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As you may recall from Part 1, Barrow had never won a competitive match at Central Park. The league strugglers (not Wigan) came to Central Park in the hope of changing history. They had drawn a match the previous season and thought they had finally lowered Wigan's colours during the first half. But Wigan came good in the end. Woods, the hero of the previous Test against Australia scored another fine try for Barrow but that's as much applause they would get. Billy Howarth, now restored to the Wigan first team due to an injury to Jack Morley, looked well on the left wing whilst Gordon Innes grabbed two tries himself. Jim Sullivan made sure of his own statistics being improved by kicking five goals, bringing his season tally to 57. A 22-6 win was most welcome for Wiganers.
Off the field, the Wigan directors were busy trying to boost the pack. 23 year old Harold Edwards of the Edgware Rugby Union Club signed on whilst to his own request Bill Morgan asked to leave after seeing his chances in the first team be few and far between. Harold Jones was also placed on the transfer list by Wigan and snapped up by Keighley a few days later. Hailing from Risca, Edwards was an old time friend of George Bennett, Wigan's half-back, as they played together at school.
Despite a comfortable win against strugglers Barrow, Wigan were placed 16th in the table. It may have been good timing on Wigans part that their next league fixture versus York was postponed due to the Minster club being involved in the Yorkshire Cup Final the following weekend. The addition of Edwards to the forwards was seen as a positive step in regaining past glories at Wigan. Wing and centre so far have been arguably Wigan's downfall and murmers were circulating as to when Dicky Twose will regain his position in the team after his exploits the previous season. Meanwhile, Bill Merritt, after trialling at London Highfield, had now signed for Halifax.
As Old Jack Frost started to make an appearance come the beginning of December, the Central Park ground was freshly laid with hay to keep him away. Leigh were the next visitors to Central Park on December 2nd and had not won away themselves all season. Howarth retained his position on the left wing whilst new Welshman Edwards lined up for his debut. Billy Howarth was by now capitalising on the fact that Gwyn Davies' form and pace was deteriorating in the Wigan team. The extra week off also was seen as being beneficial to the Colliermen.
Six goals from nine attempts by Sullivan was enough to see off Leigh. Bringing his season's tally to 63, Sullivan guided Wigan to a well earned 18-10 win despite two men being sent off. Wilson for Wigan and Critchley for Leigh got their marching orders as both centres got into a bit of a fisty cuffs ten minutes from time which may have warmed up many of the 6,000 spectators. Leigh did put up a fight and despite not having won away from home all season, continued their recent good form and twice held the lead before half time.
Scouts from several Northern Union clubs found themselves at Newport, South Wales in early December. Their interest centred around the Welsh Rugby Union trials. Broughton Rangers signed two men form it whereas Wigan and Halifax seemed only to be watching. Wigan were busy however back up North. Another signing in the guise of Reginald Hathway, the Oldham forward, came to fruition at Wigan. The 25 year old was quickly placed in the team for the next league encounter against Bradford Northern on December 9th. Another forward signing despite Hathway not playing once this season for Oldham. Hailing from the Newport club, Hathway had previously represented Wales in Rugby League and played in the trial matches when the Rugby League Selectors were trying to make their minds up on who should face the Australians.
Eight seasons had passed since Bradford Northern and Wigan locked horns. Northern in the end would have wished they didn't meet Wigan for another eight season (or at least until 1999). The game ended 49-8 in favour of Wigan. It was a rout with eleven tries scored and Sullivan adding 8 goals to his tally. Half-Back George Bennett scored a fantastic hat-trick of tries whilst underperforming Gwyn Davies, Hector Gee, Billy Howarth scored twice each, with Morley and Sullivan adding the extra tries.
With the third Test match against Australia looming, and a New Year trip to Paris on the cards, Jack Morley found himself with an unexpected call up to the Welsh side to face Australia at Wembley on December 30th. The third England v Australia Test was to be played at Swinton and saw a raft of changes now that England had retained the Ashes. In back rooms, St Helens, who were struggling in the league despite being champions a few years previous, were in the business of selling players to try and turn their fortunes around. Directors of Wigan and St Helens met to discuss possible transfers, with international Alf Ellaby being quoted as costing £1,000. Wigan did not take the offer - at least not for another couple of months. Castleford showed some interest in buying Saints' biggest asset.
