Football in Devon 6
1898 to 1899

The 1898-1899 season 

SATURDAY 8th OCTOBER 1898,

TRAINING COLLEGE 2.
EXETER UNITED 2,

Scores
Exeter Potter, Frost,
College Evans, Berry,

The Exeter United Association club played their first match in the City this afternoon against the Training College on their own ground. The College have this year a very creditable team, having as their centre forward, Berry, a former member of the Northern Union, The eleven also includes one or two County representatives. The United have secured the services of several first rate players and the contest was therefore expected to be a somewhat hot one. The rain which fell this morning had made the grass very slippery, and these conditions were antagonistic to a fast game. The College set the ball rolling and from the start things waxed famous. After some first class combined play on both sides, with the College being pehaps the most conspicuous, the United forwards made a raid on their opponents goal, and Frost succeeded in scoring for the United, After a good deal of give and take play, Blackmore had hard lines in not scoring for the College, the leather hitting the crossbar, and going over, The visiting forwards again acted on the offensive, and Davey, Lang and Hodges were conspicuous in their efforts to baffle Burrows, but he was always equal to the onslaughts and on one or two occasions executed some grand saves, After some tricky work by Berry in midfield Evans received the ball and doging Mortimer, he notched the first goal for the home side, Each side in turn then scored, but both goals were disallowed, offside being given in both cases. Potter miskicked, and Berry secured in midfield and sent a low shot into the corner of the net, In the 2nd half the College displayed some fine combination and they succeeded in getting dangerously near their opponents goal, Askam got possession and endeavoured to clear, but the weight of the ball owing to its wet state, just let it fall to Berry, who quick as lightning, banged it between the posts.. A little later Dingle, Male and Berry gave Simmons a warm time of it, but he proved equal to the occasion and cleared eventually with a fine kick, Both teams seemed to be tiring, but the superiority of the College was seen in their splendid combination when attacking and in their fine judgment in defensive action. Both goalkeepers were pretty well constantly employed till the end, but in spit of all efforts to the contrary, nothing further could be scored,

SATURDAY 22nd OCTOBER 1898,
At Magdalen Road,

82nd BATTERY 1, EXETER UNITED 2.

Scorers Not known 

A fast and exciting match was witnessed, United were without Conry, and the contest impeded by rain, did not commence till late in the afternoon,

SATURDAY 5th NOVEMBER 1898,
At Magdalen Road,

EXETER UNITED 3,
DEVON COUNTY SCHOOL 1.

Scorers
Exeter Potter, Hitchcock, Davey,
D.C.S. Taylor.

Exeter won the toss and immediately became aggressive. Potter from a hefty kick by Simmons receivedthe ball at his toes in front of goal and by a lovely shot placed the leather into the corner of the net. The school team commenced to play hard, but the weight of the Exeter men was superior, and they stormed the School's goal, and Hitchcock rushed the ball through from a halfback's pass, in spite of some pretty play by Hodges, Potter and Cole, backed up well by Askam, Simmons and Mortimer, nothing further was scored in the first half. Taylor in the 2nd half scored for theDevon School and Davey for the United.

SATURDAY 12th NOVEMBER 1898.

EXETER UNITED 3, YEOVIL CASUALS 0.

Scorers
Exeter Coles, Vincent, Og.


Vincent set the ball in motion for Exeter, who immediately pressed, Potter forced a corner for Exeter, but Compton-Lundie placed vide, The cauals then gained possession and with a good combined move of passing play took the ball to the Exeter goal, wher Beare scored but was given offside. The visitors continued to press, and Martin was robbed in the act of shooting by Compton-Lundie. When Exeter mounted an attack Bond and 6leave proved equal, and up to half time nothing was scored, On the restart play continued to be very even, Potter had a good shot spoilt by Davey, who was ruled offside. Yeovil forced a corner through Luffman, but a good kick by Simmons put the Exeter goal out of danger, Potter receiving from a pass by Mortimer took the ball downthe wing in fine style, before centreing splendidly to Hitchcock, who slipped, but Coles who was following up, sent in a fast low shot which neatly ran through the corner of the goal, The visitors then bucked up, and the right wing dribbled up and got near the Exeter goal. The ball was shot past Simmons but rebounded offthe goal post, Askan clearing with a fine kick, Eventually Potter went down the wing again for Exeter, and passed to Davey, who shot, and Gleave, accidentally put the ball through his own net, A splendid round of passing between Hodges and Coles got the ball through once more to the Yeovil teams quarters and Vincent put it into the net off Bond,

SATURDAY 19th NOVEMBER 1898.

