O

f the tens of thousands of players I have had the good fortune to watch during the past forty years, goalkeepers have always had my admiration. Most young followers of the professional game have a hero - more often than not the ‘star’ goalscorer, the ‘ Roy of the Rovers’.

But my favourite as a schoolboy was Fred Crump, who kept goal for Southern League Tonbridge in the early ‘sixties. Being, at that time, unable to regularly undertake a 200-mile round trip from my parents’ home in Kent to the town of my birth, I sadly missed much of the development of Bert Head’s young charges. And so my Saturday afternoons were invariably spent behind Crump’s goal at the old Angel Ground - long since bulldozed to make way for a superstore.

Perhaps it was no coincidence then that, some fifteen years after making my County Ground ‘debut’ as a Town supporter, my initial excursion into football writing took the form of

TOWN THROUGH TIME - GOALKEEPERS

which was serialised in the club’s matchday programme from August 1979. Further contributions followed with WINGERS, CENTRE-FORWARDS and MANAGERS.

 

GOALKEEPERS eventually appeared as an A5 paperback under the Footprint Publications label in July 1984.

Long since out of print, you can now re-trace the history of 125 years of Town goalkeepers on line right here………

 

 

 

B

efore the dawning of professionalism, which came to Swindon in the mid-1890’s, it was not unknown for outfield players to be utilised in goal, FRANK CROSSLEY being an early example of this practice. His association with Swindon stretched back to the days before the Town club was formed. Another was JIMMY CALDERWOOD, who made his debut at centre-forward - then spent most of his career in goal !

 

The first man to take residence in the custodial position for the newly named Swindon Town , in 1883, was destined to reach the very top in his profession. BILLY ROSE was eventually to play in the First Division for Wolves, with whom he won an F.A.Cup winners’ medal in 1893, and was also capped five times for England . Being an amateur throughout his days in Wiltshire, Rose was free to assist other clubs of his choice and when not on duty for the Town or the county eleven, he turned out for the Slough-based ‘Swifts’. And it was with this club he is credited as having assisted at the time he made his debut for England , an 8-1 win over Ireland in Belfast in February 1884. He was Swindon Town ’s team captain at the time !  GEORGE BUTTERWORTH - a solicitor by profession - briefly held court in the interim, but Crossley’s successor was Swindon ’s own version of the legendary ‘Fatty’ Foulke - the man-mountain who kept for Sheffield United and later Chelsea.

 

CHARLIE WILLIAMS, born a stone’s throw from Stamford Bridge , was a colossus with an almost ‘cherubic’ face !   The son of a Town director of the same name, he was Swindon ’s regular guardian from 1893 until the club began to employ professionals in 1895. Unable to accommodate his feet in standard sized boots, Town granted Williams a special footwear allowance of nine shillings and sixpence (47p!). The big man - his weight was reported to be around twenty stones - celebrated Swindon’s inaugural League fixture at the recently-opened County Ground , against Ilford in September 1895, by getting himself sent off before half-time !  Charlie also made his mark with Swindon Cricket Club some years later, when he shared a record opening stand with ex-Town forward Jimmy Pugh.

By the turn of the 20th century, the goalkeeping spot was held by BOB MENHAM, a former Grenadier Guardsman, who had been brought to Swindon in 1898 from Wigan County . But his credentials were of the highest quality, for only fifteen months previously he had helped Everton to the F.A.Cup Final at the Crystal Palace . There, the Toffeemen had lost by the odd goal in five to Aston Villa - who were also good enough to win the League Championship that year. Menham went into the Town record books as the only goalkeeper to get his name on the score sheet - at the right end that is - and he achieved that feat twice !  His first moment of glory came in the F.A.Cup on November 21 1900 in a Fourth Qualifying Round replay, when the Bristol side Staple Hill came to the County Ground . Swindon were already 5-0 ahead when Bob exercised his authority as team captain to nominate himself as penalty-taker - and he did not waste the opportunity. Later that season, on March 13, Bob again stepped forward to strike the winning goal from the spot in a 3-2 Western League victory over Queens Park Rangers - Town’s first of a dismal season.

And it was in the capacity of club skipper that he made an appeal to the public of Swindon through the local press on behalf of his colleagues, who had agreed to accept a reduced wage so that the club - on the verge of folding up - could continue in business. The paybill had been cut by almost half. The ‘Swindon Advertiser’ set up a subscription list with all donations going to make up the shortfall in the players’ wage packets. Names and amounts totalling £33 14s 6d (£33.72p) were eventually appended to that list !

But, a few weeks earlier, on December 28 1900, Bob Menham made a name for himself for all the wrong reasons. Possibly as a result of too much Xmas cheer, he contrived to miss the train taking his colleagues to Swindon’s away Southern League game at Kettering !  Consequently, one of the full-backs, ‘PADDY’ FAGAN, took up the keeper’s duties and had to retrieve the ball from the back of the net on no less than ten occasions. This indiscretion cost big Bob a one-match suspension, when an 18 year old Irishman from Kildare, PAT KEOGH stepped in. Although TOM BOULTON made a handful of appearances at this time, no serious challengers to Bob’s position came along until late in 1902, when Swindon were drawn away to Chippenham Town in the F.A.Cup.

Due to a cash incentive, Chippenham agreed to switch the match to the County Ground . In the event, Swindon won the tie comfortably 5-0, but the result was less significant than the bravery shown by the visitors’ young custodian Fred Hemmings - who was solely responsible for keeping the score line respectable. It had not gone unnoticed. He was signed on by the Town and, two months later, replaced Bob Menham in the League side. On the eve of a crucial F.A.Cup tie at Barnsley (the winners would go into the ‘hat’ with all the First Division clubs), Bob went down with rheumatic fever and was unable to make the trip. His seat on the train went to TOM LEWIS who, after that 0-4 defeat, was never again called upon to represent the first team. Hanging up his jersey in 1903, Bob Menham was later elected a director of the club and his popularity was such that he held the post of president of the Swindon and District Licensed Victuallers Association for some ten years.

