Records, 1908-82

Honours  

First team honours, pre-1940 

Northants League Championship winners, 1930/1, 1932/3, 1933/4

Northants League runners-up, 1911/12, 1912/13, 1913/14, 1929/30, 1931/2

United Counties League runners-up, 1934/5, 1936/7

United Counties League KO Cup finalists, 1938/9

East Midlands League Championship winners, 1934/5

United Counties (War Period) League Championship winners, 1939/40

North Beds Charity Cup winners, 1910/11

Northants Senior Cup Winners, 1912/13

Beds Premier Cup winners, 1924/5, 1926/7, 1928/9

Beds Invitation Cup winners, 1938/9

First Team honours, 1945 onwards 

Southern League Championship winners, 1958/9

Southern League runners-up, 1956/7 and 1957/8

Southern League First Division champions, 1969/70

Southern League First Division North champions, 1974/5

Southern League First Division promotion winners, 1967/8

Southern League Midland Division runners-up, 1980/1   

Southern League Cup winners, 1980/1 

Eastern Professional Floodlit Competition champions, 1970/1

Bedfordshire Invitation Cup winners, 1953/4

Bedfordshire Professional Cup winners, 1962/3, 1963/4, 1964/5, 1965/6

Huntingdonshire Premier Cup winners, 1951/2, 1958/9, 1959/60, 1963/4, 1966/7  

Reserve team honours 

Biggleswade League championship winners, 1910/11

Bedford and District League joint championship winners, 1926/7 (shared with Bedford Queen's Park Rangers)

South Midlands League championship winners, 1934/5

London League Cup finalists, 1948/9 and 1950/1

United Counties League Championship winners, 1952/3

United Counties League Knock-Out Cup winners, 1952/3

United Counties League Division One Knock-Out Cup winners, 1972/3

Metropolitan League Challenge Cup winners, 1955/6, 1962/3

Metropolitan League Challenge Cup finalists, 1956/7

Metropolitan League Professional Cup winners, 1970/1

Metropolitan League Professional Cup finalists, 1963/4, 1966/7, 1969/70

Metropolitan League runners-up, 1956/7

Southern League Reserve Section championship winners, 1972/3 

Appearances  

For reasons explained elsewhere on this site (see The Later Years (1967-82)),  appearance records for the 1967 to 1982 period are incomplete and sadly, likely to remain so, because of dwindling press coverage. However, the appearance records are, very roughly speaking, about 90% complete and the goalscoring records are very much closer to 100%. The figures quoted below are taken from the records on this site (which will not agree precisely with those published in the local press because I have compiled them myself from a count of known lineups and scorers).

We can, however, be certain about one thing- the all-time club record for appearances for the original BTFC is held by David Skinn, followed by Norman Cooley. Both their careers spanned most of the 60s and the 70s down to their simultaneous retirements at the end of 1977/8. Skinn heads the list by a distance because although Cooley made his debut before him, Skinn became a regular a season or so before Cooley. Skinn's recorded appearances total 895, so bearing in mind the number of unrecorded lineups in his time (59), it's likely that his actual total was well over 900. Similarly Cooley's recorded total is 738, but is really likely to be more than 750.

Next comes a player from before World War 2, Bert Rogers (464). Again this is the total of his also known appearances, and the actual total would be greater if known.

Trevor Gould, the old club’s last player-manager, comes next , with 457 recorded appearances  from 1973/4 to the end in 1981/2.  Next is Norman "Paddy" Watson from before the War (444), followed by his long time colleague Jack Chester, and Bobby Folds from the club's last years with 420 each, closely followed by George Cleary with 414, albeit thanks to a second short spell in 1979/80. These all comfortably beat the leading appearance makers whose careers fell wholly into the "Best Years" (1950-67) who are led by David Sturrock with 274.

In the 1945/6 to 1949/50 period (see Into the Southern League (1945-50)), only "Jock" Boyle (103 appearances) topped the 100 mark. Nor of course should any of these figures detract from the remarkable record of Eddie Lawley for the present BTFC, with 746 appearances between 1996 and his retirement at the end of the 2010/11 season.

The 200 Club

Bearing in mind the rapidly changing scene of non-League football with its comings and goings of managers and players, 200 appearances seems a fair benchmark of consistency, so here are the members of the "200 Club" from 1945 to 1982,  in matches other than friendlies:

