Other Club Guides

PETERBOROUGH UNITED have one of the most enthusiastic and eccentric managers in the game in Barry Fry, who in fact played for the Hatters in 1965 - and they also have one of the best youth academies around... 

The Club and The Ground

A First Division club in the early 90s under the management of Chris Turner and Lil Fuccillo, Posh earned their highest-ever League position of 10th in Division One in 1992-93 after being promoted through the play-offs the previous season.

However, the club soon sank to the basement Division of the Football League, although Barry Fry (now both manager and owner of the club) led them back into Division Two after winning the play-offs in 1999-00 after defeating Darlington at Wembley.

The club thereafter consolidated their Second Division status, although they failed to continue their push for Division One football.

However, under the guidance of wheeler-dealer manager Barry Fry, and with an excellent youth academy that has produced Simon Davies, Matthew Etherington and Luke Steele over the last decade, the club surely has a bright future.

On one side of the ground, London Road, is the impressive looking South Stand. Opened in 1996, the 5,000 capacity stand replaced a former open terrace. The stand is two-tiered, covered and all-seated. There is also a row of executive boxes running across its middle. The other side, the Main Stand, is a two-tiered covered stand that is all-seated. Both ends are covered terracing that were given white roofs a couple of seasons back, in an effort to brighten up their appearance. However, they both have a number of supporting pillars at the front of them, which could impede your view of the game.

Just under 4,000 away fans can be accommodated in the Moys Terrace, with a further 800 seats being made available to away fans in the Main Stand. The Moys Terrace has several supporting pillars, which may obstruct your view. I found the atmosphere at London Road quite good, fairly friendly and whatever team that Barry Fry manages is always likely to provide a good afternoons entertainment.

Ground Guide courtesy of the excellent Internet Football Ground Guide.

History - Peterborough United Football Club

PETERBOROUGH UNITED Football Club officially came into being on 17th May 1934 when a crowded meeting at the city’s now long demolished Angel Hotel decided to go ahead with the formation of a professional club to fill a void left by the collapse of Peterborough and Fletton United some two years earlier. Local councillor Jack Swain, appointed acting chairman, told the gathering: ‘I think that with the revival of old enthusiasm in the city, Peterborough will ultimately find a place in the Football League.’ It took almost 40 years for that dream to come to fruition in 1960, a milestone which, in itself, was the start of a fresh roller coaster ride through every soccer experience from delight to despair.

One thing which seemed to follow on from the days Peterborough and Fletton was the present club’s now world famous ‘Posh’ nickname. Its origins are obscure but are most widely believed to have stemmed from player manager Pat Tirrel who said in close season of 1921 that he was looking for ‘Posh players for a Posh team.’ Peterborough and Fletton, also known as the ’Brickies,’ folded in 1932 leaving behind debts of £248.1s.11p, a not inconsiderable sum in those days and the new club had first to obtain confirmation from the Football Association and Northamptonshire Football Association that there were no liabilities.

Clearance was quickly obtained but the fledgling club almost scored an own goal before it got off the ground. The delight of representatives at the annual meeting of the Midland League, where a membership application was welcomed with open arms, turned to sheer panic when it was realised they didn’t have the cash between them to pay a £20 security deposit, a 10 guinea entry fee and 5 guinea subscription. Thankfully, Grantham Town loaned the cash and back home the Posh officials set about raising funds through the sale of five shilling shares, around 150 turning up for a first shareholders’ meeting on 31st July 1934 when a ten strong board of directors, headed by Jack Swain, were elected. Incredibly, when Posh resigned from the Midland League in 1960 after their election to the Football League, the original £20 deposit was refunded!

The London Road ground was hired from Peterborough City Council and former Peterborough and Fletton player Fred Taylor was appointed trainer and groundsman with another Fletton stalwart Jock Porter as what was originally described as ‘honorary manager.’ First of 11 full time professionals to be signed was former Sheffield United goalkeepeer John Kendall and the line-up also included ex-Fletton favourite Harry ‘Bowie’ Willis, who had been in the side that achieved the club’s greatest FA Cup moment against First Division Birmingham City in 1923.

