MANCHESTER CITY

GUIDE TO FOOTBALL PROGRAMMES

ISSUE NO 1 - 1946/47

Hello and welcome to the first issue of my Manchester City Guide To Football Programmes. There will hopefully be plenty of information and knowledge included in each of these issues on what is out there in regard to City programmes both Home and Away including Friendly’s and Minor Cup games also. Its also about time that someone thought of producing a comprehensive guide to City programmes so I’m giving it a go!! If any information included in these issues is incorrect or you have some information to share let me know and it can be included in a future edition as its for everyone’s benefit.

So here we go then with the first issue and the first post war season 1946/47 a 2nd Division championship winning season for City.

Here to the left is City's first home programme after the war against Bury. The programmes this season were eight pages with the oxo advert on the front page. Each programme was priced at two pence and consisted inside features on club topics, city fixtures, including the reserves and Manchester League and the Team Line ups in the middle. Of City's home programmes the value of a good condition programme for a general league game would be between £15 and £20 each on a normal list although most dealers would initially but these on offers lists.

I would say that there are 4 league games that are hard to come by these would be the Bury game along with Bradford Park Avenue, Newport and Tottenham. Bradford Park Avenue and Newport as they are ex-league clubs and Tottenham has been hard to obtain for Tottenham collectors over recent years. The Tottenham programme would be worth around £50.

The away City programmes are much harder to come across and very expensive - The easier to obtain ones I would say would be the London clubs such as Spurs, West Ham, along with Sheff Wed, Burnley and Birmingham. Even these ones would average around £20 each. Some of the aways are very hard to obtain due to the status of those clubs and not being very collectable teams, also in the case of the Fulham programme (see below) this was a single sheet due to an industrial emergency which was occurring at that time. Certainly the hardest programmes for this season are Leicester, Newport, Barnsley and Bradford PA - all 4 of these I would value around £100 or more, and even if available would certainly be on offers lists. All the remaining aways would also be on offers lists and in price could range from £30 - £60. Due to the varying sizes and lack of paper due to the war it is also a problem getting the aways in good condition and being realistic the priority would be just get it - if you need it. Southampton’s programme is also a large sheet in the style of the Fulham one and both Notts Forest, West Brom, Spurs and West Ham are also similar in size and lack of pages. In the case of Millwall and Plymouth there is an additional problem with there being more than one colour of programme produced!!! Millwall I believe there is 3 colours - I have a white front, and Plymouth there are 2 - orange and pink!! If you know of any others or the colours of the Millwall ones let me know and we can include in a future issue. I have since had a note from a fellow City collector Nigel Gregory that he has a pale blue version of the Millwall programme. Thanks Nigel.

CITY PLAYED 4 GAMES IN THE FA CUP WITH 2 HOME GAMES AND 2 AWAY. THE HOMES WERE GATESHEAD AND BOLTON IN A REPLAY. PRICE WISE GATESHEAD DUE TO NO LONGER BEING IN THE LEAGUE WOULD BE AROUND £50. BOLTON WOULD BE AT BOLTON (SEE RIGHT) AND BIRMINGHAM WOULD BE AROUND £30-£35. CITY'S INVOLVEMENT IN THE FA CUP ENDED IN THE 5TH ROUND AT BIRMINGHAM LOSING 0-5!! AS PER THE OPENING PAGE THE ISSUE NUMBERS WITH THE HOMES FOR THE FA CUP GAMES ARE NUMBERS 13 AND 15.

IN 1946/47 SEASON THERE WERE 2 INSTANCES WHERE POSTPONED PROGRAMMES WERE PRODUCED AND A DIFFERENT PROGRAMME WAS PRODUCED FOR THE RE-ARRANGED GAME - OR WAS THERE!! IS THERE ANYONE OUT THERE WHO HAS A COPY OF NEWCASTLE AT HOME 1ST MARCH 1947 VOLUME 41 NO 17? BASICALLY ON THE NUMBERING IT SEEMS THAT A PROGRAMME WAS PRODUCED BUT I'M NOT AWARE OF ANYONE WHO HAS IT. CITY ACTUALLY PLAYED FULHAM AWAY THAT DAY! THE OTHER POSTPONED PROGRAMME WAS WEST BROM AWAY WHERE THERE WAS A PROGRAMME PRODUCED AND IT DOES EXIST AND IS EXTREMELY RARE. THE POSTPONED DATE WAS 8TH MARCH 1947.

BELOW IS 46/47'S FRIENDLY AND MINOR CUP GAMES AND IF A PROGRAMME(*) WAS PRODUCED.

PICTURED ABOVE BOLTON (LSC) 27/11

IN THE LANCS CUP THERE WAS A TITANIC BATTLE RESULTING IN 4 GAMES BETWEEN US AND BOLTON. 3 WERE AT HOME AND PROGRAMMES FOR ALL THE GAMES AND ARE VERY HARD TO OBTAIN. THE EASIEST IS THE FIRST MATCH AND HARDEST IS THE 2ND PLAYED IN EARLY NOVEMBER. THE OCTOBER GAME WOULD BE AROUND £60 2ND GAME IN THE £125 REGION AND THE LAST GAME AROUND £80. THE AWAY PROGRAMME AT BOLTON IS JUST AS HARD AS THE OTHERS AND WOULD ALSO BE AROUND £100 IN MY ESTIMATION. AFTER ALL THOSE GAMES WE EVENTUALLY LOST THE 2ND REPLAY!

PICTURED ABOVE RANGERS (FRIENDLY)

THE OTHER 3 GAMES INVOLVED A HOME GAME AGAINST RANGERS (VOLUME 41 NO 21) AND AN END OF SEASON TOUR TO IRELAND FOR GAMES AGAINST SHELBOURNE AND LINFIELD. THE RANGERS PROGRAMME IS THE SAME FORMAT AS THE LEAGUE ISSUES AND IS WORTH AROUND £40. THE 2 GAMES IN IRELAND ARE VERY RARE AND WOULD BE ON OFFERS LISTS IF ANY ONE HAD THEM FOR SALE - BOTH WOULD BE AROUND OVER £250 TO OBTAIN.