Tag: Merthyr Town AFC

The Growth of Football in Merthyr Tydfil – part 6

Transcribed by Phil Sweet

These articles which appeared in three consecutive editions of the Merthyr Express in March 1921 are Harvey Boots’ own reminiscences of the development of three football codes in the town up to that date.  

ARTICLE 3 MERTHYR EXPRESS 19TH MARCH 1921 (continued)

THE GROWTH OF FOOTBALL IN MERTHYR

(By Harvey Boots)

We had some really good men with us now and to mention a few here would be in keeping with the rest of the story. I don’t think they played in the same season, but about those doughty days to which I have just referred. To recall a few, I can remember now the first two backs who played for the club. I had forgotten for a moment, but I was reminded of these names by the genial Vicar of Cyfarthfa (whom we all regard as Paterfamilias apart from things pertaining to football). They were Carrier and W. Davies, the latter of whom hailed from Bristol; Jack White, a good back; little Holmes, also a back; Sam Wightman who went from us to Middlesborough (at what I think was a record fee as transfer to date), Fisher, Gates, Churchill, Whittaker, F. Taylor, Spriggs, Costello etc., etc.

As I have brought this little history nearly up-to-date, I must obviously refrain from comments. I can only say in passing that some of these served the Club really well. Just here came the parting of the ways as far as the Merthyr Athletic Club was concerned. Although the game had undoubtedly come to stay, it was not by any means a paying proposition, and we felt that if the public wanted Association Football, they should help to support it, and so the Merthyr Association Football Club, Ltd., came into being. A limited liability company was formed, and we of the old Athletic Club retired gracefully in favour of the new company formed to carry on. The only one of the old pioneers remaining was Mr. W. T. Jones, who still acted in the capacity of secretary. A strong directorate was elected, embodying the various interests of the district, and everything seemed on a sound basis, but alas! Football, like life, is very uncertain, and the new regime had to encounter the same vicissitudes as formerly. But I think the culmination arrived when that great holocaust of world war smote us all. Football was out of the question, and for five years the game was not seen or even spoken of. The Park was still there, but owing to these unforeseen circumstances it was becoming sadly dilapidated. However, as soon as things became normal, and the menace that had been threatening us as a nation had been laid by the heels the old Club was once again resuscitated. The chairman of directors (Dr Duncan), who has held that office since the formation of the Club into a limited company, called a public meeting in the Drill Hall, presided over by the esteemed president, Mr. Seymour Berry. I was at that memorable gathering, and I shall recall how the enthusiasm of the President gripped the meeting. Money was wanted and he got it! I think the sum promised that evening was over £2,000. I am not going to relate how many or who subscribed but it was a goodly sum, and just depicted how willing the public were to foster the game that had now become so popular. But I believe a great portion of this went to put the ground in proper repair again. After an interval of five years things had sadly got out of repair, and although £2,000 seems a great del of money, by the time the necessary repairs, etc., were done, it was not a great deal for a fresh “dip” into the uncertain waters of Association Football. However, Dr Duncan, with that spirit of the “dour” Scot, with the aid of his loyal board, has now at last seen the fruits of his labours.

In conclusion, I trust, too, that the Merthyr Club will make history in the football world and that our genial President, who has for so long been in loco parentis, will in the near future have the pleasure of seeing that insignificant, elusive, but highly interesting trophy, “The Cup” gracing his sideboard.

The Growth of Football in Merthyr Tydfil – part 5

Transcribed by Phil Sweet

These articles which appeared in three consecutive editions of the Merthyr Express in March 1921 are Harvey Boots’ own reminiscences of the development of three football codes in the town up to that date.  

ARTICLE 3 MERTHYR EXPRESS 19TH MARCH 1921

THE GROWTH OF FOOTBALL IN MERTHYR

(By Harvey Boots)

I concluded my last article by referring to the paucity of the gates at the new game. At this juncture, for some reason (of which I know not) the Northern Union Club gave up the College Field and procured a ground at the bottom end of the town, the field known as Rhydycar. This, in my opinion, was probably their undoing; it was inaccessible, and the view from the surrounding tips was equal to a seat in the grand stand. Whatever the cause was I am not in a position to state, but as it proved to be their last season nothing will be gained by what our Yankee cousins call “beating it” so I leave it at that. The fight had been a long and costly one. It was obvious from the beginning that there was not enough room for both codes, and it really resolved itself into a question of which would stay the longest.