The weekly Posh wage bill was £38 and admission charges were set at one shilling for men (5p), six pence (2.5p) for women and the unemployed and, one shilling for transfer to the stand. As the big kick-off approached City Council workmen descended to build new dressing rooms at the rear of the stand and local businesses were eager to help, Midgate outfitters E.B.Jackson donating shirts, Hoyles of Westgate gave towels and George Stokes of Church Street presented a new football.

A crowd of 4,035 turned out on 1st September 1934 to see the Midland League campaign begin in some style with a 4-0 beating handed out to Gainsborough Trinity, the distinction of scoring the first Posh goal going to Len Hargreaves who had been signed from the Hatters. Posh began in green shirts with a while ‘V’ on the front, white shorts and black socks with a green top carrying two white hoops and as early as November 1934, when a statutory meeting took place, it was suggested the club should think seriously of seeking a League place.

Peterborough United in 1934.

Despite Posh starting 1935 with a seven match unbeaten run, the first season looked like fizzling out on a quiet note with crowds dwindling to below 2,000 and the team set to finish in mid-table. Then came an April home meeting with Lincoln City Reserves and the crowd of 1,777 took great exception when Billy Rigby became the first Posh player to be sent-off. The popular right winger was so upset he left the field in tears and after the referee faced great hostility from the fans as he left the field at half time, police reinforcements were called to the ground.

The mood of the fans hardly improved during the second half and after the game, the unfortunate referee had to be smuggled away from the ground in the back of manager Porter’s car and with a plain clothes policeman on the running board. Supporters’ voices were raised in anger after fixtures were completed and a first annual meeting reported a loss of £510.12s. 6d. The meeting lasted three hours and directors were bombarded with questions about the deficit and there were calls for a player manager to be appointed.

As it was, Jock Porter continued and with some new faces in the side, the 1935-36 season opened with a win over Scarborough. An exit from the FA Cup in the first qualifying round at the hands of Rushden Town marked the beginning of a decline that became so severe chairman Swain was forced to publicly December rumours that the club was facing closure. Pressure was eased when Alf Jefferson, one of the pre-season newcomers, was sold to Queen’s Park Rangers for £50, but then Porter resigned complaining he had never been given a free hand in selection matters and Posh finished 16th out of 21 in the Midland League.

There were calls for the replacement of the entire board prior to the 1936 annual meeting and although this motion was withdrawn before the annual meeting even the affable Jack Swain had had enough and declined to offer himself for re-election. Fred Taylor stepped up as trainer manager for the 1936-37 campaign and the most significant development came off the field with another meeting at the Angel Hotel resulting in the formation of a first official Supporters’ Club.

Tommy Peake, in post war years a director and at different times both vice chairman and chairman of the parent club, became first Supporters’ Club chairman and from the outset the new body began to provide invaluable financial backing. Posh responded by stringing together a run of five successive wins but at the end of the season, after the side were Again 16th, it was decided to dispense with the services of Fred Taylor and Billy Rigby also left the club to play in Ireland.

Bert Poulter, who became secretary-manager, achieved his moment of fame the previous year when, with Posh Reserves a man short, he turned out in goal wearing grey flannel trousers and a sweater. After letting a tame shot trickle into the net he was promptly moved to the right wing by skipper ‘Bowie’ Willis. Despite abandoning the green and white shirts for new blue and white kid bought by the Supporters’ Club, Poulter was less successful in charge of the side than his predecessor and Posh only just missed having to apply for re-election, finally finishing fourth from bottom.

Posh did come out of the season in the black for the first time with a surplus of £242.4s.10d and much interest was whipped up following the appointment of former Notts County and Arsenal star Sam Haden as the first Posh player/manager. However, fans were soon being asked to dig deep and contribute to a ‘Player Manager fund’ to help pay Haden’s wages during the close season.

The 1940s opened with a move to disband Peterborough United and although it was heavily defeated, the club then came worryingly close to losing its London Road home. Fortunately, Posh weathered all the storms and survived to resume in the Midland League in the 1945-46 season and, thanks to the introduction of players with Football League experience, started to make progress on the field.

The beginning of the Second World War in September 1939 brought an almost immediate suspension of Midland League action after the Posh’s first full time manager Sam Haden had built what was widely regarded as the strongest side since the club’s formation in 1934. Posh began the 1939-40 season in great style winning their first three league games, following an 8-0 demolition of Notts County Reserves, with four of the goals scored by Jack Haycox, a recruit from Northampton Town, by putting four goals past both Lincoln City Reserves and Shrewsbury Town.