Swintonian Fog kept the Third Test "gate" down to 12,000 but another thrilling contest was had. England gained a 19-16 victory as Jim Sullivan kicked five goals of course. After the match, Sullivan dropped a hint that he may retire, but speaking later to the Daily Express, Sullivan clarified his comments. "When I said that it would probably be my last Test match I did not mean that I was going to retire from football. Far from it. What I meant to infer was that probably when the next tour team was selected I should be too old to take part or not good enough to be selected." Good news then.
Whilst Jim was kicking and fighting his way through the Fog in Swinton, Wigan were fighting their way to Featherstone. Fog in Lancashire had delayed Wigan's train back to the 1800s and Featherstone which meant a delay to the kick off time and as the light faded, only 61 minutes were played. Wigan would of course now have to answer to the Rugby League in a game that would not be counted in the end. A good job too, as Wigan to that point were losing 8-6, despite two Jack Morley tries. This was bottom side Featherstone's best performance of the season ironically as the game was null and voided. Wigan remained 15th in the table but no official records were kept. Receipts were only £18 such was the delay and farcical scenes.As the festive season drew near, the games piled up. Wigan were due to play Barrow (23rd), Salford (25th), St Helens (26th), Oldham (30th) and Widnes (1st Jan). St Helens had now decided to take their star players off the transfer list, for the time being, in the hope that good gates against St Helens Recreation and Wigan would ease their financial difficulties.
Christmas also meant the half way point of the season. Wigan lay 16th owing to their non-match against Featherstone. Speaking of the flatcappers, at a meeting of the Rugby League Management Committee in Manchester, the match between Featherstone and Wigan was ordered to be replayed and pencilled in for Valentines Day.
Having won three in a row, Wigan were quite confident in getting a fourth away against Barrow, on December 23rd. Jim Sullivan had to contend with barracking from the Craven Park crowd every time he had the ball, or attempted a kick. Many of the 7,201 attendance howled at Jim who only managed to kick a solitary goal as Wigan suffered a 12-8 loss.
Christmas Day was a fanciful attraction. Top of the table Salford attended Central Park along with 18,000 enthusiasts. Billy Howarth got the pick of Wigan's three tries as he picked up a loose ball off Gus Risman and raced in. Despite this fine effort, Howarth got carried off injured. In many respects, this was Wigan's best game of the season. Jackie Morley, along with Howarth for his try, showed great pace, both scoring. Apart from the scrums, Wigan outclassed Salford in every department much to the delight of the Wigan faithful on the terraces. Salford succumbed to only their third loss of the season.
A Boxing Day clash against financially struggling St Helens saw 16,000 in attendance at Knowsley Road. This was St Helens' biggest gate of the season and the £500 in receipts were most welcome. Jim Sullivan swapped his kicking boots for the try line as he bagged two tries in a 21-8 win. Due to the rough match against Salford, Hector Gee sat in the stands, which meant Howarth played in his natural position of half back alongside George Bennett. From a spectators point of view it was a wonderful spectacle. The Saints were without three key players; Ellaby, Arkwright and Hardgrave. Two reserve backs quickly adjusted to their new surroundings and helped St Helens get level after being five points down at half time. The turning point of the game came when Mercer, the Saints captain, crossed the line but for some reason the referee didn't award a try. Sullivan was strengthened by this and led from the front.
The successful Christmas period for Wigan saw them move up only to 14th in the league. Sullivan notched his 83rd goal of the season whilst Jack Morley chipped away at the try scoring charts, moving to 20 - just two behind Huddersfield's Markham. Since joining Wigan in 1921, Sullivan was now on 3,956 points in all matches and was 13 goals shy of a career 2,000. More importantly, for Wigan, they were now in the black, having now won 10 of their 18 matches and despite being in 14th, were second only to Salford in points scored.
The New Year fixtures against Oldham and Widnes, both at Central Park, would see the absences of Jack Morley and Jim Sullivan. Morley was called up to the Wales and England team to face Australia at Wembley, alongside Jim. They both would travel through the night to Paris to face Australia the following day, this time for England. Player welfare? Howarth would deputise at fullback whilst youngster Joe Pilling will cover for Morley on the wing.
