Carlisle United | Club | History | History

THE CARLISLE UNITED STORY

Posted on: Mon 21 Jun 2010

Welcome to the United History section. Over the course of the next few months a full Club History will appear, providing a handy reference point for all.

How It All Began

MINUTES OF SHADDONGATE UNITED'S ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

Tuesday May 17, 1904

The annual meeting of the members of the Shaddongate United Association Football Club was held on Tuesday night in the Temperance Hall, Caldewgate. Between 70 and 80 supporters of the Club were present as well as the committee. Mr J.C. Barling was voted to the chair. The chairman, at the commencement of the proceedings, gave an outline of the Club's history since the Carlisle Shield Competitions were inaugarated, and congratulated the Club upon its position at the forefront of Cumberland football at the present time. He also commented upon the satisfactory state of the Club's finances, remarking that the reduction of their balance in hand was accountable for by the very bad weather which had been experienced. No doubt their record of wins during the past season would have been much better but for the wholesale suspension of their players, as after their reinstatement the fortunes of the Club had improved wonderfully.

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The hon.secretary Mr H. Kirkbride then submitted the report and balance sheet. The report stated that the past season had not been as good as they had anticipated, but in spite of bad weather and bad luck they still had a good balance in hand. They had lost possession of the Cumberland Cup, and though they had claimed the League Championship it had been refused them. They must abide by the decision of the West Cumberland members of the League. During the past season 30 matches had been played, of which 11 had been won, 17 lost and 2 drawn. They had scored 63 goals and exactly the same number had been conceded. The balance sheet showed that the year had been commenced with a credit of £35 and ended with a balance in hand of £24 4s. The principal item on the income side of the balance sheet was £158 5s 11d with a further sum of £23 13s 3d having been derived from other sources. Among the items of expenditure had been £33 13s in railway fares, £10 in rent of field, £15 8s in printing and posting and £8 17s 9d in fines.

The report and balance sheet was accepted, Mr John Hurst was re-elected President, Mr Kirkbride secretary, Mr Scott assistant secretary and Mr Graham treasurer. Mr H. Campbell was elected captain in succession to Mr G. Stubbs, and Mr Hetherington was elected vice-captain.

A long and animated discussion followed upon a proposal to change the name of the club from Shaddongate United to Carlisle United. Several speakers advocated the change, but others spoke warmly in favour of retaining the old, well known title and objected to a change being made without proper notice on the agenda. The Chairman remarked that no doubt the change of title might bring the Club additional support and establish a representative Carlisle team, which had long been desired, but he urged the meeting not to change the name under which the Club had grown and prospered without due consideration. A vote was demanded on both sides, and the result of the division was that the proposal to change the name of the Club was carried by about three to one. A vote of thanks to the Chairman ended the meeting.

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And so the Club was re-named at a formal but animated meeting held in a relatively small venue in Caldewgate, Carlisle. They were feeling particularly aggrieved at being stripped of the Cumberland Senior League title at the end of the 1903/04 season, after a dispute over postponed matches, and the re-naming was seen as a major part of the initiative to take them onwards and upwards. It appeared to work, as in the following season (1904/05) the newly formed Carlisle United won both the Cumberland Senior League and the Cumberland Cup Final - the first team ever to manage the double. Venues were a constant problem during the early years. Most games were played at Millholme Bank, a small but accommodating ground just off Boundary Road by the Currock Inn. However, it was not uncommon during periods of bad weather to find Carlisle United hunting the town for a suitable surface on which to play. Millholme Bank was seen as the most fitting venue for the Club's first ever appearance in the FA Cup (Preliminary Round). Ironically, it was to be against Cumbrian rivals Workington Town who had recently jumped ship and joined the Lancashire Combination League. It ended 2-2 with Workington snatching the replay 3-1.

The Club were impressed by the standard of the Lancashire Combination League and immediately took steps to join. At the end of the 1904/05 season, on May 18th 1905, they were accepted to form part of the ever growing Second Division. Two other notable teams who joined that day were Bolton and Burnley. To ensure that the arrival of the countries Northern most Club would go smoothly, Carlisle agreed to pay all visiting teams expenses for two years - it having been pointed out that Carlisle was not a part of Lancashire. The arrival of a higher standard of football to the City demanded a higher standard of football ground. Devonshire Park (now Trinity School playing fields) was specially developed, complete with a stand to hold up to 800 people.

The ground was ready for the start of the 1905/06 season and United's first game at their new home was against St Helens Town, ending in an unwelcome 3-2 defeat. That season also saw the only ever meeting of the Counties two most bitter rivals in the Prelim rounds of the FA Cup. United were drawn to face Carlisle Red Rose, with the Roses still angry at United's switch to the Lancashire Leagues. 5000 people braved the atrocious weather conditions to watch an extremely hard fought and passionate game. The proud Roses kept United at bay until the second half when 4 quick goals sent the senior team through to the next round. United lost that one to a very strong Barrow side 4-2 at Holker Street.