Meanwhile, FRED HEMMINGS took over. His small stature, for a goalkeeper that is, at just over 5’7”, earned him the affectionate title of ‘Tich’. He was ‘ever present’ during 1903/04, conceding just forty-two goals and in the following campaign missed only four games, when JIM DIXON deputised.

However, for the 1905/06 season, the Town directorate went to the Leicester Fosse club to secure the services of Arthur ‘ARCHIE’ LING. Hemmings, although only getting the occasional first team outing, still remained loyal to the Town until retiring in 1912. Ling spent four years with Swindon and though the club went through a lean time at the start of his career at the County Ground , he soon developed a reputation foe being one of the safest keepers in the Southern League. Like other Town keepers who would follow in the years ahead, Archie put his hands to good use during the summer months. The close season of 1909 proved to be a little hectic for him, for after knocking three centuries for his native Cambridgeshire in Minor Counties cricket, he parted company with the Town and joined Brentford.

The man who came to take over the position vacated by Ling was no stranger to Swindon . He had first made his name with another Southern League outfit, Leyton (no connexion with the present Orient club) and was then snapped up by Aston Villa. When he was made available for transfer by the Midlanders the Town directors, remembering his performances whenever he had come to Swindon , promptly signed him.

LEN SKILLER, born near Penzance, took little or no time to settle down at the County Ground for, despite numerous changes in the full-back pairing in front of him, he rationed the Town’s opponents to just seven goals in his first twelve games. The only side to defeat Swindon during that period was Skiller’s old club Leyton - who later completed a League ‘double’ over the Town.

Nevertheless, the Cornishman’s presence between the sticks was instrumental in the ‘goals against’ column registering just 46 at the close of the 1909/10 season, a figure bettered only by champions Brighton . Twelve months later, that title came to Swindon , when Skiller and company conceded even fewer - a paltry 31. Only once did any side put more than two in the Town net during a League game. Yes, it was Leyton !  But on this occasion, Len was not present, Fred Hemmings being the unfortunate one. The Leyton hoodoo was finally laid to rest during 1911/12 when Mr Skiller joined the spectators in witnessing the Town forwards hammer nine goals past his opposite number in the two League meetings. Such was his consistency that the reserve, former Forest keeper ALBERT HASELL, was seen on League duty only seven times in three years.

Len helped Swindon take the Southern League championship again in 1914, but it might not have happened had he not pulled off a remarkable save in the very last game of the season. Needing a win over Cardiff at Ninian Park to guarantee the title, there was no score with just a few minutes remaining. Then Skiller was brought into action, leaping spectacularly from one side of his goal to the other to somehow deflect a pile driver wide of the post for a corner. It was still goalless    at the final whistle, but when the Town party returned to the Central railway station they heard that second placed Crystal Palace had only drawn at Gillingham .       So, thanks to Len Skiller, the honours went to Swindon .

When the Great War finally put paid to League football in 1915, Len was put on the retained list - along with an incredible total of 65 others. This was probably a safeguard adopted to ensure that, in the confusion that the years of hostilities would bring, players would not drift away from the club. One of the many keepers to assist Swindon during the suspension of the normal League programme was locally-born Freddy Fox, later a director of the club and popular publican of the County Ground Hotel. Although he gained the curious distinction of playing just half a game for England - when a Gillingham player - Freddy never made a peace-time appearance for Swindon Town .

W

hen League battle recommenced in August 1919, it was two other Swindon men who vied for the top name on the team sheet. FREDDY HINTON had only a brief stay at the County Ground before signing for Bolton Wanderers for £50 in August 1920 and a teenager, who had joined the Town at the age of fourteen in 1916. TEDDY NASH made his League debut in March 1920 and it was he who was to don the keeper’s jersey for the first match in Division Three - that remarkable 9-1 rout of Luton Town . But when he was unable to make the trip to Southampton two days later, Len Skiller returned to the fold and, although the Town crashed 0-4, no blame could be attached to the veteran. Skiller’s remarkable agility (he trained using tennis balls) remained and with his assistance Swindon finished the season a most creditable fourth. Len finally made his farewell, after more than 300 appearances, on April 17 1922 when Southend came to the County Ground . As ever, he gave a faultless display with the Town cruising to a 6-1 win. Before leaving Mr Skiller, however, one amusing incident from his long career was later recalled by manager Sam Allen. It occurred at The Den in November 1920, when the outspoken boss was of the opinion that the game should have been abandoned when a typical London smog descended over the ground. “It was so bad that all one could see was the bald head of Jefferson” (Town’s veteran winger Bob), he had claimed. And he seemed to have a case, for after the game the players were soaking themselves in the bath when someone noticed that Len was missing. Skipper Billy Tout made a hasty retreat to the field to discover the keeper still guarding his net and poised for another rush of oncoming forwards who had already put five past him !  A sad irony to the story is that the great man eventually lost his sight in later years.

Skiller having departed, TEDDY NASH had the goalkeeping berth to himself for the 1922/23 season. At the time there was no shorter keeper than Nash - at a shade over 5’8” - on duty in the Third Division, but his safe handling or ‘fielding’ as it was often referred to in his day, kept him as Sam Allen’s number one choice. The term fielding was more appropriate for Teddy’s other favoured recreation, as wicketkeeper for Wiltshire.   The county was also fortunate in being able to call upon the services of team mate Harold Fleming, a rather useful bowler.

