A glance through any football teams official records will always mention somewhere details of the clubs record attendance at their own home ground.
Blackpool is no different and reveals that on the 17th September 1955 the Seasiders broke their previous home gate record by 1,939 created three years earlier against Preston North End in 1952.
A quite staggering attendance by today's standards of 38,098 that afternoon managed to get inside the ground to witness Blackpool who then stood proudly on top of the entire Football League welcome second-place Wolverhampton Wanderers to scenes at Bloomfield Road that would never be repeated.
The Seasiders did not let down that huge support that day when that famous duo Matthews and Mortensen led Blackpool to a 2-1 victory to go a further two points clear at the top of the First Division.
We rcall that game from a copy of the "Green" printed that Saturday afternoon 50 years ago.
Blackpool 2,
By CLIFFORD
GATES were being closed nearly an hour before the kick-off in the top - of - the - table. Blackpool-Wolverhampton Wanderers match at Bloomfield-road this afternoon.
Fifteen minutes before the teams took the field under lowering skies the ground was in a state of siege. Thousands were locked out. Traffic within half a mile radius was almost at a standstill.
It was the match of the day on the first division card. The first position in the table was the prize for the team winning the day. Blackpool, who have climbed unexpectedly to the top in the season's first month, played the men who have won five 'out of the last six points and entered the game as the only undefeated team in the League,
Bill Slater, who has become an England half-back since he left Blackpool as an amateur international forward, could not play for the Wanderers, who, however, were able to field five forwards who have been riddling defences everywhere in the last week or two.
A TV camera crew was perched on a platform above the players' entrance to film extracts of the match which will be screened tonight for a million families.
Teams:
BLACKPOOL: Farm, Shlmwell, Wright (J.); Fenton, Gratrix, Kelly (H.); Matthews,
WOLVERHAMPTON
Referee Mr. H Vickers (
The Wanderers wore white, and except for little Johnnie Hancocks were as big as ever.
Hugh Kelly won the toss and the Wanderers defended the Kop goal. It was a lightweight frisky ball and nobody could do a lot with it for a time.
Still before a minute had gone Mulled was allowed to centre at his leisure with no Blackpool men tackling him and Farm had to leap high to hold the ball swirling away from him with Swinbourne charging at him' and past him over the line.
Gratrix made a couple of fine clearances which revealed all the raging excitement had at least not affected him. Twice between these attacks the Matthews-Taylor partnership made progress on Blackpool's right wing, but it was not until the fifth minute that two big incidents came out of all the pace and excitement. In the first
Out on the left wing Perry made the pass. Fifty yards away
Bert Williams was, I suspect, unprepared for this one-man swoop and was standing 10 yards outside his line as the little Blackpool forward raced in on him.
Within 60 seconds
The Wanderers made a swift three-pass raid. The ball came out loose in the end to Hancocks, a shooting forward always prepared to hit a ball hard inside shooting distance.
The little man shot this one. It rose, flew outside Farm's reach and went inches outside the far post as Shimwell, obviously thinking It was flying inside, made a goalkeeper's dive at It and missed.
The Wanderers were outplayed for five minutes. There was only one raid by the fabulous forward line.
Otherwise the Wanderers were In the sort of desperate retreat to which in recent weeks they must have been entirely unaccustomed. The offside trap was exploited unashamedly and excusably.
Three times it snared the Blackpool forwards. Once it left Stanley Mortensen racing into an open space 'to shoot past Williams from a position palpably offside.
Yet as a trap it snared in the end the man practising it. For in the' 13th minute Blackpool made another fast downthe-centre raid. The cunning Taylor steered a pass forward. Up went a linesman's flag as Mortensen went after the pass.
Referee Vickers glanced once at the waving flag, ignored it, waved play on, and on went MORTENSEN to shoot away from Williams' left hand with the goalkeeper left at his mercy in front of him.
All ,the Wanderers protested against the goal, but Mr. Vickers, refusing to consult the linesman, whose flag by that' time had been lowered, was adamant.
And a goal it was. There were nearly a couple of'other goals too, In the next ten minutes Bert Williams had to reveal all 'his quality as Taylor, with everybody expecting a pass, shot low and fast from 15 yards a ball which was passingthe goalkeeper as his fingertip brushed it and his big fist closed on it.
Three minutes later Stanley Matthews, who had been giving the Wanderers left flank of defence the entire familiar treatment raced away from it again but this time shot and at such a pace that the ball had passed Williams as Stuart hurled himself into the gap and headed it out. The Wolves' forwards were still only playing in spurts, but seldom making a shooting position.
Once' from far out od the wing Mullen brushed the bar, but otherwise with 25 minutes gone the fabulous scoring machine was merely living on its reputation.' One noticed Hancocks darting about in the centre seeking the loose ball for which he is always waiting.
