Mexborough and Swinton Times, July 17, 1915
Denaby United Football Club
Debt Steadily Decreasing
Presidents Interesting Review
The Denaby United football club, at their annual meeting held on Tuesday evening, decided unanimously to leave the question of continuing football during the forthcoming season in the hands of the committee, who were instructed to act according to the decision arrived at by the Sheffield Association league committee as to their running a competition.
Mr. W. Smith (president) presided, and there were also present Mssrs. H. H. Wray. J. Engeldore. B. Hadfield,. G. Milnes, J. Heslop, W. Rotherham, P. E. Chambers, J. Duncan (Treas), J. T. Clayton (secretary), the Rev. K. E. Kirk. Mr J. Wheeliker and others.
In his annual report, the secretary stated that the club had lost a number of good men to enlistment, but they managed to fulfil the season with a decent record. In the Association League they finished fourth in the table, having played 28 matches, won 14, lost 9, scored 44 goals against 37, and finished with 28 points to their credit. They also managed to lift the Montagu Charity cup.
The second team they had to drop on account of so many players having joined the colours. So he thought they would agree with him that they had done very well. The financial side had also been satisfactory. But he must say that state of affairs was due to the hard work put in by the committee as regarded the running of a team during the forthcoming season, he asked the meeting to give the question serious consideration before they attempted it.
The report was adopted.
The Treasurer stated that the profit on the season’s workings had amounted to £23 6s. 4. The amount owing to the club so guarantees and others had been reduced from £504 3s. To £342 3s.
The Chairman, the marking upon the report, said that at the end of last year the club owed £504, which, of course, included the price of the stand and most of the repayments to be made to stand guarantors. Those debts of the club were in a way depths – and not debts – but whilst they had a debit account like that it looked very bad against the club, and whilst that debt was hanging like a stone round their necks the outlook was not very encouraging.
There was an account of £10 each owing to Hull and Grimsby football clubs, but an offer made by the Denaby club to pay them £4 each was accepted. The Denaby club had been very fortunate in getting drawn against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane and although Denaby tried to get the Sheffield club to come to Denaby, they were not having any. The club owed something like £35 to players, and he was very pleased to be able to say that the majority of these players were good enough to give the money back to the club in a very sporting manner, and he thought that the fans of the club were due to these people for the way in which they had backed up the old club in one of their crisis of its career. The players money, however, was never likely to be forthcoming, not even if they claimed it, for the rules of the Association fixed no special day in the season when players were due to receive their money, and although the players had undoubtedly made sacrifices, he thought it was due to the treasurer – who had kindly and considerably given back to the club £30 which was owing to him – that they owed their most sincere thanks.
Chiefly through the action of these people the debt now stood at only £342 3s. And of that £234 3s. 3d. Was for the stand. The club was considerably helped by the Christmas draw.
Referring to the playing season, Mr Smith said that the club had been fairly successful. They were doing exceptionally well for a time, until six of their best players left them to their country in one way or another.
The second team ran for a time, and after three players had enlisted it dropped through. He was pleased to state, however that through to the end of the second team paid its way, and the club lost no money whatsoever out of it.
So far as the players were concerned, they all through the season they “played the game” he offered, and the half of the club, the heartiest thanks to the secretary and the committee for their work during the past year.
The president further said that it was depressing to find that out of the nine guarantors only two were present at the annual meeting. It made one inclined to the opinion that it was hardly “worth the candle” to have anything to do with football at all. He did not think that it was right that the guarantors should keep away from their annual meeting, and leave all the work and the burden of the club and over shoulders. It was most depressing and one really fell inclined to let the whole thing slide altogether.
The treasurer’s report was then carried. It was decided to place on record a list of names of all the members and players of the club who had joined. M. M. Forces.