How strange it would seem these days that you could captain Wales one day, and the next captain England, in France, against Australians. But it was completely normal back then.
Sullivan and Morley would have preferred to stay in Wigan. The Australians trounced Wales 51-19 in front of 18,000 at Wembley and the following day beat England 63-13 in Paris in the snow. But enough of that. The Wigan directors were busy trying to build on the Christmas successes by bringing in a few more players. William (Bill) Targett was transferred from Dewsbury along with hooker Joe Golby. both men would make their debuts against Widnes on New Years Day. Dewsbury's hand was forced due to their dwindling gate receipts and mounting financial difficulties.
Joseph Golby
Joseph Golby
Reserve Yorkshire hooker
William Targett
William Targett
Played eight times for Monmouthshire before moving North to Dewsbury
The two home games against Oldham and Widnes were both close affairs. Versus Oldham, Wigan's defence looked a lot sharper in a 6-2 victory, whereas despite a loss against Widnes, Wigan's defence was far the superior. A strange thing to say given Wigan lost 2-3 to Widnes but the inclusion of Golby and Targett saw an immediate upgrade in the forwards. Widnes were well beaten in the scrums. Wigan found themselves in 13th position in the league, having played 20 matches compared to 21-23 which other clubs had.
Bad news for Wigan's backs. Joe Wilson had suffered an injury against Oldham and missed the Widnes game. Later, tests revealed that he had torn ligaments in his right knee and would be out indefinitely. Injury's to Hector Gee and Gwynne Davies made the team selectors sweat before the visit to Birch-lane and Bradford Northern on January 6th. Luckily, Hector Gee was passed fit on the Thursday night after having missed the previous three matches. Davies was deemed to be another week away from full health. As it turned out, Joe Wilson would miss the rest of the season and only play for Wigan twice more in October the following season.
Sullivan was again selected for yet another International, for England against Australia to be played at Gateshead on January 13th. But before then, he wanted to practice his goal kicking. He got that chance at Bradford. Wigan left West Yorkshire with 2 points and 30-12 win on January 6th. Six tries and six goals for Sullivan meant that this new look Wigan team was starting to gel. Reg Hathway in the loose forward, Joe Golby at hooker, Targett and Edwards in the pack were all added in the past few weeks and it isn't far off to say that Wigan's form and defence improved. The Wigan directors were to be found at home. Home being South Wales. They had found themselves at Neath wanting to improve their back line and were watching Vernon Case, a tall and speedy 20 year old left winger, who had scored 20 tries already that season. Broughton Rangers were certain to sign Case but a last minute 'hitch' meant that Wigan stepped in. Wigan offered more money I take it for the police man based in Canton, near Cardiff.
The 30-12 victory over Bradford notched Sullivan's tally up to 96 for the season, 17 goals ahead of Holding of Warrington who had played considerably more times than International Jim. Wigan remained 13th in the table on 24 points, 3 behind 12th placed Keighley, Oldham and Swinton. The Australian Tour was coming to an end which was good news for Wigan as it meant that Sullivan wouldn't be called away as much (or at least until the end of the season but that's in Part 3). Dicky Twose continued his impressive recent form filling in for injured players as he was chosen at fullback for the game against St. Helens Recreation. Vernon Case was immediately included on the wing in replace of Innes whilst Davies marked his return from injury also.
On Thursday 11th, the draw for the Challenge Cup took place in Leeds. Wigan were drawn away at Wakefield Trinity. Some teams you probably wouldn't have heard of: Pendlebury Juniors faced St. Helens Recs, Wigan Rangers would face Hull Kingston Rovers, Bramley would face the mighty Dearham Wanderers and Bradford would face St. Helens in the first round.
The Recs had not won at Central Park since 1926 and were next up. Sullivan of course made he headlines over in Gateshead as an England XIII beat the Australians 19-14 to bid them farewell as their Tour ended. He kicked his 100th goal of the season for the thirteenth successive time, and was well on his way to try and disturb his record. Policeman Case was ready for his Wigan debut and he didn't disappoint. George Bennett continued his recent good form by scoring his 11th and 12th try of season as Wigan ran out 21-5 winners. Morley dropped a goal and scored a try, now scoring in his past eight Wigan matches. Case was of course new to the new rules and struggled somewhat, but still managed to grab his try.
