News Reports - 1920's
Ashbourne Shrovetide Football. Bloomer opens the event by traditionally throwing up the ball.
6th February 1920
Burnley Inside Right Robert Kelly said to be the next Steve Bloomer.
29th January 1921
Bloomer Referees Wholesale Meat Salesmen v. Retail Butchers at the Baseball Ground.
10th May 1921
24th September 1921
Barnes (who was once coached by Bloomer) believes in
Bloomer's theory that the correct way to shoot
was with the toe pointing to the ground.
Bloomer's theory that the correct way to shoot
was with the toe pointing to the ground.
12th November 1921
John Francis 'Jack' Doran of Brighton who scored 54 goals in 81 appearances is compared to Bloomer.
12th November 1921
Bloomer to Coach the Grenadier Guards Football Club
in Canada for 11 weeks.
in Canada for 11 weeks.
02nd December 1921
Bloomer congratulates Bedford.
31st December 1921
Bloomer had the hardest shot in football.
4th February 1922
Are the vast improvements of Jimmy Lyon's displays down to Bloomer's coaching ability?
18th February 1922
Bloomer plays for the Derby Borough Police.
20th February 1922
Bloomer was the master of swerve to elude an opponent.
4th March 1922
Are Frederick Ingram 'Fanny' Walden (Tottenham Hotspurs) and Robert 'Bob' Kelly (Burnley) the ball manipulating wizards that Bloomer and William Charles 'Charlie' Athersmith (Aston Villa) were on that left side for England?
11th March 1922
Bloomer leads Local Referees v. Derby Borough Police at the Baseball Ground.
13th April 1922
Bloomer scouts Cousins of Durham but fails to prize him. Note the reporter has spelled his name wrongly.
15th April 1922
Bloomer sails to Coach in Canada.
27th April 1922
Bloomer Referees Wholesale Meat Salesmen v. Retail Butchers (return match) at the Baseball Ground.
25th April 1922
Waived off to Canada by Liverpool and Everton Players.
29th April 1922
Harry Cousins scouted by Bloomer last year, leaves
Durham City for Stockport County.
Durham City for Stockport County.
25th May 1922
Fan tells how Bloomer receives an ovation
from the crowd in Quebec.
from the crowd in Quebec.
17th July 1922
Bloomer returns from Montreal.
08th August 1922
Bloomer wins the Quebec Cup in Montréal. Returns to
England on the S.S. Minnedosa and is suitably
impressed with the standard of football.
England on the S.S. Minnedosa and is suitably
impressed with the standard of football.
12th August 1922
Bloomer's advice to the Canadians is "keep on swinging the ball."
15th August 1922
Bloomer makes prediction that Derby will finish top or thereabouts: they finished 14th. The next season they were 3rd. They were 3rd the following season too. The season after that they finished 2nd and were promoted to Division One in the 1925-1926 season.
26th August 1922
Bloomer discovers the brilliant Spurs Centre Forward, Captain, Manager, Coach and Assistant Secretary William 'Billy' Minter
while playing for non-league St. Albans City Football Club.
while playing for non-league St. Albans City Football Club.
30th September 1922
Bloomer scored many goals from brilliant head flicks.
07th October 1922
Bloomer believed that when a side is ahead it should go all out attack and employ the fullbacks and Goalkeeper to defend for the most part.
30th October 1922
Bloomer was a lucky mascot as well as Club Coach
(see also 9th March 1923).
(see also 9th March 1923).
11th November 1922
Bloomer presented with a photograph of Team in which he played
as Centre Forward for the Derby Borough Police Athletic Club v. Licenced Victuallers in a charity match at the Baseball Ground.
as Centre Forward for the Derby Borough Police Athletic Club v. Licenced Victuallers in a charity match at the Baseball Ground.
23rd November 1922
Ex-Derby County Goalkeeper Jack Robinson boasts that
Bloomer could not get the ball past him. Bloomer
scores and shouts "stop that then."
Bloomer could not get the ball past him. Bloomer
scores and shouts "stop that then."
30th November 1922
F.A. Cup match first played on 21st January 1893 at Olive Grove, Sheffield Wednesday's first Ground. The book 'Derby County - The Complete Record' reports that the first postponement and the second are both player ineligibility related which is incorrect. The first match was objected to due to a lighter ball being introduced to the game. It was the second match that was objected to by Sheffield Wednesday regarding Steve Bloomer's ineligibility that was player related. The first game was lost 3-2 by Derby after extra time with John Goodall and Steve Bloomer scoring even though it was reported that Derby were by far superior. The first replay at the Baseball Ground was won by Derby with John Goodall scoring the only goal to give Derby a 1-0 win on 30th January 1893. The second and final replay was played again at Olive Grove and won 4-2 by Sheffield Wednesday. John Goodall and Little scoring for the Rams. This episode of events was thought to be responsible for a complete change in rules to the 'objection' rule that allowed replays without recourse. It was finally decided that the results and scorers of the first two games were to be counted null and void. The first match attracted 20,000 fans. The second at the Baseball Ground attracted 15,000 and at the third game there was an attendance of 10,000 fans. The total attendance over the three matches was 45,000 fans.
