1921–22 Brentford F.C. season

During the 1921–22 English football season, Brentford competed in the Football League Third Division South. The club improved on its debut season in the league to finish 9th, which would be its highest placing until 1929–30.

Brentford

1921–22 season
Chairman	H. Jason-Saunders
Manager	Archie Mitchell
Stadium	Griffin Park
Third Division South	9th
FA Cup	First round
Top goalscorer	League: Morris (16) All: Morris (17)
Highest home attendance	13,836
Lowest home attendance	4,000
Average home league attendance	9,115
Home colours

Season summary

Archie Mitchell took over as player-manager for the 1921–22 season.

After a torrid first season in the Football League, Archie Mitchell joined Brentford as player-manager and the club's squad was overhauled.[1] Outgoing manager Fred Halliday stayed at Griffin Park as secretary, which allowed Mitchell to focus solely on the team.[2] New signings Charles Alton and John Bethune bolstered the defence, half backs Charles Fisher and James Kerr came in and Thomas Elliott and Harry Morris were signed to replace the previous season's departed leading goalscorers Harry King and Reginald Boyne.[1] Cricketer and outside forward Patsy Hendren was available for much of the season.[3]

Brentford began the season inconsistently and hovered around mid-table, before a run of just four defeats in 17 games firmly established the club in the top six by January 1922.[4] Forwards Harry Morris and Harry Anstiss scored the majority of the team's goals and player-manager Mitchell had dropped himself from the team in favour of Cyril Hunter in December 1921.[3][5] On 11 February 1922, Freddy Capper became the first Brentford player to be sent off in a Football League match.[6] He received his marching orders from referee Harry Curtis, who would later be appointed as Brentford's manager in 1926.[6] Five defeats in seven matches during February and March, coupled with poor away form throughout the season, ruled out the possibility of automatic promotion, but the team finished strongly and won five of the final eight matches to finish 9th.[4] Brentford won just one away league match during the season, which is the joint-fewest in club history.[7]

A rare event occurred on the final day of the season at Swansea Town's Vetch Field, when Brentford were able to field just 9 men at the kick off.[2] William Young, Harry Anstiss and Freddy Capper missed their train at Paddington and manager Archie Mitchell was pressed into service as an emergency goalkeeper.[2]

League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
7	Watford	42	13	18	11	54	48	+6	44
8	Aberdare Athletic[lower-alpha 1]	42	17	10	15	57	51	+6	44
9	Brentford	42	16	11	15	52	43	+9	43
10	Swansea Town	42	13	15	14	50	47	+3	41
11	Merthyr Town	42	17	6	19	45	56	−11	40

Source:
Notes:

1. New club in the league

Results

Brentford's goal tally listed first.

