We were delighted to receive a copy of this photo recently which must rank as one of the best finds for some considerable time for the club archives. Unfortunately, our Chairman cannot remember who unearthed this but we are very grateful to whoever for this photo!

It is a photo, taken at the Spencer Corsets factory in Britannia Road and, based on the players pictured, from between February 1934 and the end of that season. Banbury Spencer were in their first competitive season, playing in the Banbury & District Junior League Section C and we believe all the players were employed at the Spencer Corsets Factory in various roles, thus the “team meeting” at the venue. The club had appointed, earlier that season, ex professional footballer Horace Williams to look after the football side and presumably also gave him a job in the factory. Horace is on the extreme right in the white coat, with the players looking as though they are taking a keen interest in the tactical advice that he is espousing and demonstrating on the table by moving model players around with a stick!

We are confident at naming most of the players, thanks in part to some very useful information on the back of the photo.

Back Row (standing) (left to right): Eddie Salmons, Laurie Hicks, Norman Walls, Bob Kinder, Jack Almond (white coat), looking over shoulders of Bob Kinder and Jack Almond not known, Joe Taylor, Jack Ballinger and Joe Hobbs.

Front Row (seated) (left to right): E. Coules (in suit on high stool), then the five in white coats are Archie Bywater, Dick Varney, goalkeeper Tom Penrice, Dick Manning and Mervyn Laver.

Here is some information on the manager and some of the players in the photo:

Horace Williams
Horace Williams took charge of the Banbury Spencer factory’s football team in mid-October 1933. Horace was a Welshman but it was in Scotland that he established himself in professional football, playing for St Johnstone, Hibernian and Dundee. As a centre forward he also played in the English Football League for Gillingham, New Brighton and Blackpool. Whilst at New Brighton he had earned the nickname “Hat-Trick Horace”, after notching three hat-tricks in that club’s first five home league fixtures of season 1926/27. Prior to coming to Banbury, Horace had gathered considerable coaching experience in Holland, France and Switzerland. Horace’s first game in charge saw a 5-0 home win over Sibford and Spencer went on to be unbeaten in their next six league games which saw them move up to the top end of the table, challenging both Grimsbury and Mollington for the top spot. The Championship would ultimately be won with the club moving into senior football the following season and winning, under the management of Horace, the Oxfordshire Senior League. Spencer were elected to the Birmingham Combination for season 1935/36 but results were not great and at the beginning of December the club announced the resignation of Horace. Though things had not worked out as well as hoped that season, it is undeniable that Horace’s experience had been of immense benefit to the fledgling Banbury Spencer team that he took control of back in 1933. He had left a permanent and positive mark on the club’s history and could take credit for much of its early success.

Bob Kinder
Forward Bob Kinder moved to Banbury from Liverpool, taking up employment in the Spencer factory. He usually played either at inside left or as a left winger. He made his debut for the club in February 1934, scoring 11 league goals in the remainder of that junior league season before going on to captain the side the following season in the Oxfordshire Senior League. He remained with the club right up to the outbreak of the Second World War, adapting successfully to the higher level Birmingham Combination, turned out for Spencer during the two war time seasons in which they competed in the Oxfordshire Senior League, played in the Combination again for a couple of seasons after the War and, to help the club when short of a player, even came out of retirement to make a Combination appearance in April 1951! Bob made a total of 251 first team appearances in his time with Spencer, scoring 106 goals and was still involved with the club in the 1960s as he returned to Spencer in the summer of 1962 to take on a scouting role, looking for young local talent in the Banbury area.

Joe Hobbs
Joe Hobbs played in the club’s first ever game, a friendly against St Johns in September 1931 and also has the distinction of scoring the club’s first ever goal in a competitive game played at their Middleton Road ground on Saturday 23rd September 1933. Their league opponents for the first game of the season were coincidently again St Johns who took a 2-0 half time lead but Spencer fought back to reduce the deficit fifteen minutes from time through Hobbs before Jack Almond (also in photo) equalised to make the final score 2-2. Neither Hobbs nor Almond played for the Spencer first team after they moved from junior football into senior football.

Jack Ballinger
Jack Ballinger, though a regular player for the club in their junior league season, never played for the first team after they moved into senior football. However, he was still involved with the club in the 1960s. His retirement was announced in the final club programme of season 1964/65, thanking him for his 30 years of service as the club’s trainer!

Norman Walls
Half back Norman Walls successfully graduated from junior football to senior level football with Spencer, making 149 first team appearances for Spencer between seasons 1934/35 and 1946/47. He would later move into football administration, running the Banbury & District Junior League and he was also Banbury’s representative on the Oxfordshire FA.

Tom Penrice
Tom Penrice was the regular goalkeeper for Spencer in their junior league season but never appeared for the club after they moved into senior football.

Laurie Hicks
Laurie Hicks, though we have no record of him playing for the Spencer first team, was heavily involved with the club in an administrative capacity. He helped long serving Spencer manager Jimmy Cringan with secretarial duties for over 25 years and was the official Secretary of the Spencer club in the first half of the 1960s. He continued as the club’s Secretary when the club became Banbury United in 1965, until handing those duties over to manager Len Goulden in February 1966 though even then staying on to help Len as Assistant Secretary.

Eddie Salmons and Archie Bywater
Sadly, Eddie Salmons and Archie Bywater were killed on active service during the Second World War. See this article for more information.