Grecian2K
Very well known Exeweb poster
What on God's earth is that keeper doing there????
Mods - please retract that picture before Pate has palpitations.
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Information on Fred Whitlow required
- Thread starter Captain Jenner
- Start date
Mods - please retract that picture before Pate has palpitations.
Rog H K
Active member
Don't worry G2K, I think Pete was at that game?
Captain Jenner
New member
- Joined
- Dec 29, 2011
- Messages
- 3
Thanks folks, this really is better than anything I expected. I'm a complete stats nerd, so to have several season's worth from the early 1930s will have me frothing at the mouth for hours. Thanks Rog H K for taking the time out to upload the images - that was very cool. This will all be put to good use, thank you.
The first reports of Fred Whitlow playing football I have come from the 1921-22 Barry & District League fixtures where Whitlow played for Whitmore Albion, a team from Barry Island. Whitmore Albion won the Division 2 title that season, as well as lifting the Football Favourite Shield. The photo I have of him in his Whitmore Albion stripes looks eerily like an Exeter City photo...
Whitlow then pops up in Barry Town's line-ups in both the Southern League and Welsh League fixtures in the early part of 1922-23. However, it appears that Whitlow returned to the local leagues and played for Barry YMCA. The next we hear of him is the 1924-25 season where he scores on his second debut match (if you will) for Barry on the opening day of the season. In all, he makes just 11 Southern League appearances but scores 7 goals.
He then signs for Charlton Athletic, briefly follows his manager to Dundee, before returning to Charlton where he helped the Add*cks gain a rare championship title when the club won the 1928-29 Division Three South and the club were promoted to Division 2. With Charlton consolidated in Division 2, Whitlow moved to Exeter City. I'll let you lot fill in the blanks here.
Signing for Cardiff City after leaving Exeter City, Whitlow could not get out of the Bluebirds' Reserves side. Not wishing to spend any more time there, Whitlow transferred back to his home town club (born in Bristol, his family moved to Barry Island when he was a kid) ready for the 1935-36 season. Back then, Barry played in two leagues; the Southern League and the Welsh League. Not having the finances to run a reserves side, the players played in both leagues and would often clock up a phenomenal amount of appearances. One player, Billy Price played in 96 league and cup games in a single season. Madness.
The 1936-37 season brought 47 goals and 6 hat-tricks from the Southern League and Welsh League games, and his final season with us saw him clock up a further 49 goals in 35 appearances in both leagues - including a further 6 Welsh League hat-tricks.
Whitlow's career came to a rather sudden and unexpected end. After being 'roughed up' by the Exeter City Reserves at Jenner Park on March 13th 1937, Whitlow missed the next 6 matches through injury. Or so it was said. That 4-2 loss to Exeter saw Fred Whitlow's final 'senior' goal as a professional, and many fans were left wondering why Whitlow wasn't in the line-up when the club had their biggest game in years when they were due to meet Kidderminster Harries in the Welsh Cup 7th Round.
It was announced that Whitlow had retired with immediate effect in order to look after 'personal and business issues' (he owned a green-grocers on Barry Island). Barry defeated the Harriers, and were set to play Crewe Alexandra in Barry's first ever Welsh Cup Semi Final on April 19th 1937. Despite his retirement, Whitlow popped up to score his final hat-trick in a 4-0 Welsh League victory over Cardiff Corinthians on April 14th, just days before the big game. However. he never did appear for the Semi Final, a game which Barry lost.
Thanks all, have a great New Year. And if anybody else wants to add facts or photos - please do!
The first reports of Fred Whitlow playing football I have come from the 1921-22 Barry & District League fixtures where Whitlow played for Whitmore Albion, a team from Barry Island. Whitmore Albion won the Division 2 title that season, as well as lifting the Football Favourite Shield. The photo I have of him in his Whitmore Albion stripes looks eerily like an Exeter City photo...
Whitlow then pops up in Barry Town's line-ups in both the Southern League and Welsh League fixtures in the early part of 1922-23. However, it appears that Whitlow returned to the local leagues and played for Barry YMCA. The next we hear of him is the 1924-25 season where he scores on his second debut match (if you will) for Barry on the opening day of the season. In all, he makes just 11 Southern League appearances but scores 7 goals.
He then signs for Charlton Athletic, briefly follows his manager to Dundee, before returning to Charlton where he helped the Add*cks gain a rare championship title when the club won the 1928-29 Division Three South and the club were promoted to Division 2. With Charlton consolidated in Division 2, Whitlow moved to Exeter City. I'll let you lot fill in the blanks here.