Legend

Win

Draw

Loss

Football League Third Division South

No.	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorer(s)
1	27 August 1921	Merthyr Town	H	0–1	11,000
2	29 August 1921	Southend United	A	1–1	6,000	Morris
3	3 September 1921	Merthyr Town	A	0–2	6,000
4	5 September 1921	Southend United	H	1–0	8,000	Bertram
5	10 September 1921	Watford	H	1–1	10,732	Morris
6	14 September 1921	Bristol Rovers	A	0–0	7,000
7	17 September 1921	Watford	A	0–0	7,000
8	24 September 1921	Charlton Athletic	H	0–2	13,000
9	1 October 1921	Charlton Athletic	A	1–1	12,000	Anstiss
10	8 October 1921	Northampton Town	H	1–0	9,000	Morris
11	15 October 1921	Northampton Town	A	0–2	6,000
12	21 October 1921	Queens Park Rangers	H	5–1	13,836	Morris (3), T. Elliott, Bertram
13	29 October 1921	Queens Park Rangers	A	1–1	15,000	Mitchell (pen)
14	5 November 1921	Portsmouth	H	2–2	11,000	Mitchell (pen), Morris
15	12 November 1921	Portsmouth	A	0–1	12,894
16	19 November 1921	Norwich City	A	0–0	6,000
17	26 November 1921	Norwich City	H	2–1	5,000	Shields, Morris
18	10 December 1921	Reading	A	3–0	8,000	Anstiss (2), Morris
19	24 December 1921	Bristol Rovers	H	4–2	10,000	T. Elliott, Anstiss (2), Morris
20	26 December 1921	Aberdare Athletic	H	2–1	12,000	T. Elliott, Anstiss
21	27 December 1921	Aberdare Athletic	A	0–2	11,000
22	31 December 1921	Southampton	A	0–0	10,000
23	14 January 1922	Southampton	H	1–0	10,000	T. Elliott (pen)
24	21 January 1922	Plymouth Argyle	H	3–1	7,000	Morris (2), Norton
25	28 January 1922	Plymouth Argyle	A	1–4	7,000	Morris
26	4 February 1922	Newport County	H	1–0	6,000	T. Elliott
27	11 February 1922	Newport County	A	1–2	6,500	Norton
28	18 February 1922	Luton Town	H	0–2	9,000
29	25 February 1922	Luton Town	A	0–3	5,000
30	4 March 1922	Swindon Town	H	3–0	5,000	Anstiss, Norton, Amos
31	11 March 1922	Swindon Town	A	1–2	6,000	T. Elliott
32	18 March 1922	Gillingham	A	0–0	8,000
33	25 March 1922	Gillingham	H	0–1	6,000
34	1 April 1922	Millwall	A	1–1	12,000	Morris
35	8 April 1922	Millwall	H	1–0	6,000	Anstiss
36	14 April 1922	Brighton & Hove Albion	H	4–0	10,000	Anstiss (3), Hendren
37	15 April 1922	Exeter City	A	0–1	5,000
38	17 April 1922	Brighton & Hove Albion	A	1–2	9,008	Anstiss
39	18 April 1922	Reading	H	2–0	5,000	Anstiss, T. Elliott
40	24 April 1922	Exeter City	H	5–2	4,000	Anstiss, Kerr, Morris, Capper, Amos
41	29 April 1922	Swansea Town	A	0–1	5,000
42	6 May 1922	Swansea Town	H	3–1	5,000	Morris, T. Elliott, Anstiss

FA Cup

Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorer(s)
5QR	3 December 1921	Dulwich Hamlet	H	3–1	9,078	Capper, Mitchell, Morris
6QR	17 December 1921	Shildon Athletic	H	1–0	9,250	T. Elliott
R1	7 January 1922	Tottenham Hotspur	H	0–2	12,964

• Sources: Statto, 100 Years of Brentford,[3] The Complete History[8]

Playing squad

Players' ages are as of the opening day of the 1921–22 season.

Pos.	Name	Nat.	Date of birth (age)	Signed from	Signed in	Notes
Goalkeepers
GK	William Young		4 August 1892 (aged 29)	South Shields	1920
Defenders
DF	Charles Alton		24 December 1891 (aged 29)	Rotherham County	1921
DF	John Bethune		19 October 1888 (aged 32)	Bristol Rovers	1921
DF	Bertie Rosier		21 March 1893 (aged 28)	Southall	1913
Midfielders
HB	Alf Amos		9 February 1893 (aged 28)	Old Kingstonians	1913
HB	Jimmy Elliott		1891 (aged 29–30)	Tottenham Hotspur	1920
HB	Charles Fisher		9 June 1899 (aged 22)	Kidderminster Harriers	1921
HB	Fred Howe		1895 (aged 25–26)	Kimberworth Old Boys	1920
HB	Cyril Hunter		8 February 1898 (aged 23)	Leadgate Park	1921
HB	James Kerr		7 April 1894 (aged 27)	Blackburn Rovers	1921	Amateur
HB	Archie Mitchell		15 December 1885 (aged 35)	Queens Park Rangers	1921	Manager
Forwards
FW	Harry Anstiss		22 August 1899 (aged 22)	Hammersmith Athletic	1920
FW	George Bertram		15 January 1896 (aged 25)	Fulham	1921
FW	Freddy Capper		8 May 1892 (aged 30)	The Wednesday	1921
FW	Thomas Elliott		6 April 1890 (aged 31)	Nottingham Forest	1921
FW	Patsy Hendren (c)		5 February 1889 (aged 32)	Queens Park Rangers	1911	Played when his cricket commitments allowed
FW	Harry Morris		25 November 1897 (aged 23)	Fulham	1921
FW	Horace Norton		15 September 1896 (aged 24)	Bradford City	1921
FW	George Pither		24 June 1899 (aged 22)	Isleworth Town	1921
FW	Ralph Shields		1892 (aged 28–29)	Exeter City	1921