Challenging for Nash’s position between the posts was OSSIE RANDALL, who had joined the Town from Brighton in the close season along with full-back Harry Bentley. For Randall it was a move nearer ‘home’, being a native of the Berkshire village of Thatcham . He was not given a chance to prove himself at League level, however, until Nash fell out of favour in November 1923. Ossie conceded seven goals in his first three outings, but his next four all produced ‘blanks’ and he thus held his place for the remainder of the season, assisting Swindon in attaining a final League placing of sixth. And this was improved upon in 1924/25 when the Town ended fourth and Randall kept an impressive eighteen clean sheets in his 41 games. In one eight match spell, following a home Cup defeat by Fulham, only one side managed to get the ball past him. Ossie’s only non-attendance that season was on Easter Monday when the team was given a grand holiday reshuffle for the visit of his old club Brighton, five changes being made. Teddy Nash stood in.

Two defeats to open the following campaign - with five goals conceded - brought some dismay to the Swindon camp and changes were made. Two involved the forward positions, but the only member of the rearguard to lose his place was the unfortunate OSSIE RANDALL. He was then left to rusticate in the reserves for the remainder of the season and was never to see first team football at Swindon again. Once more Mr Nash answered the call. During the autumn of 1925, when the F.A.Cup was ‘revamped’, Town did their 17-goal demolition job on two non-League sides - Farnham and Sittingbourne - in the first two rounds. Nash was a virtual spectator against the Breweries side when, with Swindon already seven goals to the good, it ceased to be a contest after half-time. Perhaps through sheer boredom, Teddy then conceded a penalty by bundling over Farnham winger Cooper. This was no charitable gesture, however, as he made an athletic diving save to deny the amateurs the satisfaction of scoring until the dying moments of the game.

Nash was never again absent until September 1926, by which time Ossie Randall had headed west to Exeter City, in company with Town forward George Purcell. On the 18th of that month, a new name appeared between the ‘sticks’, that of JACK BOURNE. He had served his apprenticeship at Bolton , where he had made a strong challenge for the time-honoured position held by the great Dick Pym. Another of his colleagues at Burnden Park at that time was former Town keeper Freddy Hinton, before he became the subject of a £500 transfer to Tottenham.

Brought up in the Potteries, JACK BOURNE received a harsh baptism to life in the Third Division South when, during the first thirteen minutes    of his debut at Brighton, he had to pluck the ball from the back of the net three times. By the time the half-hour had approached Town trailed 0-5 and, although the Swindon front men brought some respectability to events by netting three in four minutes, worse was to follow. No fewer than four more goals sailed past the bewildered newcomer after the break. In spite of that disastrous 9-3 defeat, the management remained unruffled and TEDDY NASH returned to the scene only on the isolated occasion. It was to take another goal massacre - 8-2 at Merthyr Town in October 1927 - to convince Sam Allen and the board that perhaps a change in the last line of defence might be beneficial, as the club was now floundering at the wrong end of the table. Having no fresh blood to call upon, the ever reliable Nash was recalled to Division Three action and his experience guided the Town through a run of 13 unbeaten games, during which only three points were dropped. The League position began to look healthy once again as, from 18th place after the Merthyr debacle, Swindon had now been hoisted to fifth. Not surprisingly, Teddy kept his place.

In August 1929 Bourne, disenchanted with life in the reserves, disappeared northwards seeking refuge in the Cheshire League with Sandbach Ramblers. So when Nash suffered an injury in a 0-4 reverse at Walsall on September 23, HERBIE WEBSTER stepped into the breach. But the young keeper from West Bromwich Albion - still a fortnight short of his 19th birthday - was given few chances to prove his worth and, following his debut, was not seen in first team action again until after Nash had been immobilised with a thigh strain in a Third Round Cup tie with Manchester City. Despite having beaten Manchester United at Old Trafford in the previous round, Town had struggled to hold a powerful City side and needed the donation of a Phil McCloy own goal to force a 1-1 draw at the County Ground . Devoid of the services of Nash for the replay, it was Webster who travelled to Maine Road on the following Wednesday. City’s Tommy Johnson got the first of five goals as early as the 13th minute and poor Herbie was eventually buried beneath a ten-goal avalanche. Teddy had still not recovered for the following weekend’s trip to Penydarren Park in Merthyr and so young Webster recorded his second League appearance for the Town. A further four were added to his tally at the tail end of the season, but when play resumed after the summer break he was again ousted from his position, not by Nash, but by another ‘hardy perennial’ in HARRY COPE.

Nash was finally released by the club in the spring of 1930, but despite the fact that he was still only 28, no club had been immediately forthcoming with an invitation for his signature. Eventually Brentford took him on and there he was to succeed Freddy Fox the aforementioned Swindonian. Cope, a nimble Yorkshireman, was signed from Blackburn Rovers and took up the challenge in August 1930. Like Nash, Harry was on the short side for a keeper and weighed in at a little over ten stones. His League career had begun with Barnsley in 1923 and Rovers had paid £550 for his services three years later. Cope missed just one game for the Town in 1930/31 when, after receiving a buffeting at Custom House, (home of the ill-fated Thames club) he was forced to stand down in favour of Webster.

Shortly before Swindon were due to play at Exeter in November 1931, Harry had the misfortune to severely burn his hand in a fire at his home. This necessitated the calling up of reserve SID GILES, an amateur from Cricklade. Giles acquitted himself well in three games and was to displace Harry from his first-team perch when the Yorkshireman sustained another injury at Fulham in March 1932. Cope joined Stalybridge Celtic that summer, leaving Sid to contest the spot with another new face - that of Leicestershire county cricketer LESLIE BERRY - who arrived from Bristol Rovers. Giles was to make just five further appearances as a stop gap replacement when Berry was somewhat abruptly relieved of his duties in January 1933. This followed an embarrassing 1-7 defeat at Reading and then a home F.A.Cup defeat by Burnley , when he conceded what team mate Harry Cousins later described as “the softest goal I have ever seen.” Having accepted terms to continue as opening batsman for Leicestershire for the forthcoming summer, Berry duly terminated his soccer activities at Football League level. The future of SID GILES was less fortunate as he died from leukaemia at just 29 years of age in 1938.