Signing for Cardiff City after leaving Exeter City, Whitlow could not get out of the Bluebirds' Reserves side. Not wishing to spend any more time there, Whitlow transferred back to his home town club (born in Bristol, his family moved to Barry Island when he was a kid) ready for the 1935-36 season. Back then, Barry played in two leagues; the Southern League and the Welsh League. Not having the finances to run a reserves side, the players played in both leagues and would often clock up a phenomenal amount of appearances. One player, Billy Price played in 96 league and cup games in a single season. Madness.
The 1936-37 season brought 47 goals and 6 hat-tricks from the Southern League and Welsh League games, and his final season with us saw him clock up a further 49 goals in 35 appearances in both leagues - including a further 6 Welsh League hat-tricks.
Whitlow's career came to a rather sudden and unexpected end. After being 'roughed up' by the Exeter City Reserves at Jenner Park on March 13th 1937, Whitlow missed the next 6 matches through injury. Or so it was said. That 4-2 loss to Exeter saw Fred Whitlow's final 'senior' goal as a professional, and many fans were left wondering why Whitlow wasn't in the line-up when the club had their biggest game in years when they were due to meet Kidderminster Harries in the Welsh Cup 7th Round.
It was announced that Whitlow had retired with immediate effect in order to look after 'personal and business issues' (he owned a green-grocers on Barry Island). Barry defeated the Harriers, and were set to play Crewe Alexandra in Barry's first ever Welsh Cup Semi Final on April 19th 1937. Despite his retirement, Whitlow popped up to score his final hat-trick in a 4-0 Welsh League victory over Cardiff Corinthians on April 14th, just days before the big game. However. he never did appear for the Semi Final, a game which Barry lost.
Thanks all, have a great New Year. And if anybody else wants to add facts or photos - please do!
Is that Tis in goal? The years have treated him kindly ...
Nice thread! How we could do with something like the Whitlow, Varco, Houghton forward line today.
P.S. I met the club captain from that time, Charlie Miller, when he was in his sixties many years ago - a great City stalwart and a man with more than a few tales to tell.
P.S. I met the club captain from that time, Charlie Miller, when he was in his sixties many years ago - a great City stalwart and a man with more than a few tales to tell.
Captain Jenner
New member
- Joined
- Dec 29, 2011
- Messages
- 3
Yah boo! I've tried to place a few images on here of Whitlow in Barry colours but I'm being denied due to me being a newbie.
I tried.
Hey, you know what though, after looking at those stats last night I noticed the name of Doncaster throughout them. Well, oddly enough, Doncaster ALSO played for Barry prior to his move to Exeter City.
We knew him up here as Arthur Doncaster, but yourselves and a few other football league clubs he played for back in the day knew him as D*ck Doncaster. I don't think that was people's opinion of him, more that his middle name was Richard.
He was highly rated at Barry, and what with us not being able to keep hold of any decent young talent for more than two minutes, he was taken away by Bolton Wanderers who had already robbed us of Ted Vizard and Billy Jennings. I was about to say "What have Bolton ever done for us?" when I suddenly remembered they were among a handful of Premier League clubs to actually send us something to auction off when our chairman withdrew all financial backing at the end of last season... Fair play, Bolton.
Anyway, after his stint with Bolton he signed for Exeter City, and I never made the connection that Exeter City were fielding two ex-Barry players at the same time in Doncaster and Whitlow. In fact, Whitlow's debut Exeter City goal was scored after Doncaster was already on the score-sheet.
How exciting for me, less so for you.
Again, thanks for the info everybody. See you soon. Good luck against Colchester tomorrow.
I tried.
Hey, you know what though, after looking at those stats last night I noticed the name of Doncaster throughout them. Well, oddly enough, Doncaster ALSO played for Barry prior to his move to Exeter City.
We knew him up here as Arthur Doncaster, but yourselves and a few other football league clubs he played for back in the day knew him as D*ck Doncaster. I don't think that was people's opinion of him, more that his middle name was Richard.
He was highly rated at Barry, and what with us not being able to keep hold of any decent young talent for more than two minutes, he was taken away by Bolton Wanderers who had already robbed us of Ted Vizard and Billy Jennings. I was about to say "What have Bolton ever done for us?" when I suddenly remembered they were among a handful of Premier League clubs to actually send us something to auction off when our chairman withdrew all financial backing at the end of last season... Fair play, Bolton.
Anyway, after his stint with Bolton he signed for Exeter City, and I never made the connection that Exeter City were fielding two ex-Barry players at the same time in Doncaster and Whitlow. In fact, Whitlow's debut Exeter City goal was scored after Doncaster was already on the score-sheet.
How exciting for me, less so for you.
Again, thanks for the info everybody. See you soon. Good luck against Colchester tomorrow.