• Sources: 100 Years of Brentford,[3] Timeless Bees,[9] Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939[10]

Coaching staff

Name	Role
Archie Mitchell	Manager
Michael Witham	Trainer

Statistics

Appearances and goals

Young

Alton

Rosier

Hunter

Elliott

Amos

Elliott

Anstiss

Morris

Capper

Hendren (C)

Brentford's highest appearance-makers in each position during the Football League season.

Pos	Nat	Name	League		FA Cup		Total
			Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
GK		William Young	41	0	3	0	44	0
DF		Charles Alton	36	0	3	0	39	0
DF		John Bethune	10	0	0	0	10	0
DF		Bertie Rosier	34	0	3	0	37	0
HB		Alf Amos	40	2	3	0	43	2
HB		Jimmy Elliott	27	0	3	0	30	0
HB		Charles Fisher	6	0	0	0	6	0
HB		Fred Howe	1	0	0	0	1	0
HB		Cyril Hunter	21	0	—		21	0
HB		James Kerr	21	1	0	0	21	1
HB		Archie Mitchell	13	2	3	1	16	3
FW		Harry Anstiss	23	15	2	0	25	15
FW		George Bertram	10	2	0	0	10	2
FW		Freddy Capper	35	1	3	1	38	2
FW		Thomas Elliott	39	8	3	1	42	9
FW		Patsy Hendren	35	1	3	0	38	1
FW		Harry Morris	36	16	3	1	39	17
FW		Horace Norton	19	3	0	0	19	3
FW		George Pither	7	0	0	0	7	0
FW		Ralph Shields	8	1	1	0	9	1

• Players listed in italics left the club mid-season.
• Source: 100 Years of Brentford[3]

Goalscorers

Pos.	Nat	Player	FL3	FAC	Total
FW		Harry Morris	16	1	17
FW		Harry Anstiss	15	0	15
FW		Thomas Elliott	8	1	9
FW		Horace Norton	3	0	3
HB		Archie Mitchell	2	1	3
HB		Alf Amos	2	0	2
FW		George Bertram	2	0	2
HB		Jimmy Elliott	2	0	2
FW		Freddy Capper	1	1	2
FW		Patsy Hendren	1	0	1
HB		James Kerr	1	0	1
FW		Ralph Shields	1	0	1
Total			52	4	58

• Players listed in italics left the club mid-season.
• Source: 100 Years of Brentford[3]

Management

Name	Nat	From	To	Record All Comps					Record League
				P	W	D	L	W %	P	W	D	L	W %
Archie Mitchell		27 August 1921	6 May 1922	45	18	11	16	040.00|	42	16	11	15	038.10

Summary

Games played	45 (42 Third Division South, 3 FA Cup)
Games won	18 (16 Third Division South, 2 FA Cup)
Games drawn	11 (11 Third Division, 0 FA Cup)
Games lost	16 (15 Third Division, 1 FA Cup)
Goals scored	56 (52 Third Division, 4 FA Cup)
Goals conceded	46 (43 Third Division, 3 FA Cup)
Clean sheets	15 (14 Third Division, 1 FA Cup)
Biggest league win	4–0 versus Brighton & Hove Albion, 14 April 1922; 5–1 versus Queens Park Rangers, 21 October 1921
Worst league defeat	3–0 versus Luton Town, 25 February 1922
Most appearances	44, William Young (41 Third Division South, 3 FA Cup)
Top scorer (league)	16, Harry Morris
Top scorer (all competitions)	17, Harry Morris

Transfers & loans

Cricketers are not included in this list.

