The 1893–94 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 fifth season in

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in Association football around the wor ...

. Stoke finished the season in 11th position after picking up 29 points of which 27 were claimed at the

Victoria Ground The Victoria Ground was the home ground of Stoke City from 1878 until 1997, when the club relocated to the Britannia Stadium after 119 years. At the time of its demolition it was the oldest operational ground in the Football League. History ...

. Indeed, Stoke's home form of 1893–94 was excellent with 13 wins from 15 but their away from was terrible as they failed to win any away game during the season. Stoke also competed in the short lived United Counties League which was won on goal average by

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pl ...

Season review

League

In 1893–94 the Stoke side was broken up with

Alf Underwood Alfred Underwood (April 1869 – 8 October 1928) was an English footballer who played 130 times for Stoke in the 1880s and 1890s. Early and personal life Alfred Underwood was born in April 1869, with the birth registered in Newcastle-under-L ...

Bill Rowley William Spencer Rowley (11 September 1865 – 16 March 1934) was an English footballer who played as goalkeeper for Stoke in the 1880s and 1890s, also making two appearances for England. He later became Stoke's manager between 1895 and 1897. H ...

and Ted Evans all losing their first choice status. Eleventh place in the table was achieved, thanks in main to an excellent home record of 13 wins from 15. The only defeat in front of their own fans came shortly after Christmas when

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...

won 3–0 whilst eventual champions Aston Villa were held 3–3 in the other game. As their home form was good Stoke's away from was awful picking up just two points and conceded 62 goals on their travels. Indeed, from 1 April 1893 to 17 March 1895 not one away win was gained and by coincidence it was

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot ...

whom Stoke beat on each occasion at the start and at the end of that dismal run. There was tragedy during the season as young defender Jack Proctor fell ill with

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severi ...

and died at the age of 22. Stoke also competed in the

United Counties League The United Counties League (also known after its sponsor as the ''Uhlsport United Counties League'') is an English football league covering Northamptonshire, Rutland and Bedfordshire and most of Leicestershire as well as parts of Buckinghamshi ...

this season which involved two groups of four teams playing each other twice and the winners of each group playing each other to win the title. Stoke finished 2nd in their group behind

on goal average. West Brom went on to lose to

Derby County Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group. Founded in 188 ...

in the final. The tournament failed to get the supporters in through the gates and after just one season the United Counties League was scrapped.

FA Cup

Season 1893–94 also saw one of Stoke's best FA Cup displays since they entered the competition in 1883. Competing in gale-force winds, they knocked out Everton 1–0 with a

Joe Schofield Joseph Alfred Schofield (1 January 1871 – 29 September 1929) was an English footballer and football manager. A winger, he played for Stoke between 1891 and 1899, winning himself three England caps in the process. He was later appointed as S ...

goal in the final minute of the match. The Stoke players were praised by watching reporters for making the match highly entertaining in difficult conditions. Alas they went out in the next round defeated by Sheffield Wednesday.

Final league table

Results

''Stoke's score comes first''

Legend

Football League First Division

FA Cup

United Counties League

won the other group and beat

in the final. The

was not deemed a success due to poor attendances and was scrapped after just one season.

Table

Squad statistics

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1893-94 Stoke F.C. season Stoke City F.C. seasons