At Wellington,

WEST SOMERSET COUNTY SCHOOL 1. EXETER UNITED 1,

Scorers Somerset Roberts, Exeter Exeter took a good team and the School turned out in full force, the result being a hard and fast game, frequently exciting and at times brilliant, The opening half was of a very even character, and gavethe lead to the School, Roberts putting in a shot which Simmons failed to stop, The 2nd half was as good if not better than the predecessor. The United showed very good combination and eventually scored a lovely goal,

SATURDAY 26th NOVEMBER 1898, DEVON SENIOR CUP Round Two.
At Devonport,

WORCESTER REGIMENT 1,
EXETER UNITED 0.


SATURDAY 3rd DECEMBER 1898.

EXETER UNITED 0. BRIDGWATER 0,

At Magdalen Road

Quite a large crowd, demonstrative of the increasing popularity of the Association code in Exeter gathered at the Magdalén Road Ground, Coles set the ball rolling for Exeter, and there was Immediately a swift rush up the field, but Gill and Bristepproved equal. The visitors then made a good advance through their left wing, Simmons was given an anxious time, but was relieved by a goal Kick, After a nice bit of work by Coles and Hodges, Stemridge relieved and sent in a good shot which was fisted out by Broadberry in the nick of time. Give and take then ensued, Exeter's back division being called upon to act on the defensive. Davey and Coles sent in fine shots which went over the bar. Coles passed to Hitchcock, who delayed too long and the ball was put into touch, Bridgwater the made a strong attack but Askam and Mortimer cleared the Exeter lines.
In the 2nd half a hot attack by Bridgwater nearly brought about the downfall of the Exeter goal, Simmons rushed out and fistedthe ball, but Taylor was there, and had it not been for Mortimer, who made a timely clearance, a point would have been Registered against the United, In the closing stages a centre by Davey was just missed by Hitchcock, who failed to get his head to the ball,

SATURDAY 10th DECEMBER 1898,
At Topsham Barracks,

ROYAL ARTILLERY 2.
Shears; Whilley, Palmer; Woodford, Stembridge, Davies; McGuire, Hillyard,
Mellors, Tuernley, Smith,

EXETER UNITED 3,
Simmons; Bailey, Mortimer; Tremewan, Oliver, Chew; Potter, Jones, Hitchcock, Coles, Davey,

Scorers
R. A. McGuire 2.
Exeter Davey, Jones, Coles,

Play was confined to the Gunners half for some time, pretty combination ensuing between Coles and Davey, Davey after a great dribble notched the first goal for Exeter 12 minutes after the start. Then Jones beat Whilley and sent in a beautiful shot, which elicitated cheers from the crowd, The Artillery were at last put on their mettle and Tuerney from a nice lead from Mellors, made the first shot at Simmons who coolly stopped the ball, standing under the crossbar. McGuire made a splendid attempt for the Artillery, sending the ball narrowly wide of the posts. Each side now pressed in turn and at half time the United were leading 2-0. Exeter broke away in a determined rush in the 2nd half, and Coles going through withthe ball at his feet, scored with a daisy cutter. Undaunted the Artillery went to work, and Chew miskicking, McGuire had an easy task to score the first goal amidst loud cheering from the Gunners comrades," Each side now had a free kick for a foul for which the Referee was greeted with derisive cheers from the spectators. Oliver defended finely for the United, but eventually McGuire got a 2nd goal through Simmons leaving his charge, and just beforethe final whistle sounded for time, the ball went either just wide or just inside the Exeter posts, but in the semi-darkness it was not clear what had happened, The Referee however, signalled "no goal".

