1946–47 Southampton F.C. season

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Southampton F.C.
1946–47 season
ChairmanAlf Jukes
ManagerBill Dodgin
StadiumThe Dell
Second Division14th
FA CupFourth round
Top goalscorerLeague:
Jack Bradley (14)
All:
Jack Bradley (15)
George Lewis (15)
Highest home attendance25,746 v Newcastle United (12 October 1946)
Lowest home attendance4,289 v Coventry City
(5 February 1947)
Average home league attendance16,039
Biggest win4–0 v Swansea Town
(4 September 1946)
Biggest defeat0–6 v Nottingham Forest (18 January 1947)

The 1946–47 season was the 46th year of competitive football played by Southampton F.C., the club's 20th season as members of the Football League, and their 18th competing in the Second Division.[1] The Saints finished the campaign in 14th place in the league table, having gained 39 from a possible 84 points with 15 wins, 9 draws and 18 losses.[2] The club also competed in the FA Cup, making it to the fourth round after just one win, against fellow Second Division side Bury.[3]

Following a break due to the Second World War, league football resumed in England in 1946.[4] The 1946–47 season was the club's first to feature Bill Dodgin as manager, who joined and played for the club during wartime, and was appointed manager in March 1946.[5] In the summer before the start of the season, the Saints made a number of new signings, including bringing in full-back Bill Rochford from local rivals Portsmouth, who had just won the FA Cup, as well as centre-forward George Lewis for a "four-figure fee".[4] Partway through the season, they signed wing-half Joe Mallett from Queens Park Rangers for a club record fee of £5,000.[6] Due to the lack of official competition during wartime, many players made their official debuts for the club during the season, including eight in the first match.[4]

During the season, 24 players appeared for Southampton in all competitions. New signing Bill Rochford featured in more games than any other player, appearing in 43 of the club's 44 games during the season (he missed just one league game, against Luton Town on 22 February 1947).[7] Jack Bradley, who had joined the club during the abandoned 1939–40 season, finished as Southampton's top league scorer with 14 goals; Bradley and new signing George Lewis each scored 15 goals in all competitions.[7] The club attracted an average home league attendance at The Dell of 16,039 – the highest attendance was 25,746 against Newcastle United.[7]

Pre-season friendlies[edit]

In preparation for the 1946–47 season, Southampton played two pre-season friendly matches.[4] On 14 August 1946 the Saints won 4–1 against Irish club Bohemians, with new signing George Lewis and Don Roper scoring two goals each.[8] They then beat French side Le Havre 7–0 at home thanks to a hat-trick from Don Roper, two goals from Doug McGibbon, and one each from Jack Bradley and Bobby Veck.[8]

14 August 1946 Friendly Bohemians 1–4 Southampton Dublin, Ireland
Lewis
Roper 		Stadium: Dalymount Park
23 August 1946 Friendly Southampton 7–0 Le Havre Southampton
Roper
McGibbon
Bradley
Veck 		Stadium: The Dell

Second Division[edit]

Season summary[edit]

After their initial opening game of the season against Newport County was postponed due to unseasonable flooding, Southampton began the 1946–47 season well with a 4–0 win over Swansea Town at home, with Doug McGibbon scoring a hat-trick.[4] The team dropped down to 10th in the table with a draw and a loss, before beating Nottingham Forest convincingly 5–2 thanks to goals from McGibbon (two), Alf Freeman (two) and Jack Bradley.[4] The Saints began to drop down the league table in October thanks to a winless run, but picked their form back up at the end of the month with wins over Newport County and Plymouth Argyle.[4][9] The club's fortunes continued to change week on week, although they finished the year off strongly with a 5–1 win over Newport County to remain in the top ten going into 1947.[9]

The new year began poorly for the Saints with three consecutive losses away from home in which the side conceded 11 goals,[9] prompting Dodgin to replace regular goalkeeper George Ephgrave with Len Stansbridge for much of the rest of the season.[7] Through February and March, the team won four out of seven matches (including a 5–2 home victory over Coventry City and three away wins) to move away from the relegation zone and back up to the top ten, although four straight losses against high-performing opponents saw them drop back down to 15th in April.[6] Seven players were released by the club near the end of the month.[6] Three wins from their last six matches meant that Southampton finished 14th in the Second Division table, improving on their 18th-place finish in the last pre-war season eight years earlier.[6]