13th January 1923
Bloomer planning charity match for Mayor's War Memorial Fund.
10th February 1923
Bloomer's Ruhleben Internment Camp mate John Richard Halpin known as 'Bicycle Billy' arrives in Derby.
14th February 1923
Coach Bloomer big's up his boys
Derby County 1-0 Sheffield Wednesday (Moore 1)
Attendance: 16,000.
Derby County 1-0 Sheffield Wednesday (Moore 1)
Attendance: 16,000.
3rd March 1923
Magazine publishes an article stating Bloomer believes Spurs will beat Derby in their F.A. (English) Cup match on 10th March 1923 at White Hart Lane. The article was reported wrongly because Steve declared that it would be a draw before travelling to the match with the players which was quite a rarity. However when he did watch them either at home or away during his Coaching spell Derby had never lost, so why on earth would he suddenly say that Derby will lose? In fact the outcome was a 1-0 win to the Rams. Galloway scored in front of 50,349 fans to send Derby through to a Semi-Final encounter with West Ham United.
9th March 1923
War Memorial Fund charity match arranged by Bloomer.
29th March 1923
Bloomer plans charity match to raise funds for the
Mayor's War Memorial Fund.
Mayor's War Memorial Fund.
07th April 1923
Old Internationals v. Derby County fund raiser
for the Mayor's War Memorial Fund.
for the Mayor's War Memorial Fund.
14th April 1923
Bloomer's two year coaching contract with Derby
expires during May 1923.
expires during May 1923.
21st April 1923
Bloomer Referee's and Coaches charity match
Ashbourne 1-6 Derby County
at the Paddock Ground
Attendance: 2,000.
Ashbourne 1-6 Derby County
at the Paddock Ground
Attendance: 2,000.
3rd May 1923
Bloomer scouts Minter at St.Albans but also spots Miller while there. His glowing reports of both to Manager Jimmy Methven are discarded and Chelsea later swoop to sign-up Miller.
16th June 1923
The player Bloomer talks about was George William Rowe (1899-1966) who was a Left Back for Derby following this practice match trial between 1923 and 1927. He became part of the Second Division runners-up team of 1925-1926 playing just once for Derby's first team that lost 2-0 away to Swansea Town on the 13th of February 1926.
3rd August 1923
The great Bill Meredith of Wales and Manchester City reveres Bloomer as the greatest Inside Right of all time.
08th September 1923
Bloomer gets a granddaughter.
15th September 1923
Bloomer played for Derby and District League v. Irish Football Alliance, winning 3-1 in Belfast in 1919.
12th October 1923
London Evening Standard newspaper's 11th October 1923 edition reports wrongly that Bloomer was a Coal Miner.
16th October 1923
Bloomer to Coach in Spain.
30th & 31st October 1923
Good pal Fred Pentland (whom Bloomer played with at Middlesbrough) helps Bloomer secure the Head Coach role at Real Unión Club de Irún, S.A.D. of Spain. The next season he won the Copa del Rey 'King's Cup', as well as the Campeonato de Guipúzcoa (Regional League), and was awarded the National Assembly Sash for National Sporting Merit by the Government of Spain for his achievements with this 'up to then' virtually unknown Club.
3rd November 1923
Bloomer well wishes for Coaching trip to Spain.
3rd November 1923
Bloomer finds out he's wanted in Spain on Saturday 27th
and takes the midnight train to London on Sunday 28th
for arrival at his new Club on the Monday.
and takes the midnight train to London on Sunday 28th
for arrival at his new Club on the Monday.
3rd November 1923
Bloomer found 'diamonds on much heaps'.
3rd December 1923
Bloomer had super brilliant shooting and there was no marksman like him. He was as cunning as a wagon load of monkeys.
15th December 1923
Bloomer set for two years in Bilbao, Spain as Coach.
30th and 31st October 1923
Reserve Outside left Cruickshank swerves just like Bloomer
but never played for the First Team.
but never played for the First Team.
29th March 1924
Horace Barnes the Manchester City Forward owes so much
to the teachings of Bloomer.
to the teachings of Bloomer.
13th September 1924
Making a weak defence is futile just to create goals. Strong defences create great games as Bloomer proved against ex-Derby County Goalkeeper Jack Robinson.