We were left in possession, but we still had a deal of squaring up to do. Here I might mention that, being a private company, we couldn’t go to the public for money; we just had to shell out as far as possible as we went along. We had numerous pilgrimages to the bank – indeed the sanctum of the manager was quite familiar to us. I think Mr. H. C. Davies, whose business premises are right opposite the bank and who acted as our treasurer, must have felt like bombing the place off the earth. As for myself, I had got quite used to passing it by on tiptoe, in case the manager knew my footsteps. The horizon, was beginning to clear and the clouds to look a little less dark, so we took heart of grace and proceeded to try and make the new code as popular as the old. As it was still a case of going very warily; the public had not yet “cottoned” to the new game, but there were very evident signs that it was rapidly gaining in favour. While it was comparatively new to Merthyr, there were clubs in Aberdare, Treharris, Ton Pentre, Mardy and Barry, of very old standing, and I think the fixtures with those local teams and the very keen rivalry that is always manifest when such close neighbours meet, had as much to do with popularising the game as anything I can think of. We were beginning to take decent “gates”; Indeed, one match stands out very vividly in my memory, and that was Bristol Rovers, then like ourselves, in Division II of the Southern League. I believe we had 17 professionals signed on at this time and we played in the particular match to about £11 16s. I wonder how much wages could be paid out of that sum today? Of course, we had to visit Bristol on this magnificent response of our patrons, for the return fixture; and it is memorable for one point; if for no other, viz, they put on 11 or 13, I am not sure, goals against our side, which caused our goalkeeper to remark that it was the busiest afternoon he had ever spent in picking the ball out of the back of the net. I think his name was Daw, and he came from “Owdham”.

There is no doubt at this period we were gaining very valuable experience from our near, and shall I say “dear,” neighbours, but the mere fact that we were continually rubbing shoulders, to use a metaphor, was of the utmost advantage to us. Many were the very useful tips we received about this or that from that good sport Jack Lewis (then the indefatigable secretary of the Treharris Club and now one of the directors of the Town team); also A. (Tagg) Williams, then, I should imagine, one of the best centre-halves who has played for Wales. Then again, that guiding spirit of the Aberdare Club, Tommy Daniel Jones was always ready with a bit of wholesome advice, and so were a host of others. Of course, by this time Cardiff (they at this moment are making football history for Wales and, en passent, I wish them well), Newport, Swansea and Llanelly were members of the Southern League, too, but really, I opine that the greatest asset in those days was the old South Wales Cup. There are few among us who haven’t vivid recollections of those strenuous combats. Ye gods! What fights they were. Ton Pentre, Aberdare, Mardy, Treharris etc., etc. I am sure they are all tolerably remembered by the habitues of Penydarren Park today. Things were now becoming really ship-shape, and I think it was from this period that Soccer began to boom.

Harvey Boots

by Phil Sweet

“For thirty years Mr. Boots associated himself with every progressive movement in the town and was a zealous and active worker in every good cause.”

This comment, which appeared in the Merthyr Express of November 10th 1923 in an article describing the occasion to honour Mr. Boots that was held three days earlier at the Belle Vue Hotel aptly sums up the contribution to the cultural and civic life of the Borough in the last decade of the Nineteenth and first two decades of the Twentieth Century by H. Harvey Boots.

Born in Aberbeeg and the brother of Welsh Rugby international, George Boots, Boots would embark on a career as a dentist. After being articled to Mr. Gill Williams of Newport Harvey Boots came to Merthyr in 1891 as an assistant to Mr. Musgrove with whom he completed his articles. After gaining further experience as a dentist in Croydon, Southsea and Bristol, Boots returned to Merthyr in 1896 and opened his own dental practice in the High Street.

Aside from his career as a dentist Harvey Boots made a valuable and pioneering contribution to the sporting life of the town. Initially his focus was on the rugby field where he turned out for both Merthyr Thursdays and Merthyr RFC, serving as chairman of the latter organisation whilst still turning out as player.

Boots also served as the first chairman of the Merthyr Athletic Club which had leased Penydarren Park from the Bolgoed Estate and was responsible for converting the site into a sporting arena. With the demise of the rugby union club Boots switched his attention to Merthyr Town AFC becoming their first chairman of directors. A true sporting all-rounder, Boots was also a keen bowls player and golfer being a member of first the Morlais and later the Cilsanws golf clubs, while he was also in great demand as an MC for whist drives.

Away from the sporting sphere Harvey Boots was a keen horticulturalist serving as vice-chairman of the Merthyr Horticultural Society and winning many prizes for his carnations while he also found the time to take an active interest in the Scout Movement in the town.

During the Great War although he was unable to volunteer for the armed forces Boots served as a special constable in the Borough and acted as honorary dentist to the Knighton Red Cross Hospital and travelled to Knighton every week free of charge and at his own expense to attend to wounded soldiers sent home from the front, actions which led to him receiving the diploma of the Red Cross & St. John Society.

In addition to the above Harvey Boots also played a prominent and active part in the public life of the town. After the Great War he was elected as the first chairman of the newly formed Merthyr Ratepayers Association. A lifelong member of the Constitutional Party Boots was one of the original members of the Constitutional Club in Thomastown. Furthermore, he was a devoted churchgoer serving as a sidesman in St. David’s Church and secretary of the Parochial Quota Fund.

A married man with two daughters Boots left Merthyr in the summer of 1923 for Great Yarmouth where he had purchased a large dental practice in the hope that the sea air would prove to be more beneficial for his health.

