This Fall River-Bethlehem Steel U.S. Open Cup match at the Polo Grounds “was one of the greatest games ever seen here,” according to the Boston Globe report. Attendance announced at 15,000, including 3,000 arriving from New England (the New York Giants averaged less than 12,000 attendance in both the 1929 and ’30 National League baseball seasons at the Polo Grounds).
The “American” scorers included James Brown, Billy Gonsalves and Bert Patenaude, who helped the U.S. reach the semifinals of the 1930 World Cup in Uruguay. Also scoring were Carroll and O’Brien. The “European” goals were converted by Grenfeld and Carlson. [Read more…] about Feb. 12, 1931 – Americans 5:2 Europeans, Charity match “for the unemployed” at Hawthorne Field, Brooklyn
Tension built after the Boston SC Wonder Workers and Fall River FC Marksmen played to a draw in the first leg. “Hundreds of Boston fans are going down to Tiverton today to see the second game. Busses will leave Forest Hill at 11:30. Kick-off time is set for 2:30 and Sam Mark is expecting the largest crowd of the season … ‘’ [Read more…] about Dec. 30, 1928 – Fall River FC 2:0 (4:2) Boston SC, ASL Challenge Cup return leg
The New England high school championship game in Quincy, Mass., featured one of the year’s biggest crowds, “… gathered round the ropes when the game started saw a really wonderful exhibition from these boys.” Brown scored three goals, McGuire and Jepson one. The game appears to have been conducted under FIFA rules, two 45-minute halves, referee and two linesman, no substitutes utilized. [Read more…] about Dec. 13, 1930 – Quincy 5:0 (12:4 aggregate) Pawtucket, NE Schoolboy final (Att.: 2,000)
Stevenson finished a first-half Campbell shot deflected by Lajos Fischer, a Hungarian international goalkeeper, as the Boston Wonder Workers played their final game of the season. Then, Boston’s Johnny Davison saved a Gruenfeld penalty kick after Hauesler was fouled by Tetlow. George Collins in The Boston Globe: “Boston’s pro soccer representatives shut out the great Hakoah aggregation of Jewish players, holders of the big National Cup, by 1-0, on a snow-bound ground.” [Read more…] about Nov. 23, 1929 – Boston Wonder Workers 1:0 Hakoah at Brookline Town Field
Billy Gonsalves scored twice and Arnie Oliver once for the Marksmen, whose goalkeeper was future Boston Red Sox first baseman Johnny Reder. Gonsalves (b. Aug. 10, 1908 in Portsmouth, R.I.) and Oliver (b. May 22, 1907 in New Bedford, Mass.) were members of the U.S. national team that reached the semifinals of the 1930 World Cup in Uruguay. The U.S. team also included forwards James Brown, 21, who would go on to play and coach in Connecticut and Fall River’s Bert Patenaude, 20, the first player to complete a hat trick in the World Cup, plus team captain Tom Florie of Providence. [Read more…] about Oct. 23, 1930 – Hakoah All-Stars 0:3 (1:5 aggregate) Fall River Marksmen. Lewis Cup final at Polo Grounds (Att.: 2,500)
Fall River SC concluded a tour with 2W-3L-1D record, protesting against biased refereeing and claiming it was not paid by Ferencvaros, the club that organized the tour. In this match, Jeremiah Best and Alex McNab are listed as Fall River scorers in Colin Jose’s American Soccer League 1921-1931/The Golden Years of American Soccer, though other sources list Archie Stark and McNab as scorers. Jozsef Takacs (Takacs II) had a hat trick and Mihaly Tancos, Geza Toldi and Jozsef Turay also converted for Ferencvaros. [Read more…] about Aug. 31, 1930 – Ferencvaros 6:2 Fall River SC in Budapest (Att.: 6,000)
Billy Gonsalves celebrated his 22nd birthday playing alongside James Brown (21), Arnie Oliver (23) and Bert Patenaude (20), a group of young players that could have formed the base of the U.S. national team for years to come, though only Gonsalves remained in the picture for the 1934 World Cup. [Read more…] about Aug. 10, 1930 – Sao Paulo FC 5:3 U.S., international friendly at Chácara da Floresta
Bertrand Arthur Patenaude (b. Nov. 4, 1909 in Fall River, Mass.) scored in the 10th, 15th and 50th minutes as the U.S. produced its second successive 3-0 result, advancing to the semifinals of the inaugural World Cup. Patenaude, 20, was the youngest player on the U.S. roster, and ended up third in scoring with four goals in the World Cup. [Read more…] about July 17, 1930 – Bert Patenaude completes first World Cup hat trick. U.S. 3:0 Paraguay, Parque Central (Att.: 18,306)
Billy Gonsalves scored three goals for the Yankees, who began the season as the Fall River Marksmen, in an upset win over Celtic FC. In fact, the Boston Globe advance story called the team the “Fall River Yankees.”
“Billy Gonsalves, who learned his soccer on the sandlots of East Cambridge and then was grabbed by the old Boston team, was the big works in the game. All he did was score three of the Yankees’ goals and manipulate the ball in such a manner that he completely mystified the famous Celtics at times.” [Read more…] about May 30, 1931 – New York Yankees 4:3 Glasgow Celtic at Fenway Park (Att.: 8,000)