With no regular league programme Posh then took part with seven other Midland League clubs - Scunthorpe and Lindsey United, Boston, Denaby, Grantham, Frickley, Gainsborough and Newark - in two wartime mini-league competitions. They finished second in the opening series before topping the table in the second. It was decided there would be a play-off between the two league winners and Posh duly defeated Scunthorpe United and Lindsay United 3-2 at London Road in May 1940.

It was rather pointless exercise, however, the Midland League’s annual meeting having already decided there would be no championship trophy or winners’ medals awarded. The public was left to regard Scunthorpe as champions for the first half of the campaign with Posh top dogs in the second. For a long time afterwards, Posh fans described this as the season their side won half a championship!

Even in the rather unreal competitive atmosphere of that season it was clear just what Posh might have achieved with consistently impressive displays from an attack in which the star players were Tommy Rudkin, signed the previous summer from Lincoln City, and left winger Tommy Johnstone.

Before the start of the 1940-41 season, the Midland League was completely suspended and in July 1940 a suggestion from a group of shareholders that Posh should also disband for the duration of the war was heavily defeated. Posh reported a loss of £218 on the previous season and in a patriotic gesture from the Supporters’ Club, £100 was invested in War Loans.

With many of the players by then drafted into the armed force, Posh played only friendly matches, using the players available, but crowds dwindled to just a few hundred. This put a strain on finances and Posh were in arrears with the City Council for the rent of London Road, matters coming to a head in March 1942 when the local Newalls Sports Club offered to take the ground for £80 a year over a 10 period.

Posh were still a year’s rent of £50 in arrears and Sam Haden, then serving in the RAF, insisted that if Posh lost London Road they would not get back into the Midland League when the competition resumed. A worrying spell was finally ended when County Councillor W.H.Tebbs and his brother paid the outstanding rent and a ‘fighting fund’ was then started to keep things going.

Matches were still few and far between, although Posh beat a Czech Army XI and in November 1943 a soccer starved crowd of 1,700 turned out to see a game between two Anti-aircraft Command teams. Playing for one of them was a young goalkeeper called George Swindin who let in eight on his first appearance at London Road. He later went on to star for Arsenal in the old First Division and returned to London Road as manager guiding Posh to their first Midland League championships a decade later.

During May 1944, Posh sold Tommy Johnstone to Nottingham Forest for the princely sum of £50 – and with the promise of a further £50 if he was retained at the City Ground. The deal also included a visit of Forest for a friendly at the start of the following season, 3,200 watching the September game when Forest, with Everton’s Dixie Dean guesting at centre-forward, won 5-2.

Peterborough training in 1945-46.

Shareholders at the club’s 11th annual meeting in the summer of 1945 were told of a balance of £520 and, with the end of the war in Europe, Posh started looking to the future and there was some heated debate whether the club should return to the Midland League or join the Southern League when competition resumed in August 1945.

In the end, support for the Midland League won the day and a crowd of 2,002 saw Posh start with a 4-2 home win against Notts County Reserves after a large number of fans turned out during August out to help get the ground back into shape. With a lot of players still away with the forces, more than half the side, including Bernie Bryan, Cyril Parrott and Cliff Woods were local players and this set a tone for the season when the names of no fewer than 54 different players appeared on the team sheets. Yet Posh still managed to finish a creditable ninth in the final table.

Colin Beardshaw captained the side from the centre half spot but shortage of players was a problem with star forward Rudkin only able to turn out when he could get leave. Things were so desperate for a match at Shrewsbury near the end of the season that manager Haden had to get out his boots and turn out in the forward line for the first time since 1938. Memorable games included a 3-1 Easter home victory over Grantham Town and a 9-1 FA Cup mauling of Rushden Town when Laxton hit six of the Posh goals.

Before the start of 1946-47 season Peterborough United put up admission prices for the first time since the formation of the club in 1934 with an increase of three old pence from one shilling (5p) to 1-3d (7.5p). Three new directors were appointed at the annual meeting, among them Frank Stimson who later became an inspirational club chairman as Posh intensified efforts to gain Football League status in the 1950s.

