History
This season the St. Louis Soccer League, headed by president Phil A. Riley, decided to try a new format. The idea was to make an eight team league instead of the usual four with 50 cent admission playing out of two fields. Four 'old pros' comprising the national champion Centrals, (Johnny) Marre's, Ben Millers, and Hellrung Grimms would be combined with four 'graduates' in the German Sport Club, George McGann's Schumachers, Ed Delaney's Hermanns, and Sociedad Espanola (Spanish Sport Club). The two fields used were Sportsman's Park and South Side Park aka National Softball Park. The referees enlisted were Oscar Mossman, Jimmy Dunn, Ribby Murphy, and Charley LaBarge. The league played three rounds beginning on October 6 before problems arose in the fourth week. The standings for the first three weeks are below.
Ben Millers was a U.S. soccer club sponsored by the Ben W. Miller Hat Company of St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1913, it entered the St. Louis Soccer League two years later, winning seven league titles and one National Challenge Cup before its disbandment in 1935.
Sportsman's Park was the name of several former Major League Baseball ballpark structures in St. Louis, Missouri. All but one of these were located on the same piece of land, at the northwest corner of Grand Boulevard and Dodier Street, on the north side of the city.
James Dunn was an American soccer forward who spent nine seasons with Ben Millers in the St. Louis Soccer League and was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1974.
| St. Louis 8 | Pts | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Dif | Perc |
|---|
| 1 | Democrats | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 4 | +8 | .833 |
| 2 | Spanish Sports Club | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 2 | +7 | .833 |
| 3 | H&G | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 6 | +3 | .667 |
| 4 | Marres | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 6 | +3 | .500 |
| 5 | Ben Millers | 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | .500 |
| 6 | German | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 11 | -6 | .333 |
| 7 | Hermanns | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 9 | -7 | .167 |
| 8 | Schumachers | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 8 | -8 | .167 |
Beginning with the fourth week (October 27) admission was reduced to 25 cents with ladies free. Two of the games were called off at South Side field because of weather conditions. The games at the other field were played after a delay due to the assumption that the games would also be called off for the same reason. The delay caused the games to be shortened and were played without a break with some players having left as well. It was decided that these games would be considered exhibitions and not count in the standings and the entire round replayed. This never happened because by the next week the Schumachers, Hermanns, and German Sport Club withdrew from the league.
St. Louis 5
On November 3, prior games were scratched from the record and the league restarted with five teams: Ben Millers, Hellrung & Grimm, Spanish Sport Club, and St. Louis Soccer club (formerly Democratic Country Club). In the first round St. Louis Soccer Club toppled Ben Millers 6-1 while Spanish Sport Club shutout Hellrungs 4-0, Marre's had a bye.
Hellrung & Grimm was a U.S. soccer team in St. Louis, Missouri which was sponsored by the Hellrung & Grimm Furniture Company. It spent the 1935-1936 season in the St. Louis Soccer League.
St. Louis 4
The following week (November 10) the league restarted a third time having returned to four teams and one field. The league would play at National Softball Park while the 'St. Louis 1' soon to be Father Dempsey's Shamrocks would be a league of their own at Sportsman's Park to entertain intercity competition. The next week (November 17) the St. Louis Soccer Club played their first games as the Shamrocks against the Maccabees of Chicago, winning 4-2. The Spanish Club also played their first game as Burke's and went on to win the first half with a perfect record. First half season standings below.
| St. Louis 4 | Pts | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Dif | Perc |
|---|
| 1 | Burke's | 16 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 2 | +16 | 1.00 |
| 2 | H&G | 6 | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 12 | 13 | -1 | .375 |
| 3 | Marres | 6 | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 9 | 14 | -5 | .375 |
| 4 | Ben Miller | 4 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 18 | -10 | .250 |
Champion: Burke's Undertakers
Bertrand "Bert" Arthur Patenaude was an American soccer player who played as a forward. Although earlier disputed, he is now officially credited by FIFA as the scorer of the first hat-trick in World Cup history. He is a member of the United States Soccer Hall of Fame.
Shamrock Rovers Football Club is an Irish association football club based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club's senior team competes in the League of Ireland Premier Division and it is the most successful club in the Republic of Ireland. The club has won the League of Ireland title a record 17 times and the FAI Cup a record 24 times. Shamrock Rovers have supplied more players to the Republic of Ireland national football team (62) than any other club. In All-Ireland competitions, such as the Intercity Cup, they hold the record for winning the most titles, having won seven cups overall.
Adelino William "Billy" Gonsalves was an American soccer player, sometimes described as the "Babe Ruth of American Soccer". He spent over 25 years playing in various American professional leagues and was a member of the U.S. squad at the FIFA World Cup in 1930 and 1934. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.
Fall River Marksmen was an American soccer club, based in Fall River, Massachusetts. They originally played as Fall River United before becoming known as the Marksmen after their owner, Sam Mark. During the 1920s and early 1930s they were one of the most successful soccer clubs in the United States, winning the American Soccer League on six occasions. They also won the National Challenge Cup four times. In 1924 they won the first ASL / Challenge Cup double and were subsequently the American soccer champions three times in succession. Between 1928 and 1930 they won a further three titles in a row. In 1930 they completed a treble, winning the ASL title, the Challenge Cup and the Lewis Cup. The same year they also toured Central Europe.
