The 1911–12 season was

Stoke Stoke is a common place name in the United Kingdom. Stoke may refer to: Places United Kingdom The largest city called Stoke is Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire. See below. Berkshire * Stoke Row, Berkshire Bristol * Stoke Bishop * Stok ...

's third season in the

Southern Football League The Southern League is a men's football competition featuring semi-professional clubs from the South and Midlands of England. Together with the Isthmian League and the Northern Premier League it forms levels seven and eight of the English fo ...

. Stoke now having left the Birmingham & District League to concentrate on the Southern League Division One, which at the time was only second to the Football League. Stoke neither struggled or impressed and they finished in 10th position with 36 points.

Season review

League

After leaving the Birmingham & District League Stoke concentrated on the Southern League Division One which was now a much more tougher league. The squad was strengthened by

Alfred Barker Alfred J. Barker (1873–1940) was an English association football manager who managed Stoke between 1908 and 1914. Career Barker was born in Stoke-upon-Trent and became a referee for the Football League and was also a supporter of his local ...

who brought in a new half back line with the arrival of Jimmy McGillvray,

Jock Grieve John Grieve (1887 – 1955) was a Scottish footballer who played for Hibernian, Stoke and Watford. Career Grieve was born in Edinburgh and began his career with Irish side Distillery before returning to play for Hibernian in 1905. He spent fo ...

and George Smart. Stoke made a useful start to the season and held a position in the top half of the table, but four defeats either side of Christmas saw them plunge into the bottom five and prospects for the new year did not look too promising. Yet, things did manage to improve on the pitch. Goalkeeper Richard Herron and right-half

Sam Baddeley Samuel Baddeley (12 July 1884 – Autumn 1960) was an English footballer. A centre-half, he played for Burslem Port Vale in 1906–07 before switching to Stoke after Vale quit the Football League. Stoke also resigned, and he helped the club to ...

were restored to the first team and forwards John Lenaghan and

Tom Revill Thomas Frederick Revill (9 May 1892 – 29 March 1979) was an English cricketer and footballer. Football career He began with youth sides in his native Bolsover before joining Chesterfield in 1911. He scored 19 goals in 17 Midland League games ...

joined to add some much needed punch up front. Stoke sold both

Arthur Cartlidge Arthur Cartlidge (12 June 1880 – 1922) was an English footballer who played in the Football League for Aston Villa and Stoke as well as spending seven years at Bristol Rovers. Career Cartlidge was born in Stoke-upon-Trent and played amateu ...

and

South Shields South Shields () is a coastal town in South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the south bank of the mouth of the River Tyne. Historically, it was known in Roman times as Arbeia, and as Caer Urfa by Early Middle Ages. According to the 20 ...

for a decent price while Jack Peart joined

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...

for £600. Stoke ended the season with a 7–0 victory over Millwall Athletic. Stoke had some good crowds at home in 1911–12 with 18,000 present to see the opening match against Brighton & Hove Albion. However Stoke fans developed a reputation following a near riot in December 1911 home defeat to Queens Park Rangers. The referee had no choice but to abandon the match with just two minutes remaining, although the league ordered the result to stand. Stoke had to pay £4,000 for the installation of fences around the ground which came as a bitter blow to the club's finances following the debacle in 1908.

FA Cup

Stoke made an early exit to Walsall in the fifth qualifying round losing 2–1 at

Fellows Park Fellows Park was a football stadium in Walsall, England. It was the home ground of Walsall F.C. from 1896 until 1990, when the team moved to the Bescot Stadium. Fellows Park was situated about a quarter of a mile away from the club's present ...

Season review

League

FA Cup

Final league table

Results

Legend

Southern Football League Division One

FA Cup

Squad statistics

References