Thanks Bees Player !

Many thanks to Billy Reeves and Mark Chapman for the shout on 'Bees Player' the Brentford Football Club radio for the Friends of Clapton FC.

In fact Mark, who knows a bit about non-league / amateur football mentioned, to Billy's surprise,  that Clapton have had more England Internationals than Brentford have ever had.

He also couldn't resist in mentioning the name of our lovely Old Spotted Dog Ground.

Cheers chaps !

Walter Tull (member of Clapton FC - Player in 1909 FA Amateur Cup Final)

Walter Tull was born in Folkestone on 28th April 1888. His father was a carpenter from Barbados who had moved to Folkestone and married a local woman. By the age of nine, Walter had lost both his parents, and when he was 10 he and his brother Edward were sent to a Methodist orphanage in Bethnal Green. His brother left the orphanage two years later, was adopted by a Scottish family and became a dentist. Meanwhile, Walter played for the orphanage football team, and in 1908, began playing for Clapton FC. Within a few months he had won winners' medals in the FA Amateur Cup, London County Amateur Cup and London Senior Cup. In March 1909 the Football Star called him 'the catch of the season'.  In the photo (left) Walter Tull is in the front row, one from the right.

In 1909 he signed as a professional for Tottenham Hotspur, and experienced for the first time spectator racism when Spurs travelled to play Bristol City. According to one observer, 'a section of the spectators made a cowardly attack on him in language lower than Billingsgate.' The correspondent continued:

"Let me tell those Bristol hooligans that Tull is so clean in mind and method as to be a model for all white men who play football whether they be amateur or professional. In point of ability, if not actual achievement, Tull was the best forward on the field"

In October 1911 Tull moved to Northampton Town where he played half-back and scored nine goals in 110 senior appearances. When the First World War broke out, be became the first Northampton player to sign up to join the 17th (1st Football) Battalion of the Middlesex Regiment, and in November 1915 his battalion arrived in France. 

The Army soon recognised Tull's leadership qualities and he was quickly promoted to the rank of sergeant. In July 1916, Tull took part in the major Somme offensive. Tull survived this experience but in December 1916 he developed trench fever and was sent home to England to recover. 

Tull had impressed his senior officers and recommended that he should be considered for further promotion. When he recovered from his illness, instead of being sent back to France, he went to the officer training school at Gailes in Scotland. Despite military regulations forbidding "any negro or person of colour" being an officer, Tull received his commission in May, 1917. 

Lieutenant Walter Tull was sent to the Italian front. This was an historic occasion because Tull was the first ever black officer in the British Army. He led his men at the Battle of Piave and was mentioned in dispatches for his "gallantry and coolness" under fire. 

Tull stayed in Italy until 1918 when he was transferred to France to take part in the attempt to break through the German lines on the Western Front. On 25th March, 1918, 2nd Lieutenant Tull was ordered to lead his men on an attack on the German trenches at Favreuil. Soon after entering No Mans Land, Tull was hit by a German bullet. Tull was such a popular officer that several of his men made valiant efforts under heavy fire from German machine-guns to bring him back to the British trenches. These efforts were in vain as Tull had died soon after being hit.

He was the first British-born black army officer and the first black officer to lead white British troops into battle. 

In 1997 an appeal was launched in Northampton to recognise Walter Tull’s achievements, inspired by research undertaken by Phil Vasili and an enthusiastic local fan. In July 1999 a memorial to Walter was finally unveiled at Sixfields the home ground of The Cobblers, and the approach road to the stadium renamed Walter Tull Way. More recently, the offices of Probation Services in the centre of Northampton have been renamed Walter Tull House.

Walter’s status as a war hero should also be considered in the context of other un-named Black soldiers who fought for Britain in both World Wars and other battles across the world over hundreds of years.

Plans are afoot:

1. To rename the school he attended in Folkestone as The Walter Tull School.
2. To erect a statue of Walter Tull at the newly planned Spurs Stadium
3. To replay the match between Spurs & Bristol City in memory of the racial abuse Walter suffered 100 years ago.
4. To include the story of Walter Tull in the National Curriculum
5. To erect a permanent memorial to Walter Tull in Folkestone
6. and of course… to posthumously award Walter the Military Cross that he was recommended to receive but did not.

Further information can be found at http://www.crossingthewhiteline.com/index.htm

Why We Would Like You To Join.

Clapton FC are one of the most famous amateur clubs in English football history. They not only won the FA Amateur Cup on five occasions but are recognised by the Football Association as being the first English club to play on the continent and thus instrumental in the growth of the game.

In addition, Clapton players have represented England at full International level and numerous others have progressed to the professional ranks and performed with distinction.