So again there was a goalkeeping vacancy at Swindon and this was filled by another seasoned campaigner in ARTHUR BRIGGS, who was plucked from semi-retirement with Cheshire County League side Ashton National. A Geordie, Briggs had signed for Hull City some twelve years earlier and had then spent eight uneventful years with Tranmere Rovers. On arrival at the County Ground , he gave his age as 29, but in truth he was close to his 34th birthday !  Coming at a time when a multitude of changes were taking place in an effort to get the club off the bottom rung of the League, Arthur proved quite sound and remained undisturbed in the Town side for a run of some 63 games. But during that time a number of eyes had been cast in the direction of a young Army keeper stationed at Tidworth Camp.

He was FREDDY HOULDSWORTH and, after signing for Swindon in August 1933, he eventually made his League debut thirteen months later. Freddy was to achieve a rapid rise to fame for, after just 30 League games, Stoke City paid over £700 (a fair sum in pre-War days) to take him into the First Division. This was during the first week of April 1935, just twelve weeks after Town had had the good sense to sign him on professional forms.

Briggs thus returned to register his 299th Football League appearance, but it turned out not to be too happy for him as he suffered a nastily gashed eye. After seeing out the remainder of the season, Arthur left for Newport County . His replacement was JACK RUTHERFORD      - a former Watford and West Ham keeper – who succeeded in trimming down the ratio of goals against that had hitherto proved to be Swindon ’s downfall. In 17 out of twenty games, the quota allowed to opponents was no more than two goals. Another London exile came to the club at Christmas 1935 in ERNIE BEECHAM. After periods of service with Fulham who he had joined ten years previously and Queens Park Rangers, Ernie had taken to the sea air in assisting Brighton . Sixteen goals conceded in three Town games did not help his cause, however, and Rutherford soon returned to see the Town win at home for the first time in twelve weeks. But when Town were comparatively safe from the worries of re-election, another newcomer was introduced in the shape of 20 years old FRED EDMONDS. An ex-Swindon Rangers keeper whose activities had been restricted to the Western League side for a year, Fred made his entrance when Beecham was confined to hospital with a lung disorder. He became an almost instant favourite at the County Ground with a penalty save in a near faultless debut - a 3-0 victory over Gillingham .

For 1936/37, manager Ted Vizard went to Reading to obtain the transfer of a keeper who, despite some incredible ill-luck, proved to be a sound investment - FRANK WILDMAN. In his last few months at Elm Park alone, Frank had had the misfortune to suffer first a broken finger and then damaged ribs. His initial absence from the Town side was enforced during December 1936 when he contracted pneumonia and was out for two months. Edmonds stepped in for four games and a further five were covered by former Bristol University student, JOHN BROCK.

In the following November, Frank was again in the wars. His stand-in was a close-season signing from Southend, BILL BRYAN. Wildman declared himself fit again for the Christmas fixtures, but the month of December 1937 proved just as fateful as it had done the previous year when he sustained a broken bone in his hand against Queens Park Rangers on the 28th. However, Frank’s discomfort did not prevent him from operating down the left wing from where, shortly before half-time, he delivered a perfect cross for Alan Fowler to stab home a Swindon consolation in a 1-3 defeat.

It was February before Wildman made a come back with the reserves and a month later he was back in Third Division battle. In the interim BILL BRYAN had again taken up occupation. Better fortune at long last came Frank’s way when, during the next twelve months, he missed just one game. Then another stroke of bad luck at Ipswich in March 1939 put him out of action for the rest of the season. After hitting his head against a post during the first half, he suffered delayed concussion and 15 minutes from time collapsed with no other player in the immediate vicinity.

Doctors ordered Frank to rest and, as a precaution, a 20 years old keeper from Aston Villa, was signed - GEORGE EPHGRAVE. Reading born, perhaps his only claim to fame was his feet, which necessitated the use of size 12½ boots. But these did not look entirely out of place on a 6’4½” and 14 stone frame !  George was given just one League chance, after Bryan had conceded five in a match at Walsall . And the same fate was to befall Ephgrave though, to be fair, he had carried an injured shoulder from quite early on in the game. FRANK WILDMAN returned to the fray in August but the skies over Britain were already darkening with military movement and League football came to a halt after just two Saturdays of the new season.

It would be seven years and two days before League football would return to the County Ground , although a regional competition operated in 1939/40 and 1945/46. With players being scattered around the country after having been ‘called up’, it was often no easy task for a manager to find a full team. Normal registration procedures were therefore suspended and clubs could field up to five ‘guests’ if necessary - although some clubs clearly flouted this ruling. Swindon Town was one of only a few clubs not to operate throughout the War years, the Government taking over the County Ground from June 1940 until July 1945.

In the goalkeeping department, Town had few problems during 1939/40, as Wildman was usually on hand. But for the final fixture, on May 25, the only volunteer for the green jersey was club trainer Harry Martin, fast approaching his half-century !  Some 28 years had elapsed since Harry - who was once capped for England - had first played at the County Ground , as a left-winger for Sutton Junction in an F.A.Cup tie. But visitors Swansea Town were still unable to beat the ‘veteran’ and Swindon duly went into hibernation with a 4-0 victory.