There were 25 players on the Peterborough United books when the 1946-47 campaign started with Posh looking smart in a new kit that was a very welcome gift of the people of Peterborough, Ontario, Canada. Improvements included a new public address system and lights were fitted to the London Road grandstand to allow evening training sessions in preparation for FA Cup action, including a visit to Yeovil.

The infamous sloping pitch held no terrors for Posh who looked to be coasting to victory when goalkeeper Shallcross unaccountably gave away a penalty from which Yeovil equalised. A record of 8,691 saw the replay at London Road settled by a Rudkin goal and Posh’s reward was a home tie against Northampton Town that ended all square at 1-1.

This was also the final score after a County Ground replay went to extra time - but in a second replay at Coventry, the Cobblers stormed to an 8-1 success, inflicting what is still Posh’s biggest FA Cup reverse. It also turned out to be star winger Rudkin’s last Posh appearance as he was sold to Arsenal for £1,800 just a couple of days before Christmas 1946.

The most notable feature of the opening months of 1947 was the weather. The big freeze in February restricted Peterborough United to just a couple of games and the programme was disrupted to such an extent that Posh played their final three Midland League league fixtures in June, winding up with a 2-1 win visiting Barnsley Reserves on the 14th of the month and only just before mid-summer’s day!

Posh again finished ninth in the Midland League and reported a profit of £3,162 with gate receipts up to a highest ever £9,902. They boosted the bank balance still further with the sale of right back Jim Wilson to Luton Town for £500. Posh added to their own playing staff with three summer signings, right half Colin Rawson from Nottingham Forest, left-winger Jack Ranshaw from Lincoln City and, one of the first real on the field Posh characters, right winger ‘Dizzy’ Burton.

The season opened with victory over Boston and after half a dozen games unbeaten Posh were top of the table. Curiously, the Supporters’ Club were not happy with the running of the club and publicly called for a complete re-organisation at London Road. Their mood was hardly improved when manager Haden announced he would be leaving at the end of the season.

It didn’t stop Haden signing Latvian international centre-forward Eddy Freiman who opened his Posh account with all three goals in a New Year’s Day 1948 win away to Mansfield Reserves. A petition organised by the Supporters’ Club asking Haden to reconsider had no effect and Posh began a search for a new player manager, the team, in the meantime, going on to finish a best-to-date sixth place in the final league table.

Exeter City full-back Jack Blood eventually got the player manager’s job but his appointment was far from being universally welcomed and not even a unanimous decision at boardroom level. The mood of the fans was hardly improved when Freiman, who had scored 22 goals in 21 outings to finish as second top scorer behind 29 goal ‘Nat’ Brooksbank, was allowed to slip away to, of all clubs, bitter rivals Northampton Town!

The Posh board preferred a positive response announcing plans for a 4,000 seat grandstand which would help boost London Road capacity to 25,000. A profit of £1,489 was reported to the annual meeting in July 1948 when an unusual recommendation from the directors that a five per-cent dividend should be paid to shareholders was rapidly rejected! Elected to the board at this meeting were Cyril Palmer and Vic Grange who continued to serve as directors right through into the Football League era.

The new manager was busy during the summer bringing in a string of players including Exeter City’s Irish international Jim Fallon and former Birmingham City and Walsall winger Bill Guest. Also arriving as player-groundsman was Ben Poole who had seen action for Southport, York City and Bedford Town and was a former golf professional at Preston. Ben worked wonders with the London Road pitch and the Supporters’ Club soon recognised his efforts by presenting the club with a new motor lawn mower.

Early in the season there was a testimonial game against Wisbech Town for long serving players, even dependable defender Fred Warnes and free scoring Ernie Brooksbank. It ended in a 5-5 draw and everyone went home happy - including the beneficiaries who each received £118, plus a further gift of £50 apiece from the Supporters’ Club.

Posh showed some foresight towards the end of 1948 when announcing plans to adopt the Peterborough North Ward Youth Club soccer team as its nursery side but their initiative came to nothing as, following opposition from the local Youth Sports Association, the idea had to be dropped.

Despite boosting the attack with the signing of centre-forward Joe Sanderson from St.Ives, Posh were inconsistent in league games with impressive wins over Doncaster Rovers Reserves, Hull City Reserves and Scarborough contrasting with a humiliating 10-0 home defeat by Bradford Park Avenue Reserves. The FA Cup brought some relief and Posh reached the first round after overcoming qualifying round opposition from Symingtons, Wellingborough, Kettering Town and Ransome & Marles.

