The 1929–30 Torquay United F.C. season was Torquay United's third season in the Football League and their third consecutive season in Third Division South. The season runs from 1 July 1929 to 30 June 1930.
Overview Needing a replacement for Percy Mackrill, who had left the club before the end of the previous season, Torquay United appointed former Birmingham City full back Frank Womack as their new manager.Edwards, Leigh; Gibbes, Jon; Lovis, John (1999). Torquay United, The Official Centenary History, 1899–1999. Yore Publications. Womack soon set about putting a together a new squad in an effort to improve upon the lowly finishes of Torquay's first two seasons in the League. Debutants on the opening day of the season included centre half Harry Bruce, inside forward Harry Keeling and the ex-Sheffield United FA Cup winner David Mercer. However, the Magpies made a slow start to the campaign, losing their opening four games, and it was not until the introduction of forwards Joe Pointon and Les Robinson that results slowly began to improve. Effectively displacing Keeling and United mainstay Dan Kelly from the team, Pointon and Robinson ended up scoring a total of 34 goals between them by the end of the season. Robinson became the first Torquay player to score four goals in a League match in the 5–2 win over Walsall in November and, not to be outdone, Pointon repeated the feat in a famous 7–0 victory over Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic the following March. Indeed, it was Pointon and Robinson who scored the goals at Gillingham to secure Torquay's first and only away win of the season.Edwards, Leigh (1997). The Definitive Torquay United F.C.. The Association of Football Statisticians. .
However, United's fortunes took a turn for the worse in the New Year when a January storm tore off the entire roof of the Grandstand at Plainmoor. With Torquay's finances already in a perilous state, there was a real possibility of the club going out of business altogether.Holgate, Mike (1999). Torquay United Football Club 1899–1999. Tempus Publishing. But, with the help of public donations and some hastily arranged friendlies, Torquay just about managed to avoid financial ruin, although a run of three consecutive 5–0 defeats to Clapton Orient, Brentford and Brighton did not help to improve the spirits of the team or its supporters.
Nevertheless, reason for optimism arrived with that emphatic 7–0 win over Bournemouth at Plainmoor. The match marked the debut of a 17-year-old winger from Dartmouth named Ralph Birkett. Although only making a handful of appearances for the Magpies before the end of the season, he would eventually become one of the finest players ever to appear for Torquay United. Ironically, the match also saw the final appearance of another local hero Sid Cann. The Torquay born full back had put in some impressive performances since joining United and the club had no option but to accept an offer to sell the young defender, as well as fellow full back Fred Corbett, to First Division side Manchester City.
Despite the emphatic win over Bournemouth, Torquay were still struggling at the bottom of the table as the season drew to a close. Defeat in the final game of the season against local rivals Exeter City would have seen United again having to apply for re-election to the Football League. As it was, a 2–1 victory over the Grecians was enough to see Torquay finish in 19th place, only narrowly avoiding the need for re-election.
Although, safe for another season, it was clear that Frank Womack and Torquay United still had plenty of hard work ahead of them.
League statistics
Third Division South
Results summary
Results by round
Match of the season TORQUAY UNITED 7–0 BOURNEMOUTH & BOSCOMBE ATHLETICThird Division SouthPlainmoor, 8 March 1930
TORQUAY UNITED:GK1 Archie BayesRB2 Frank WomackLB3 Jack FowlerRH4 Stan HighCH5 Sid CannLH6 Bob SmithOR7 Ralph BirkettIR8 Dan Kelly CF9 Joe Pointon IL10 Harry KeelingOL11 Harry Waller
Having not won a match since the previous December, few would have expected Torquay United (currently lying 19th in the Third Division South table) to get much out of the visit of 6th placed Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic. The Plainmoor faithful had already witnessed a 5–0 thrashing from Clapton Orient back in January, and the travelling fans were treated to two more defeats by the same scoreline in their next two away matches. Not many then would have been expecting the Magpies to record their biggest League victory to date when the Cherries came to town.
Helping himself to four of the seven goals that day was centre forward Joe Pointon, doubling his tally for the season so far, although he would go on to score another ten goals before the end of the campaign. Dan Kelly and Harry Waller scored the other three between them while the Torquay defence held firm behind them, despite the 41-year-old Frank Womack selecting himself at right back. (In fact, this was manager Womack's sixth match in succession and he ended up playing in every game for the rest of the season, even appearing as an inside forward when Torquay were themselves victims of a 7–0 humiliation at Walsall in April).
