RANGERS IN LONDON
1960 - 1971
Matches, Memories & Talking
Points
From The Reds, Whites and Blues
RANGERS IN LONDON
1960 - 1971
Matches, Memories & Talking
Points
From The Reds, Whites and Blues
Make Kelsey’s and Rangers a Double
Jack Kelsey Testimonial Match
Monday 20th May 1963
EXTRACTS FROM BACKGROUND · EXTRACTS FROM THE TESTIMONIAL MAN : JACK KELSEY LUCKY ARSENAL Jack Kelsey collected 41 Caps for Wales, then a record for any British goalkeeper. In 1958, he was a key figure as Wales progressed to the World Cup quarter finals. Indeed in the same year he became the only ever British footballer to play full matches for both club and country on the same day! On the afternoon of 28th November he kept goal for Wales in 2-2 draw against England at Villa Park and raced back to Highbury to make it in time to face the famous Juventus in a Prestige friendly. Arsenal beat the Italians 3-1 and I not believe he complained about having to play too many matches.
The Best In Britain Jack won the special honour of being selected for Great Britain in a match against the rest of Europe in 1955 but the Championship medal from 1952-53 was his solitary medal. By all accounts he had a very good sense of humour. Though I’m not sure if it was the secret of success or jest when he told Brian Glanville how he rubbed chewing gum in his hands to make the ball stick! (The Times, Saturday 6th September 2003). Arsenal were fortunate to have him.
The End Of A Great Career? Unfortunately Jack was unable to play again. His contract was due to expire at the end of June and he was still receiving treatment for his terrible injury. Fortunately he had received his £5,000 compensation from the Welsh FA. Upon his retirement after making 327 Arsenal appearances, he had told the club that he would like to help them in any way he could, “in appreciation of what the club has done for me over the years.” Arsenal appointed Jack as Secretary Promoter for the Arsenal FC Improvement Society which generated income for the club through pools, lotteries etc.. Given his injuries, it was announced in advance of the game that he would be unable to participate in his Testimonial.
Henry Norris The Celebrity Chairman. Eat Your Hearts Out Abramovich, Bates, Fayed et Al (No pun intended)
Henry Norris CV :- Chairman of Fulham FC, Mayor of Fulham, Property Developer, Fulham East MP (1918-1922) and Knighted in 1917. He was also known as a ‘ruthless operator’ or words to that effect by business rivals!
Moving The Franchise? Norris bought Arsenal with the idea of merging with Fulham. The League refused this and informed him that he could only be involved with one club. He took the more challenging option of Arsenal and in 1913 decided to relocate to the densely populated Highbury district of North London. Their new ground was chosen for its excellent underground, rail and bus links. The club was renamed ‘The Arsenal’ and the Second Division club went on a spending spree. Arsenal missed out on promotion at the end of the 1913-14 season on goal average to Spurs. However World War 1 broke out and football was cancelled.
A former Spurs player, he mainly played for their Reserves! Frankly, something of a journeyman in terms of ability, (his brother Harry was the star.) Herbert played at a number of different clubs for short spells. His main claim to fame was his lemon coloured boots!. In 1907 he joined Northampton Town as Player Manager. He transformed ‘the cobblers’ from a woeful Southern League side into Champions. In 1911, his hometown club Leeds City appointed him manager. Great improvements were made until war broke out.
A Bung Scandal Leeds were thrown out by the League in 1919 when they refused to show their books when accused of making illegal payments. According to Phil Soar and Martin Tyler in their history of Arsenal, Chapman though probably aware of the payments was not at the club when they were supposed to have been made. Nevertheless he received a ban.
Just Champion In Yorkshire When the ban ended in 1920 he joined Huddersfield Town and took them to back to back titles in 1924 and 1925. An amazing feat given that Huddersfield in those days was a Rugby League stronghold (the game was founded in the town). The owners of Huddersfield had given serious consideration to moving the club lock, stock and barrel to Leeds.
Norris detected that Chapman was becoming disillusioned and recruited him to Highbury in 1925 on a massive salary. Chapman further lavished Norris’ resources on a string of top players. The terms of the signing of Charlie Buchan were deemed to have been outside the rules and Norris was suspended by the FA. Characteristically, he immediately sought legal redress and it became an unpleasant affair as Chapman and Norris traded accusations. It was further revealed that Norris’ chauffeur had been paid for by Arsenal. The FA were vindicated and Norris’ suspension upheld. For a detailed account of this fascinating saga, read Soar and Taylor’s Arsenal The Official History 1886-1997. The upshot was that Sir Samuel Hill-Wood became Chairman and in turn introduced an assortment of football minded Lords and Knights to the Board.