Players transferred in
Date	Pos.	Name	Previous Club	Fee	Ref.
June 1921	FW	George Bertram	Fulham	Free	[11]
June 1921	FW	Harry Morris	Fulham	Free	[12]
July 1921	FW	Ralph Shields	Exeter City	Free	[13]
August 1921	DF	John Bethune	Bristol Rovers	Free	[14]
August 1921	FW	Freddy Capper	The Wednesday	Free	[15]
August 1921	FW	Thomas Elliott	Nottingham Forest	Free	[16]
August 1921	HB	Archie Mitchell	Queens Park Rangers	Free	[17]
August 1921	GK	Edmund Wright	Aston Villa	Free	[18]
September 1921	FW	George Pither	Isleworth Town	Amateur	[19]
September 1921	GK	Ted Price	Queens Park Rangers	Free	[20]
October 1921	HB	Cyril Hunter	Leadgate Park	Free	[21]
1921	DF	Charles Alton	Rotherham County	Free	[22]
1921	HB	Charles Fisher	Kidderminster Harriers	Free	[23]
1921	HB	James Kerr	Blackburn Rovers	Amateur	[24]
1921	FW	Horace Norton	Bradford City	Free	[25]
Players released
Date	Pos.	Name	Subsequent club	Join date	Ref.
May 1922	FW	George Bertram	Sittingbourne	1922	[26]
May 1922	DF	John Bethune	Sittingbourne	1922	[26]
May 1922	HB	Charles Fisher	Margate	n/a	[23]
May 1922	HB	Fred Howe	Peterborough & Fletton United	n/a	[27]
May 1922	HB	Archie Mitchell	Retired		[17]
May 1922	FW	Horace Norton	Darlington	1922	[25]
May 1922	DF	Archie Reay	Gillingham	1922	[28]
May 1922	FW	Ralph Shields	Sittingbourne	1922	[29]

References

1. Haynes & Coumbe 2006, p. 175.
2. White, Eric, ed. (1989). 100 Years Of Brentford. Brentford FC. pp. 115–116. ISBN 0951526200.
3. White 1989, p. 366.
4. Ltd, Statto Organisation. "Brentford results for the 1921-1922 season - Statto.com". Statto.com. Archived from the original on 15 September 2016. Retrieved 9 May 2016.
5. Haynes & Coumbe 2006, p. 84.
6. Haynes 1998, p. 43.
7. Haynes, Graham (1998). A-Z Of Bees: Brentford Encyclopedia. Harefield, Middlesex: Yore Publications. p. 78. ISBN 1 874427 57 7.
8. Haynes, Graham; Twydell, Dave (2008). Brentford F.C.: The Complete History 1889–2008. Harefield: Yore Publications. ISBN 978-0-9557889-5-6. OCLC 528356934.
9. Haynes, Graham; Coumbe, Frank (2006). Timeless Bees: Brentford F.C. Who's Who 1920–2006. Yore Publications. ISBN 978-0955294914.
10. Joyce, Michael (2012). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: Tony Brown. ISBN 190589161X.
11. "George Bertram". Fulhamweb. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
12. "David Harry Morris". Fulhamweb. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
13. "TWO NAMES ADDED TO TOWN'S 'ROLL OF HONOUR'". www.htafc.com. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
14. "Round The Country". The Athletic News. 22 August 1921.
15. "Capper Freddy Image 2 Brentford 1922". Vintage Footballers. Retrieved 7 July 2019.
16. "Elliott Tom Image 1 Nottingham Forest 1920". Vintage Footballers. Retrieved 7 July 2019.
17. Haynes & Coumbe 2006, p. 109.
18. "Aston Villa Player Database". www.astonvillaplayerdatabase.com. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
19. "Gleanings – Southern League's Selected". The Athletic News. 12 September 1921.
20. "QPRnet – Seasonal Stats – 1921–22". Retrieved 8 May 2018.
21. "Gleanings – The Position Of Crystal Palace". The Athletic News. 24 October 1921.
22. Haynes & Coumbe 2006, p. 10.
23. Haynes & Coumbe 2006, p. 57.
24. Haynes & Coumbe 2006, p. 92.
25. Haynes & Coumbe 2006, p. 117.
26. Haynes & Coumbe 2006, p. 21.
27. Haynes & Coumbe 2006, p. 82.
28. Joyce 2012, p. 240.
29. Haynes & Coumbe 2006, p. 144.