Final league table[edit]

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GAv Pts
12 West Ham United 42 16 8 18 70 76 0.921 40
13 Luton Town 42 16 7 19 71 73 0.973 39
14 Southampton 42 15 9 18 69 76 0.908 39
15 Fulham 42 15 9 18 63 74 0.851 39
16 Bradford Park Avenue 42 14 11 17 65 77 0.844 39
Source: RSSSF
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal average; 3) Goals scored

Results by matchday[edit]

Round123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142
GroundHHAHAHAAHAAHAHAHAHAAHHAAAHHAHAHAAHHAHAAHHH
ResultWDLWLWLLDDWWLDLWDWLDDWLLLWLWLWLWLLLLWDLWWD
Position7810813101014141311101213141212911111191015161313111110121010101115111314121212
Source: statto.com
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Match results[edit]

4 September 1946 1 Southampton 4–0 Swansea Town Southampton
McGibbon 10', 25', 53'
Veck 41'		 Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 8,000
7 September 1946 2 Southampton 1–1 Bury Southampton
Bradley 16' Kilshaw 68' Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 23,000
9 September 1946 3 Tottenham Hotspur 2–1 Southampton London
Rundle 4'
Bennett 43'		 McGibbon 65' Stadium: White Hart Lane
Attendance: 22,153
14 September 1946 4 Southampton 5–2 Nottingham Forest Southampton
McGibbon 1', 65'
Freeman 8', 54'
Bradley 37'		 Edwards 32'
Johnston 		Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 17,991
21 September 1946 5 Coventry City 2–0 Southampton Coventry
Gardner 10'
Lowrie 60'		 Stadium: Highfield Road
Attendance: 20,000
28 September 1946 6 Southampton 1–0 Birmingham City Southampton
Bradley 13' Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 24,920
3 October 1946 7 Swansea Town 4–2 Southampton Swansea
Lockhart 31'
Bradley 85'		 Bates 44'
Ford 75', 80'
McCrory 89'		 Stadium: Vetch Field
Attendance: 21,523
5 October 1946 8 West Bromwich Albion 2–0 Southampton West Bromwich
Clarke 6'
Duggan 		Stadium: The Hawthorns
Attendance: 28,000
12 October 1946 9 Southampton 1–1 Newcastle United Southampton
Bates 61' Shackleton 56' Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 25,746
19 October 1946 10 Luton Town 2–2 Southampton Luton
Connelly 58'
Daniel 72'		 Roper
Bevis 62'		 Stadium: Kenilworth Road
Attendance: 20,000
24 October 1946 11 Newport County 1–2 Southampton Newport
Carr 36' Lewis 51'
Bevis 69'		 Stadium: Rodney Parade
Attendance: 11,149
26 October 1946 12 Southampton 5–1 Plymouth Argyle Southampton
Bradley 9', 85'
Grant 35', 60'
McGibbon 82'		 Rawlings 52' (pen.) Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 18,252
2 November 1946 13 Leicester City 2–0 Southampton Leicester
Dewis 3', 65' Stadium: Filbert Street
Attendance: 20,000
9 November 1946 14 Southampton 1–1 Chesterfield Southampton
McGibbon 26' Ottewell 73' Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 18,006
16 November 1946 15 Millwall 3–1 Southampton London
Hurrell 20', 75'
Mansfield 48'		 Smith 40' Stadium: The Den
Attendance: 24,413
23 November 1946 16 Southampton 3–2 Bradford Park Avenue Southampton
Roper 5'
Bevis 47'
Stroud 75'		 Farrell 76' (pen.)
Danskin 85'		 Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 16,249
30 November 1946 17 Manchester City 1–1 Southampton Manchester
Constantine 23' Bates 43' Stadium: Maine Road
Attendance: 24,867
7 December 1946 18 Southampton 4–2 West Ham United Southampton
Ellerington 19' (pen.)
McGibbon 59'
Bevis 61'
Roper 77'		 Bainbridge 53'
Payne 53'		 Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 17,305
14 December 1946 19 Sheffield Wednesday 3–0 Southampton Sheffield
Dailey 10', 80'
Ward 86'		 Stadium: Hillsborough Stadium
Attendance: 10,000
25 December 1946 20 Barnsley 4–4 Southampton Barnsley
Pallister (pen.)
Robledo
Morris
Bennett 		Stroud 32'
Bevis 67'
Lewis 70', 78'		 Stadium: Oakwell
Attendance: 16,200
26 December 1946 21 Southampton 1–1 Barnsley Southampton
Ramsey 88' (pen.) Morris Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 21,556
