Progressive Record Attendances. Home, away etc. | TheTFF Torquay United Fans Forum

Budleigh
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Progressive Record Attendances. Home, away etc. Oct 25, 2010 10:18:58 GMT

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Post by Budleigh on Oct 25, 2010 10:18:58 GMT

Torquay United’s Record Attendances by Progression

Starting from our first home League game against Exeter City, set out below is the progression of record home attendances taking into account both league and cup matches, followed by those from United’s away games.

Home

29/09/27 10,749 Exeter City League Division Three, South (First Football League game)

08/12/28 11,114 Exeter City FA Cup 2nd Round

28/12/46 11,576 Exeter City League Division Three, South

04/09/48 13,676 Exeter City League Division Three, South

19/12/49 13,824 Notts County League Division Three, South *

07/10/50 16,454 Plymouth Argyle League Division Three, South **

29/01/55 21,908 Huddersfield Town FA Cup 4th Round ***

Away

27/08/27 6,204 Millwall League Division Three, South (First away Football League game and lost 1-9)

10/09/27 12,887 Norwich City League Division Three, South

29/09/28 14,091 Crystal Palace League Division Three, South

25/12/28 20,327 Fulham League Division Three, South

26/05/31 24,133 Queens Park Rangers League Division Three, South

02/05/36 30,614 Coventry City League Division Three, South (Last game of season at league champions Coventry City)

20/08/49 32,497 Millwall League Division Three, South (First game of the season)

08/04/50 43,456 Notts County League Division Three, South *

18/01/65 55,081 Tottenham Hotspur FA Cup ****

Neutral Ground

Wembley

29/05/89 46,513 Bolton Wanderers Sherpa Van Trophy Final

Friendly at Plainmoor

29/07/72 15,144 Manchester United (Frank O’Farrell manager of Manchester United)

Notes on above

* Both Torquay United’s record home and away league attendances were broken in this season, 1949/50, and both against Notts County. Indeed that Notts County Meadow Lane figure would also have been County’s highest ever attendance excepting that two seasons earlier a record 45,116 saw their game against Swansea Town. The fact that the greatest footballer in the country, Tommy Lawton, had surprisingly signed for the third division club would have been a major factor in all these large figures.

** The closest Plainmoor got to seeing an attendance for a league game to match that against Argyle was also against Plymouth some twenty years later on the 5th of February 1969 in the old third division, when 15,660 where in attendance.

*** Present home attendance record

**** Largest crowd United have played in front of.

Record Attendances In Summary:

Football League

Home

07/10/50 16,454 Plymouth Argyle League Division Three, South

Away

08/04/50 43,456 Notts County League Division Three, South

FA Cup

Home

29/01/55 21,908 Huddersfield Town FA Cup 4th Round

Away

18/01/65 55,081 Tottenham Hotspur FA Cup

Programmes for some of the games above are available to see in the Programme Archive Rooms:

Exeter City, Sept 1948

Plymouth Argyle, October 1950

Notts County, 1949/50, both Home and Away

Tottenham Hotspur, 1965, away, both official programme and the pirate version.

Huddersfield Town, 1955

Manchester United, 1972, friendly

Bolton Wanderers, 1989

ps: I'm assuming any mistakes I've made will be brought to attention and rectified by the appropriate parties!

Last Edit: Oct 25, 2010 10:19:50 GMT by Budleigh

www.extence.co.uk

Deleted
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Progressive Record Attendances. Home, away etc. Oct 26, 2010 8:47:22 GMT

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Post by Deleted on Oct 26, 2010 8:47:22 GMT

Oct 25, 2010 10:18:58 GMT Budleigh said:

ps: I'm assuming any mistakes I've made will be brought to attention and rectified by the appropriate parties!

Well, I'm impressed by your research although - of course - somebody somewhere may already be on your case.

The home record is worth a comment: two big crowds in our early days in the Football League, then nothing bigger until after the war; a spate of record-breaking in those peak 1940s and 1950s days culminating in one that (presumably) will never be broken save for an unimagined transformation.

As for the away record attendance, we'll have to wait for that FA Cup trip to Arsenal or Old Trafford or, perhaps, a big, big play-off appearance (I'll leave aside the European trip to San Siro for a while).

Budleigh
TFF member

Posts: 1,897

Progressive Record Attendances. Home, away etc. Jan 10, 2011 18:25:41 GMT

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Post by Budleigh on Jan 10, 2011 18:25:41 GMT

I'm going to put my hands up and admit I may've got this wrong so will double-check and amend if required.

In the Official History, under the list of games played, it gives the attendance for the first Football League game, that played against Exeter City in September 1927, as 10,749.

But in the programme for the game against Exeter City on the 4th of September 1948, when a new record was established, it gives that first attendance as 11,625. I went back and checked the Official History and it does indeed say 10,749, but in the text itself it gives this second figure, so I assume the first one is incorrect.

I'm just checking with one who'll know!!

If so then the list should read:

29/09/27 11,625 Exeter City League Division Three, South (First Football League game)

04/09/48 13,676 Exeter City League Division Three, South

Last Edit: Jan 10, 2011 18:38:31 GMT by Budleigh

www.extence.co.uk