3rd August 1929
When football was starting to become popular The Wednesday Cricket Club in Sheffield formed a football offshoot calling the new club - believe it or not - The Wednesday Football Club. Ok, the new club was generally known as the Sheffield Wednesday but their official name when they joined the Football League in 1892 and won their first League Championship in 1903 remained The Wednesday Football Club. It wasn't until 3rd August 1929 that they finally did the paperwork to become Sheffield Wednesday FC, officially.
The club was initially a cricket team named The Wednesday Cricket Club, after the day of the week on which they played their matches. It was common for shops and business to close on a Wednesday afternoon, as they were normally "open for business" on Saturday mornings. The footballing side of the club was established to keep the team together and fit during the winter months. SWFC was born on the evening of Wednesday 4 September 1867 at a meeting at the Adelphi Hotel in Sheffield. The formation was announced two days later with the following statement in the Sheffield Independent newspaper:
- SHEFFIELD WEDNESDAY CRICKET CLUB AND FOOTBALL CLUB. – At a general meeting held on Wednesday last, at the Adelphi Hotel, it was decided to form a football club in connection with the above influential cricket club, with the object of keeping together during the winter season the members of this cricket club. From the great unanimity which prevailed as to the desirability of forming the club, there is every reason to expect that it will take first rank. The office bearers were elected as follows: – President, Mr. B. Chatterton; vice-president and treasurer, Mr. F. S. Chambers; hon. Secretary, Mr. Jno. Marsh; assistant, Mr. Castleton. Committee: Messrs Jno. Rodgers, Jno. White, C. Stokes, and H. Bocking. About sixty were enrolled without any canvas, some of them being the best players of the town.
Even at this first meeting it became apparent that football would soon come to eclipse the cricketing side of the club. The formation of the football club came within a decade of the first football club in the world, Sheffield FC being formed. Hallam FC. was set up shortly afterwards and by 1867 Association football was becoming very popular. The Wednesday played their first football match in October 1867 against the Mechanics Club at Norfolk Park, a game which they won by three goals and four rouges to nil.
You may like to search for the definition of a "rouge".
By 1 February 1868 Wednesday were playing their first competitive football match as they entered the Cromwell Cup, a four-team competition for newly formed clubs sponsored by Oliver Cromwell, (no not THE OC!!) but the manager of the local Theatre Royal!!! They went on to win the cup, beating Cromwell's own team, The Garrick Club 1–0 after extra time in the final at Bramwell Lane. The match has its own place in history with Wednesday being the scorers in the first recorded instance of a "golden goal" although the term was not used at the time.
Wednesday were joined by the Clegg brothers, Charles and William in 1870. Charles became the club's first international player when he played in the very first international on 30 November 1872.[4] William represented the Wednesday in the next international on 8 March 1873.[5] Both players would go on to be associated with the club for the rest of their lives. Although it would be Charles who became most heavily involved in football eventually rising to become president and chairman of the FA. Both the Cleggs received knighthoods in later life.
In 1876 Wednesday were joined by James Lang. The directors of the club had seen him playing for Glasgow against the Sheffield FA representative side. He was subsequently invited to come to Sheffield and play for the club and given a job, working in a silversmiths owned by one of the directors, which involved no formal duties. This is now acknowledged as the first case of professionalism in the game.
Sheffield's first annual tournament, the Sheffield FA Challenge Cup, was inaugurated in 1876 and won by Wednesday who beat Heeley, their chief rivals at the time, in the final 4–3 after extra time. They would go on to also win the first Wharncliffe Cup in 1879. By this time Wednesday had become the dominant force in local football.
Rocky road to professionalism
In 1879 a number of Wednesday players were involved in a team referred to as The Zulus The team was set up to raise funds for the families of victims of the Zulu War. They toured the north of England and Scotland but after allegations that the players were being paid, a practice that was illegal at the time, the team was forced to disband by the Sheffield FA in 1882.
In the summer of 1882, after a season in which The Wednesday reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup, the cricket and football teams split permanently, and by the end of 1925 the cricket team had disbanded. In the 1880s Wednesday became a permanent fixture in the FA Cup as they attempted to move away from local competitions, however in the 1886-7 season Wednesday did not meet the deadline for entry and a revolt by several of their most skilful players followed.
Several players, all involved in the earlier Zulus controversy, temporarily left the club to play for a local works team which had managed to submit its entry on time. Later in the season the same players threatened to walk out permanently and set up a professional club called Sheffield Rovers. Wednesday's president at the time, John Holmes, was against the club turning professional, but under the immense pressure of the possibility of losing his star players he entered into talks with the rebels, eventually offering professional terms. At the meeting called to set up Sheffield Rovers, one of the rebel players, Tom Cawley, argued that Wednesday should be given one final chance and the football club duly turned professional on 22 April 1887. The initial wages were five shillings for home fixtures and seven shillings and sixpence for away games. (for the record there were twenty shillings in the Pound (£)!! and a Shilling was worth 12p! (20 x 12 = 240p!!)...seems a long time ago!
BELOW: FA CUP WINNERS 1896...Wednesday who beat Wolves 2-1 at The Crystal Palace, watched by just over 48,800. The Trophy was a new one, bought by previous winners, Aston Villa, who lost the old trophy!
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