C O M M E N T S
/  H I G H L I G H T S

SEC

8th out of 9

FAC

No Competition

AC

No Competition

LC

Started up again this year

Erith won it and completed a double

LC

1st

Erith & B

SSC

No Competition

Club Colours:
Light and Dark Blue

Home
Ground:

West Street, Ewell

Bromley and Met Police joined the League this year, while
Nunhead left, never to return to football after the

sale of
Brown's ground. They had already been sharing at Dulwich for a season.

Charles (H.C.)
Pettett Hon. Secretary, Treasurer and Chairman again!

25/6/41 FJ Roome Secretary of Sutton & District League
died at 32 Horton Hill. Present at funeral on 28/6 were

Sid Basford
and wife, while Charles Pettett represented the SCFA.

27/6/41 Reference to Trustee and future Chairman Albert E
Tuck's nephew Roland (RS) Tuck, who is now Britain's

leading pilot having shot down more than 30 German
aircraft. Is a DSO and DFC with 2 bars. Rescued a flask

of Chianti wine from an Italian aircraft, and is now known
as "Chianti Tuck". Twice had to bale out during the war,

and once a
flailing aerial left a scar on his left cheek. Albert's brother is his
father.

5/9/41 reported Epsom Town's Prospects for season.
"With undiminished resolution" Epsom face another war

time season, and whatever the outcome, there is a
satisfaction in the thought that an attempt is being made to

give
footballers an afternoon's sport & local crowds enjoyment.

Epsom were bottom last year, but reflected well on Pettett
and his small but keen band of supporters. Pettett

will again be Secretary, Treasurer and Chairman. 7 of last
year's side are gone for war duties or have moved away.

EH Flight, Reed, Jones, O Rattenbury are all missing
through war duties, while Siminot, A.Edmondson and Brown

have moved. Bobby
Gill is also uncertain about being able to play. Many new players are
expected at the trial

on Saturday 6/9/41 at West Street. League programme starts
on 4th Oct with Bromley (A), but friendlies may

occur before
then.

19/9/41 J
Youdale playing for Leatherhead United this season.

20/9/41 Practice game v Rolleson Works XI HT 3-1 W 7-3.
Many local lads in team and 4 of them actually live in

West
Street.

27/9/41 Further practice match between Juniors and
Seniors. Juniors won 5-2. Further trial planned for 4th Oct, as

Bromley game
is now 11/10/41.

11/10/41 Epsom lose 2-3 at Bromley in first league match.
Although Epsom were 1-0 down early, Fred Chitty and

J Judge put Epsom 2-1 up at Hayes Lane, but Bromley got
the winner while James was off the field injured. Burke,

Tom Ogle and
Roy Dymott were the best players say papers.

18/10/41 James is still unfit for the Woking (H) SEC
match. Epsom won 2-1 and deserved the presence of a much

larger crowd than the 300 that were there. Fast pace
throughout. Ogle scored an unlucky own goal, but Epsom

turned it around through Ottaway and Curtis (pen). Potter
from Woking then dislocated his elbow and left for

Cottage Hospital for an x-ray. He actually returned later
in the afternoon, but was advised not to rejoin play! HT

was probably
1-1 but not clear from report.

18/10/41 Erith
beat Tooting & M 13-1 this day and Erith visit next week.

Oct 41 FA allows Sunday football for the Armed Forces
only, and under many conditions. Spectators were not to

be attracted,
nor gate money taken or advertising shown. Only inter-forces matches were
allowed, with no

matches
against civilians, and no forces representative matches were allowed either.

25/10/41 Despite holding Erith to 0-0 at HT, they lost
5-0. Barton was injured. Passenger. Long grass also didn't

help matters.
4 P.O.Engineers played for Epsom v Erith, Barton, Brown, AF Curtis, and J
Judge.

1/11/41 Welsh Guards (H) Fr  Barton was unlikely to be fit, although
Ruffell was expected to play. Still lost

3-0 HT 1-0. Bridge was injured and Edwards made his debut
in his place, but was injured. Passenger. Curtis

mispen awarded
for handball. Burke and Ogle played well say papers.

