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FA Cup attendance 1949 14:04 - Oct 17 with 5779 views

How were 24,231 squeezed in to Spotland v. Notts County in 1949? I went to matches in the promotion season 68/69 when there were 13000 versus Halifax and it seemed pretty full to me so how could another 11000 be accommodated? Was the ground configured differently then? Can Chalky ask his forbears? Any insights welcomed from the generation above me with knowledge.

[Post edited 17 Oct 2018 14:42]

FA Cup attendance 1949 on 22:56 - Oct 19 with 905 views

D_Dale

FA Cup attendance 1949 on 22:58 - Oct 18 by robbowood

I have the official match programme (No. 0105). They must have printed thousands - it cost 2d. Eight pages but actually just one sheet of paper - but when folded measures about 8 and 1/2 inches x 5 and 1/2 inches. So quite clever and no staples needed

There are photos of each of the eleven Dale players with their name and position, followed by an Editoral which includes

"Never before in the history of local soccer football has such a big crowd collected for a match as there will be on this ground this afternoon and it will make a sight to be remembered"

"To Notts County, the oldest league club in the country, we offer a hearty welcome. We give them credit for being the drawing power with their "star" players who have put up the attendance and receipt receipt records and we hope the game is worthy of the event"

British Rail advert Rochdale to Manchester first-class 2s 3d and third class 1s 6d
They had a football excursion from Rochdale to Southport on 27 Dec which cost 5s 3d (I assume return). Departed 12.04 and returned at 4.50 (no added on time in those days fortunately!)

I have the following match details

Saturday 10 December 1949
FA Cup Round 2
Spotland, Rochdale

Rochdale’s highest attendance Att: 24,231

Rochdale 1 (Brown)
Notts County 2 (Lawton, Johnson)

Rochdale

1 Trevor Churchill
2 Bill Watson
3 Harry Hubbick
4 Eric Wood
5 Walter Birch
6 George McGeachie
7 Jackie Arthur
8 Jack Livesey
9 Jack Connor
10 Cyril Brown
11 Tom Dryburgh

Notts County
1 Roy Smith
2 Tommy Deans
3 Norman Rigby
4 Harry Chapman
5 Alec Simpson
6 Harry Adamson
7 Frank Broome
8 Jackie Sewell
9 Tommy Lawton
10 Billy Evans
11 Tom Johnston

Forgotten where I got the above match details from (years ago) but I hope correct

The match programme team line-up agrees Dale but for Notts County

5 Baxter (I have Alec Simpson played)

4 is spelt Chapmen (I have Chapman)

The full Third Division table (Northern Section) was also show (Doncaster top 28 pts from 18 games then Dale 24 points from 19 games) and the Lancashire Combination (Dale Reserves 5th below Nelson, Ashton Utd, Prescot Cables and Darwen. Teams below Dale Reserves included Fleetwood, Morecambe and Wigan Athletic)

The half-time scoreboard (not sure which were FA Cup games) in the programme included Wolves v Bolton Wdrs, Notts Forest v Stockport Cty, Bury v Leeds, Crewe v Oldham Utd, Fulham v Man Utd, Huddersfield v Liverpool and Man City v WBA

Thanks for this, and for other contributions to this down-memory-lane thread.

A small point about the excursion to Southport: as the railway station is about a mile away from Haig Avenue, I'd guess - on a December afternoon before floodlights became general - the match kicked off at 2.30. This would have allowed about 40 minutes (no extra time and a 10-minute half-time break) to get from the ground to the station. In his history of the club, Steven Phillipps gives 14,765 as the size of the crowd that day. Dale lost 3-2, having defeated Southport 2-0 the day before, in front of a Spotland crowd of 13,406.

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