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The Twenties was a magical era for Burnden Park and Bolton Wanderers.
Two third-placed and two fourth-placed finishes in the league were eclipsed by a stunning three FA Cup victories, including the legendary White Horse Final in 1923, the first to be played at Wembley.
Indeed, the stadium would become a second home for a talented team containing some of the superstars of the day: goalkeeper Dick Pym and goal-scoring legends like Joe Smith, Ted Vizard and David Jack – who would go on to become the most expensive player alive when he signed for Arsenal in 1928.
Under the tutelage of club secretary Charles Foweraker the Whites were serious contenders and the Bolton public were responding in kind. More than 57,000 packed in to watch the Whites take on Burnley in 1921 – a record which would stand for 12 years, when the all-time highest attendance at Burnden was set for a cup tie against Manchester City, watched by 66,912 people.
Football had shared the limelight with athletics and cycling in the ground’s formative years but an application to hold greyhound races in 1927 was strongly rejected by the club’s board, as was a request from the BBC to beam a live TV match.
Cashflow problems meant Wanderers had to rebuild in the 1930s but new terrace heroes emerged like Ray Westwood and Jack Milsom. In 1935 – echoing the modern-day situation – they secured the point they needed on the last day of the season against Blackpool to gain promotion back to the top flight and also reached the FA Cup semi-finals, losing out to West Brom.
When war broke out a promising Bolton team was interrupted. Captain Harry Goslin memorably addressed the Burnden fans with a rousing speech before leading his team to the Territorial Army Drill Hall to enlist.
Burnden welcomed the soldiers back a few months later in a special friendly game. The 53rd Royal Artillery, to which 13 players had been consigned, faced a Wanderers team who had been competing in the war competitions, playing out a 3-3 draw.
Six years later, normal league service was resumed. Bolton met a Pompey team with five players who had played in the previous match. Captain Goslin was the only player not to return home, having been killed in battle in Italy.
Several years later more tragedy would strike as 33 people lost their lives in what was, at the time, the worst disaster ever recorded in professional football.
Not only the town but the whole world was stunned by the magnitude of the horrific event, which occurred on March 9, 1946.
Wanderers were hosting an eagerly-awaited FA Cup quarter-final against Stanley Matthews’ Stoke City and by 2.40pm took the decision to close the railway embankment gates with 15,000 fans waiting to get in.
Many of the fans found alternate ways into the ground. It had been predicted 55,000 people would watch the game and the official attendance would register 65,419. Unofficially it was thought to be 85,000.
Fans ‘bottlenecked’ in the embankment had already started to spill out on to the cinder track prior to kick-off because of the pressure but once the game started, the excitement became so great the weight of the crowd bore down on the spectators at the front. Barriers collapsed and people, three or four deep, were trampled underfoot by their helpless neighbours.
Around 500 people were also injured but the game played on. Many – including the great Nat Lofthouse, then just 20 – were unaware of the tragic events until they read the final edition of the Evening News.
“There was me, Stoke captain Neil Franklin and the referee all stood within a few yards of each other when a policeman came over and said to the referee: ‘You’d better stop the game, I think those people are dead over there.’
“It wasn’t until I came to Burnden Park the following day and saw the aftermath that it really sunk in; there were crushed barriers and the odd shoe or two strewn around.”
The resulting inquest changed not only Burnden but all English football stadia. Moelwyn Hughes’ official report urged a greater control over attendances, including mandatory safety inspections and monitored turnstile entry.
Football’s landscape had changed, but so had Wanderers. Lofthouse matured into the inspirational leader of the £110 team, arguably the greatest to have set foot on Burnden.
Source
Two third-placed and two fourth-placed finishes in the league were eclipsed by a stunning three FA Cup victories, including the legendary White Horse Final in 1923, the first to be played at Wembley.
Indeed, the stadium would become a second home for a talented team containing some of the superstars of the day: goalkeeper Dick Pym and goal-scoring legends like Joe Smith, Ted Vizard and David Jack – who would go on to become the most expensive player alive when he signed for Arsenal in 1928.
Under the tutelage of club secretary Charles Foweraker the Whites were serious contenders and the Bolton public were responding in kind. More than 57,000 packed in to watch the Whites take on Burnley in 1921 – a record which would stand for 12 years, when the all-time highest attendance at Burnden was set for a cup tie against Manchester City, watched by 66,912 people.
Football had shared the limelight with athletics and cycling in the ground’s formative years but an application to hold greyhound races in 1927 was strongly rejected by the club’s board, as was a request from the BBC to beam a live TV match.
Cashflow problems meant Wanderers had to rebuild in the 1930s but new terrace heroes emerged like Ray Westwood and Jack Milsom. In 1935 – echoing the modern-day situation – they secured the point they needed on the last day of the season against Blackpool to gain promotion back to the top flight and also reached the FA Cup semi-finals, losing out to West Brom.
When war broke out a promising Bolton team was interrupted. Captain Harry Goslin memorably addressed the Burnden fans with a rousing speech before leading his team to the Territorial Army Drill Hall to enlist.
Burnden welcomed the soldiers back a few months later in a special friendly game. The 53rd Royal Artillery, to which 13 players had been consigned, faced a Wanderers team who had been competing in the war competitions, playing out a 3-3 draw.
Six years later, normal league service was resumed. Bolton met a Pompey team with five players who had played in the previous match. Captain Goslin was the only player not to return home, having been killed in battle in Italy.
Several years later more tragedy would strike as 33 people lost their lives in what was, at the time, the worst disaster ever recorded in professional football.
Not only the town but the whole world was stunned by the magnitude of the horrific event, which occurred on March 9, 1946.
Wanderers were hosting an eagerly-awaited FA Cup quarter-final against Stanley Matthews’ Stoke City and by 2.40pm took the decision to close the railway embankment gates with 15,000 fans waiting to get in.
Many of the fans found alternate ways into the ground. It had been predicted 55,000 people would watch the game and the official attendance would register 65,419. Unofficially it was thought to be 85,000.
Fans ‘bottlenecked’ in the embankment had already started to spill out on to the cinder track prior to kick-off because of the pressure but once the game started, the excitement became so great the weight of the crowd bore down on the spectators at the front. Barriers collapsed and people, three or four deep, were trampled underfoot by their helpless neighbours.
Around 500 people were also injured but the game played on. Many – including the great Nat Lofthouse, then just 20 – were unaware of the tragic events until they read the final edition of the Evening News.
“There was me, Stoke captain Neil Franklin and the referee all stood within a few yards of each other when a policeman came over and said to the referee: ‘You’d better stop the game, I think those people are dead over there.’
“It wasn’t until I came to Burnden Park the following day and saw the aftermath that it really sunk in; there were crushed barriers and the odd shoe or two strewn around.”
The resulting inquest changed not only Burnden but all English football stadia. Moelwyn Hughes’ official report urged a greater control over attendances, including mandatory safety inspections and monitored turnstile entry.
Football’s landscape had changed, but so had Wanderers. Lofthouse matured into the inspirational leader of the £110 team, arguably the greatest to have set foot on Burnden.
Source
