Mexborough and Swinton Times, May 13th.
Review of the Season
At the close of a fluctuating season, Denaby United finish 15th in the table. At Christmas, Denaby held out the promise of a much better finish.
The greatest goal getter was Burkinshaw, who tops the list with a fine record of 22. The other goals came from the following: Ballance 12, Hamilton 11, Brayshaw seven, Hill and Wilson three, Kelly and Gottfried two and Creasey, Parker, Ashton and McDonnell one each
Denaby opened with a disappointing weekend at home, losing to Castleford and drawing with Harrogate. Then they went on to score a brilliant victory at Millmoor which they followed up with their first home victory at the expense of Wath. Three drawn games followed, and Denaby were then beaten at Mansfield.
At this stage they lost their centre half, Froggatt, whom they transferred to the Wednesday for £300.
After a draw at Wakefield, there followed a succession of three victories, broken by a defeat atHarrogate.
Winning two more games, they then lost a couple, and recovered for another two wins, followed by a draw at Lincoln. Then came two capital victories over Wednesday and Mansfield, which were closely followed by the bad slump in February, when, Denaby lost home and away to Grimsby and away to Scunthorpe. A primary structures from the Notts Forest, but compensating mid week victories over Gainsborough and Barnsley.
Three defeats, including the heavy one at Hillsborough followed, and then Denaby, were seen at their best for a spell.
They defeated Rotherham County, andWombwell fin fine style athome, but made a disappointing display before Doncaster Rovers and then lostat Wombwell, finishing the season with two more defeats athome and Nottingham.
On the whole the season was a disappointing one, though, at their best, the team were capable of sparkling form.
The outstanding players were Burkinshaw and Hamilton. Burkinshaw was a prolific goalscorer, and Brayshaw, the inside left, was often very clever but rarely effective.
The club had the usual centre forward problem, and never really solved it. A number of experiments were made, but no really worthy leader was found. Ballance had the longest spell, and he was finally given up, though, instead of discarding him, the management discovered in him a fierce rate centre half, when Sam Kennedy’s early promise in that position fizzled out.
Another player incidentally “discovered” in this way was George Hill, whostarted the season at outside right, and later found his true form at left half.
Leslie Hoften, the old Denaby back, who had a distinguished career with Manchester United, was signed on the was the end of the season, and came in useful at right back when Dick Coope was suspended for the second time this season.
Coope and Dawson gave some sterling displays at full-back, but on the whole, the defence was not satisfactory, asthe goal average shows.
Several goalkeepers were tried, but Ekins, acquired from Doncaster, kept for the greater part of the season, and give some excellent displays, though he had his faults and his days off.
Ashton, a youth from Gainsborough shows great promise but his health failed towards the end of the season. He had to be dropped. Tim Peters, coming in and proving as sound a defender as any in the side, in spite of anno domini.
Thus the bugbear of the club from start to finish, has been the indifferent public support, which has hampered and disheartened them, even when the team is doing well and giving some sparkling games. The “gates” never maintain anything likeMidland League level, and, towards the end of the season, the directors found it impossible to carry on only by the unfortunate expedient of reducing wages. The players, in a very sporting spirit, recognised their difficulties and accepted the reductions.
Except for theMidland League and cup tie games with Mexborough, andthe match with Doncaster, the club never enjoyed a “gate” of adequate size.
Certainly a better quality and higher level of form all round was reached by the club this seasoncompared with the disastrous opening season, and both players and directors were worthy of better support than they obtained