BrisbaneRhino Posted January 4, 2021 Share Posted January 4, 2021 Not a record keeping issue as such, but I was wondering if there was much information on how teams travelled to games back in early years. I assume trains were the only means of getting anywhere in a reasonable time in 1895? Even so it must have taken quite a while for some players to get to away games and back home again. When did coach travel become a thing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonM Posted January 4, 2021 Share Posted January 4, 2021 I've read descriptions of Widnes travelling to a game at Barrow by train to Fleetwood and then by paddle steamer to Barrow. I've also read about Widnes travelling to a game at Bramley by train and then making the final part of the journey by horse and cart - and I think that was 1920s/early 1930s rather than 1890s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanderer Posted January 4, 2021 Share Posted January 4, 2021 It's an interesting socio-economic question. I suppose professional rugby was different to social rugby, but I enjoyed reading an extract of the silver jubilee brochure, in the first lockdown period, of a now defunct Union club (Instonians) on the Wirral (they merged with someone else to become Prenton in the last few years), anyway it goes: The mid 1950's also saw the increasing influence of the motor car in rugby social life and fixture planning. In the early days of the club, most fixtures were confined to the Wirral but after the war the club began to broaden its horizons. Orrell, St. Helens, Rhyl and Bangor were added to the fixture list and the away trip to the University of the last named town proved to be a fitting climax to the season for many years. Before cars, away trips could be fraught with pitfalls. A visit to Old Widnesians (now Widnes) meant catching a steam train from Liverpool Central (High Level) to Farnworth Station. (extract from page 16) https://www.birkenheadinstitute.co.uk/BIOB Miscellaneous Photographs/Miscellaneous/RugbyGoldenJubilee.pdf From Farnworth Station the players would have faced a trek of about a mile or more across what was then school playing fields & farmers fields as the crow flies. I guess it was a muddy afternoon! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrisbaneRhino Posted January 5, 2021 Author Share Posted January 5, 2021 Thanks guys. Really interesting. An away game was most likely an entire day for most players for a lot of the sport's early history. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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