There was still, however, 'not the crisp passing or the knockout punch in this Wanderers' forward line which one had expected. Jimmy Mullen alone packed a shot. Again he raked the Blackpool goal with a shot which flew out by the far post as Broadbent hurled himself In vain at it.
With nearly half an hour gone Blackpool were no longer dictating the match. Taylor shot wide twice, but at least he shot, In raids which had become almost breakaways with the Wanderers attacking almost continuously, but repeatedly being repulsed. Yet in exactly half an 'hour It was 1—1. It was a grand goal shot by the arch opportunist HANCOCKS and it looked so simple in the end, too, Broadbent leaping to a great height to head out to the little man a ball which the wing forward blasted high into the net before another man had moved.
That was the goal the Wanderers obviously required. Blackpool passes began to wander. Clearances were not as decisive as they had been except when Roy Gratrix was in the thick of it.
Then every one was definite.
What a centre half this young man has become inside a month!
Both teams were presumably content to play out the half. A Wolverhampton raid was repulsed by Shimwell. The 'big full-back made a half-the-lengthof-the-field clearance The ball curved out to the right. On to it darted STANLEY MA'ITHEWS he mastered it on the half-bounce as only he can and went away with it. He went away this time as. a man with a purpose. His full-back was left trailing. A second man was passed. This time he was not content to go for the line, but cut in. reached a position wide of the far post and to a cheer which must have been audtble miles away, shot past the amazed Williams inches inside the far post for his first goal of the season. What a goal it was!
HaIl-time: Blackpool 2, Wolverhampton Wanderers 1.
They were off again at a crackerjack pace—and inside a minute it was nearly 3—1.
For almost the first time in the afternoon Billy Wright lifted the watch on. Mortensen the centre-forward showed what an opportunist he still, can be. The ball rolled loose to him. Back he shot it at such a pace that Williams was still in mid-dive as the ball hit the face of a post and cannoned out.'
It was 50-50 afterwards with the Wanderers' forwards moving a shade faster with a greater decision.
Yet in the end it was a winghalf who nearly put the Wolves level for the second time, Clamp taking a bouncing ball 30 yards out, settling on it and shooting at such a pace that Farm, in a gigantic leap, could only punch it against the bar and hold it as it fell.
Almost continuously the Wanderers raided out on Blackpool's right wing Matthews was still outwitting and outpacing every man who crossed his path. Twice the Wanderers goal had escapes.
The first time when Williams lost the ball, which showed that even great footballers are not infallible.
He was fortunate to retrieve it with his goal gaping open. Then a couple of minutes later it required a great tackle by Billy Wright to take the ball off Taylor as the little man ran into a shooting position from his partner's perfect pass.
And after that. too, in a raid which was just about perfect as the ball was rolled from man to man, Mudie missed the far post only by inches.
Then with 15 minutes of the half gone the Wanderers were reduced to 10 men. Peter Broadbent went up to a high centre, fell in a heap and was led to the dressingroom with his head encased in a piece of towel.
There was not a lot in it afterwards in spite of this reduction of the Wanderers forces. Midway through the half, Blackpool even against 10 men, were playing as a team content to be in front.
This was all wrong, presenting the Wanderers with a chance, even with four forwards to raid at times almost non-stop. Nothing material happened, but with 15 minutes left, as Broadbent returned, Blackpool were inviting it to happen. By a curious irony Blackpool, against 11 men almost increased their lead, which had almost been lost against 10.
As soon as Peter Broadbent. wandered out on to the right wing with a plaster over his right eye, Matthews won a corner.
Over bew the ball. Up to it leapt Perry.. He headed it away from Willlams and was about to celebrate his 11th goal of the season when Stuart, for the sccond time in the match, hooked the ball off the line.
Afterwards in this see-saw match it was nearly all Blackpool. In the last exciting minutes Williams made a dramatic save from Perry and punched another shot by the South African against the bar.
The Wanderers went all out for the a point in the last two minutes, but in a desperate assault Eddie Shimwell was hurt and left the field clutching a shouder.
This was, a first-half of two phases Blackpool were masters in' the first went in front with a disputed goal and nearly scored another goal 'or two about' which there could have 'been no argument 'at all.
The Wanderers for 20 minutes were no, fabulous team at all. They were, in fact, the team in retreat nearly all the time, the famous' forward line' almost reduced to a couple, of shooting raiders on the wings.
Afterwards it was all different. The Wanderers won the second phase, equalised during it and at times were nearly in front.
Roy Gratrix starred in a Blackpool defence which managed to limit the Wanderers' output to one mere goal in 45 minutes.
'Then came 'the Stanley Matthews thunderbolt and Blackpool went into the dressingroom a goal in, front and just about entitled to be.
SO the Wolves have lost the star match of football's first month, The famous forward line has been held, It shows that Blackpool are in no false position at the top of the table.
What else has this match to show? Chief lesson is that Roy Gratrix is a centre-half greater already than anybody could expect him to be.