A Special Day In May 1930 As Chapman himself predicted, success would take some time. In 1927 Arsenal reached the FA Cup Final only to beaten by Cardiff City. However In 1930 Arsenal returned to Wembley to win the FA Cup, their first trophy under Chapman. On an emotional afternoon, they beat Chapman’s old club Huddersfield watched by King George V, a hovering German Zeppelin and 4 of the original lads from Dial Square. Ushering in an incredibly fantastic era of success.
2 Referees His idea of 2 Referees rather than 1 (I assume a Referee in each half of the pitch) has yet to be introduced but I hope one day they try it, as the game nowadays is so much faster and officials don’t always find it easy to keep up with play. My format would be to then dispose of the 2 linesmen (or whatever they call them this season)
The Video Eye He also suggested goal judges. If he meant in terms of judging if the ball has crossed the line, he could soon be vindicated with ‘a video eye’.
..Arsenal then split the role of manager between Bob Wall as Secretary to look after the admin side of the job and former star Jack Crayston to manage the team. Crayston resigned in 1958. Former goalkeeper George Swindin took over and encouraged the Board to invest but he did not deliver. Perhaps the club had become too insular and inward looking. With Spurs sweeping all before them, Swindin was sacked in 1962 to be replaced by former England legend Billy Wright.
· EXTRACTS FROM ARSENAL 1962-1963 : A GENERAL VIEW.
Wright At One End
Wright’s first season in charge was reasonable enough. The ex defender’s team were prolific League goalscorers with 86 goals (2 more than Champions Everton) but leaked goals at the other end conceding a shocking 77 goals. The loss of the great Jack Kelsey certainly cost Arsenal dear. Forget about the crucial saves, it must have been a great tonic for opposing forwards and unsettled a defence used to his heroics when they failed to clear. Moreover the best talent Wright inherited was attack minded. This season had very much been one for Wright to take stock. He only introduced one fresh face to the club, Joe Baker. Whilst dispensing with ex England international and former Wolves teammate Eddie Clamp (a somewhat robust ball winner but also accomplished passer) after he made an appalling challenge during a game.
Midfield
George Eastham was a current England international. He will probably be most remembered for the controversy and upshot of his transfer from Newcastle. Indeed to look at his frail build and weak tackling it might be hard to understand what all the fuss was about. Yet he had a brilliant left foot that picked out his forwards with precision passes and sent defenders the wrong way. Joining him was the veteran and highly underrated Vic Groves. Great all round ability and a non stop tackler and worker. His career suffered from a number of injuries and he went on to play the best football of his career when he was switched from forward to midfield. Many consider him as the best Arsenal player never to be capped.
Sharing defensive duties in midfield with him was David Court, an all rounder. His greatest asset tackling and marking. Not blessed with natural pace, he used his anticipation to help get to the ball first.
John Barnwell was an enigma. Great skills, brave and very fit, he had all the ingredients for the very top. Yet he somehow found it difficult to consistently become involved in and dominate games. Perhaps this was down to poor positional sense or a lack of confidence. Others suggest he was slow over the first few yards.
Rangers : Billie Ritchie, Bobby Shearer, Dave Provan, John Greig, Ron McKinnon, Jim Baxter, Craig Watson, Ian McMillan, Jim Millar, Ralph Brand, Davie Wilson
A Brilliant Reception. Then A Brilliant Goal. Wearing a suit Jack Kelsey takes to the field and receives a fantastic ovation from all 4 sides of the ground. In fact he is to play a small but interesting part in his game, he kicks the game off sweeping the ball onto Rangers right hand side….
25 seconds 1-0 Rangers. Jim Baxter scores a wonder goal almost directly from kick off. McMillan collects Kelsey’s kick off and passes to Baxter, he nonchalanty runs 30 yards with the ball, pretends to line up a pass and thunders home a left foot shot past McKechnie who is still rooted to his line as the ball flies into the net. Of course it’s not Kelseys fault, Arsenal’s defence should have broken down Baxter’s attack.
· EXTRACT FROM POST MATCH REACTION Jack Kelsey, “It was a great warm reception from the crowd. I really appreciated it and felt quite choked up.”
Rangers Probably The Best Team In The World In the 1930’s Struth’s Rangers were the supreme team of Scotland, Chapman’s Arsenal of England. Yet both managers had entirely different approaches to management and had taken very different paths. Given their personalities, I’m somehow convinced that each man must have been fascinated by the other. Fans and not just of both clubs wanted to know who really was the best club in Britain and as Mr Carlsberg might deduce, “probably the best team in the world!”. Surely that also went for both men and their players. The easiest thing would have been to observe.
Yet both gentlemen were sportsmen and though it is unclear who threw down the gauntlet, it was gladly taken up. In September 1933 an unofficial British Championship was organised between the pair.
Ibrox, 20th September 1933, Rangers 2 Arsenal 0 (att. 37,000)
Highbury 27th September 1933, Arsenal 1 Rangers 3 (att. 46,000)
Rangers played very well in the first leg but their performance ‘away’ was simply breathtaking. Dr Jimmy Marshall (later to join Arsenal) smashed a thunderous opening goal. Jimmy Fleming flicked home the second. Jimmy Smith hobbling on the wing with a broken toe, supplied Jimmy Fleming to score his second goal of the night. Afterwards, a magnanimous Arsenal Director commented “Rangers were good enough to beat England. I have seen nothing better.”