8/11/41 Ex-Epsom player Archie (AC) Griffiths scores twice
for Tooting & Mitcham, as they beat Epsom 6-0 at

Sandy Lane.
Also scoring was future player G.Cumberlidge.

8/11/41
Mitcham Gazette reports there was a "fairly good crowd" at Sandy
Lane.

Our line up for this match is only reported on the
programme and is not confirmed by press. J.Burke, Ted Uden,

Tom Ogle,
T.Sealey, H.Bridge, E.Hunt, J.Judge, George Brown, Roy Dymott, D.Ottaway,
A.Curtis

15/11/41 W
Ridgers and Jack Lock playing for Sutton this year.

15/11/41 Epsom should have won, but are held to a 3-3 draw
by Walton on Thames. Fitzwater HT for Walton.

HT 1-2 then a leg injury to goalkeeper Burke but he
carried on playing as Epsom went ahead, then late equaliser.

17/11/41 Trustee and future Chairman Albert E Tuck was
defending a client at Epsom Police Court on 17/11/41

relating to a
blackout infringement. He managed to get one of the two charges dropped.

22/11/41 copy of Met Police v Tooting & M programme
this day advises Epsom as having played four, yet we had

played five. The table missed Tooting & M's 6-0 win on
8/11 yet included the 3-3 draw with Walton on 15/11.

22/11/41 A.A.Signals are the visitors for a friendly and
promising reserves Skelton, Roy Dymott, Ottaway and Roe

are considered for selection. Skelton/Skilton actually got
4 in a 5-1 win, inc a first half HT. Epsom were 3-0 up in

ten minutes, while Rowe scored on his debut, and Bobby
Gill returned to play, and hopes to be more regular now.

29/11/41 Bromley visit and win 1-0. They included 6 of
their Amateur Cup winning side from the late 30's, while

Epsom were missing 4 players all at short notice, but
managed to get the full 11 up just in time including Gill, who

played inside
right!. A very close game that Epsom were unlucky to lose.

6/12/41 A well contested game saw a fair result as Sutton
won 3-2 in a League match. Bert Bridge and Bobby Gill

played "grand defensive work". Maurice Gill,
Bobby's younger brother, played for Sutton. Hugh (HS)"Tipper"
Pratt,

the former Epsom player (briefly) opened the scoring for
Sutton after 20 minutes, but Ottaway equalised after 30

with a shot that took a slight deflection. HT 1-1. Pratt
scored again on 60 minutes, with Francis making it 3-1 on

65 minutes,
but Brown scored from a Judge cross a minute later and nearly got the draw at
the end.

13/12/41 Cecil
(CB) Weller plays for Sutton this day.

13/12/41 Epsom lose 7-2 at Dulwich. Gill mispen, but
Skelton scored twice to put Epsom 2-1 up, before Dulwich

raised their
game with 6 more goals.

20/12/41 Many
pros in London Fire Force XI that visited for a friendly inc Mackie
(Portsmouth), Dumbrill

(Leicester), Sewell (Tunbridge Wells), Newton (Arsenal
Res) and Stoner (Haywards Heath) but Epsom still won

3-1. EH Flight (former Treasurer and pre war player)
played for Epsom, despite only being back home on leave for

only 24 hours.
Ottaway scored from 20 yards which was the best goal of the match. 1-0 down
early.

27/12/41 Epsom
beat RAOC 8-2. Game somewhat one sided. HT 3-1 and Skelton got HT.

3/1/42 Future players Weller and M.Gill playing for
Sutton. Gill had also played for Epsom in the mid thirties.

There was also
a Weller playing for us this week.

3/1/42 Epsom
played the better football but were only 1-1 with Sutton at HT and lost 2-1,
despite Sutton

having a
passenger in the second half. Paper says that neither side was at full
strength, which was proved

correct as the League found that both sides had played an
ineligible player. Epsom had played W Ruffell, who

was still apparently with West Ham, and Sutton had used
their trainer Bert White (ex-Arsenal). Both clubs fined

10s and game
ordered to be replayed.

