Moor Green Football Club turned 100 years old on September 17, 2001. Six years and a devastating fire later, the historic club, based since 1930 in the suburb of Hall Green, six miles to the south of Birmingham, was consigned to history. The Moors competed in the Dr Martens Southern League at the time of the club’s centennial and had risen to the Conference North, two promotions shy of the Football League, by the final season. During the prior one-hundred years, Moor Green graced many different leagues with varying degrees of success. What can be said with confidence is that the name Moor Green has been held in high esteem throughout English amateur and semi-professional football and, for a period of time, in Europe as well. This reputation was achieved through the efforts of many fine players backed by hard-working committee men who made selfless efforts to keep the club going through both good times and bad. The history of the club could almost be a social history of England’s second city, illustrating the changing attitudes towards sport, especially football, during the twentieth century.
‘The Goal, The End – 106 Years of Moor Green Football’ written by Peter Clynes may be purchased at FeedARead.com, MichaelPrestonBooks.com and the Amazon platform.
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4. The 1940s: War & Peace
Organised football was suspended at the outbreak of the Second World War. The Moorlands was taken over by the Army and the Air Raid Precautions, an organisation dedicated to the protection of civilians during air raids. A few friendlies were played, first at The Moorlands, then at St Andrews, the home of Birmingham City, before that ground was also requisitioned by the Fire Brigade, who ironically caused the main stand to be burnt down by the carelessness of a fireman.
It was impossible to field a settled side at this time and guest players were frequently used to make up the numbers. A sixteen-year-old Gil Merrick, who went on to keep goal for England, appeared for Moor Green, Bromsgrove Rovers and Birmingham City in successive weeks. Eventually, so many players enlisted in the armed forces that Moor Green, along with many other clubs, decided to close down in 1940. Although some wartime football did persist, the Moors did not reform until 1945.
It was on March 19, 1945 that the club resumed playing with the purpose of entering the Barnet Hospital Invitation Cup, which was duly won. The Moors travelled to London to meet Barnet, then a powerful Isthmian League club and shocked them by winning 5-0. This inspired the club to seek a league in which to play, as neither the Central Amateur League or the Birmingham AFA had reformed. Moor Green applied to and were accepted by the Birmingham Combination. This was a strong league, made up mostly of professional clubs, and was dominated by the likes of Bromsgrove Rovers, Nuneaton Borough and Bedworth Town.
Despite remaining strictly-amateur in the age of professionalism, and the fact that so many players had either retired, or grown old and past their best, the Moors did remarkably well
to finish tenth in that first season, above such notable clubs as Worcester City, Hednesford and Tamworth. The steadfast belief in remaining an amateur club was underlined by the words of the club president. ‘Our players are amateurs in the truest sense and as a club we will not deviate from the principles laid down when Moor Green was formed,’ said Standfield Johnson. ‘If a position on the field is not adequately filled, we are not able to offer inducements to players to join us. We can only offer the pride of membership, the facilities available at The Moorlands for training, a first-class pitch to play on, strong opposition to face and a team spirit capable of defeating stronger opposition.’
The club enjoyed their best FA Amateur Cup run so far. They defeated Bournville, Norton Woodseats and Slough Town on the way to the last eight, and attendances at The Moorlands passed the 3,000-mark for the first time. Sherwood Road in those days was a hive of activity, especially on cup days, when hordes of people poured into the ground from all directions. Most spectators either walked or came by bus or by train to Hall Green Station. In fact, British Railways put on special trains for Moor Green and other teams to take spectators to away matches, and it was common for several thousand fans to travel to away ties in the Amateur Cup. The quarter final that year was something of an anti-climax. Close to 11,000 spectators packed into the Bishop Auckland ground to see the match, but the Moors were well beaten by the formidable northerners and lost 1-4.
There were two remarkable results that season in the FA Cup. The Moors were drawn away at Hereford United and won 8-0, but then any romantic dreams of a cup run were dashed in the next round when they lost 5-6 to Bournville.
The gates continued to increase; terracing was added behind both goals, in front of the stand and at either side of the stand. The school end was later covered, bringing the capacity of The Moorlands up to 6,250, though this was never fully tested. Only the cricket pitch side was left undeveloped and Moseley Cricket Club moved in to add the club’s income. Other projects were under consideration, but materials and authority for further work could not be obtained until the post-war government housing programme had been satisfied. Scarce supplies also caused Moors to request help obtaining shirts and jerseys for their players and on one occasion had to borrow a kit from Banbury Spencer due to a colour clash with Worcester City.
An interesting note in a 1947 match programme proclaimed – in bold lettering – ‘a word of warning to those few objectional people who continually shout uncomplimentary remarks about players. It is not gentlemanly conduct and in future the culprits will be asked to leave the ground. Neither our visitors nor our own players like to listen to such vulgar comments as ‘get stuck into it,’ etc. Please do not do it!’
