Barking FC Down Memory Lane 1/2

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For anyone who has not seen our programme or programme notes-

 

DOWN MEMORY LANE WITH TED SUTTON

 

Many Barking supporters know Ted Sutton who ,despite having to move to the Birmingham area in the 1950s for employment reasons, has never wavered in his support for the club and attends as many matches as he can every season.Together with Reg Webster (a famous name well known to all local football supporters) in Cornwall and Colin Bruce in Canada Ted is one of our longest distance supporters.

 

Ted has kindly agreed to share his memories with us and here is the first instalment.Ted writes

When our family lived in Movers Lane I remember that I had a favourite uncle –Uncle Jim.He and his wife used to visit us quite often .I imagine that he used to follow Barking before the war.So ,with the war now over and Barking playing again,in 1945-6 I became interested. I was only 13 at the time .

 

I think that the first game I saw Barking play was an away game at Grays Athletic. I believe we won the game which I think was in the Essex Senior Cup. This was the season Barking went on to win the cup beating Romford 3-2 after a drawn game . I guess after that that I was hooked . In my class at Eastbury Secondary School was a boy called Gordon Butterworth whose uncle was Frank Butterworth who played for Barking .I remember him well. To be continued

 

 

 

Derek Pedder writes-Ted’s memory is perfectly accurate-

 

Essex Senior Cup 1945-6

Opponents Date Venue F A Scorers

Leytonstone 12 January 1946 Away 5 0 Butterworth 4,

Latarche

Walthamstow Avenue 2 March 1946 Away 3 1 Butterworth 3

Grays Athletic 16 March 1946 Away 2 0 Lighten, Clarke

Romford - Final 22 April 1946 N1 2 2

 

 

Clarke,Butterworth

Romford - Final - Replay 11 May 1946 N1 3 2 Lighten 2, Pearson

 

Both the final games were played at Ilford and the attendance at the first game was 12,247. Happy days. All our matches in 1945-6 had to be played away as the Vicarage Field had not recovered from its wartime service

Ted’s school friend’s uncle Frank scored 8 goals in the Essex Senior Cup that season. On a personal note when I was at Barking Abbey School in my year was a boy named Tanner whose uncle John was then Barking’s centre forward

 

 

 

DOWN MEMORY LANE WITH TED SUTTON PART 2

 

Many Barking supporters know Ted Sutton who ,despite having to move to the Birmingham area in the 1950s for employment reasons, has never wavered in his support for the club and attends as many matches as he can every season.Together with Reg Webster (a famous name well known to all local football supporters) in Cornwall and Colin Bruce in Canada Ted is one of our longest distance supporters.Ted has kindly agreed to share his memories with us and here is the 2nd instalment.

 

I noticed with interest in our programme last season in Terry Gilbert’s On This Day feature that several of the team that were playing when I started supporting the club in 1946 were playing for Barking before the war (1939-45 for our younger readers). They included J.Wilson,Wiseman,Godwin, Frank Butterworth and Len Fogg. My uncle Jim ,until his house was bombed during the war, lived in St.Anne’s Road.He and his family were then rehoused in a prefab in Ripple Road (so were we –DP).Interestingly his neighbour was a chap called Ronnie Cornwall who played centre half for Barking in around 1946.I remember him playing before Stan Prince became our number 5. (Stan Prince later joined Walthamstow Avenue –DP).

 

When I started my first job after leaving school at 15 (I remember it well –the terrible winter of 1947) I worked at Sherwood Paints in Jenkins Lane in the post department at two pounds ten shillings ( two pounds fifty pence ) per week. I must have liked it or they must have liked me as I worked for the firm for 25 years.I hasten to add not in the same department or for the same salary for all that time.

One of the people I worked with in those early days was a lady called Beat Gardner who was a lovely person and the Registration Secretary of the Barking F C Supporters’ Association. Needless to say I was quickly enrolled in the Supporters’ Club.Back to top