Stix, Baer and Fuller F.C. was a U.S. soccer club which played in the St. Louis Soccer League from 1931 to 1934. The team was known as Hellrungs from 1929 to 1931, St. Louis Central Breweries F.C. from 1934 to 1935 and St. Louis Shamrocks from 1935 to 1938. During its short existence, it won two National Challenge Cup titles and two league championships as Stix, Baer and Fuller and one National Cup and league title as St. Louis Central Breweries.
Werner "Scotty" Nilsen is a former Norwegian American soccer forward. He is one of the highest scoring players in U.S. soccer history, scoring 131 goals in 239 games with the Boston Soccer Club. He won five consecutive National Challenge Cups during his career, and four doubles. He also earned two caps with the United States in 1934, one at the 1934 FIFA World Cup. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.
William Lehman was an American soccer half back who was on the U.S. roster at the 1934 FIFA World Cup. He played professionally in the St. Louis Soccer League.
New York Yankees were a New York soccer team that played briefly in the American Soccer League. They were formed following the merger of Fall River Marksmen and New York Soccer Club. Although the Yankees survived only a short time, they beat Celtic in a prestige friendly and effectively won the 1931 National Challenge Cup. However, due to complications over the merger their moment of glory was credited to the Fall River Marksmen.
Alex "Alec" McNab was a Scottish-American soccer player and coach. He began his career in Scotland before moving to the United States. In the US, he won six consecutive National Challenge Cups with teams from both the American Soccer League and St. Louis Soccer League. He was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 2005.
Jimmy Roe was a U.S. soccer inside left who spent his entire career in the St. Louis leagues. He was called into the national team in 1937, but suffered a career ending knee injury before his first game with the team. He was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1997.
John Anthony Reder is a former Polish American sportsman who during the 1930s played soccer with the Fall River Marksmen and the New Bedford Whalers and baseball for the Boston Red Sox. As a soccer goalkeeper he won three American Soccer League titles and two National Challenge Cup titles. In 1935, while playing baseball for the Williamsport Grays, he was voted Most Valuable Player of the New York–Penn League. Together with Moe Drabowsky, Nap Kloza and Henry Peploski, Reder is one of only four Major League Baseball players to be born in Poland.
James White, also known as Jimmy White or Tec White, is a Scottish former footballer who spent most of his career playing for Fall River Marksmen in the American Soccer League. He was born in Airdrie, North Lanarkshire, Scotland.
The 1931 National Challenge Cup was the annual open cup held by the United States Football Association now known as the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.
The 1933 National Challenge Cup was the annual open cup held by the United States Football Association now known as the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. As in 1931, the ASL teams played a round robin format instead of direct knockout games. The five New York teams formed the Metropolitan group. The New England group included the three remaining ASL teams along with Victoria Mills of the Southern New England Association who qualified by defeating Fairlawn Rovers. The Round Robin was somewhat unpopular because of the methods used. Despite a league setup, games tied at the end of regulation were to go into overtime. In the event of a tie in the standings, goal average was used to break the tie. A slight controversy ensued when a game between Boston and Fall River was called at the 78th minute with the score 0-0. Fall River later forfeited the replay leaving Boston tied for first with Pawtucket. The Rangers advanced on better goal average leaving Boston unable to make up the difference in a replay with Fall River or a playoff with Pawtucket. In the West it was business as usual with the standard knockout procedure and the Stix of St. Louis making their second of what would be six consecutive trips to the national final. Other highlights include Bert Patenaude's five goal performance against Fairhill in the First German Club's first round match on January 14.
The 1936 National Challenge Cup was the annual open cup held by the United States Football Association now known as the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup. This edition featured the fifth of six consecutive final appearances for Alex McNab's team. The Shamrocks not participating in their local league that year were playing inter city matches with top competition primarily from Cleveland, Chicago and Detroit. One of their only losses during the season was to Heidelberg, eventual Western Final opponents of the Shamrocks. Early in the season Heidelberg took the first game of a three-game set, the second match ended in a draw and McNab's men evened up the series by pulling out a victory in the third game. Both teams eventually made their way to the Western Final, Heidelberg led by the lone scorer for the USA at the 1934 World Cup Aldo Donelli. The Shamrocks with their World Cup veterans including William Lehman, Billy Gonsalves, Werner Nilsen, and Bert Patenaude overcame the Pennsylvanians with a 3-2 aggregate over two games. The final showcased still further US nationals. The Philadelphia German-Americans roster boasted a quartet of their own including Bill Fiedler, Al Harker, Peter Pietras, and Francis Ryan. After a two all draw in the first leg of the final in St. Louis, Philly took home the trophy by blanking the Shamrocks 3-0 in the second leg.
The St. Louis league entered its 34th year headed by President Charles DeWitt. This season the league would play out of West Side Park. Four teams to play a doubleheader on Sundays as well as a midweek doubleheader under flood lights. Ben Millers withdrew from the league but was replaced by members of the Ben Millers Eddie Hart and Eddie McHugh. They were coached by McHugh but started the season with the name Harts. John Marre's team was called Town Criers and was coached by Tom Palmer. The Spanish Club continued under the sponsorship of Burke Undertakers. Phil Kavanaugh's team changed sponsorship from Hellrungs and Grimm to the Tom Burke Taverns and went by the name Club Lotus. Final league standings for the 1937-38 St. Louis Soccer League are below.
Graham Dylan Burke is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a forward for Shamrock Rovers on loan from Preston North End. Burke has represented the Republic of Ireland at senior level.