Desmond7 Posted 21 January , 2006 Share Posted 21 January , 2006 If there are any 7th Drg. Gds. or 13th Hus. fans out there ... the 12th Royal Irish Rifles (Central Antrims) stuffed youse 4-0 at Hedauville on March 23, 1916. So there. Wee buns tae the boys frae the toon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truthergw Posted 22 January , 2006 Share Posted 22 January , 2006 If there are any 7th Drg. Gds. or 13th Hus. fans out there ... the 12th Royal Irish Rifles (Central Antrims) stuffed youse 4-0 at Hedauville on March 23, 1916. So there. Wee buns tae the boys frae the toon. I'll bet there is a disgruntled Irishman siting in the snug somewhere, glowering into his porter and muttering, " Just you wait till we get you at home!". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris_Baker Posted 23 January , 2006 Share Posted 23 January , 2006 You're on dodgy ground here, Des, for I follow the greatest British Army football team: the 1st South Staffords. Here's my evidence. 3 January 1916, Le Mesge Football Match in the General Watts Cup. Result: 1st South Staffords 3, 21st Manchesters 1 25 January 1916, Le Mesge Billets inspected by Brig-General Twining (XIII Corps) - very satisfied. Football result: 1st South Staffords 2, 22nd Manchesters 1 18 March 1916, front line Mametz 1 OR wounded. Semi-final of General Watts Cup. South Staffords 3, 2nd Gordon Highlanders 2. Enemy very active, with trench mortars and rifle grenades. 29 March 1916, front line Mametz Final of the General Watts Football Cup. Result South Staffords 1, RAMC 0 4 August 1916, Vaux-en-Amienois B and C Coys played in the First Round of the Mametz Football Cup, presented by Brig-General Minshull-Ford, GOC 91st Infantry Brigade. Results today: B Coy 5, 91st Trench Mortar battery 1 C Coy 1, 21st Manchesters 2 5 August 1916 B Coy 0, C Coy, the 22nd Manchesters 4 [ouch] A Coy 6, A Coy, the 2nd Queens 0 [more like it] 6 August 1916 A Coy 1, D Coy, the 22nd Manchesters 0. 8 August 1916 Semifinal of the Cup. A Coy 3, 21st Manchesters 1 10 August 1916 Cup Final. A Coy, 1st South Staffords 3, B Coy, the 21st Manchesters 1. And it goes on even unto 1917... 8 February 1917, Raincheval Tactical operations training. First round of the 'Major-General Watts Football Cup' in the afternoon. Result: Staffords 12, RAMC 2. 13 February 1917, Raincheval Second round of football cup. Staffords 7, 21st Manchesters 2. 26 February 1917, in Lonely Lane trench (small matter of an attack near Beuamont Hamel having intervened) Relieved by 1st Royal Welch Fusiliers, returned to billets at Mailly-Maillet. Battalion orders note that 'Major-Gen Barrow, CO 7th Division, and Brigadier-General Cumming, CO 91st Infantry Brigade, have expressed their great appreciation of the work done by this battalion during operations which ended by the capture of Serre. The CO has great pleasure... and wishes to record how proud he is of the behaviour of the battlion during the period 23-25th February. In addition to the advance, it was necessary to call on the battalion to do an enormous amount of digging and carrying in very heavy ground, but all tasks were cheerfully and successfully carried out'. Semi-Final of the football cup in the afternoon: Staffords 7, 2nd Gordon Highlanders 2. Marched to Bertrancourt. 11 March 1917, Arqueves Football final, in Bertrancourt. Staffords 5, 24th Manchesters 0 [thus retaining this trophy] I rest my case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desmond7 Posted 23 January , 2006 Author Share Posted 23 January , 2006 Ok OK ... so your boys are playing in the 'Premier League'!!! I'll be back with more results from the 'Conference South' .... Seriously, when a war diary notes things like this (pre-1st July) it makes you realise just how 'innocent' some of the Kitchener Btns. must have been. Des Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desmond7 Posted 5 February , 2006 Author Share Posted 5 February , 2006 Nov. 24th 1915 Bayencourt - Read it and weep Warwicks fans. 5th R. War. Reg. 1, 12th Royal Irish Rifles 4. easy, easy. However, on December 30 1915 at Vauchelles Les Quesnoy ... we wuz gubbed by the Lanc. Fus (doesn't say which batt.) 4-2. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ianw Posted 5 February , 2006 Share Posted 5 February , 2006 It appears the Staffords had better results in 1917 than 1916. I wonder if this was because they got some ringers in with the new drafts or their opponents lost good players in the interim. Did they happen to have a whole bunch of professionals in their ranks. What great morale boosters those games must have been though. I would also imagine that they would not have been for the faint hearted ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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