SATURDAY 17th DECEMBER 1898,
At Magdalen Road,

EXETER UNITED 1,
SOMERSET COUNTY SCHOOL 1,


WEDNESDAY 28th DECEMBER 1898,

EXETER UNITED 2,
EXMOUTH ALL SAINTS 1.

Exmouth Team:- Plimsoll; Carter, Clarke; Hurford, Morey, Southwell; Palmer, Crown, Litten, Pedler, Jones, 

SATURDAY 31st DECEMBER 1898

Exeter United 0

Watchet (Somerset) 1
Friendly at Magdalen Road 
Match Report from the 
West Somerset Free Press.  

Watchet journeged into Devonsbire for the first time on Saturday, when they met the representatives of the cathedral city on their ground at Magdalen- road, and returned victorious by one goal to nil. Neither side could trot out its regular eleven, there being two alterations in the visitors' ranks, while the home team was also weakened, and the unpunctuality of some of the local players led to the limitation of play to 60 minutes. Choice of ends on this ground ought ordinarily to mean a big advantage to one of the sides, the slope being very pronounced, but Simons decided to tackle tbe worst portion first and play what might be accurately termed uphill. For a little time one could scarcely form an opinion as to how the game would go, the ball travelling up and down, but seldom getting beyond the penalty line, but Howe somewhat altered this by giving the home team the first intimation of danger, with a long shot. which was hardly straight enough. A momentary pressure by the visitors' forwards was entirely upset by a huge kick by Simmons, who sent the ball back to the other end, but he and his partner were both beaten when a little later the Watchet for- wards with one of their "all in a row" pieces of work got within range and let fly. The cus todian came out to meet the ball, but he only had the mortification of sending it to Strong, who tipped it over Myall's head, and long before he could recover it it was in the net. Laing about this time became very prominent, sending in one or two well-directed shots from the left, but neither was successful, and his outside partner was also at fault when a capital itself to him. The same ill-luck attended the visitors, who were far from being in their best shooting trim, one or two good chances boing missed. Once Strong had eluded and outpaced the backs, but at his final attempt, the ball went on the outer instead of the inner side of the net. A further display by the home left was negatived at the proper moment by Lovell, who fisted away, but from then until half-time both custodians were left in peace. The visitore, baving more than held their own at first, were expecting a little relaxation in the second half of the game, and there was every promise of this for the first quarter of an bour, though they did not score. Then came a change. The Exeter men played more in keeping with the latter part of their title, and seemed likely for a time to rub off the defeat. One of the best shots came from Potter, who found the visiting custodian fully on the aler', but the others were dealt with by the backs, who were little at fault. After this sharp attack, Watchet emulated the example shown them, but were unable to break through, and corners also proved of no avail. In the closing stages, the home attack was a trifle too rash to be very successful, and a firm defence again sent play to the vicinity of the Exeter posts, near which it was proceeding when the whistle blew.

Teams:-
Exeter United :-
Goal:- M. Myall, C.S Simmons and G. S. Beasley: half-backs, T. B. Ball, Compton Lundi, and-Needbam; forwards, R. Potter and P. Laing (left wing), T. Chew (centre), S. King and T. Perkins (right wing).

Watchet
Goal, E. A. Lovell; backs, I. Cridland and A. Chave; half-backs, W. Howe, C. E. Ayres, and E. Chidgey; forwards, B. Bray and F. Lee (left wing), G. Eveleigh (centre), A. Strong and T. Simons (right wing).

Referee, Mr. J. G. Davey 

SATURDAY 7th JANUARY 1899,
At Magdalen Road,

EXETER UNITED 3, Myall; Bailey, Jarman; Askam, Harvey, Hall; Coles, Prout, Simmons, Laing, Perkins,

DAWLISH 1. Lamacraft; Woodman, Knapman; Carter, Easton, Allsop; Frazer, Keeling, Hirtscel, Cutliffe, Simmons.