28 December 1946 22 Southampton 5–1 Newport County Southampton
Lewis 6'
Bradley 23', 59'
Stroud 68'
Bevis 70'		 Rawcliffe 83' Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 17,778
4 January 1947 23 Bury 2–1 Southampton Bury
Carter 70', 85' Lewis 37' Stadium: Gigg Lane
Attendance: 16,000
18 January 1947 24 Nottingham Forest 6–0 Southampton Nottingham
Lyman 5', 62'
Edwards 20'
Brown 43'
Barks 59'
Brigham 77'		 Stadium: City Ground
Attendance: 20,000
1 February 1947 25 Birmingham City 3–1 Southampton Birmingham
Trigg 17', 83'
Mulraney 41'		 Bradley 50' Stadium: St Andrew's
Attendance: 32,878
5 February 1947 26 Southampton 5–2 Coventry City Southampton
Lewis 18', 22'
Roper 67'
Bradley 69'
Day 89'		 Roberts 13', 17' Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 4,289[a]
8 February 1947 27 Southampton 0–1 West Bromwich Albion Southampton
Elliott 34' Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 8,000
15 February 1947 28 Newcastle United 1–3 Southampton Newcastle upon Tyne
Pearson 16' Roper 3'
Day 66'
Stroud 82'		 Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 35,000
22 February 1947 29 Southampton 1–3 Luton Town Southampton
Roper 37' Driver 30'
Duggan 32', 50'		 Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 11,700
1 March 1947 30 Plymouth Argyle 2–3 Southampton Plymouth
Watkins 33'
Thomas 70'		 Mallett 36'
Lewis 65', 84'		 Stadium: Home Park
Attendance: 24,071
22 March 1947 31 Southampton 1–2 Millwall Southampton
Lewis 15' Woodward 34'
Jinks 77'		 Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 14,922
29 March 1947 32 Bradford Park Avenue 2–3 Southampton Bradford
Smith 46', 80' Lewis 27', 31'
Roper 53'		 Stadium: Horsfall Stadium
Attendance: 10,000
4 April 1947 33 Burnley 1–0 Southampton Burnley
Kippax 80' Stadium: Turf Moor
Attendance: 31,713
5 April 1947 34 Southampton 0–1 Manchester City Southampton
Smith 27' Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 24,197
7 April 1947 35 Southampton 0–1 Burnley Southampton
Knight 75' Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 19,319
12 April 1947 36 West Ham United 4–0 Southampton London
Neary 56'
Wood 50'
Parsons 71'		 Stadium: Boleyn Ground
Attendance: 21,000
19 April 1947 37 Southampton 3–1 Sheffield Wednesday Southampton
Bradley 2', 68'
Roper 77'		 Ward 10' Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 13,514
26 April 1947 38 Fulham 0–0 Southampton London
Stadium: Craven Cottage
Attendance: 14,087
3 May 1947 39 Chesterfield 5–0 Southampton Chesterfield
Swinscoe 6', 89'
G. Milburn 76' (pen.), 81'
Oliver 88'		 Stadium: Saltergate
Attendance: 10,000
10 May 1947 40 Southampton 1–0 Tottenham Hotspur Southampton
Roper 12' Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 12,436
24 May 1947 41 Southampton 2–0 Fulham Southampton
Bates 25'
Bradley 70'		 Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 9,738
26 May 1947 42 Southampton 1–1 Leicester City Southampton
Bradley 39' Smith 83' Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 9,905

FA Cup[edit]

Bury (11 January 1947)

Southampton entered the 1946–47 FA Cup in the third round, facing fellow Second Division side Bury at home on 11 January 1947. The Saints controlled the game from the early exchanges, with Jack Bradley, George Lewis and Billy Bevis scoring within the first 16 minutes to put the hosts 3–0 up.[10] Bury pulled one back before the break through a penalty, which was awarded due to a handball in the area by George Smith, and dominated the share of possession going into half-time.[10] In the second half, the Saints quickly reasserted their dominance and made it 4–1 through a second goal from Lewis in the 52nd minute.[10] After he was initially denied by the crossbar earlier on, Lewis did later complete his hat-trick (the club's first in the competition proper) when he converted following a run by Eric Webber.[10]