David Skinn (62-77)            894

Norman Cooley (61-77)     738

Trevor Gould (73-81)          461

Bobby Folds (72-79)            422

George Cleary (64-72 and

79)                                          414

Alan Wright (64-71)            288

Jackie Scurr (68-73)             289

David Sturrock (61-66)        274

Bob Craig (55-60)                 271

Ken Goodeve (77-81)          255

Gary Sargent (73-76)           235

David Earl (71-77)                231

Terry Murray (56-60)          230

Mick Collins (63-66)             225

Ray Peacock (74-77)            222

David Coney (60-64)            220

Kevin Dove (73-76)              214

Dennis Roach (68-71)          211

Lou Adams (66-69, 72, 78)  202

Billy Best (78-81)                  205

One tends to think of player loyalty as something from the distant past, so it's interesting to see how many of the above played wholly in the final years of the club. But that to some extent reflects the fact that in those last years the club couldn't afford anything like the size of playing staff it had in the prosperous 50s and 60s-meaning that it must often have been a case of those who were fit, were picked. Also, players like Bob Craig and Terry Murray played at a period when the Southern League and League Cup, plus the FA and county cups, were the only competitions, whereas by the time some of the leaders in the above table came along there were also the Floodlit Leagues and the FA Trophy.

Also very close to 200 known appearances, and probably exceeding that figure if the full facts were available, are  Barry Fry (68/9 to 71/2 and 77/8) with 199, and Alan Davies (68/9 to 71/2) with 187.

Before 1940, as well as the three who topped 400 appearances, several more topped 200-Tommy Cummings (289), Ralph Chapman (276), Dickie Gunnell (238) and Herbert Jephson (221). These are known appearances and their actual figures will be somewhat higher. Three others would doubtless top 200 if all their appearances had been recorded-Len Potter (198), Freddie Garratt (190), and Fred C Smith (188). For more details see Player List, 1908-39 .

Goalscorers-60 plus

The following are known to have scored more than 60 goals in matches other than friendlies in the post war seasons 1945-82 (appearances in brackets, followed by the strike rate. Here, the "oldies" are more strongly represented:

George Cleary (64-72 and 79)        158 (414) -38.2%

David Sturrock (61-66)                     122 (274) -44.5%

Arthur Hukin (59-62)                        108 (146) -73.9%

Ronnie Rooke (50-53 and 59-60)     98 (138) -71%

Gary Sargent (73-76)                          93 (234)-39.5%

Harry Yates (55-57)                             90 (134) -67.1%

Lou Adams (66-69, 72, 78)                82 (202) -40.6%

Andy Easton  (57-59)                          76 (111) -68.4%

Len Duquemin (58-59)                       74 (84) -88.1%

Norman Cooley (61-77)                     73 (737)-9.9%

Ted Duggan (53-55)                             62 (89) -69.6%

Vivian Woodward (50-54)                  62 (149)-41.6%

Alan Davies (68-71)                             62 (187)-33.1%

Cliff Campbell (79-81)                         61 (122)-50%

It can be seen that Len Duquemin was easily the most dangerous of these goalscorers in terms of goals per game, although it’s perhaps surprising that Hukin had a better strike rate than Rooke. Cleary, however, is the clear winner in terms of goals scored, although his strike rate is much lower, as are those of most of those who played in the later more defensively minded years. Sturrock's relatively low strike rate reflects the fact that he started as a winger and operated in midfield for the last two seasons of his career, and Cooley's goals were mostly scored in his earliest seasons when he played as a striker before moving into midfield and then defence.

The club supplied a summary of its history and records for publication in away programmes for a while in the late 60s and 70s in which it was claimed that Hukin was the all-time record scorer with over 200 goals, which would put him ahead of this field by a long way. Where this figure came from I have no idea, but even if one includes the relatively few reserve matches that he played it’s impossible to get anywhere near such a figure. 

Before World War 2 scoring was generally much heavier in the Northants and United Counties Leagues and it is perhaps unfair to compare the figures from that era with those from the postwar years. Eleven players are known to have scored more than 60 goals in this period and there are some enormously high strike rates:

Maurice Carr 188 (145)-129.6% (easily the all-time record)

Len Potter 134 (198)-67.6%

Dickie Gunnell 127 (238)-53.3%

Jack Chester 113 (420)-26.9%

Herbert Toseland 109 (137)-79.5%

Freddie Garratt 107(190)-56.3%

Harry Brown 99 (138)-71.7%

Tommy Irvine 89 (164)-54.2%

George Watson 78 (74)-105.4%

Harry Mardle 70 (90)-77.7%

Norman Watson 61 (444)-13.74%

Potter, Garratt and Chester's totals would have been higher if they had not played for part of their careers in defensive or midfield roles.  These are known scoring and appearance figures and the actual numbers would be higher if known.

 In the immediate postwar period (see Into the Southern League (1945-50), a period of almost total lack of success, the leading scorer was Ken Flint with just 24 goals in 56 appearances in 1945/6 and 1946/7.

International honours

The following BTFC players won professional or amateur international caps in their careers. All did so before they played for BTFC except those marked with an asterisk, who did so later. Details can be seen on the Players' Lists pages (Bob Hawkes and FWH Nicholas's details in the 1908-39 section). Hawkes is unique in having won full, amateur and Olympic honours while with Luton.