W

hen the turnstiles reopened in August 1945 a 19 year old Swindonian was favoured by new manager Louis Page. Fresh from county youth honours,     SAM BURTON was to go on to make over 500 appearances for the club. Wildman was again available from the end of September, until he decided to return to his native Yorkshire to sign for Frickley Colliery in March 1946. A third keeper to appear that season - at Reading on February 2 - was one of two guests from Northern Ireland . He was TED HINTON of the Distillery club in Belfast who, after returning to England to sign for Fulham, represented his country on seven occasions. The other Ulsterman was a slightly built inside-forward from Glentoran by the name of Robert Dennis Blanchflower, better known in later years as ‘Danny’. But for the resumption of Third Division South football in August 1946, Swindon required a more experienced performer than the young part-time Burton - and they found it in a 6’1” Derby County goal-minder born not too far away, at Chipping Sodbury.

FRANK BOULTON had seen service with Arsenal before joining the Midlands side and had had spells with Bath City and Bristol City before the War. It was not too long, however, before Frank found the challenge of young Sam too great and, after one or two shaky performances, he found himself in the reserves. A 2-4 home defeat by Torquay during November 1946 had not helped, much of the damage in that instance being done by a robust centre-forward who scored twice. He was Jack Conley, who was to join Town’s back-room staff under Bert Head in 1960. But Boulton persevered and gained a recall in the new year. Swindon went through some in-and-out form until suffering a truly wretched time at Easter 1947. Hit for five at Bournemouth on Good Friday, some twenty thousand still turned up for the return fixture on the Monday. But Frank was clearly not amused when one of his kicks against the wind dropped directly to an opposing forward who hastily lofted the ball over his head and straight into the net !  Despite a 3-1 reverse, there was no selection problem for manager Louis Page, as Boulton was incapacitated with a knee injury before the following weekend. Sam Burton thus had the chance to shine for a few games.

In September 1947, the Town took a keeper on trial from Ashton Gate. His positional qualities were preferred to the somewhat erratic displays having been shown at times by Frank Boulton - but at 44 years of age his career was obviously at its twilight !  ALEX FERGUSON, whose initial appointment was for just one month, was kept on until Burton gained his release from the Welsh mines - where he was completing his term of national service - in the following spring. It was not long before Boulton returned to the scene, after Ferguson had retired with a back injury mid-way through a game at Southend. Constant bending towards the back of the net since he first joined Third North club Wigan Borough from Scottish junior football in 1924 may have been the cause !  Swindon were desperately unlucky to return from that seaside trip pointless, going down only when a penalty beat deputy ‘keeper left-back Albert Young ten minutes from the end. Substitute goalkeepers were still two generations away !  Ferguson was to appear just once more, when he was brought in against his old colleagues from Bristol City . A mammoth 26,401 packed the County Ground to see a 2-2 draw.

With FRANK BOULTON again holding the fort, Town went on one of their famous F.A.Cup treks in 1947/48 and the keeper was to play a key role in getting them as far as the Fifth Round. During his 103 games he was to gain something of a reputation for saving penalties - and two came in this Cup run. The first enabled Swindon to bring Aldershot back to the County Ground for a Second Round replay and the other was at Turf Moor in the Third. At the time, Burnley were chasing honours at the top of the old First Division, but the Town had swept into a sensational 2-0 interval lead. Had Harry Potts (later to become Burnley manager) succeeded with his spot kick, it would have put the championship-chasers right back into the game - but Frank thought otherwise and 2-0 it stayed. These deeds seemed to give the Town number one renewed confidence and it was not until October 1948 that young Burton managed to intrude once more.

SAM BURTON’s first extended run in the League side was brought to a halt when he was dealt a nasty blow in a home game with Bournemouth in April 1949. Just six minutes were left when he stooped for a low ball in a crowded goalmouth and, for his troubles, collected a badly lacerated hand - which on close examination revealed a compound fracture of a finger. This prevented the former ‘Bevin Boy’ from taking part in the remaining six fixtures of the season. Frank Boulton thus saw further duty, conceding just two goals in the process. By the following August, although Sam was fully fit again, Boulton was preferred. But Frank’s Swindon career was to come to a sudden end within three months.

The scene was Meadow Lane in Nottingham , where 37,121 had filed through the gates for a Third Division South clash with the Town. Notts had led from the 30th minute when Boulton was beaten from the spot by the ex-England leader Tommy Lawton. Seven minutes into the second half the two again confronted each other, but at rather closer quarters, resulting in the Swindon ‘keeper being stretchered off the field with a dislocated ankle. With Boulton prostrate on the floor, centre-half Jimmy Ithell handled the ball to keep it out of the net. And so, with Boulton en route to hospital, the Town now had to face a second penalty. Full-back Albert Young, having taken over between the ‘sticks’ once more, succeeded in pushing Lawton’s second kick on to a post, but the number nine followed up to tap home the rebound and Swindon eventually came away 0-3 losers. The loss of Boulton now posed another problem.

With third choice ‘keeper Doug Rylands on forces duty overseas, there was now cover for Burton . This was soon rectified when NORMAN UPRICHARD was secured from Arsenal in November 1949. Another product of the Distillery club, the Gunners had given Swindon a chance to eye Norman up in a County Ground friendly in the previous February. Uprichard (pronounced u-pritchard) made his Town debut in a Christmas Eve tussle with Torquay, but after a crushing 0-5 home defeat inflicted by Nottingham Forest , he was rested in favour of Burton . Sam had the job to himself for virtually the whole of 1950, until the Irishman reappeared on Boxing Day, when Torquay again provided the opposition.

Norman had been back for just a dozen games when misfortune struck him at Plymouth . Swindon led by a ‘Garth’ Hudson penalty when the ‘keeper was laid low with an injury to the ribs a few minutes before the interval. Those few minutes were all Maurice Tadman needed to put Argyle on level terms. Norman continued as a ‘passenger’ on the right-wing for some time after the change round while his replacement, right-back Jack Foxton, fished the ball out of the net on four further occasions. In the meantime FRANK BOULTON, now recovered, had joined his old Arsenal pal Ronnie Rooke at Southern League Bedford Town.