Newcastle United (25 January 1947)

In the fourth round Southampton travelled to face Newcastle United, who were then second in the Second Division league table.[11] The Saints took the lead in the 11th minute, as Don Roper shot from the outside of the box and scored due to a deflection off centre-half Frank Brennan.[12] The lead remained until the break, however the hosts' pressure going into the break continued in the second half when Charlie Wayman equalised shortly after half-time.[12] Nine minutes later he scored again, heading in a Doug Wright free-kick.[12] Despite increased attacking pressure from the Saints, Wayman completed his hat-trick later in the game to put Newcastle through to the fifth round.[12] The Magpies went on to make it to the semi-finals of the tournament, before being knocked out by eventual champions Charlton Athletic.[3]

11 January 1947 Round 3 Southampton 5–1 Bury Southampton
Bradley
Lewis 10' 52'
Bevis 16'		 32' (pen.) Stadium: The Dell
Attendance: 19,701
25 January 1947 Round 4 Newcastle United 3–1 Southampton Newcastle upon Tyne
Wayman 50' 59' Roper 11' Stadium: St James' Park
Attendance: 55,873

Post-season friendlies[edit]

Around the end of the season, Southampton played three more friendlies – two before the league had concluded, the third shortly after. The first saw the Saints travel to face Guernsey's international side on 14 May 1947, who they beat 2–1 thanks to goals from Jack Bradley and George Lewis.[8] A week later, the Saints hosted Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic for the Hampshire Professional Cup, a local exhibition trophy fixture. The game ended 1–1 after extra time, with Bradley scoring for Southampton, resulting in the sides sharing the title.[8] Southampton's final 1947 pre-season friendly took place on 11 June, when they faced a team representing the British Army of the Rhine in Hanover, Germany as part of the commemoration of Liberation from Nazi Germany; the hosts won 4–1, with Don Roper scoring the consolation for the visitors.[8]

14 May 1947 Friendly Guernsey 1–2 Southampton Guernsey
Bradley
Lewis
21 May 1947 Friendly Southampton 1–1 (a.e.t.) Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic Southampton
Bradley Stadium: The Dell
11 June 1947 Friendly British Army of the Rhine XI 4–1 Southampton Hanover, Germany
Roper

Squad statistics[edit]

Name Pos. Nat. League FA Cup Total
Apps. Gls. Apps. Gls. Apps. Gls.
Ted Bates FW England 22 4 0 0 22 4
Billy Bevis FW England 14 5 2 1 16 6
Jack Bradley FW England 38 14 2 1 40 15
Bill Bushby HB England 2 0 0 0 2 0
Stan Clements HB England 2 0 0 0 2 0
Eric Day FW England 19 2 2 0 21 2
Bill Ellerington FB England 19 1 1 0 20 1
George Ephgrave GK England 29 0 2 0 31 0
Alf Freeman FW England 7 2 0 0 7 2
Wilf Grant FW England 21 3 0 0 21 3
Jack Gregory FB England 1 0 0 0 1 0
George Horsfall HB Australia 2 0 0 0 2 0
George Lewis FW Wales 28 12 2 3 30 15
Joe Mallett HB England 13 1 0 0 13 1
Alf Ramsey FB England 23 1 1 0 24 1
Bill Rochford FB England 41 0 2 0 43 0
Albie Roles FB England 0 0 0 0 0 0
Don Roper FW England 40 8 2 1 42 9
George Smith HB England 34 1 2 0 36 1
Len Stansbridge GK England 13 0 0 0 13 0
Bobby Veck FW England 12 1 0 0 12 1
Eric Webber HB England 40 0 2 0 42 0
Len Wilkins HB England 0 0 0 0 0 0
Players with appearances who left the club before the end of the season
Harry Evans FW England 1 0 0 0 1 0
Doug McGibbon FW England 12 9 0 0 12 9
Bill Stroud HB England 29 4 2 0 31 4

Most appearances[edit]