Posh then received a first round home draw with Torquay United and manager Blood caused a minor sensation by dropping skipper Tommy Rickards before a game in which Posh lost by the only goal in front of 8,769, although it did not quite equal the new London Road attendance record turn-out of 9,370 for the earlier meeting with Kettering Town.

January 1949 brought news of an ambitious ground improvement scheme including removal of the existing wooden stand to the Glebe Road side of the ground and its replacement by a new 340 foot long grandstand and with the pitch moved some 30 yards to the north. Cost was estimated at £40,000 but the County Planning Committee deferred a decision pending consultations with the Ministry of Transport.

The Peterborough players in 1949.

A leg injury forced manager Blood to hang up his boots as a player and then came a boardroom bombshell with the directors announcing that running costs were in excess of revenue with a result that the current account was almost exhausted and financial reserves were being spent.

Team costs were put at between £150 and £160 a week and it was said that Posh needed revenue of at least £400 from every home game. Nevertheless, the board said that for the 1949-50 season it hoped to be able to offer club houses in an effort to bring players of a higher standard to London Road. Posh announced much reduced profits of £476 at its annual meeting, a drop of more than £1,000 on the previous year. In contrast the Supporters’ Club were going great guns and their finances had grown by over £1,000 to £2,535.

The season ended with Posh in a disappointing 16th place in the Midland League and Blood again looked to former Football League players to boost the London Road ranks ahead of the 1949-50 campaign bringing in former Republic of Ireland international goalkeeper George Moulson from Lincoln City, Alex Wands, previously with Crewe Alexandra and Doncaster Rovers, and forward Freddy Martin from Nottingham Forest.

Martin scored the opening goal of the new season and it was the first of many from the tricky little inside forward during a highly successful Posh career stretching well into the 1950s. League form was again erratic with good home results offset by poor away displays and Posh also made a third qualifying round FA Cup exit, beaten 0-1 by Corby Town at their old Occupation Road ground.

Posh bowed out of the 1940s in 10th spot in the Midland League and the new decade opened with a decision to seek Football League membership – and that’s another story!

Since then the club have had no less than 23 different managers, including BBC Sports television pundit Mark Lawrenson from 1989-90 and former Luton Town players Lil Fuccillo and Barry Fry.

Since those topsy-turvy years of the 40s, the club have continued their topsy-turvy existence.  In 1960-61, the club won the Division Four championship - and once again won the same crown in 1973-74.

Barry Fry.

A First Division club in the early 90s under the management of Chris Turner and Lil Fuccillo, Posh earned their highest-ever League position of 10th in Division One in 1992-93 after being promoted through the play-offs the previous season.

However, the club soon sank to the basement Division of the Football League, although Barry Fry (now both manager and owner of the club) led them back into Division Two after winning the play-offs in 1999-00 after defeating Darlington at Wembley.

The club thereafter consolidated their Second Division status, although they failed to continue their push for Division One football.

However, under the guidance of wheeler-dealer manager Barry Fry, and with an excellent youth academy that has produced Simon Davies, Matthew Etherington and Luke Steele over the last decade, the club surely has a bright future.

Luton Town v Peterborough United...

A full rundown of all of the past meetings

Home Matches   Mar 14 1964 D3 L 2 3 6279 Sep 26 1964 D3 D 1 1 9339 May 1 1993 ND1 D 0 0 10011 Apr 2 1994 ND1 W 2 0 8398 Oct 19 1996 ND2 W 3 0 6387 Dec 26 2000 ND2 W 3 2 7374 Report Aug 10 2002 ND2 L 2 3 7860 Report Oct 25 2003 ND2 D 1 1 6067 Report Statto's Corner

Away Matches   Nov 2 1963 D3 D 0 0 10687 Feb 6 1965 D3 L 0 2 12946 Oct 24 1992 ND1 W 3 2 7125 Dec 27 1993 ND1 D 0 0 9522 Apr 26 1997 ND2 W 1 0 9499 Mar 27 2001 ND2 D 1 1 5425 Report Feb 1 2002 ND2 D 1 1 6760 Report Statto's Corner

• Stats taken from Lutonfc.com's 'Statto's Corner'