John Haworth
The first great Burnley manager
You can’t buy pedigree. The discovery that
Joanne Pilkington, Membership Secretary of this parish, is somehow related to John
Haworth, Burnley Secretary/Manager between 1910 and 1924, provoked huge jealousy in my
house. How come I fail to be related to anyone remotely connected with Burnley’s long
and proud history? I wouldn’t want to be greedy. A bit part player would be enough.
We can’t all have a line to the man responsible for winning the FA Cup and the League
title, setting for the latter a record unbeaten run which remains untouched to this day.
Ah well.
Recently Joanne found some correspondence from
John Haworth’s son, also called John, about his father. Firstly there is this little
memoir, written shortly after the Orient Game in 1987:
Then and Now - Burnley FC
By John W Haworth, 1987
The recent scare over the fate of Burnley FC
has tempted me to write these few lines about some of the Club’s past history as far
as my memory permits. We all know that Burnley was one of the founder members of the
Football League. Of the very early history of the club I know little, but from hearsay I
learned that a Mr Whittaker who was Manager around the 1910 era was killed in a fall from
a train, and following this said affair my father, John (Jack) Haworth was appointed as
Secretary/Manager. This was about the time that I was born in Mizpah Street, Burnley in
January 1911. I naturally do not remember those early years especially the 1913-14 season
when Burnley won the F.A. (then known as the English) Cup. I do know however that the
final took place at Crystal Palace and Burnley beat Liverpool by 1-0. This was the first
time that the reigning monarch, King George V, presented the cup and medals. In fact the
Directors presented a solid silver rose bowl to my father to commemorate the occasion. I
think the team consisted of: Sewell, Smelt, Jones, Halley, Boyle, Watson, Nesbitt, Kelly,
Hodgson, Cross and Mosscrop [Bert Freeman? – Ed]. I am not sure whether the trainer /
coach was Jack Hillman or Charlie Bates.
Coming up to the 1920s
In the early 20s I was sufficiently old enough
to take an interest in the doings of the team, and together with a close friend, Alfred
Boland, attended most of the home matches (free gratis and for nothing as the saying
goes). We used to sit in the press box. Older Burnley supporters will recall the
excitement when the team won the League Division One Championship, and created the then
record of 32 games without defeat. This was in the days of the 2, 3, 5 combination. Why
ever did they change it?
Then came the month of December 1924, a sad day
for Burnley FC and for my invalid mother and myself. My Dad had suffered with asthma for
some years, and following a trip to Preston to secure the services of a young up and
coming player, Roberts, a trip carried out with such urgency that he travelled in an open
taxi in the pouring rain. The result was inevitable, pneumonia set in, and he died on
December 4th 1924.
His funeral was on the following Tuesday, and
senior Burnley citizens will be able to confirm that the route from Burnley to Accrington
cemetery was lined with mourners. The flowers took the hearse and an extra open carriage.
Shortly afterwards I with my pour mother had to leave our beloved Burnley for Derby to
live with relatives. I referred above to my friend Alfred Boland, and he was to become
Secretary to Burnley FC. Sadly he is no longer with us, and it is one of my regrets that
after leaving Burnley we lost touch.
How many older Burnleyans can remember the team
that won that 1920/21 Division One League Championship: Dawson, Smelt, Taylor, Halley,
Boyle, Watson, Nesbitt, Kelly, Anderson, Cross and Mosscrop.
Finally, remember the old offside rule where
there had to be two defenders in addition to the goalkeeper? A trial of the present rule
was carried out at the benefit match for my late father shortly after his death, and the
present rule was subsequently adopted.
Naturally, I have followed the fortunes, and
misfortunes of Burnley ever since and recall their winning of the Division One
Championship in 1960 and their appearance in the final of the FA Cup which sadly they
lost. These last few weeks have been tinged with sadness when I realised that my old
dad’s team, or should I say, club, was destined to slip out of the League. It would
be a tragedy for such a once famous club to be out of the League. However, at the last
minute, the supporters rallied round, all 15,000 of them, and cheered the old club on. I
listened to the commentary on Radio 2, and was overjoyed at the result. Let us hope that
the support given on Saturday last will be forthcoming in August, so that Burnley will
next season hopefully be at the top of Division Four, gaining promotion to Division Three,
in their eventual climb back to Division One where they so rightly belong.
The second piece of correspondence is a letter
John Haworth sent to Edward Lee, c/o the Burnley Express. Dated 28/6/92 and sent from a
Bishop’s Stortford address, the letter tidies up one or two inaccuracies relating to
John Haworth in the then recently published book ‘Burnley: a complete record’.
On Father’s Day this year I was overjoyed
to receive from my son a copy of the above book. I have followed the fortunes of Burnley
Football Club ever since I left Burnley in early January 1925 following the death of my
father John Haworth, the manager of the club from 1910-1924. I must offer you my sincere
congratulations on the production of this book, and in accordance with the comments in the
introduction to the book I must point out to you an outstanding error, which as you may
realise, caused me great disappointment.
Firstly, the photograph on page 53 of the book
is not that of my father, but is one of Charlie Bates the trainer. Similarly, on page 18
the photograph of the side which won the Division One title in season 1920-21 shows in
back row centre Charlie Bates and not my father John Haworth. I cannot understand how this
error came about as you carried out such extensive research, especially with the Burnley
Express, as in 1987 I sent them a photograph of the Burnley team on which my dad
figures… Unfortunately, it is now too late to amend but I am writing to you now in
case there should be a reprint or second edition of the book in which you can correct the
errors. Maybe you will be able to issue a press correction in the Burnley Express, and if
you do so I would be greatly obliged if you would send me a copy.
There is one other matter which puzzles me in
the script of the book, viz. On page 246 you show Roberts as having scored for Burnley on
October 11th, November 1st, 15th and 29th. You
see as a boy of thirteen years I happen to remember that my father was in pursuit of
Roberts in late November of 1924, and made a mad dash to Preston to secure the necessary
signature(s). So urgent was the matter that he took an open taxi to Preston in the pouring
rain and as a result contracted a chill followed by pneumonia, and he died on December 4th
1924 at 9.40 pm. (How’s that for memory at the age of 81.) What puzzles me is how he
could have scored those goals for Burnley (Roberts that is) as dated above?
You refer also (page 144) to a change in the
offside law. Did you know that following the death of my father in December 1924 a benefit
match was played at Turf Moor in aid of my invalid mother and myself. At this match the
trial offside law was played and adopted the following season….
…I close now, and once again congratulate
you and Ray Simpson on the extensive coverage of your book which brings back so many happy
memories of the days when I lived in Burnley and watched their efforts from the Press Box
every Saturday afternoon in company with my friend Alfred Boland with whom I went to
Burnley Grammar School. Please let me know if a later corrected edition is issued.
John W Haworth then goes on to enquire as to the
whereabouts of Alfred Boland’s sister Winnie, who had married a nephew of the Burnley
goalkeeper Jerry Dawson, and was last known to be living on Gawthorpe Road in Burnley.
Alfred Boland himself had apparently died sometime in the 1950s.
John Haworth junior clearly never forgot Burnley
and its people, nor his father who brought the town such success on the football field.
Perhaps once we’ve finally persuaded the club to name a stand after Harry Potts we
can turn our attention to commemorating his most illustrious predecessor. The John Haworth
Stand, anyone?
Firmo, with thanks to Joanne
Pilkington
July 2000
Quietly Making History