Rangers players despite their first class lifestyle were still receiving positively second class wages. Roughly a basic wage of £40-£45 per week. Indeed the only reason Jim Baxter wanted a move to London was to earn more money. Ken Gallagher’s excellent Biography on Jim Baxter gives the full details. Baxter’s critics on the Board would probably point out that he enjoyed ‘living the high life’ and he was already accorded special treatment. Unlike any other Rangers player, he was allowed to pen a newspaper column and earn money from sponsorship and endorsements. What really galled Baxter was not the ‘money’ per se but the fact that when he and other Rangers went away on international duty they met up with anglo based Scotsmen picking up double their money. The Rangers bonus system was rather like most Fruit Machines. Random payouts which nobody could work out.
Ultimately Jim Baxter signed on for one more year. Like all of the Rangers team, he loved playing in a great winning team and the adulation and passion of the Ibrox crowd. Baxter and his colleagues didn’t want to give that up but resented the fact that the Board were abusing their loyalty, intelligence and embarrassing them in front of their international colleagues.
Given the first class cult of the Ranger, and that the Board could be quite ruthless when it came to paying out older players ending their careers, (Not to mention the huge sums generated at the turnstile) they should have been on a par with the top players in England. Top wages could only have enhanced the cult of the Ranger. Indeed it might have helped attract the very best.
Probably different explanations apply to each different case. However I would say that sometimes the great player who has achieved everything and been feted may lack the hunger and ruthlessness to succeed. They may go into management unprepared and thinking that their existing knowledge will carry them through. They may lack the communication skills, or the ability to empathise and relate to lesser players. They may simply expect players to have the same drive and desire that they did, and not know what to do when they see a player who does not have it. Mistakenly joining the wrong club at the wrong time with the wrong players and wrong Directors. However there is one factor which any manager needs, which you can’t influence however great a player you may have been. Luck, a defenders pass, a Referee’s decision, an impossible save, a kick to your star player etc… can make the difference between glory and failure.
· WHY DO DEFENDERS TURNED MANAGERS CREATE ATTACKING TEAMS AND VICE VERSA?
I would argue that most successful teams are by their very nature attack minded (Chapman’s Arsenal an exception), a successful team usually dominates games. However what is the case of an average team? A former defender will probably be the best judge of an attacker as he will watch the forward and think ‘How would I face him?’ and ‘What would I do?’ – And the former forward vice versa. The skills in their given position are often natural ones which they don’t think about. A classic case of poacher turned gamekeeper. It is also the case that a former defender may try to overcompensate what he considers to be his weak spot. There is also the case of ex players who secretly would have loved to have played in he opposite position. A tough gnarled centre half building a team on flair. The fancy dan emphasising defence, discipline and tackling. A manager might be influenced on how their former managers constructed their teams. Though perhaps the logical explanation is that any half decent manager makes the most of the resources available to him. If his best players are forwards, he will develop a system to emphasise that, and vice versa if the strength is in defence.
EXTRACTS FROM ARSENAL TRIVIA
· Arsenal were fined £250 by the football League in 1936 for resting injured players between cup ties on their way to winning the FA Cup.
· The first live football match shown live on TV was from Highbury on 16 September 1937. It feature a practice match between Arsenal and Arsenal Reserves.
· In 1934-35 Arsenal became the first club to generate annual gate receipts in excess of £100,000.
· Arsenal’s Bernard Joy was the last amateur to represent England, against Belgium in May 1936.
· To this day, Arsenal goalkeepers wash their new shirts before playing in them. The practice dates back to 1927 Cup Final when Arsenal Keeper Dan Lewis blamed his slippery new jersey for his failure to save the goal that cost Arsenal the Cup. (Wrong kind of shirt? Well, that was his excuse)
· WE’RE GONNA WIN YOUR LEAGUE, WE’RE GONNA WIN YOUR LEAGUE! TALKING ABOUT A BRITISH LEAGUE IN 1963
Some believe that talk of a British League has only emerged since 1993 and the huge injection of Sky TV cash into the English Premier League. Actually it was discussed among the Rangers support over 40 years ago. Alex Fraser, General Secretary of the Rangers Supporters Association penned an article for the 1963-1964 Supporters Association Annual in expectation and aspiration of a British League. He bemoaned that Rangers (and indeed the Old Firm) did not receive from their away games a cheque anything near in value to the huge cheques dished out when the smaller clubs visited Ibrox. In response to those clubs who depended on their visits to Glasgow to help keep their clubs going he offered up an interesting solution. The reserves would compete in the Scottish League and the first string would compete in a British League.