players released NameNationalityPos. Playing positionClubDateRef.Robert BlythEnglandFW ForwardMay 1923USA Wonder WorkersChalk Holley Bull 2013 18 Second Division 1923–24 Football League Southampton's second season in the Second Division of the Football League started poorly, as the club immediately found themselves at the bottom of the league table following two 1–0 losses away to Bury and Manchester United, both of whom finished in the top six of the division the previous year.Chalk Holley 1987 71 The team's form quickly improved, however, as they beat Bury in the return fixture 3–0 and went on a seven-game unbeaten run to move up to the top five in the league table.https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-two/24-september-1923/ League Division Two table after close of play on 24 September 1923 11v11.com 7 April 2018 Despite this run of form, which also included a 3–0 win at home to The Wednesday, Southampton's main goal threat Bill Rawlings did not score until October, when he picked up the only goal in a 1–0 win over recently promoted Bristol City; during this period, recent signing Harold Pearson – who had replaced Rawlings in the side after the first six games of the campaign – was the club's top scorer with three goals. By the end of the year, Southampton were firmly placed in the First Division promotion race as they sat in sixth place in the Second Division table.https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-two/29-december-1923/ League Division Two table after close of play on 29 December 1923 11v11.com 7 April 2018 The club picked up their biggest win of the season on 19 January 1924, when they beat Barnsley (who had finished two places above them the previous season) 6–0 at The Dell. Bill Rawlings picked up half of the goals, with Henry Johnson (twice) and Arthur Dominy also registering on the scoresheet. The result saw the Saints move up to fifth in the league table for the first time since September.https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-two/19-january-1924/ League Division Two table after close of play on 19 January 1924 11v11.com 7 April 2018 However, during February and March the team's results began to deteriorate, including two losses at the hands of league leaders Leeds United; club historians attributed this dip to the number of replays required in the team's FA Cup run, which also had an effect on the number of injuries in the side.Chalk Holley 1987 70 With ten games remaining, Southampton had dropped to 13th in the table, two places lower than they had finished in 1922–23.https://www.11v11.com/league-tables/league-division-two/15-march-1924/ League Division Two table after close of play on 15 March 1924 11v11.com 7 April 2018 Following their elimination from the FA Cup, the team's performances began to improve drastically. Starting from 22 March 1924, they went on an unbeaten run until the end of season, which included six wins. The club moved back up to the top ten with a 1–0 win over fellow mid-table side Leicester City, the only goal scored by right-back Tom Parker, and moved up to seventh two weeks later when they beat Clapton Orient 5–0 thanks to goals from Rawlings (who scored his second hat-trick of the season), Dominy and Parker. Despite taking three points each from the games against Stockport County and Crystal Palace, the Saints were unable to move above seventh place in the table, as the sides above them continued to pick up wins. Finally they did so in the last two games of the season against Oldham Athletic, both of which they won 3–2. Rawlings scored all three in the first game – at Boundary Park – to bring his hat-trick tally to three for the season, and scored a final goal in the return game at The Dell to bring his league total for the year to 19; Dominy and Cliff Price scored the other two. Southampton finished the season in fifth place with 17 wins, 14 draws and 11 losses, three points away from the second promotion place. List of match results 1 25 August 1923 Bury 1–0 Southampton Gigg Lane Bury 14,000 L 2 27 August 1923 Manchester United 1–0 Southampton Old Trafford Manchester 35,000 L 3 1 September 1923 Southampton 3–0 Bury Meston Carr The Dell