However, as amateur football became semi-professional and beyond, Clapton's tenure as a prominent club declined. However, they continued to compete in the Isthmian League, a competition that Clapton members were instrumental in founding in 1905. In the 1990s Clapton were sadly demoted to the Essex Senior League, a competition in which they compete today.

Throughout this time Clapton have played at the The Old Spotted Dog Ground in Forest Gate, London and had done so since 1878. This small enclosure, buried among residential housing, had hosted both cricket and football before Clapton became tenants in 1888. Clapton are synonymous with the 'Spotted Dog' and it remains one of the last traditional bastions of football in the East End of London, an area that has lost great football clubs such as Walthamstow Avenue, Leytonstone and Leyton in recent years.

The Clapton players of today represent the club in the great tradition of their predecessors of the yesteryear. Those running the club do their best in difficult circumstances and are fighting to keep this great club alive.

The primary objectives of the Friends of Clapton FC is to help those who run, administer and play for the Tons. These objectives include it's continuance and well-being, the security of tenure at the Old Spotted Dog Ground and to promote Clapton FC's activities in an open and forthright manner so as to re-establish the club in the world of football as well as the local community. This will inlcude the careful consideration of where the club is going and to offer advice, help and support where necessary.

We believe that Clapton FC is a club deserving of support and who's survival is important, not only to the local area, but also to the sport of association football, the development of which, owes much to the Clapton players, officials and supporters of yesteryear.

Please join us by clicking here

Please forward any questions or enquiries to info@friendsofclaptonfc.org

Clapton FC - Possibly Punch Drunk, But Still Standing

The proud history of Clapton FC is well chronicled and, with the growth of the internet it has become easier to access and research. 

However, the biggest mystery is this; how have Clapton FC continue to survive whilst remaining at its traditional home at the Old Spotted Dog Ground when so many other famous names have merged, moved on or ceased to exist?

Non league / amateur football in East London and Essex has been decimated for a number of reasons, primarily the misplaced ambitions of clubs, or individuals at those clubs, to climb football’s pyramid.  The club that now calls itself Dagenham and Redbridge is an amalgamation of four former Isthmian league clubs.  To get to the ‘heady heights’ of League Two, they sold three football grounds in prime developments sites and at the same time, destroyed a generation’s worth of football history and tradition.

So, how has Clapton managed to not succumb to this?  Through the years, many different people, from many different walks of life, have passed though the gates of the Old Spotted Dog and in some way have left an indelible mark on the club, the ground, and the history of Clapton.

The first group of people without who there would be no Clapton FC are the players.  After the war and into the 60s, the growth of ‘shamateurism’ was rife in most amateur leagues. Enfield, Wycombe Wanderers and Hendon were paying some serious money to players, whereas the likes of Corinthian Casuals, Dulwich Hamlet and Clapton remained Amateur.  Whilst it meant that the likes of Clapton, more often than not, occupied the lower berths of the League table, the camaraderie at those clubs was special.  Even now, one must always respect the wish to of a player to further a career or play at a higher standard of football and, in recent years, we have watched and been proud of the likes of Miguel De Souza, Tarkan Mustafa and Gary Charles enjoy marvellous careers in the professional game.

However, it would be unfair to pick out individual players for loyalty to the club.  Every player who has pulled on the famous red and white striped shirt of Clapton through the years, has played his part, purely for sport, and has done so in the best traditions of their predecessors, going back over 100 years.  This tradition continues today.  This equally applies to those who have managed the teams through the years.

Behind the scenes, the administrators, officials and supporters at the club have also played their part in keeping the Clapton name alive in football today.  This group includes some who have been members of the House of Lords and other, just local, ordinary folk.  All their contributions have been invaluable.  One example, and I will name him, was ‘Fred’ the deaf and dumb tea-man from the 1970s-90s. Clapton continues to exist because of the efforts and help from the likes of Fred.

At the moment, the Friends of Clapton FC are looking for people, like Fred, who will make a positive contribution to Clapton Football Club.   It is easy to criticise the club, the players, the management and those that have been part of the club over the years.  Despite the apparent errors, the failure to keep pace with the modern semi-professional football and the apparent decline in the club’s status, the Tons are still alive and kicking today, although probably not in the manner in which the club’s forefathers would approve.

However, if you want to make a positive contribution in helping Clapton FC to not only survive, but also thrive, in non-league football, then join the Friends of Clapton FC.  Our first intention is to re-establish a membership from which committee and officers can be democratically elected.  If this were to be achieved then the Tons can move forward.

Clapton FC may no longer the force they were in the 1920s and, let’s be honest, never will reach those heights again.  However, we don’t want to go the same way as the Avenue, Leyton, Leytonstone, Ilford, Romford, Grays, etc etc.

So, instead of criticising and bemoaning Clapton FC’s decline, this is a great opportunity to be part of its resurgence.

Find out more and join the Friends of Clapton FC here