No. Name Pos. Nat. League FA Cup Total
Apps. Mins. Apps. Mins. Apps. Mins. %
1 Bill Rochford FB England 41 3,690 2 180 43 3,870 97.73%
2 Don Roper FW England 40 3,600 2 180 42 3,780 95.45%
Eric Webber HB England 40 3,600 2 180 42 3,780 95.45%
4 Jack Bradley FW England 38 3,420 2 180 40 3,600 90.91%
5 George Smith HB England 34 3,060 2 180 36 3,240 81.82%
6 George Ephgrave GK England 29 2,610 2 180 31 2,790 70.45%
Bill Stroud HB England 29 2,610 2 180 31 2,790 70.45%
8 George Lewis FW Wales 28 2,520 2 180 30 2,700 68.18%
9 Alf Ramsey FB England 23 2,070 1 90 24 2,160 54.55%
10 Ted Bates FW England 22 1,980 0 0 22 1,980 50.00%

Top goalscorers[edit]

No. Name Pos. Nat. League FA Cup Total
Gls. Apps. Gls. Apps. Gls. Apps. GPG
1 George Lewis FW Wales 12 28 3 2 15 30 0.50
Jack Bradley FW England 14 38 1 2 15 40 0.37
3 Doug McGibbon FW England 9 12 0 0 9 12 0.75
Don Roper FW England 8 40 1 2 9 42 0.21
5 Billy Bevis FW England 5 14 1 2 6 16 0.37
6 Ted Bates FW England 4 22 0 0 4 22 0.18
Bill Stroud HB England 4 29 0 2 4 31 0.12
8 Alf Freeman FW England 2 7 0 0 2 7 0.28
Eric Day FW England 2 19 0 2 2 21 0.09

Transfers[edit]

Players transferred in
Date Pos. Name Club Fee Ref.
April 1946 GK England George Ephgrave England Swindon Town Free [13]
July 1946 FB England Bill Rochford England Portsmouth £550 [4]
July 1946 FW England George Lewis England Watford £1,000+[b] [4]
September 1946 HB England Bill Bushby England Portsmouth Free [14]
October 1946 FW England Wilf Grant England Manchester City Free [15]
February 1947 HB England Joe Mallett England Queens Park Rangers £5,000[c] [6]
Players transferred out
Date Pos. Name Club Fee Ref.
September 1946 FB England Tom Emanuel Wales Llanelli Free [17]
January 1947 FW England Doug McGibbon England Fulham £4,250 [18]
Players released
Date Pos. Name Subsequent club Join date Ref.
April 1947 FW England Harry Evans England Exeter City June 1947 [6][19]
April 1947 HB England Bill Stroud England Leyton Orient June 1947 [6][20]

Footnotes[edit]

  1. ^ 4,289 is Southampton's lowest post-war home league attendance.[9]
  2. ^ Lewis's transfer fee is generally reported as "a four-figure fee".[4]
  3. ^ Joe Mallett's £5,000 transfer fee was a club record at the time.[16]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Southampton Complete History". Statto.com. Archived from the original on 1 October 2016. Retrieved 29 May 2016.
  2. ^ "Season 1946-47". English League Tables, 1888-2008. Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 29 May 2016.
  3. ^ a b "England FA Challenge Cup 1946-47". England FA Challenge Cup Finals. Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 29 May 2016.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 2
  5. ^ Chalk, Holley & Bull 2013, p. 57
  6. ^ a b c d e f g Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 4
  7. ^ a b c d Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 5
  8. ^ a b c d e Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 424
  9. ^ a b c d Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 3
  10. ^ a b c d Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 302
  11. ^ "Newcastle United results for the 1946-47 season". statto.com. Archived from the original on 9 March 2016. Retrieved 30 May 2016.
  12. ^ a b c d Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 303
  13. ^ Chalk, Holley & Bull 2013, p. 310
  14. ^ Chalk, Holley & Bull 2013, p. 266
  15. ^ Chalk, Holley & Bull 2013, p. 333
  16. ^ Holley & Chalk 2003, p. 544
  17. ^ Chalk, Holley & Bull 2013, p. 66
  18. ^ Chalk, Holley & Bull 2013, pp. 121–122
  19. ^ Chalk, Holley & Bull 2013, p. 311
  20. ^ Chalk, Holley & Bull 2013, p. 474

Bibliography[edit]

  • Chalk, Gary; Holley, Duncan; Bull, David (November 2013), All the Saints: A Complete Players' Who's Who of Southampton FC, Bristol, England: Hagiology Publishing, ISBN 978-0-9926864-0-6
  • Holley, Duncan; Chalk, Gary (2003), Bull, David (ed.), In That Number: A Post-War Chronicle of Southampton FC, Bristol, England: Hagiology Publishing, ISBN 0-9534474-3-X
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