Southampton 15,000 W 4 3 September 1923 Southampton 0–0 Manchester United The Dell Southampton 20,000 D 5 8 September 1923 The Wednesday 1–1 Southampton Own goal Hillsborough Stadium Sheffield 20,000 D 6 11 September 1923 Nelson 0–0 Southampton Seedhill Nelson 8,000 D 7 15 September 1923 Southampton 3–0 The Wednesday Pearson Dominy The Dell Southampton 10,000 W 8 22 September 1923 Coventry City 0–0 Southampton Highfield Road Coventry 10,000 D 9 24 September 1923 Stoke 1–1 Southampton Pearson Victoria Ground Stoke-on-Trent 11,000 D 10 29 September 1923 Southampton 1–3 Coventry City Carr The Dell Southampton 12,000 L 11 6 October 1923 Southampton 1–0 Bristol City Rawlings The Dell Southampton 12,000 W 12 13 October 1923 Bristol City 1–1 Southampton Rawlings Ashton Gate Stadium Bristol 12,000 D 13 15 October 1923 Southampton 0–1 Stoke The Dell Southampton 10,000 L 14 20 October 1923 Southampton 0–0 Derby County The Dell Southampton 11,000 D 15 27 October 1923 Derby County 1–0 Southampton Baseball Ground Derby 13,000 L 16 3 November 1923 Southampton 1–0 Fulham Own goal The Dell Southampton 10,000 W 17 10 November 1923 Fulham 3–2 Southampton Rawlings Craven Cottage London 15,000 L 18 17 November 1923 Southampton 3–2 Blackpool Dominy Rawlings Carr The Dell Southampton 9,000 W 19 24 November 1923 Blackpool 2–0 Southampton Bloomfield Road Blackpool 8,000 L 20 8 December 1923 Southampton 3–0 Nelson Dominy Rawlings Pearson The Dell Southampton 11,000 W 21 15 December 1923 Southampton 0–0 South Shields The Dell Southampton 11,000 D 22 22 December 1923 South Shields 1–2 Southampton Dominy Rawlings Horsley Hill South Shields 4,000 W 23 29 December 1923 Southampton 2–0 Hull City Dominy Carr The Dell Southampton 11,000 W 24 5 January 1924 Hull City 0–0 Southampton Anlaby Road Kingston upon Hull 9,000 D 25 19 January 1924 Southampton 6–0 Barnsley Rawlings Johnson Dominy The Dell Southampton 7,000 W 26 26 January 1924 Barnsley 1–1 Southampton Johnson Oakwell Barnsley 7,000 D 27 9 February 1924 Bradford City 2–1 Southampton Price Valley Parade Bradford 10,000 L 28 11 February 1924 Southampton 2-0 Bradford City Henderson Price The Dell Southampton 8,000 W 29 16 February 1924 Southampton 1–1 Port Vale Dominy The Dell Southampton 9,000 D 30 1 March 1924 Southampton 0–1 Leeds United The Dell Southampton 8,000 L 31 8 March 1924 Leeds United 3–0 Southampton Elland Road Leeds 18,000 L 32 15 March 1924 Leicester City 0–1 Southampton Dominy Filbert Street Leicester 20,000 W 33 17 March 1924 Port Vale 1–0 Southampton Old Recreation Ground Hanley 9,000 L 34 22 March 1924 Southampton 1–0 Leicester City Parker The Dell Southampton 9,000 W 35 29 March 1924 Clapton Orient 0–0 Southampton Clapton Stadium London 18,000 D 36 5 April 1924 Southampton 5–0 Clapton Orient Rawlings Dominy Parker The Dell Southampton 7,000 W 37 12 April 1924 Stockport County 2–3 Southampton Shelley Dominy Rawlings Edgeley Park Stockport 11,000 W 38 18 April 1924 Crystal Palace 0–0 Southampton The Nest London 8,000 D 39 19 April 1924 Southampton 0–0 Stockport County The Dell Southampton 10,000 D 40 21 April 1924 Southampton 1–0 Crystal Palace Rawlings The Dell Southampton 10,000 W 41 26 April 1924 Oldham Athletic 1–3 Southampton Rawlings Boundary Park Oldham 6,000 W 42 3 May 1924 Southampton 3–1 Oldham Athletic Dominy Rawlings Price The Dell Southampton 8,000 W Final league table Second Division y SOU Results by matchday table b Round Ground A /A /H /H /A /A /H /A /A /H /H /A /H /H /A /H /A /H /A /H /H /A /H /A /H /A /A /H /H /H /A /A /A /H /A /H /A /A /H /H /A /H Result L /L /W /D /D /D /W /D /D /L /W /D /L /D /L /W /L /W /L /W /D /W /W /D /W /D /L /W /D /L /L /W /L /W /D /W /W /D /D /W /W /W Position 22/22/14/16/16/10 /5 /6 /5 /9 /7 /8 /8 /7/10 /7/10 /6 /7 /8 /8 /7 /6 /9 /5 /6/10 /7 /7/11/12/13/13 /9/10 /7 /7 /7 /7 /7 /5 /5 Home Away green2 Win yellow2 Draw red2 Loss 1st 2nd 3rd red1 11v11.comhttps://www.11v11.com/league-tables/ 11v11 league table generator 11v11.com 7 April 2018 FA Cup 1923–24 FA Cup Southampton entered the 1923–24 FA Cup in the first round against First Division club Chelsea, who they had knocked out in the second round of the previous year's tournament.Chalk Holley 1987 68 The hosts