Saturday 20th January meant a trip to Wheldon Road and to Castleford. If you want to know what this stadium looked like back in 1934, nothing has changed today. Arthur Pilling (right), the reserve back left the Wigan club and signed on for Bradford Northern who must have been impressed by him a few weeks previous when Pilling scored against them. Billy Howarth retained his position in the Wigan backs due to Gordon Innes' injury, as Case was given another go on the wing. Nearly 9,000 turned up to see a hard fought contest. Bennett's try early in the second half was the turning point in the game and despite a Castleford fightback, after them leading 2-0 at half time, Wigan ran out 9-7 winners. Jim Sullivan marked his 3,998th point in Rugby League after his three goals. Vernon Case was injured and would miss the trip to York the following week. The main pleasures that came out of the match reports were that of the strength of the Wigan pack who had by now started to become formidable since the inclusion of Golby and Targett.
Wigan had now gained 10 points from 12 and were rising up the league table. A 13-3 loss to York came as a bit of a surprise to the Wiganers. York now moved into third in the table. The Wigan faithful were hoping to see Sullivan score his 4,000th point but George Bennett's 6th try in six matches was the only thing to trouble the scoreboard operator that afternoon.
The headline writers had been waiting a few weeks for their moment. Their moment being able to write about and celebrate the point scoring achievements of Jim Sullivan. Rochdale Hornets, sadly for them, were the victims of a Sullivan love-in. Central Park only saw around 6,500 spectators witness Sullivan's 4,000th point. There had been debate as to Sullivan's exact number of goal and points before the match, with Sullivan himself stating that he was unsure of exactly how many points he had scored, or if indeed he had already passed that mark. Reg Hathway was suspended for the match after being given a ban by the authorities after a sending off against St. Helens Recs two weeks prior. New junior signing Kershaw would deputise in the loose forward.
Rochdale Hornets had only won once at Central Park, back in the days of Bert Jenkins and Johnny Thomas. They would have to wait a little longer. A 28-7 victory for Wigan secured 2 points and 12th position in the table. Rising slowly up the League, Wigan were now within seven points of second placed York and within touching distance of the top 4. Jack Morley, not having scored in his previous two matches for Wigan got on the scoresheet twice. George Bennett again continued his fine try scoring run and was backed up by tries from Davies, Gee and a debut try from Kershaw.
A Wednesday evening trip to White City, London ended January. The same team that defeated Rochdale Hornets would make the trip to London, but with fit agai Vernon Case replacing Dicky Twose on the wing. A special excursion train would leave Wigan at 1-40 p.m. to take supporters to watch under the novelty of floodlights. The lights were still a novelty and had the power, or luminous equivalent of 40,000,000 candles, apparently. A light was also atop the each upright. A white ball was also played with. Of the 300 supporters that travelled to London from Wigan, most would agree that the following result was justified.
As it turned out, London Highfield avenged their start of season drubbing at the hands of Wigan by winning 30-12. The best gate of the season turned up under the lights as 7,000 witness Highfield beat Wigan for only the second time (first being under the guise of Wigan Highfield). Targett retired before the interval with a bad injury to his ribs. This affected Wigan's defence greatly as Highfield came back from a deficit to pile on the points in the second half. This was to be Wigan's heaviest defeat of the season.
The start of February would see a change of fortunes for Wigan. The opening third of the season was a disaster. New signings of quality and a bit of luck saw Wigan come out of the second third higher up the League table and fewer points being conceded. London Highfield being an exception to this rule. What lay ahead for Wigan was a possible run in the Challenge Cup, to which they hadn't won since 1929, and an assault on the Championship play-off race. They would go into the back end of the season without Gordon Innes and Joe Wilson, their starting backs, but their forward line was now the talk of the League.
Jack Morley was still lagging behind in the try scoring charts by 2 and Jim was 21 goals ahead in the old goal kicking competition.
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