1920–21 Gillingham F.C. season

The 192021 season was the first season in which football club Gillingham F.C. competed in the Football League. Gillingham had previously played in Division One of the Southern Football League, but in 1920 the Football League decided to add a third division to its existing set-up and did so by absorbing the entire Southern League Division One to form the new Football League Third Division.

Gillingham
192021 season
ChairmanE.N. Crawley
ManagerJohn McMillan
Football League Third Division22nd
FA CupSixth Qualifying Round
Top goalscorerLeague:
Tommy Hall (9)

All:
Tommy Hall (11)
Highest home attendanceapprox 12,000 vs Southampton (28 August 1920) and vs Millwall (30 October 1920)
Lowest home attendanceapprox 5,000 vs Portsmouth (15 September 1920)

Gillingham had finished bottom of the Southern League Division One the previous season and fared no better in the Football League, finishing bottom of the table after registering only eight wins in 42 matches.

Football League

The Gillingham team pictured before the first match of the season
Players - back row (left to right):Robertson, Battiste, Baxter, Wigmore, Sisson. Front row: Holt, Hall, Branfield, Gilbey, Roe, Gore

Gillingham had played in the Southern Football League since its formation in 1894, apart from when the league was suspended due to the First World War, but had achieved minimal success and had finished bottom of Division One in the 191920 season. The club escaped relegation, however, as the clubs in the Southern League's top division were admitted en masse to the Football League to form the new Third Division. In preparation for the new season the club signed a number of new players, including Wally Battiste from Grimsby Town, Tommy Hall from Newcastle United, Tom Thompson from Sunderland and Tom Gilbey from Darlington. Only five players who had represented the club in non-league football went on to make appearances in the Football League: Jock Robertson, Jack Branfield, Joseph Griffiths, Donald McCormick and Arthur Wood.

The club's first ever Football League match was against Southampton at Priestfield Stadium in front of a new club record crowd of approximately 12,000 fans, and ended in a 11 draw, with Tom Gilbey scoring the Gillingham goal. Four days later the team defeated Reading 21 away from home to register their first victory, and a week later repeated the feat at home, beating the Berkshire club 10 to give the club a record of two wins, one draw and one defeat from its first four matches. This was followed, however, by a run of six matches without a win, including a heavy 61 defeat against Merthyr Town.

After beating Exeter City in mid-October, Gillingham then played 12 consecutive matches without a win, including an emphatic 52 defeat at home to Northampton Town on Christmas Day. The winless streak came to an end when a George Needham goal gave the team a 10 win over Bristol Rovers on 29 January, but there then followed a sequence of five games in which the team could only manage a goalless draw and four defeats. The team staged a late rally in April, winning three of their last six matches, but it was not enough to avoid finishing the season bottom of the table.

Date Opponents H / A Result
F A
Scorers Attendance
1920-08-28SouthamptonH11Gilbey12,000
1920-09-01ReadingA21Roe, Gilbey7,000
1920-09-04SouthamptonA0314,000
1920-09-08ReadingH10Gilbey7,000
1920-09-11Merthyr TownH009,500
1920-09-15PortsmouthH11Battiste5,000
1920-09-18Merthyr TownA16Thompson14,000
1920-09-25Plymouth ArgyleA13Hall16,000
1920-10-02Plymouth ArgyleH0110,000
1920-10-09Exeter CityA12Wood10,000
1920-10-16Exeter CityH21Battiste 210,000
1920-10-23MillwallA0420,000
1920-10-30MillwallH0012,000
1920-11-06Newport CountyA018,000
1920-11-13Newport CountyH14Needham8,000
1920-11-27PortsmouthA22Gilbey, Robinson15,000
1920-12-11Swindon TownA11Gilbey9,000
1920-12-25Northampton TownH25Gilbey, Hall8,000
1920-12-27Northampton TownA0210,000
1920-12-28Luton TownA0511,000
1921-01-01WatfordA13Roe6,000
1921-01-15BrentfordH13Hall8,000
1921-01-22BrentfordA33Needham 2, Wood9,000
1921-01-29Bristol RoversH10Needham8,000
1921-02-05Bristol RoversA029,000
1921-02-12Norwich CityH007,000
1921-02-19Norwich CityA12Hall8,000
1921-02-26Crystal PalaceH018,000
1921-03-05Crystal PalaceA14Hall10,000
1921-03-12Brighton & Hove AlbionH10Waugh7,000
1921-03-16WatfordH11Hall6,000
1921-03-19Brighton & Hove AlbionA019,000
1921-03-26Grimsby TownA0211,000
1921-03-28Southend UnitedA0110,000
1921-04-02Grimsby TownH21Waugh, Wood7,000
1921-04-09Queens Park RangersA10Wood10,000
1921-04-13Swindon TownH11Wood8,000
1921-04-16Queens Park RangersH12Hall8,000
1921-04-23Swansea TownA0213,000
1921-04-30Swansea TownH21Hall, Wood8,000


Pld
W
D
L
F
A
Pts
42
8
12
22
34
74
28

Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; Pts = Points

FA Cup

Gillingham entered the FA Cup at the fourth qualifying round, defeating fellow Kent club Maidstone United, then went on to beat another non-league club, Dulwich Hamlet. The club was then eliminated by fellow Division Three team Northampton Town in the sixth qualifying round.

Date Round Opponents H / A Result
F A
Scorers Attendance
1920-11-20 Fourth qualifying Maidstone United H 10 Gilbey 6,725
1920-12-04 Fifth qualifying Dulwich Hamlet H 21 Hall, Gilbey 8,000
1920-12-18 Sixth qualifying Northampton Town A 13 Hall 10,000

Squad statistics

Tommy Hall was the leading goalscorer for the season

Gillingham used a total of 26 players over the course of the season. No player was ever-present, but captain Jock Robertson, goalkeeper Jack Branfield and top goalscorer Tommy Hall each missed only one match.

Name League FA Cup Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Wally Battiste 33330363
Tom Baxter 21020230
Jack Branfield 41030440
Albert Carter 200020
Tom Gilbey 11632148
Syd Gore 800080
Joseph Griffiths 500050
Tommy Hall 419324411
Andy Holt 600060
Fred Howard 700070
Donald McCormick 100010
Stuart McMillan 11000110
Alfred Milton 100010
George Needham 36430394
Ernest Ollerenshaw 100010
Jock Robertson 41030440
Thomas Robinson 211031
Archie Roe 16210172
George Russell 300030
George Shaw 300030
Tom Sisson 40030430
Tom Thompson 37130401
John Waugh 24200242
Clive Wigmore 900090
Arthur Wood 30630336
Harry Wright 32020340

See also

References

  • Brown, Tony (2003). The Definitive Gillingham F.C.: A Complete Record. Soccerdata. ISBN 1-899468-20-X.
  • Triggs, Roger (1984). Gillingham Football Club: A Chronology 1893–1984. Kent County Libraries.
  • Triggs, Roger (2001). The Men Who Made Gillingham Football Club. Tempus Publishing Ltd. ISBN 0-7524-2243-X.
  • Bradley, Andy; Roger Triggs (1994). Home of the Shouting Men: Complete History of Gillingham Football Club 18931993. Gillingham F.C. ISBN 0-9523361-0-3.
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