The match also has a unique place in history as it was the only time that two of Torquay's greatest ever home-grown players appeared together. Born in Babbacombe, Sid Cann had joined the Magpies the previous season at the age of 16 and quickly developed into an extremely effective full back, eventually displacing the more experienced Willie Brown from the team. In his second season, he had proved his versatility by being able to fill in at centre half, a role he fulfilled in this game. Unfortunately, this was to be Cann's last match for the Magpies before leaving for Manchester City. Ironically, the same game saw the debut of another local lad with Ralph Birkett, a 17-year-old amateur from Dartmouth United, appearing on the right wing. Birkett had a storming debut for Torquay setting up four of United's goals and the youngster signed a professional contract with the club shortly afterwards. While Cann's move to a First Division side was a major accomplishment for a Torquay player, Birkett would go on to eclipse his achievements when, after three full seasons for United, he would sign for Arsenal and then Middlesbrough before eventually appearing for England in 1935.
Results
Third Division South
FA Cup
Club statistics
First team appearances NatPosPlayerTotalThird Division SouthFA CupAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsGKArchie Bayes18018000GKHarold Gough18017010 GKLaurie Millsom707000DFJack Fowler29028010DFSid Cann28327310DFFred Corbett22121110DFFrank Womack20019010DFGeorge Goucher606000MFBob Smith41141100MFHarry Bruce29028010MFStan High28028000MFBill Hunter606000 MFCecil White505000MFBill Clitheroe101000MFHarry May101000FWJoe Hill33832810FWHarry Waller30529510FWDavid Mercer29028010FWJoe Pointon2818271810FWLes Robinson2416231610FWHarry Keeling22722700FWDan Kelly19519500FWAndrew Martin13013000 FWJack Burn707000FWRalph Birkett606000FWHarry Rice303000 Source:
Top scorers PlacePositionNationNameThird Division SouthFA CupTotal1 FW Joe Pointon 18 0 182 FW Les Robinson 16 0 163 FW Joe Hill 8 0 84 FW Harry Keeling 7 0 75 FW Dan Kelly 5 0 5= FW Harry Waller 5 0 57 DF Sid Cann 3 0 38 DF Fred Corbett 1 0 19 MF Bob Smith 1 0 1 Own goals 0 0 0 TOTAL 64 0 64 Source:
Transfers
In First appearanceNat.Pos.NameFrom31 August 1929MFHarry BruceGillingham31 August 1929MFStan HighLeicester City31 August 1929FWHarry KeelingNotts County31 August 1929FWAndrew MartinRochdale31 August 1929FWDavid MercerShirebrook4 September 1929FWJack BurnWorcester City4 September 1929FWHarry RiceShrewsbury Town4 September 1929DFFrank WomackWorcester City7 September 1929MFHarry MayUnattached11 September 1929FWJoe PointonBrighton & Hove Albion11 September 1929FWLes RobinsonThames18 September 1929DFFred CorbettWorcester City19 October 1929DFGeorge GoucherNottingham Forest26 December 1929MFBill HunterWalsall8 March 1930FWRalph BirkettDartmouth United29 March 1930MFCecil WhiteLeeds United
Out Last appearanceNat.Pos.NameTo7 September 1929MFHarry MayReleased11 September 1929FWHarry RiceEvesham Town9 November 1929FWAndrew MartinReleased7 December 1929FWJack BurnHereford United18 January 1930MFBill HunterReleased25 January 1930DFFred CorbettManchester City15 February 1930MFBill ClitheroeReleased1 March 1930FWLes RobinsonReleased8 March 1930DFSid CannManchester City29 March 1930GKHarold GoughRetired19 April 1930FWDan KellyYork City19 April 1930MFCecil WhiteWigan Borough3 May 1930GKArchie BayesRetired3 May 1930MFHarry BruceColwyn Bay3 May 1930DFGeorge GoucherShirebrook3 May 1930FWJoe HillNewark Town3 May 1930FWDavid MercerReleased3 May 1930FWJoe PointonBristol Rovers Source:
References
External links