Over the next few months, various articles written by Harvey Boots will appear in this blog.

The First Merthyr Town AFC

by Phil Sweet

Most Merthyr football fans would know that a club bearing the name of Merthyr Town AFC was formed in the spring of 1908 and would go on to play in the Football League in the 1920s before failing to secure re-election in 1930 and ultimately folding four years later due to the impact of mass unemployment in the Borough.

However, my recent research has revealed that the Merthyr Town AFC which was formed in 1908 was not the first football team in the town to bear that name. Indeed, the first, and ultimately short-lived, club to bear that name was founded in 1903 and during the 1903-04 season would play in the Second Division of the South Wales League.

However, the rugby orientated Merthyr Express showed little interest in association football at that time and very few references to the club exist in its pages. What follows is an account of the short history of the first club to bear the name Merthyr Town AFC which I have managed to glean from a variety of local newspapers and the minute book of the South Wales Football Association.

Although still very much a rugby town in the early years of the 20th century association football was beginning to gain a foothold in the area. In the south of the Borough Treharris were widely regarded as being one of the pioneers of the game in South Wales while the neighbouring village of Merthyr Vale also boasted a football team. In addition, in the north of the town several teams over the years had emerged bearing the name ‘Dowlais’.

The central area of the town was very much a soccer vacuum until the decision was taken to form ‘Merthyr Town’ in 1903. However, no records survive as to where or why the club was founded. Indeed, the only information we do have is that the club’s first secretary was Mr. R. A. Davies of 126, High Street and that he was succeeded during the season by Mr. J. O. Morgan of 80, Thomas Street while the team played its home matches at Gwynne’s Field Cefn Coed.

The new club was accepted into the Second Division of the South Wales League. This division was initially comprised of 13 clubs and offered the prospect of attractive local derbies against the likes of Treharris Reserves, Merthyr Vale, Rhymney and Pontlottyn.

Things began quite promisingly for the new venture. In their opening match they secured a creditable 2-2 against Treharris Reserves and their next home match two weeks later saw them secure their first victory when visitors Cwmaman were defeated by 2 goals to nil. However, these two games would prove to be the high point of the season as the following fixtures resulted in a number of heavy defeats, a sequence which included a 6-0 hammering at Merthyr Vale in early November.

The club also entered the South Wales FA Junior Cup. However, their presence in the competition would be a fleeting one as they went down to Ynysybwl by a goal to nil in the opening round of the competition. Over the Festive Period the club hosted Brecon in a friendly fixture. However, the late arrival of the Brecon team meant that the final portion of the game was played in semi-darkness as the spoils were shared in 1-1 draw.

The transient nature of football at this time was aptly illustrated by the fortunes of the respective clubs in the South Wales League Second Division. During the course of the campaign Blaina, Tredegar and Nantymoel all dropped out of the league and in early March 1904 Merthyr Town followed in their footsteps. Not surprisingly no record exists as to why this decision but the fact remained – the first Merthyr Town AFC were no more.

PLAYING RECORD

SOUTH WALES LEAGUE DIVISION II

TEAM HOME AWAY
ABERGAVENNY W1-0 D1-1
BLAINA W2-1 XXXX
CWMAMAN W2-0 D1-1
HAFOD XXXX XXXX
MARDY W3-2 L0-1
MERTHYR VALE L1-2 L0-6
PONTLOTTYN XXXX L0-1
RHYMNEY W2-0 XXXX
TON PENTRE XXXX L1-3
TREHARRIS RESERVES D2-2 L2-5

RESULTS AGAINST TEAMS WHO DROPPED OUT OF THE SOUTH WALES LEAUE DIVISION II

TEAM HOME AWAY
TREDEGAR XXXX L0-1
NANTYMOEL XXXX L0-3

SOUTH WALES JUNIOR CUP

RD1 YNYSYBWL 1 MERTHYR TOWN 0

FRIENDLY FIXTURES

PORTH SECONDS 2 MERTHYR TOWN 1
MERTHYR TOWN 1 MERTHYR DISTRICT 2
YNYSYBWL 2 MERTHYR TOWN 1
MERTHYR TOWN 1 BRECON 1

SOUTH WALES LEAGUE DIVISION II

TEAM P W L D F A PTS
HAFOD 13 10  1 2 46 15 22
TON PENTRE 10  7  1 2 28 11 16
PONTLOTTYN  9  7  1 1 26  9 15
MERTHYR VALE  8  6  1 1 30  7 13
ABERGAVENNY 10  3  5 2 24 19  8
MERTHYR TOWN 11  3  6 2 14 30  8
RHYMNEY  9  2  5 2 15 20  6
TREHARRIS RESERVES  7  2  4 1 15 21  5
MARDY  9  2  7 0 10 27  4
CWMAMAN 12  0 11 1  7 55  1

AS AT FEBRUARY 27TH 1904