initially led at Stamford Bridge thanks to a "brilliant individual goal" from Andrew Wilson, who had joined the London club from Middlesbrough for a British transfer record fee of £6,000 at the beginning of the season, but a goal from Arthur Dominy forced a replay at The Dell four days later. The Saints won the replay 2–0, with Dominy scoring from a Bill Turner free-kick and Bill Rawlings converting after a setup by Bill Henderson. In the second round, Southampton beat fellow Second Division side Blackpool 3–1 at The Dell, with a goal each from Rawlings, Dominy and Cliff Price sending them through to the third round. The third round of the tournament on 23 February 1924 saw Southampton hosting reigning First Division league champions Liverpool, who had eliminated the previous season's cup winners Bolton Wanderers in the second round. The game ended in a goalless draw, forcing a replay at Liverpool's home Anfield four days later. Southampton played much of the game with ten players, after left-back Fred Titmuss suffered a "freak injury" in which a blood vessel in his eyeball was burst by a loose shoelace, and was forced to be taken off amid fear of permanent eye damage. The hosts opened the scoring shortly after half-time courtesy of Harry Chambers, but the ten men of Southampton prevented conceding more until six minutes from the end, when Dick Forshaw doubled his side's lead and secured the result. Round 1 12 January 1924 Chelsea 1–1 Southampton Wilson Dominy Stamford Bridge London 34,586 D Round 1 Replay 16 January 1924 Southampton 2–0 Chelsea Dominy Rawlings The Dell Southampton 17,000 W Round 2 2 February 1924 Southampton 3–1 Blackpool Rawlings Dominy Price The Dell Southampton 18,000 W Round 3 23 February 1924 Southampton 0–0 Liverpool The Dell Southampton 18,671 D Round 3 Replay 27 February 1924 Liverpool 2–0 Southampton Chambers Forshaw 83 Anfield Liverpool 49,569 L Other matches Outside of the league and the FA Cup, Southampton played five additional first-team matches during the 1923–24 season. The first was a friendly match against local rivals Portsmouth at The Dell on 24 November 1923. A benefit for former player Bert Lee, who was now a trainer at the club, the match ended in a 2–0 win for Pompey thanks to two goals by Willie Haines – one in the first half as the result of "some good combined work by the Pompey front line", and one in the second after the centre-forward "got right through on his own".Juson Aldworth Bendel Bull 2004 109 A writer for the Football Mail reporting on the game observed that Portsmouth's work as a team featured "always more method" than that of Southampton. Two more friendlies also ended in losses – both against amateur club Corinthian in December.Chalk Holley 1987 212Cavallini 2007 256–257 Southampton ended their season with two more fixtures against Portsmouth. The first took place on 5 May 1924 and was for the second Rowland Hospital Cup. Portsmouth, having just won their first Third Division South championship, travelled to The Dell "anxious to demonstrate that they [were] capable of beating a Second Division side", according to a reporter for the Football Echo. The visitors took an advantage, as Stephen Dearn and Willie Haines put Pompey 2–1 up, with Bill Rawlings scoring in between the goals for the hosts.Juson Aldworth Bendel Bull 2004 110 After losing Sammy Meston and Tom Parker, the Saints went 3–1 down thanks to a second goal from Haines, before Rawlings scored a second as well. Pompey made it three wins out of three against Southampton two days later, when they also beat them at Fratton Park to win the Hampshire Benevolent Cup. William Beedie scored early to give the advantage to the hosts, who dominated the remainder of the game and scored a second through Haines on 60 minutes. Friendly 24 November 1923 Southampton 0–2 Portsmouth Haines The Dell Southampton V. G. Primmer L Friendly 1 December 1923 Corinthian 1–0 Southampton Nicholas The Crystal Palace London 3,000 L Friendly 26 December 1923 Southampton 1–2 Corinthian Price Ashton The Dell Southampton 7,000 L Rowland Hospital Cup 5 May 1924 Southampton 2–3 Portsmouth Rawlings Dearn Haines The Dell Southampton Albert Prince-Cox L Hampshire BC 7 