Scorers Exeter Laing 3. Dawlish The United fielded a much changed side, with Mannell, late of Bournemouth, and Prout late of Honiton playing their first games. The turf was acomplete mud puddle when Simmons started the ball to Laing, who immediately got away. Exeter's left wing showed to good advantage and Laing with a bumping shot scored the first goal, The muddy state of the ground caused many amusing incidents for the spectatos, but good play was impossible. Laing receiving from Perkins, got a 2nd goal for Exeter before half time. Both Woodman and Knapman played well in defence for Dawlish, but at the same time were no match for Laing, who scored anothergoal for the United in the 2nd half,


SATURDAY 21st JANUARY 1899,

The match between Exeter United and Burnham was postponed, Exeter wereunable to raise a team,

SATURDAY 28th JANUARY 1899,
At Camp Field,

TRAINING COLLEGE 3,
Burrows; Dadley, Blackman; Tremewan, Oliver, Dyer; Baker, Shuttlewood, Berry, Beazley, Jones,

EXETER UNITED 1,
Simmons; Bailey, Jarman; Askam, Hall, Chappell; Hitchcock, Swan, Chown, Coles, Prout,

Scorers
College Berry 2, Baker,
Exeter Coles,

In cold but brilliantly fine weather, the College kicked off and Berry rushed down field with the leather at his toes, but Hall_nipped in and was dribbling merrily when Tremewan came in, and robbing the Exonian, gave to Berry, who in turn passed to Jones, the eventual shot at goal by Jones was saved by Simmons, who kicked clear, The Collegians kept up thepressure but good defence on the part of Coles, Chappell and Hall saw them off, The St Luke's men were soon at it again, but Jarman robbed Baker of the leather and sent it to Coles, who tried all he knew to get past the College defence, but found Oliver the big stumbling just in the nick of time. Baker for the Collegians, sintons to register the first goal for St Lukes, ball came over to Berry, who with a fast shot beat Simmons Not long afterwards Baker shot another goal for the College, on the left and tricked Chappell, The In the 2nd half Exeter improved, but the lack of cohesion among the forwards prevented them from making any real progress. The College made further efforts to increase their lead, but the grand play of Bailey kept them out. After about three quarters of the 2nd period, Berry got through again, and beat Simmons to register the 3rd goal for the College. Notwithstanding these reverses the United played with renewed vigour, and Coles getting clear tried a long shot, which the College goalkeeper failed to stop, giving Exeter a goal, block, Oliver passed to Berry, who sailed through at a great pace, Bailey coming to Exeter's rescue

SATURDAY 4th FEBRUARY 1899,
At Magdalen Road,

EXETER UNITED 3,
Simmons; Whilley, Bailey; Askam, Strembridge, Jarman; Smith, McGuire, Mellors, Coles, Potter, 15th
BATTERY 0,
Slater; Jones, Davies; Ryan, O'Brien, Hay; Richards,, Marcmant, Chambers, Bond, Harris,

Scorers
Exeter United Mellors 2, Coles,

The ground was in a veryy slippery and treacherous condition, Exeter won the toss and Mellors started the ball rolling, but Chambers, who got possession was robbed by Jarman and Stambridge, and Coles got close to the Artillery goal, The 15th Company then made progress, nearly as far as the Exeter goal, but Bond put the ball too high, Coles then passed to Mellors, who scored the first goal for Exeter United, A few minutes later Smith and McGuire between them got the 2nd goal, Mellors following up the ball and the goalkeeper into the net together. The United were now playing a grand game and Coles broke away with a fine spurt and scored the 3rd goal for the City men, Re-starting in the 2nd half, the Artillery went down the field, but Bailey cleared. A beautiful run by McGuire, in which he covered all but half the field, took him to the goalmouth, his eventual shot in his full stride only missing it's objective by inches. Ensuing play favoured the 15th Company and Simmons had to throw out and kick away several shots,

SATURDAY 18th FEBRUARY 1899,

At Magdalen Road,

EXETER UNITED 1.
Simmons; Bailey, Jarman; Askam, Hodges, Moore; Perkins, Coles, Kemble, Laing, Potter,
TRAINING COLLEGE 2,
Burrows; Tremewan, Dalley; Blackman, Oliver, Butler; Baker, Mogg, Berry, Beazley, Jones,

