PART TWO
SEASON 1922-1923 : INTO THE SOUTHERN LEAGUE
Following their success in winning the championship of the Western League the previous season, Yeovil & Petters United made a big step forward in the 1922/23 season by successfully applying for membership of the Southern League.
New dressing rooms were erected at Huish and the grandstand was extended. Both served the Club until their demolition in April, 1963, to make way for the new grandstand complex opened at the start of the 1963/64 season.
The Club struggled at the higher grade, mainly due to a poor defensive record, also the Club experienced financial difficulties, due to the cost of away travel and needed the intervention of several prominent townsmen to continue in the Southern League. Many forecasted an early inglorious end to Yeovil’s venture into top grade Non-League football.
1923 was another significant year in the history of the Club, it being agreed to form the Yeovil Football and Athletic Club Limited, the company being registered on 3rd May 1923. It was laid down that the number of Directors should not exceed 14, of whom four should be nominated by the members of the Yeovil Town Football Club, four by members of Petters United, two by members of Yeovil & Petters United Football Supporter’s Club the remaining four by the Shareholders. Mr. E. J. Farr was appointed the first Chairman of the Limited Company.
SEASON 1923-1924
At their first board meeting on 5th May, the directors appointed the Club’s first manager, Jack Gregory from Queen’s Park Rangers. He was immediately successful, for the Club won the Western Section of the Southern League.
During the summer of 1923, tennis courts were marked out on the pitch and hired out at £2 per court for the summer season. Also that summer 750 loads of earth were brought to the ground by Bartletts Ltd., to form a terrace at the Queen Street end of the ground. The pitch was lengthened by 4 yards at a cost of £15 and a telephone was installed. In October and November, a further 100 tons of materials were given by Westlands and hauled to the ground at a cost of £9 and the Club opened negotiations with the Southern Railway Company to purchase 1000 railway sleepers, at a cost of £50, to add steps to the terraces.
FA Cup Results 1923-24:
Prel. Round Yeovil 2 Frome Town 0
1st Qual. Yeovil 12 Westbury Utd 0
2nd Qual. Welton Rovers 1 Yeovil 2
3rd Qual. Yeovil 1 Torquay Utd 1
Replay Torquay Utd 2 Yeovil 1.
Comments in the Club programme regarding the Frome Town match:
“Safely over the first ditch! Our ‘Boys’ duly administered the knock-out blow to our neighbours, Frome, by two clear goals in their first ‘airing’ for the English Cup. The game, from a spectacular point of view, was nothing to enthuse over, and we were distinctly relieved to see the ‘pill’ reach the billet for the second time”.
Of the Westbury game, the programme editor wrote: “Hats off to a very gallant little team – Westbury United. Although outclassed in every department of the game they never gave up trying and we were glad to see their efforts rewarded by a goal.”
At Welton a penalty was awarded against us and the editor stated: “We confess we were none too easy in our minds when, a goal behind, the opposition were awarded a penalty, but by goalkeeper Vallis saving the weak attempt our boys appeared to wake up to the fact that it was time to be ‘doing’ and proceeded to ‘do’ it.”
After our replay defeat at Torquay, the programme editor had this to say: “Alas! Poor Yeovil. Tis better to give than to receive, the philosophers assure us, and so we give our best wishes to our seaside friends from Torquay for a long run in the Cup, from which competition we have now made a graceful exit. But oh! What a different tale might have been told – if the ref had stuck to the strict letter of the law with regard to the penalty incident!! Three vital moments. Such, however, is the fortune of war and soccer.”
Even eighty years ago, referees seemed to pick up stick!