Sam Allen (2 January 1868 – 1 January 1946) was a long serving servant of
Swindon Town
Swindon Town Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club has played home matches at ...
football club.
A Swindon stalwart, Allen originally joined the club in 1895 as a member of the club's committee. Two years later, he joined the board of directors, before he took control of team affairs prior to the 1902-03 season, becoming the Town's first recognised manager. In an era where the board would have had control over team selection, Allen's job mainly involved assembling a capable team. Slowly but surely, it was a job he did well - turning a team who hadn't yet finished in the top half of the
Southern League table, into championship contenders.
By signing Swindon greats such as Jock Walker and
Harold Fleming, Allen led the club during one of the most successful spells in their history. Between 1908 and 1914, Swindon won the Southern League title twice, finished as runners-up three times, and reached the semi-finals of the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
twice - as well as winning the
Dubonnet Cup.
Unfortunately, the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
interrupted Swindon's success, and by the time football resumed in 1919, Allen again had to virtually recreate the side. After a disappointing first season following the hostilities, the Town joined
the Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
in 1920, becoming a founder member of
Division Three (South)
The Third Division South of The Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division North with clubs elected to the League or relegated from Division Two allocated to o ...
. Over the next eight seasons, Swindon finished in the top six in every season bar one - but with only one promotion spot, they failed to get out of the division. Allen again highlighted his eye for a player with his signing of
Harry Morris - the club's record goalscorer, and over this period, the Town recorded their two biggest victories - 9-1 vs
Luton Town
Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1885, it is nicknam ...
in their first league match, and 10-1 vs
Farnham
Farnham ( /ˈfɑːnəm/) is a market town and civil parish in Surrey, England, around southwest of London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, close to the county border with Hampshire. The town is on the north branch of the River Wey, a trib ...
in the FA Cup in 1925.
From 1929, Swindon fell into a gradual decline - not helped by the board's insistence on selling players to balance the books. Allen was obviously not pleased with this, and, after the Town were forced to apply for re-election in 1933, he willingly relinquished his team responsibilities, reverting to a secretarial position. This moved allowed the board to appoint
Ted Vizard
Edward Vizard (7 June 1889
– 25 December 1973) was a Welsh international footballer who became a manager. He spent almost all his playing career at Bolton Wanderers.
Playing career
Born in Cogan, Wales Vizard joined Bolton Wanderers in Sep ...
as the club's first full-time team manager, in the modern sense of the word.
Amazingly, Allen remained as Swindon's secretary for thirteen more years, taking his total length of service to 51 years. He received the Football League's long service award in 1941, as he kept the club alive during World War Two, when the Town, unlike other clubs, completely closed down for the duration. He died whilst still in office, on 1 January 1946 - the report of his funeral covering three columns in the
Evening Advertiser.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Sam
1946 deaths
English football managers
Swindon Town F.C. managers
1868 births