In October 1951 Norman was called up by his country for the first time against Scotland and then kept SAM BURTON out of the first team spot at the County Ground for almost a year. That was until Ireland sent for him again. Those twelve months were not entirely without incident, for the Ulsterman inspired the Town on a nine-game F.A.Cup run which brought in much needed cash in 1951/52. On the debit side, Swindon crashed to a 0-9 defeat (their worst-ever in the League) in the March of that season. Torquay inflicted the blow, perhaps exacting revenge for having been a Cup victim earlier on. Norman was off the field with concussion during the first half and Town needed three ‘keepers in total to get them through the ninety minutes. He received a rap on the back of the head in a mid-air collision with Tommy Northcott while Harry Kaye, Swindon ’s right-half, kept the green jersey warm. The international returned momentarily, but then retired with double vision with the score at 0-4. Left-back Harry May completed the trio of ‘number ones’.

After returning from Ireland ’s headquarters at Bangor in October 1952, Uprichard was only to appear three more times for the Town. His last game turned out to be a home encounter with Crystal Palace when, despite having scored three goals after an hour’s play, Swindon still managed to concede six !  Norman then travelled north to Hampden Park to face the Scots, helping his fellow countrymen to a creditable 1-1 draw. Very late the following evening, Thursday November 6, First Division Portsmouth wrote out a five-figure cheque to take him to Fratton Park . So, with Town languishing at the very foot of the table, SAM BURTON was back in the hot seat. Sixteenth place was the highest that they could reach throughout that winter and it must have been little consolation to Sam to be voted ‘man of the match’ in a 0-7 F.A.Cup Third Round drubbing at Maine Road !

The 1953/54 season started on a much brighter note with three wins then, with Burton sidelined temporarily, a new face emerged between the posts. TREVOR CHURCHILL, a qualified F.A.coach who had begun his career with Reading just after the War, had returned south after tasting life in the Northern section with Rochdale . He commuted from London , where he was a games master at Enfield school during the week. But Sam was back by October when, after three consecutive losses, the defence was given a shake-up with Churchill, left-back Terry Elwell and pivot Ted Batchelor all losing their places. The ‘tonic’ worked, for Town stormed to a 5-0 win at the expense of Bristol City . The school teacher came back for a matter of just three weeks while Burton carried a strained thigh muscle which had been sustained during a friendly with Turkish champions Fenerbahce. But once Sam had recovered there was no one to stop him totting up 94 consecutive first-team appearances.

Scot JOHNNY KYLE - a bricklayer by trade who had been signed from Stirling Albion in the summer of 1955 - spent the whole duration of his stay in the south in the Football Combination and by this time Churchill had been despatched to Kent to assist Southern League Tonbridge.

Only on one isolated occasion between November 1953 and September 1956 was Burton not on hand - and he chalked up his 250th game for the Town at Christmas 1955. COLIN GILL, who was still playing in local football over twenty years later, had the honour of stepping in that time. Sam’s sequence came to an end after a 0-7 defeat at Bournemouth . Player-coach and caretaker-manager, full-back Geoff Fox, wielded the axe with five changes being made. In goal he brought in a close-season capture from his former club Bristol Rovers, RAY CHANDLER. Burton was still left out in the cold when Bert Head took over and he was not selected again until early in the new year of 1957.

There followed a quite remarkable upsurge in the fortunes of Swindon Town in 1957/58 when, after hovering around the bottom of the table for some two years, the club suddenly sat the top on three separate occasions during that season. As might be expected, the improvement reflected a more settled team line-up - and Sam Burton was ‘ever-present’. The final game of that campaign marked his 350th, when only a late Dickie Dowsett goal at Bournemouth prevented Town from finishing second. But as only champions Brighton were promoted, little damage was done.  By the time Chandler saw the light of day again, in League terms, Sam had strung together another unbroken spell of 71 matches. When Ray did re-emerge, he was treated to five away trips in six games - at Rochdale, Halifax , Accrington, Notts County and Tranmere !  He saw out the remainder of the 1958/59 season, but from August 1959 until his exit towards the end of 1961, Burton was undisputed ‘number one’.

There were three challengers during that time, but they were limited to a meagre total of eight games between them. Former Chelsea reserve OWEN MEDLOCK  mustered four appearances and MICK TEAGUE, from Gloucester , was allowed three. The least privileged was GEOFF CROOK, whose solitary contribution to the records was at an F.A.Cup First Round replay at Bath , where Town were participants in a goal bonanza. The non-Leaguers put four past the acrobatic Crook but, thankfully, sharpshooter ‘Bronco’ Layne netted four to cancel them out and Ernie Hunt grabbed a further two to save the debutant any embarrassment.

Early in May 1961 8,500 came to the County Ground to see the beaten Cup Finalists of the previous year, Blackburn Rovers, and to swell the coffers for SAM BURTON and Freddy Thompson’s joint testimonial. Sam put in a further stint when the new season opened, but it was unfortunate that his long and distinguished career should end on such a sad occasion for Swindon Town . His 509th and final game was at Rockingham Road - home of Southern League club Kettering Town . There, in an F.A.Cup First Round replay, the League hopefuls took apart their visitors to the tune of 3-0 and old Sam was powerless to stop them - he even gave away a penalty.

He was replaced the following weekend by the very youthful MIKE O’HARA who, at just seventeen, had already made his League debut for Luton some thirteen months previously. And, with neither full-back Terry Wollen nor John Trollope yet eighteen, it was a brave step taken by manager Bert Head. O’Hara would have completed more than his twenty appearances for the season had he not received a couple of cracked ribs in a collision with Tony Hateley during a fine 1-0 victory at Notts County in April 1962.