Scorers
Exeter Kemble,
College Beazley2,

The teams met for the 3rd time this season, the College having won both of the previous games. The United kicked off, and between Kemble, Coles and Laing play was quickly taken to the College end, where Ferking centred nicely and Hodges made a fine attempt with a shot which went very close. From Dalley's kick the Collegians broke away, Berry making a good effort but Simmons cleared, Coles started off on a good run, but was pulled up for offside. The play remained largely in favour of the United, and after Burrows had saved a centre from Potter he was immediately beaten by Kemble, who banged in the first goal for the United, Berry re-started and was getting away in a rush when Hodges pulled him up neatly, sending the ball forward, but it was returned immediately by Dalley with a long kick." The College were now on their mettle, and played with great dash, several corners being forced, Beazley scored for the Collegians amid great excitement, Beazley in the 2nd half scored again for the College, and so registered the 3rd victory against the United this season,

SATURDAY 4th MARCH 1899,
DEVON SENIOR CUP.

At Magdalen Road, 

EXETER UNITED 0,
Simmons; Bailey, Pickering; Askam, Hodges, Knight; Davey, Coles, Taylor, Kemble, Potter.
WORCESTERSHIRE REGIMENT 3,
Terry; Morrall, Steward; Burton, Pierson, Duncan; Garland, Wood, Hawthorne, Andrews, Gasnell, Scorers Worcester Reg Garland 3,

There was an unuasual amount of interest manifestede in this match, as Exeter United met the Worcesters in the 2nd round last season. The Military won the toss, and Taylor started the leather for Exeter United against a strong wind, Hawthorne took the ball well upfield, and although Simmons missed his kick, Bailey was on hand to clear, Davey missed the Worcester goal by a fraction, and a combination with Taylor and Hodges participating gave Potter a chance, but again the ball was sent behind, Worcester now began to press, Simmons saving in amost reamrkable manner by dangling the ball on one hand across the goalmouth and pushing oneof the Worcesterites out of the way with the other. A penalty to the Regiment was given, but Simmons cleared the shot beautifully, right under the cfrossbar, The City goal was then assaulted by all of the Worcester forwards, then with a low cross Garland opened the scoring for the Soldiers, Garland scored a 2nd goal from Burton's pass, and although the play remained in the Worcester's half until the interval, the United could not score, On the restart the United showed up better, but generally the play was only moderate and not very interesting. Davey and Potter each had a spot at goal, and Cole centred across the goalmouth, but none wasthere to follow up. From the breakaway by the Soldiers, Simmons caught the ball, but held it too long, and he was charged into the net by Garland, A poorer game of Soccer has seldom been witnessed, especially that displayed in the 2nd half,

SATURDAY 25th MARCH 1899,

TAVISTOCK 2, EXETER UNITED 1,



SATURDAY 1st APRIL 1899,

EXETER UNITED 2,
Simmons; Bailey, Pickering; Thompson,, Mermagen (Jnr), Askam; Simmons (Dawlish), Usher, Mermagen (Snr), Moore, Potter,
SURREY WANDERERS 0.

Scorers Exeter Mermagen (Snr) 2,

Mermagen of Crediton Grammar school took the Centre Forward position for Exeter and his brother took over at Centre Half from Hodge, Exeter kicked off and between Mermegen Senior and Usher the leather travelled through to the Surrey quarters, but Hawkins made a strong return, and the play went back to the Exeter end, Bailey cleared, and Mermagen was kicked by Sykes and retired from the Tray, but returned after 5 minutes, Pressure was keptup by Murison and the Farnfield brothers, Simmons in goal defending finely for Exeter, Adams saved well from Usher, but after 15 minutes a goal scored by Mermagen Senior gave Exeter the lead, Pickering started a rush with a long kick to Potter, and Mermagen Senior from Potter's centre scored Exeter's 2nd goal,

SATURDAY 8th APRIL 1899,
At Magdalen Road,

EXETER UNITED 1
WORCESTER REGIMENT 2,

SATURDAY 15th APRIL 1899,

The match between Bridgwater and Exeter United was postponed,

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