Bill Ruffell was father of Ron who played in the fifties.
Bill was born in 1907 and died in 1987 and is at Epsom

Cemetery.

4/1/42 Former President Sir Arthur Robert Glyn (Bart) dies
of pleurisy aged 71. Charles Pettett attends

the funeral on
the club's behalf along with many local dignitaries. Funeral 7/1/42.

Jan 42 Future
player Jack Lock scores 5 for Sutton.

10/1/42 Lost 3-5 to Motorised Ambulance Convoy. Epsom
played first half with only 9 men, while the visitors

included Rose the Huddersfield pro, and 5 or 6 well known
Northern amateurs, while Bobby Gill and Judge were

last minute absentees. HT was 3-3, then Epsom added two
soldiers, but to do this, they rearranged the team

which led to
the loss of two goals in this half.

17/1/42 Epsom beat Tooting & M 4-2 at West Street,
with the first goal straight from the kick off, the Epsom

players ran up the field and scored without another player
touching it! Mitcham News reports that it was the

Epsom centre forward that scored goals 1 and 3, while the
outside left got the second and the inside left got the fourth.

17/1/42 Epsom & Ewell Civil Defence beat Kingston CD
on their own ground in the Group Football Cup 1st round

5-2. Future manager Doug Whitehead played and scored for
Kingston. Epsom were 2-0 down early, and had

not played
together previously, but improved as the game went on.

24/1/42 No
game for First XI. Very few games played across the Country.

31/1/42 C Palace Juniors (H) but their first XI captain
Owens was expected to be playing. Pullen got 4 in a 7-2

win with
proceeds of the match going to Mrs Churchill's Aid to Russia Fund!

31/1/42 Sutton
beat Bromley 12-2 in SEC.

Feb 42 Eric Mulley, regular Nunhead keeper is in goal for
Dulwich now, since Nunhead ceased to play. He is

still the
Nunhead Secretary, and they don't actually fold until 1949.

6/2/42 Pre war player Geoff Collins father William Isaac
Collins dies after one days illness aged 60. He was a

keen supporter
of the club. Geoff was killed later in 1942 as a consequence of the war.

6/2/42 Herald
League table is correct to this point. See 18/4 comments below.

7/2/42 Due to
be at Woking, but it wasn't played until 2/5/41.

Feb 42 Cecil
(CB) Weller playing for Leatherhead Rose this season and next.

13/2/42
Reference to John Arthur (Jack) Fox being killed in an air accident. He
played for Cuddington F.C.

but had a
previous trial for Epsom Town.

14/2/42 Lost
4-3 to Royal Artillery ho had been runners up in the Army cup.

21/2/42 LC match at Erith & B (NR) but expected team was Burke, Ogle, Barton, Sealey,
Bridge, Winship,

Judge, Pullen,
Brown, Williams, Uden and Watts (George??).

Epsom lost
this game 11-0 against a rampant Erith side that won everything this year.

28/2/42 Brown HT v Welsh Guards, and could have been more
but Guards gk Addis played brilliantly. W4-2.

7/3/42 Lost 2-3 to Dulwich. One of the fastest games seen
for some considerable time at Ewell. Epsom were

2-0 down at HT, but Pullen scored twice, the second from a
backheel. He also hit the bar twice and post three

times!!.
Collection for Aid to Russia raised £1 1s 8d.

14/3/42
Probably no game for Epsom First XI.

18/3/42 Friendly at Epsom between EE Borough Civil Defence
Units and the local NFS. Organised by Jack

Crump (post warden) and fireman WH Moss. Unfortunately the
attendance was not large but was watched by

the mayor WC Littlejohns, and his deputy CJ Shaw, the town
clerk and many councillors. Fireman trailed at

half time but
won 2-1. J Wheal played for NFS. Any relation to pre war committee member Ted
Wheal?