It wasn't until the 1907/08 season that Carlisle United managed to reach the First Round proper of the FA Cup. Amongst the wins in the Prelims was a result that stands to this day as United's biggest ever cup game winning margin. They despatched an over run Whitehaven Athletic 9-1. Another wonderful day was witnessed down in Workington during this march toward the first round. The two old enemies met in Workington in front of a crowd of 10 000 people. United held a comfortable lead of 3-0 until early in the second half, but had to endure unbelievable pressure as the home side powered their way back to 3-2. United also beat Darlington 7-0 and Southend 4-0 to qualify for the First Round proper. Their first ever appearance in the competitions meat and drink stages was a huge success for the little non-league outfit. They surprised everyone by holding Brentford to a 2-2 draw at Devonshire Park before winning the replay 3-1. Grimsby Town ended the glory at Blundell Park in the Second Round with a 6-2 demolition job.

As the 1908/09 season drew to a close, with United finishing fifth in the League, details were being finalised for the move to a bigger and better arena. Brunton Park was to be the venue and the council confirmed that the club could take over the ground as their new base. On September 2nd 1909 Newcastle United played out the first competitive game on the new patch. Newcastle won 2-0 and Brunton Park was officially open for business. The first Lancashire Combination League game on the hallowed turf was a 1-1 draw against Chorley.

During that first season at our new home the shareholders learned that the Lancashire Leagues were seeking to re-organise into a system based around regional competition. Carlisle would find it very hard to become part of any such plans. They immediately took steps to secure their footballing future in the higher echelons of non-league football and applied to join the North Eastern League. They were accepted and made their debut in this League for the 1910/11 season. The fixture list did not inspire the locals, with a lot of recently built up rivalry with Lancashire teams no longer there.

Attendances dropped dramatically and the performance on the pitch was often very poor. Money was in short supply and it appeared that the club may have to fold, until the players themselves stepped in. They agreed to play for nothing, only taking payment if and when spare cash became available. This noble gesture saved the Club from extinction. A new committee was formed to oversee financial affairs and Carlisle United, as a limited company, was liquidated in an attempt to turn the Club's fortunes around. Although United scraped through financially, on the field they still lacked any real presence and the years leading up to the First World War brought constant struggle. In 1914/15 they finished 17th and it was to be another 4 years before organised League football would be played anywhere in the country. There were other, more pressing matters to attend to.

The post war years brought renewed interest in football and Carlisle United benefited from that dramatically. Crowds in excess of 5000 often flocked to Brunton Park and the Club began to flourish. In 1921 foundations were in place for things to really take off and a new limited company was formed to take the reigns. At the same time, the newly founded supporters club began to swell. The Club enjoyed its most successful North Eastern League season in 1921/22, taking the Championship title for the first, but sadly, only time. As always with Carlisle it wasn't easy. Newcastle Reserves had topped the table all season, until the last weekend when they lost and Carlisle beat Shildon 2-0 at home to pip them at the post. The next four seasons saw mid table mediocrity for Carlisle and little real drama of any note. 1926/27 brought another good FA Cup run and the visit of Football League Second Division giants Wolverhampton Wanderers. 14 000 fanatical Cumbrians turned out to watch their side take on the big boys, eventually losing 2-0.

The 1927/28 season was Carlisle's last in the North Eastern League. An excellent home record helped them to second in the table finishing a full 10 points behind Champions Sunderland Reserves. The close season meant the usual round of applications to join (and be re-elected to) the Football League proper and Carlisle went up against Chester, Durham (applying for re-election), Nelson and York. On June 4th 1928 a delegation of representatives from Carlisle United took their seats at the Football League meeting in London to hear the results of the vote. They were cast as follows:

Nelson - 37, Carlisle - 33, Durham - 11, York - 7, Chester - 2

Carlisle United were duly elected to the Football League to take the place of Durham.

League football meant that ground improvements had to be made in order to conform with FA standards. The grandstand had to be extended, 10 new turnstiles were added and the dressing rooms were upgraded. Admission prices were raised and set for the first ever season in the league - 1 shilling per game to stand or 25 shillings for a season ticket is an example of the outlay expected.

The historic first ever game in the Football League Division 3 North was away to Accrington Stanley on 25 August 1928. The team was given a heroes send off as the train pulled out of the station at 0835hrs on that Saturday morning. The lads didn't let anyone down and stormed into a 2-0 lead by half time, with goals from Jimmy McConnell and Billy Ward. A much tighter second half followed but another goal from Alfie Agar saw United record a 3-2 win on their big day. The first home game at Brunton Park brought 11 771 fans through the recently revamped turnstiles to watch a cracking 2-2 draw with Bradford City.

A solid season followed and the Club achieved its stated aim by finishing in the top ten come the end of the season - actually finishing 8th with a very creditable 46 points. Carlisle United had arrived, and so began the journey that has brought many highs and lows and has rarely been dull.