6th October 1924
Bloomer played in a representative match for the Derby and District Football league against the Irish Football Alliance in Ulster, Belfast, Northern Ireland in 1919, beating them 3-1.
10th October 1924
Harry Swift (Sheffield Wednesday) pays reverence to G.O. Smith's ability to instinctively flick the ball to Bloomer without seeing him, and Bloomer's ability to then score with one of his incomparable drives.
23rd March 1925
Young players believed that coaching was a bad thing,
but Bloomer and Meredith knew differently.
but Bloomer and Meredith knew differently.
20th May 1925
Bloomer plays in friendly match.
11th November 1925
Bloomer coached Horace Barnes.
26th December 1925
Bloomer wishes Derby all the best in their quest
to form a Bagatelle League.
to form a Bagatelle League.
09th February 1926
Record of 6 goals scored by Bloomer in a First Division
match finally equaled.
match finally equaled.
17th April 1926
Bloomer scored six goals in one match.
17th April 1926
Bloomer possibly took his first penalty on Strutt's Park as a boy.
2nd August 1926
22nd April 1912. Derby County return from their last match of the season at Barnsley. A match they won 2-0 with Buckley and Bauchop the scorers. The team gathered on the portico balcony of the Royal Hotel in Derby to a massive ovation from a packed crowd in the streets below. Frank Buckley snatches off Bloomer's cap and shouts "There stands the greatest footballer that ever lived. The man to whom Derby County owes their return to the First Division."
24th September 1926
Derby v. Sheffield United F.A. Cup Final 1899: Bloomer missed putting Derby 2-0 up by a whisker.
29th September 1926
Cricket: Bloomer to assist in nursery fund raising match.
16th October 1926
Jack Robinson (ex Derby County Goalkeeper) performed 'prodigies of valour' against Bloomer's 'unstoppables' on 25th February 1899 at 'The Dell' in front of a crowd of 20,000.
9th March 1927
Did Bloomer fear William 'Willie' 'Baby' 'Fatty' Foulkes of Blackwell, the Sheffield United Goalkeeper and Derbyshire County Cricketer who topped the scales at around 22 stones and picked the ball up from the top with one hand?
11th March 1927
Bloomer's brother David laid to rest.
18th July 1927
"I often marvelled at the way he could get a ball passed straight down to your feet by the flick of his head. His heading was uncanny
in its accuracy and precision" - Horace Barnes.
in its accuracy and precision" - Horace Barnes.
23rd September 1927
Bloomer guest speaker and prize presenter.
02nd November 1927
Bloomer advocates the 'exaggerated 'W' formation'
attacking line-up.
attacking line-up.
21st July 1928
Bloomer could run almost the length of a pitch and score on his own.
27th August 1928
An observer compares Dixie Dean with Steve Bloomer:
"if Bloomer returned he would score more goals than any
other two Inside Rights put together."
"if Bloomer returned he would score more goals than any
other two Inside Rights put together."
8th September 1928
Marriage: Bloomer's daughter Doris Alexandra Bloomer weds Cyril Rawlins Richards (Cathedral Chorister). Standing outside Derby Cathedral. Bloomer pictured far right.
26th September 1928
If Bloomer and Meredith saw a chance of dribbling the ball right through they would try it.
3rd October 1928
Bloomer assesses and compares the current team with his old team.
22nd October 1928
Bloomer never played at Leeds City's (United) Elland Road
but did act as the Linesman.
but did act as the Linesman.
20th November 1928
Steve Bloomer left with Manager George Jobey checking Sammy Crooks leg before the Blackburn Rovers away game on 26th January 1929 having missed the previous four games through injury.
25th January 1929
From left: unknown, George Jobey (Manager), Steve Bloomer (wearing cap), Harry Bedford, Tommy Cooper, unknown, unknown, unknown, unknown.
1st August 1929
Mr Hunt of Riddings the Bonesetter, once treated Steve Bloomer.
1st October 1929
Bloomer and Manager George Jobey talent spot in Mansfield.
24th October 1929
Bloomer witnesses the finest exhibition of junior
mid-week football he has yet seen.
mid-week football he has yet seen.
04th November 1929
Golf: Bloomer plays golf too.
6th November 1929
Derby County Trainer Harry Dakin was said to have discovered Steve Bloomer but another debate suggests that John Goodall spotted him first when playing for Derby Junction at Strutts Park.
12th November 1929
Bloomer pays attends ex-team mate, Derby County Right Back
and Trainer, Arthur Latham's funeral.
and Trainer, Arthur Latham's funeral.
13th November 1929
Bloomer attends ex-Derby County Centre Half
Archie Goodall's funeral.
Archie Goodall's funeral.
05th December 1929