21/3/42 Royal Engineers beaten 7-1. Practically all pros
but "found Epsom on top of their form". Dymott returned

on leave so Winship sportingly stood down to let him play.
Epsom started the game "in the rather sensational

manner the Town have brought off on three previous
occasions, right from the kick off, the ball was taken down

and into the
engineers net without an opponent touching it". Pullen and Brown HT's.

Season
probably ran from 18/9/41 to 2/5/42 this year.

March 42
Future trainer Bill Whittaker is chosen to play for the R.A.F.

28/3/42 Lost 4-2 at Walton, who were 4-0 up before Epsom
pulled two back through an E.Clifford headed own

goal, and Jackie Pullen. HT 2-0. Another Pullen also
played, J.Pullen, presumably related to Jackie (HEJ Pullen).

4/4/42 Erith
win League Cup with 4-1 win @ Bromley.

4/4/42 Epsom lose 6-2 at home to Met Police. I finally
found this result in the Daily News / News Schronicle.

11/4/42 Erith complete League and Cup double after a 6-3
win at Epsom, but this was an unexpectedly hard

game for
Erith, as Epsom had been 2-0 up early and led 2-1 at HT.

18/4/42 Met Police defeat Epsom 4-0 at Imber Court. HT
2-0. Burke played soundly in goal, and Ottway was

outstanding in
midfield, but Epsom finished weakly. It was Met Police's last game of the
season.

Apr 42 South
Eastern Combination played Herts and Middx League at Barnet, but it looks
like no Epsom

players were
selected, as none were named in the Rest of League side to play Erith on
16/5/42.

25/4/42 Sutton and Epsom replay their league match at West
Street. Brown scores 4 as Epsom lead 5-0 at

half time
going downhill and won 7-2 despite being loaned a player by Sutton as they
were a man short.

2/5/42 Rearranged game at Woking ends 1-1. Judge put Epsom
1-0 up then Woking mispen (POST). HT 1-0.

Soon after the restart Woking were level, and both sides
made good efforts to get the winning goal. A fair result.

Line Up refers
to a T Manshipp, which I believe to be Tommy Winship, who had played this
season.

Reserves:

No League entered

Sutton
Hospital Cup WINNERS

11/10/41 Reserves
lost 5-3 to RAOC. It is Pettett's intention to run a second team
wherever possible, and this

was the first war time Reserve game. In fact, the first
reserve game for Epsom of any kind since 1936, when the

reserve team
was abolished.

8/11/41
Reserves beat RAOC 5-4 in another friendly at West Street.

6/12/41 RAOC
were due to visit for a friendly but (NR).

13/12/41 Epsom lose 7-3 at Tooting & Mitcham Reserves
in a friendly, despite scoring first and it was 3-4 at one point.

Epsom Herald
says it was 6-3 although it was only a sentence so I will stay with 7-3 for
now.

21/2/42 Res
lose friendly with Fairlight Ath 5-1 at West Street. HT 0-4. Outside left
scored for reserves.

Future player
Vic Honey played for Fairlight this day.

Feb 42 Frinton Rovers playing at Galpins Road, Thornton
Heath. Not far from current Croydon Athletic ground.

Fairlight
Athletic played at Kings College, Lavender Avenue, Mitcham.

28/3/42
Leatherhead Rose were due to visit for a friendly but (NR).

25/4/42 Another friendly with Fairlight Athletic, won 4-3
at Kings College. 1-0 up after 5 minutes, then 2-0 after a

deflection
after 15. 3-2 up at HT, then 3-3 before an Epsom winner from the centre
forward.

Kings College Ground was at Lavender Avenue, Mitcham and
Epsom Town would play there briefly post war.

9/5/42
Reserves cup final v Sutton & Cheam NFS @ West Street k.o. 3.30. Won 4-0

Reference to
the cup being competed for since 1902. Probably the same cup we won in 1924.

5/12/41 Oscar
Deutsch, founder of Odeon cinemas died.

Feb 42 A
British restaurant opens in Castle Parade, Ewell.

6/6/42 Epsom's big underground shelter is opened. Can
accommodate thousands, with sleeping accom for 1,500.