Fortunately, the club was able to obtain the release from the Royal Air Force of the former Dorchester Town keeper MIKE TURNER to complete the fixtures. He thus joined the considerable wealth of ‘number ones’ in Swindon’s ranks - for, in addition to the three who had already shared first-team duties, the Town could also call on the talented TONY HICKS (of whom we shall hear much more later) and yet another teenager in KEITH BESWICK from Cardiff Corinthians.

When the eagerly awaited promotion finally materialised in 1962/63, the greater proportion of responsibility had fallen on the broad shoulders of Turner. The other Mike - O’Hara - was given a few games, including a trip to a long since forgotten Bradford Park Avenue on a bleak Boxing Day. Six appearances came after Turner had failed to arrive on time for a home game with Palace - having been stuck in one of the many snowdrifts seen that winter.

With the Town now safely into the Second Division, Mike Turner was amongst those entrusted to keep them there, whilst O’Hara moved on to Bournemouth and later to Australia . Turner saw them through a record-breaking unbeaten run for a promoted side, during August and September 1963 and excepting a League Cup tie at Southend, when Tony Hicks made his senior debut, was ever present until March 1964. He was to lose his place to NORMAN OAKLEY - a £6,000 signing from Hartlepools - who stepped into Division Two action along with centre-forward Frank Large, purchased a day later.

Town were to have a less successful start to the following season. Travelling to Gigg Lane for an opening day encounter with Bury, Swindon were off to a whirlwind start when big Bill Atkins put them a goal up in the first minute. But delight turned to despair when, within thirty seconds, Tony Bartley equalised. To make matters worse, Oakley, in trying to prevent that goal, sustained a shoulder injury which would keep him out of action for a month. Full-back Owen Dawson was handed the green jersey in the eighth minute and, while Oakley was en route to hospital, Town were crushed 6-1. The consequences of that early misfortune were manifested when five further defeats were suffered in his absence, when just a point from one of these games would have saved the club from relegation.

MIKE TURNER having by then drifted away to Torquay, the eighteen year old - and just 5’9” - TONY HICKS received instant promotion to the League side. Along with Donald Rogers, he had been one of the stars of Swindon ’s youth team who had fought all the way to the final of the F.A.Youth Cup in the spring of 1964 - and they had only been denied the trophy by a George Best inspired Manchester United.

However, in four away trips before Oakley was able to resume, Hicks was beaten fifteen times, including five in one half-hour spell at Portsmouth . But little blame could be apportioned to the youngster who had been left cruelly exposed by some dubious defending in front of him. The signing of the former Scotland keeper FRANK HAFFEY from Celtic in October 1964 might have sentenced Tony to a long stint in the reserves but, in the event, the Glaswegian made just four League appearances, conceding eight goals. Three years earlier, in April 1961, he had conceded nine in one game - in a disastrous afternoon for his fellow Scots against England at Wembley. On leaving Swindon, Frank emigrated to Australia , where he took up singing as a profession. Oakley then resumed for two games, but conceded ten goals, six of which came in a comprehensive 6-1 home defeat by Newcastle, which must have rung a few alarm bells although it was still only the end of November.

Having slipped into the Third Division following a last-day defeat at Southampton , the Town would now have a new man at the helm in Danny Williams. One of his first acquisitions was a ‘keeper that Sheffield United had coveted for some time. But while the Blades dithered over meeting Halifax Town ’s asking price, Danny stepped in to clinch the deal. Just 48 hours before battle was due to commence in 1965/66, he got his man by trading in striker Bill Atkins - with a nominal cash adjustment in favour of the Shay club.

Thus PETER DOWNSBOROUGH became a Town player. He was a convert from the rugby code, having captained his school side, but having switched to association rules, he only ended up as a goal minder by accident - standing in for an injured colleague. Signing amateur forms for Halifax during 1959/60, he had made his League debut before turning pro in the following September. At Swindon , Peter was to join NORMAN OAKLEY and Hicks. It was the latter who enjoyed much of Town’s progress to the F.A.Cup Fifth Round in 1967, Downsborough having been forced to rest with cartilage trouble in the December. Just a week after their Cup exit at Villa Park, Peter returned and Hicks - suffering with a weight problem - withdrew to the lesser demands of Western League football with Frome Town . Meanwhile, Oakley was never to play for Town again, after breaking a leg in a friendly against Wiltshire Police in October 1965. But he did make a full recovery. Ten months later Norman joined Grimsby and, after returning to his native north-east, was still playing in 1990 - at the age of 50 ! 

A hurried replacement was therefore sought when Downsborough was ruled out again. That happened early in September 1967 when Peter missed four games following a tenth-minute shoulder injury at Barrow. Skipper Stan Harland proved to be a most competent emergency ‘keeper that night, allowing the Holker Street side just one goal - which Town cancelled out in the last minute. Corporal ROY JONES, stationed at RAF Brize Norton, was called up while Downsborough was indisposed, but he did not see much action after a fifteen-match spell in the spring of 1968.

Swindon ’s League and Cup commitments during the 1968/69 and 1969/70 seasons totalled some 109 games and Peter was between the posts on every occasion. Promotion year commenced without a goal being conceded in 568 minutes’ play. Bournemouth ’s Ray Bumstead finally broke the sequence in a 0-2 reverse at Dean Court on September 18. A further month passed before Torquay winger Alan Walsh netted the first League goal against the Town at the County Ground . Downsborough kept a total of 17 ‘clean sheets’ at home and was beaten just seven times in the 23-game programme.