Moor Green was fast becoming a power in the land, but huge changes to football in general were beginning to have an effect. As the decade progressed, many of the pre-war stars retired and new faces were being added to the playing staff. Moor Green players were in constant demand from representative sides and the professional clubs, themselves decimated by the war, began to take a close interest. The crowds were boosted by hosts of scouts from Football League clubs, resulting in a number of players being lost to the professional game. Outside right Herbie Smith and centre forward Ron Jeffries both joined Aston Villa, Bernard Rowley, an all-rounder who also played minor counties cricket, and Norman Gilbert were signed by Birmingham City. Wing half Ken Barnes moved via Stafford Rangers to Manchester City and later played for England.
‘In each case we were disappointed in losing a ‘star’, but we realise that if any of our
players wish to make football a career, we can only wish them good fortune for their future, still
knowing that any reputation they may make would reflect itself upon their former club,’ said chairman of directors Stuart B. Gane.
All these changes to the team did nothing at all to help consistency of performance. The team failed to improve on the tenth position achieved in that first season and at the end of 1947/48, having finished bottom but one, Moor Green faced the indignity of having to apply for re-election. Luckily, this was successful.
Despite disappointing league performances, Moor Green were gaining a reputation of being a more than useful cup side. They again reached the FA Amateur Cup quarter finals in 1947/48, beating Bournville again, East Tanfield and Walton and Hersham on the way, with home attendances passing the 3,000 mark.
The match away to East Tanfield required the Moors contingent to depart Birmingham’s New Street Station at 7.21pm on a February Friday night, bound for York, where they stayed overnight before continuing the following morning to the colliery town a few miles south of Newcastle. East Tanfield had drawn the lowest attendance of the first round, so Moor Green were told to expect a share of a gate that might total only £30, making for an out-of-pocket journey north. The enthusiasm for Moor Green’s success led to members being anxious to arrange supporters’ away trips and a Mr F.R. West of Cateswell Road in Hall Green volunteered to coordinate such excursions.
There was an embarrassing episode when the East Tanfield ground, in Durham was swept by a blizzard during the match and one by one the Moor Green players succumbed to the biting cold. Several players actually passed out and were carried off the pitch into the dressing rooms where they were revived with warm baths and liberal tots of whisky. Whether the cold got worse, or news of the whisky reached the pitch is not recorded, but so many players from both sides left the pitch that the referee, who was obviously made of sterner stuff, was forced to abandon the match with the home side leading 2-1. It was reported that the Moor Green players were invited into a director’s house near the ground where they all sat round a roaring coal fire, swaddled in blankets and drinking sweet tea before catching the train back to Birmingham. The match was played again the following Saturday and Moors won 3-2, causing much sarcastic comment in the Durham papers about ‘Southern Softies.’ The final out of pocket expenses from the journeys to East Tanfield totalled £100, which was described as ‘a serious financial loss.’
The draw for the last eight paired Moors with local club Boldmere St. Michaels, who played only ten miles away in Sutton Coldfield. The interest in the match in the Midlands was phenomenal, with both clubs besieged by ticket-seeking fans. The accommodating Mr West booked several coaches to ferry supporters across the city. A temporary stand was erected at Boldmere’s Church Road ground and the hosts sold 6,000 tickets. Moor Green were overwhelming favourites, and put in some extra training, which included brine baths at Droitwich Spa. Arrangements were made to relay updates back to The Moorlands, dependent on the availability of a telephone in the vicinity of the Church Road ground.
Underdogs Boldmere took it all in their stride and their laid-back approach paid dividends, as Moors appeared too keyed up and failed to perform to their usual standard. The match went to extra time, Norman Love missed a penalty for the Moors and the home side scraped through by the only goal. Boldmere faced Barnet in the semi-final where they lost 2-0 at Highbury in front of 38,000 people. Incidentally, the final that year ended Leytonstone 1 Barnet 0, played at Stamford Bridge, attendance, 59,605. As for Moor Green, they would never again get so close to the final, which in subsequent years, was moved to Wembley Stadium to be played before capacity crowds of 100,000.
Moor Green reached the semi final of the AFA Senior Cup that same 1947/48 season, having won away to Worthing before a crowd of 3,300 in the quarter final. The journey to the south coast took the Moors party via Paddington Station, where they were met by former Moor Green and England international Tommy Leek, who accompanied the team across London to Victoria Station and joined them for lunch.
On the day of the semi final, fixture congestion forced Moor Green to play two first team matches on the same day. One XI faced Tamworth at The Moorlands in a league match, where it was noted that the behaviour of some away fans ‘caused so much annoyance to our many friends – especially the ladies.’ The other XI ventured to Cambridge Town for the AFA Senior Cup, where a crowd of 5,500 at the picturesque Cambridge University ground saw the hosts claim a convincing win.
Meanwhile, progress on the ground continued. The drainage system was installed under the pitch in 1949 and continued to serve the club well as the playing surface at The Moorlands was regarded as one of the best in the Midlands for many decades. Crowds continued to increase, and the 500 or so season ticket holders complained that there were not enough seats in the main stand. Plans were submitted to increase the stand to five times its present size, and despite the expertise of secretary George Fisher, a prominent city estate agent, the objections from the occupants of houses in neighbouring Romney Close caused the plan to be abandoned.
It would not be the last time local residents halted Moor Green’s progress.
Michael Preston 