This year the Wednesbury Sports Union, based at Wood Green Road, celebrates its 70th anniversary. The Union is at the heart of local sport in the area but, as ever, it is keen to recruit new supporters and volunteers. The Union may have been founded in the 1930s but its origins lie even further back than that.
As long ago as 1868 the then Patent Shaft and Axletree Company of Wednesbury provided a plot of land off Wood Green Road, Wednesbury, for “the playing of cricket thereon in perpetuity” and this became the home of the Wednesbury Cricket Club upon its foundation in 1875. The deed of trust was subsequently amended to permit the playing of tennis and hockey. A tennis section was formed in 1903 and for many of the succeeding years this section contributed substantially towards the maintenance of its parent. Wednesbury Ladies Hockey Club, founded in 1909, became tenants of the cricket club.
By the early 1930s there was unrest in the tennis section which felt that the attention accorded to its reasonable requirements bore little relationship to its financial contribution. At the same time, the Wednesbury Rugby Football Club, founded in 1921, having moved from their original ground at Leabrook, were about to lose their Bescot ground to housing developers. They began to cast envious, though in the event forlorn, eyes towards the Wood Green Cricket Ground. Meanwhile, in 1931, the Wednesbury Hockey Club (men’s) had been founded, and led by Cyril Morrish, sometime Borough Surveyor of Wednesbury, were moving around between Elwell’s Oval and sharing the Bescot Ladies’ Hockey Club ground. Added to these various background circumstances was the fact that the cricket club was in considerable financial difficulty.
It was at this time that the concept of a closely banded association of local sports clubs was conceived by Chad Jackson, a local chemist, member of both the rugby and cricket clubs, a local councillor and later to become Mayor of Wednesbury, President of the local Society of Arts and Leader of the Old Marians Orchestra, to mention but a few of the many offices held during the lifetime of this thoroughbred Wednesbury man. Chad’s philosophy was that the aims of the union should promote local sports, giving mutual assistance to constituent clubs as the need arose and to provide a playing and social base in the town.
In due time there took place on 5th March, 1936, a General Meeting of various clubs members in the Trinity Congregational Church Schoolroom, Oakeswell End, Wednesbury, when it was agreed to form Wednesbury Sports Union, the first such organisation it is believed in the United Kingdom. There were 60 members present from the various clubs at the meeting and they were asked to consider that the proposed Wednesbury Sports Union should incorporate the current member clubs with power to add further clubs if so desired; that the separate club organisations be maintained to carry on their particular sporting activities; and that the component clubs be linked together and controlled by a council. The adoption of the scheme was carried unanimously. It was decided that the new Union should be controlled by a central council consisting of the Chairman, General Secretary and General Treasurer together with 24 other members, divided as follows: six each from the rugby club, tennis club, cricket club, four representatives of the Ladies’ Hockey Club, and two members of the Wednesbury Town Council. All sections of the Union were to play on the Wood Green Cricket Ground. From the Central Committee there were three sub-committees, controlling social, ground and financial matters.
The first officers were, President, Councillor W. M. Wesson (Moxley Steel Works); Chairman, Chad Jackson; General Secretary, E. Fraser Ryder, (Headmaster, St James’ School); and General Treasurer, Frank Tooth, (School Attendance Officer). Each playing section of the Union functioned as before with its own committee by their finances were pooled and dealt with by the central committee. The new Sport Union started with around 100 vice-presidents, non-playing members, and appealed to the people of Wednesbury for more people to support the Union as vice-presidents.
Thus began the life of the Wednesbury Sports Union, based in Wood Green Road, Wednesbury and still continuing after 70 years. The original members clubs of this sporting association were the Wednesbury Cricket Club, the Wednesbury Lawn Tennis Club, the Wednesbury Rugby Football Club and the Wednesbury Ladies’ Hockey Club (with which the Bescot Ladies’ Hockey Club soon merged). They were joined at various points by the Wednesbury Swimming Club, the Wednesbury Hockey Club, the Wednesbury Badminton Club and the Wednesbury Amateur Association Football Club. Subsequently, and not unnaturally, it became clear that the advantages accruing to clubs playing their sports elsewhere than at Wood Green were limited, although their headquarters and social facilities were provided in the pavilion. Subsequent withdrawals have reduced the constituent clubs to those at present using the Wood Green Headquarters for their playing facilities. Throughout its 70 years, however, the Union has remained faithful to Chad Jackson’s original idea, by providing assistance to separate clubs in times of difficulty which otherwise would have resulted in collapse and disbandment. Insofar as internal management is concerned clubs have always been autonomous, but control and disposal of funds, administration and management of the premises and all such general concerns are in the hands of the Union.
While activities at Wood Green were virtually brought to an end by the Second World War, the sporting flag was kept flying by a group of tennis stalwarts using a couple of grass courts, while Frank Tooth kept a weather eye on the cricket field and pavilion. With the return of members after the war, the Union enjoyed a period of unrivalled sporting and social activity. Many hours of voluntary effort were put in to bring the playing facilities up to scratch and improvement were constantly made to the pavilion. Eventually, in 1964, a new pavilion was opened by the then President and benefactor, H. J. Barlow, a local industrialist.
In recent years the constituent clubs have had to contend with alternative social and leisure attractions and the high membership peak of 2,000 has fallen away. Nonetheless, the steady growth in membership of the cricket and hockey club is a tribute to the time and effort expended by elected officials in trying to promote local sport.
Currently the constituent clubs of the Wednesbury Sports Union are: Wednesbury Cricket Club, Wednesbury Hockey Club, Wednesbury Lawn Tennis Club, Wednesbury Table Tennis Club and Wednesbury Sports Union Football Club. Geoff Webb, the current Sports Union chairman, said recently:
“The concept of the Sports Union still remains true to Chad’s ideals but the practice has changed somewhat. Clubs have grown in size, both the cricket and the hockey club regularly field four or five sides and need to play away from headquarters, as playing surfaces change and cannot be provided at Wood Green. All this leads to there being less and less recognition of the Sports Union and the benefits of being a member club and also of acknowledgement of membership by the individual members.
“I am determined to ensure that the Wednesbury Sports Union returns to its former position in the town and the wider area and is recognised for the opportunities it still provides. The membership of the constituent clubs is estimated to be in the region of 650, many of whom are junior members, whom it should be our commitment to support and encourage in the playing of their sport and to become future administrators.
“Over the past seventy years many changes have taken place. The coronation of H. M. the Queen saw the opening of the new car park on Wood Green Road, the 1960s saw a new pavilion, more recently improved playing surfaces for tennis and a new score box for the cricket club.
“In the past the Union was supported by many local people who became vice-presidents of the Union, perhaps past players making a token recognition of their enjoyment in their playing days or those who felt they could make a contribution to the continuance of Wednesbury Sports Union.
“I believe that the membership of the Union should once again recognise the role of Vice Presidents and would appeal to any former members of the eight clubs which have been members of the Union or anyone from the Black Country with an interest in sport to contact me to establish whether this is still viable.
“My contact address is 10 Linden Lane, Short Heath, Willenhall, WV12 5NX.”