He was one of twelve heroes that earned the Wembley victory when, after taking a 34th-minute lead, Swindon were pegged back into their own half by Arsenal for long periods. Corner after corner was swung into threaten his domain but Peter responded to each and every one of them - and his lightning reaction to a full-blooded Jon Sammels drive was quite breathtaking. He made, perhaps, just one error of judgement all afternoon, resulting in the equalising goal for Bobby Gould. But, in the event, it only served to bring out the best of the Town in extra-time.

The fruits of victory that day were many, although at first European participation seemed out of reach due to the club’s then Third Division status. Reward eventually materialised, however, in the form of the late Gigi Peronace’s Anglo-Italian Cup Winners’ Cup - which developed into a much maligned and trouble torn competition of a similar nature, but played on a League basis during the summer. Although Downsborough went to Rome in Swindon’s debut in Europe , he played no further part in the Inter-League contest after the opening 4-0 thrashing of Juventus. ROY JONES celebrated the ultimate victory in Naples in May 1970 with Oxford ‘keeper MICK KEARNS joining the Town party as cover, but not being called upon. Until a young Scot from Inverness-shire came on the Second Division scene in September 1971, Jones was the lone challenger for Downsborough’s shirt.   

JIMMY ALLAN was given a lengthy spell in the Second Division side when Peter fell foul of new manager Les Allen on his first day of office in November 1972. Having not resolved the contractual dispute by the time the 1973/74 season arrived, Peter was loaned out to Third Division Brighton, while Allen persuaded the board to invest £12,000 in keeper ALAN SPRATLEY from his old club Queens Park Rangers. Downsborough’s ties with Swindon were finally severed on January 9 1974 when, following another loan spell, he returned to Yorkshire to sign for Bradford City . His departure left the manager with a side that had gained just 16 points from 25 games, in an increasingly hopeless position at the wrong end of the Second Division - and with two goalkeepers who could muster little more than fifty League appearances between them.

Spratley, who had played only twice for Rangers in three seasons before joining Town, was given his first chance when Jimmy honoured his father’s wish that he should not play on a Sunday. Bolton Wanderers were visitors to the County Ground on that historic occasion - brought about by a nationwide power crisis - 35 years ago. And the experiment seemed to work as nearly 9,000 turned up for the game, double the gate for the last home game a week earlier. Jimmy was recalled for the final six games of the campaign, by which time Danny Williams had returned to take command. Having shipped Spratley out to the now defunct Guildford and Dorking United, Danny now had to find an experienced custodian he needed in a bid to hasten their return to the second tier. JIM BARRON - a native of Tantobie in County Durham and the son of former Blackburn keeper Jim Barron senior - had ten years of League football under his belt.

Wolves had given him his League debut in November 1963, although he was to make only seven further appearances for the Molineux club. But by the time Jim arrived at the County Ground , he had clocked up around 300 games - almost equally divided between Oxford United and Nottingham Forest . He played in all but six of Swindon ’s 52 games in 1974/75. JIMMY ALLAN was on hand for the last four, three of which were victories- but Town just fell short of promotion, finishing fourth.

A first-half leg injury for Barron when Sheffield Wednesday provided the opposition at the County ground in September 1975 unveiled a new goalkeeping hero in the form of central defender Colin Prophett. With Town already a goal down when he took over, he inspired his colleagues to a 2-1 recovery against his former club. Allan then filled in for nine games, taking his League tally past the seventy mark. But, with JIM BARRON - now 33 - wishing to concentrate more on coaching possibilities, Allan was first choice again by the autumn of 1976. Connecticut Bicentennials of the North American Soccer League provided the post that Barron had been searching for and, after just three more appearances in the following March, his contract with Swindon Town was cancelled. Prophett was given two further tastes of life between the posts - albeit for only a few minutes on each occasion - following injuries to the Scot.

On Barron’s departure, cover for JIMMY ALLAN was then provided by Bristolian KEVIN ROBERTS, signed from Midsomer Norton-based Welton Rovers. Kevin’s debut came in a 4-0 home victory over Exeter City in October 1977 and he held his place for an odd-goal-in-seven League Cup win over Portsmouth three days later. But the lack of first team opportunities thereafter encouraged Kevin to look elsewhere and Grimsby Town offered to take him on loan with a view to a possible purchase. He soon returned from Humberside, however, with no further League experience to his name. Further congestion in the goalkeeping ranks arose when CHRIS OGDEN arrived from Oldham Athletic just before the 1978/79 season opened. Like his predecessor Barron, Chris was also the son of an ex-League keeper - Fred Ogden was with the Latics for eight years just after the war.

Chris added 22 appearances to the 128 he gained with his home town club before being displaced following a home defeat by Plymouth Argyle. After JIMMY ALLAN restricted him to just two games in the first 25 of the 1979/80 season, Chris moved to Rotherham United in mid-November, while the Scot went on to add 61 appearances to his career total by the end of that campaign. And he only missed a further two in the next three seasons. One was at Christmas in 1980, when TOM McALISTER made his only first team appearance for the club. Jimmy had been ruled out following a Boxing Day injury at Newport , where Town won 2-0 despite asking Andy Rowland to guard the net for the entire second half. The other was the final game of 1982/83, a local derby against Bristol City , when the deputy was MARK STEVENS. Again, Rowland had donned the green jersey during the previous game, but on this occasion there was a less favourable outcome, Town being comprehensively beaten by Northampton 5-1 at home. Sadly, Jimmy’s career was to come to an end just eight games later.

On October 1 1983, he was involved in a collision with Rochdale striker Steve Johnson and sustained a badly broken left arm. After months battling to regain mobility, Jimmy was forced to announce his retirement from full-time football in the following July. He set up home in north Devon and was eventually able to play again in local football, but was still unable to fully extend his once shattered arm. Jimmy had made 436 first team appearances for Town - and all before his 30th birthday. Who knows how many he would have reached had he been spared that painful day ?

 

 

 

 

(To be continued)