The 1902–03 English football season was Aston Villa's 15th season in the Football League competing in the First Division, the then top flight of English football. The season fell in what was to be called Villa's golden era.
The Club had nine consecutive home wins to end the season: In Villa's first home game of 1903 they beat Forest 3–1. Two weeks later they beat Blackburn 5–0 at home. The next home tie was in the FA Cup with Villa beating Sunderland 4–1. In February Villa beat Barnsley 4–1, also a home tie in the FA Cup. April 1903 saw five home fixtures for Villa. They won all five.4 April 1903 Villa 3-1 Wolves13 April Villa 2-0 Stoke15 Apr Villa 2-1 Notts County18 Apr Villa 4-2 Sheffield United27 Apr Villa 5-0 Middlesbrough
Aston Villa Reserves won the Walsall Senior Cup in 1903. League
Matches
Source: avfchistory.co.uk
FA Cup
First round
The first round proper contained 16 ties between 32 teams. 17 of the 18 First Division sides were given a bye to this round, as were Manchester City and Small Heath from the Second Division, and Southern League teams Southampton, Portsmouth, and Tottenham Hotspur. They joined the ten teams who won in the intermediate round.
The matches were played on Saturday, 7 February 1903. Four matches were drawn, with the replays taking place in the following midweek. One of these, the Notts County v Southampton match, went to a second replay, which Notts County won at Small Heath's St Andrew's ground.
Tie noHome teamScoreAway teamDate6Aston Villa4–1Sunderland7 February 1903
Second round
The eight Second Round matches were played on Saturday, 21 February 1903. There was one replay, between Nottingham Forest and Stoke City, played in the following midweek.
Tie noHome teamScoreAway teamDate2Aston Villa4–1Barnsley21 February 1903
Third round
The four Third Round matches were played on Saturday 7 March 1903. There were no replays.
Tie noHome teamScoreAway teamDate4Tottenham Hotspur2–3Aston Villa7 March 1903
Semi-finals
The semi-final matches were played at neutral venues on Saturday 21 March 1903. Bury and Derby County won and went on to meet each other in the final.
Birmingham Cup
Aston Villa beat West Bromwich Albion 3–0 in the final to lift the Cup for the twelfth time.
Players During the season Howard Spencer and Albert Evans shared the captaincy of the club.AVFC History: 1902-03 season Spencer returned, having taken the 1901–02 season off in order to rest his knee and ankle for twelve months in the hope of recovering from an injury. Billy Garraty, great-great-grandfather of Jack Grealish, made 30 appearances during the season.
Alex Leake joined Aston Villa from Small Heath in July 1902, when he was 31, and stayed five years. In a 1901 profile in the Daily Express, C.B. Fry wrote: Other debuts were Arthur Lockett,https://www.avfchistory.co.uk/player/arthur-lockett Albert Fisher,https://www.avfchistory.co.uk/player/albert-fisher Oscar Evans, https://www.avfchistory.co.uk/player/oscar-evans and Harry Griffin.https://www.avfchistory.co.uk/player/harry-griffin
Alf Wood, 35 appearances Billy George, 33 appearances, conceded 35 Alex Leake, 32 appearances Howard Spencer, 31 appearances Billy Garraty, 30 appearances Joe Bache, 28 appearances Jasper McLuckie, 24 appearances George Johnson, 24 appearances Tommy Niblo, 21 appearances Albert Wilkes, 21 appearances Billy Brawn, 20 appearances Willie Clarke, 20 appearances Micky Noon, 20 appearances Albert Evans, 18 appearances Joe Pearson, 17 appearances Jack Shutt, 15 appearances Bobby Templeton, 11 appearances Harry Cooch, 5 appearances, conceded 12 George Harris, 4 appearances Tom Perry, 4 appearances NEW Harry Griffin, 1 appearance NEW Albert Fisher, 1 appearance Oscar Evans, 2 appearances NEW Arthur Lockett, 1 appearances Reserves The Aston Villa Reserves were champions of the Birmingham & District League.Aston Villa Football Club, The Birmingham Post, 14 June 1907, p10
References
External links Aston Villa official website