May 1924 Portsmouth 2–0 Southampton Beedie 3Haines 60 Fratton Park Portsmouth 7,496 F. C. Winton L Player details Southampton manager Jimmy McIntyre used 24 different players during the 1923–24 season, ten of whom scored during the campaign. The team played in a 2–3–5 formation throughout the campaign, with two full-backs, three half-backs, two outside forwards, two inside forwards and a centre-forward. Goalkeeper Tommy Allen and right-half Bert Shelley appeared in all 47 league and FA Cup matches. Right-back Tom Parker missed only one league fixture, while inside-right Arthur Dominy played in all but three. Centre-forward Bill Rawlings finished as the club's top scorer for the season, with 19 goals in the Second Division and four in the cups. Dominy scored 11 in the league and three in the FA Cup. Shelley was the club's only scoring half-back of the season, while Parker was their only scoring full-back of the season, scoring twice in the league. Squad statistics NamePos. Playing positionNat. NationalityLeagueFA CupOther"Other" includes the Rowland Hospital Cup and Hampshire Benevolent Cup matches.TotalApps. AppearancesGls. GoalsApps. AppearancesGls. GoalsApps. AppearancesGls. GoalsApps. AppearancesGls. GoalsTommy AllenGK GoalkeeperENG4205020490Len AndrewsFW ForwardENG70000070Arthur BradfordHB Half-backENG20000020Charlie BrownFW ForwardENG1201000130Les BrutonFW ForwardENG50000050Alec CampbellHB Half-backENG2905020360Jimmy CarrFW ForwardSCO2445000294Arthur DominyFW ForwardENG391153204614George HarkusHB Half-backENG1400020160Bill HendersonFW ForwardENG2314020291Harry HooperFB Full-backENG40000040Ted HoughFB Full-backENG40000040Michael KeepingFB Full-backENG00001010Elias MacDonaldFW ForwardENG1800000180Sammy MestonFW ForwardENG72001082Tom ParkerFB Full-backENG4125010472Harold PearsonFW ForwardENG84000084Cliff PriceFW ForwardENG1935120264Bill RawlingsFW ForwardENG361952224323Jock SalterFW ForwardENG10000010Bert ShelleyHB Half-backENG4215020491Fred TitmussFB Full-backENG3705020440Bill TurnerHB Half-backENG3705000420Players with appearances who left before the end of the seasonHenry JohnsonFW ForwardENG1130000113 Most appearances RankNamePos. Playing positionLeagueFA CupOtherTotalApps. Appearances% Percentage of totalApps. Appearances% Percentage of totalApps. Appearances% Percentage of totalApps. Appearances% Percentage of total1Tommy AllenGK Goalkeeper42100.005100.002100.0049100.00Bert ShelleyHB Half-back42100.005100.002100.0049100.003Tom ParkerFB Full-back4197.625100.00150.004795.924Arthur DominyFW Forward3992.865100.002100.004693.885Fred TitmussFB Full-back3788.105100.002100.004489.806Bill RawlingsFW Forward3685.715100.002100.004387.767Bill TurnerHB Half-back3788.105100.0000.004285.718Alec CampbellHB Half-back2969.055100.002100.003673.479Jimmy CarrFW Forward2457.145100.000100.002959.18Bill HendersonFW Forward2354.76480.002100.002959.18 Top goalscorers RankNamePos. Playing positionLeagueFA CupOtherTotalGls. GoalsGPG Goals per gameGls. GoalsGPG Goals per gameGls. GoalsGPG Goals per gameGls. GoalsGPG Goals per game1Bill RawlingsFW Forward190.5220.4021.00230.532Arthur DominyFW Forward110.2830.6000.00140.303Harold PearsonFW Forward40.5000.0000.0040.50Cliff PriceFW Forward30.1510.2000.0040.15Jimmy CarrFW Forward40.1600.0000.0040.136Henry JohnsonFW Forward30.2700.0000.0030.277Sammy MestonFW Forward20.2800.0000.0020.25Tom ParkerFB Full-back20.0400.0000.0020.049Bill HendersonFW Forward10.0400.0000.0010.03Bert ShelleyHB Half-back10.0200.0000.0010.02 Footnotes References Bibliography Rob Cavallini Play Up Corinth: A History of the Corinthian Football Club 2007 Stadia Stroud 978-0752444796 Chalk Gary Holley Duncan A Complete Record of Southampton Football Club: 1885–1987 Derby, England Breedon Books 10 August 1987 978-0907969228 Chalk Gary Holley Duncan Bull David All the Saints: A Complete Who's Who of Southampton FC Bristol, England Hagiology Publishing 28 November 2013 978-0992686406 Juson Dave Aldworth Clay Bendel Barry Bull David Chalk Gary Saints v Pompey: A History of Unrelenting Rivalry Bristol, England Hagiology Publishing 10 November 2004 978-0953447459 External links Southampton F.C. official website Category:Southampton F.C. seasons Southampton