Attendances in the 50s&60s

[Penkvik]

I was just wondering if there are any records of attendances during the 50s & 60s and how they compare with today,
the ground always seemed quite full in those days, but it may be these rose coloured specs I'm wearing,people used to watch
from all around the ground though,not just from the sides.

[geoffw]

I was there from late 50's but cannot recall attendances. weekly news records in library would tell you. In referenc elibrary on microfische. I recall the record crowd v st helens in 1961 cc replay obver 24,000 on. I recall the ground being over full!
In mid1970's we played Wiagn at home in the cup in round 3 I think. we got over 14,000 for that game.

For much ofthe late 1950's and through the 60's though when we were very average mid table of 33 to 36 teams I seem to recall 3-4000 was the average but could be wrong.

[Penkvik]

I was there from late 50's but cannot recall attendances. weekly news records in library would tell you. In referenc elibrary on microfische. I recall the record crowd v st helens in 1961 cc replay obver 24,000 on. I recall the ground being over full!
In mid1970's we played Wiagn at home in the cup in round 3 I think. we got over 14,000 for that game.

For much ofthe late 1950's and through the 60's though when we were very average mid table of 33 to 36 teams I seem to recall 3-4000 was the average but could be wrong.

Would that Saints replay be the one after Harry Dawson levelled  the scores at Knowsley Rd and they came to Naughton Park and won
quite easily? I remember Vinty having a good game for them and the great Van Vollenhoven was in their side at the time.

[deb]

All i can give is the season figures for the 50s if that helps they are:

1949/50      174.495  (18 games)
1950/51      117.920  (18 games)
1951/52      118.183  (18 games)
1952/53        88.271  (18 games)
1953/54        97.773   (18 games)
1954/55        73.896   (18 games)
1955/56        80.435   (17 games)
1956/57        76.220  (19 games)
1957/58        94.961   (19 games)
1958/59      121.115   (19 games)
1959/60        90.495   (19 games)
1960/61        78.311   (18 games)

[Penkvik]

All i can give is the season figures for the 50s if that helps they are:

1949/50      174.495  (18 games)
1950/51      117.920  (18 games)
1951/52      118.183  (18 games)
1952/53        88.271  (18 games)
1953/54        97.773   (18 games)
1954/55        73.896   (18 games)
1955/56        80.435   (17 games)
1956/57        76.220  (19 games)
1957/58        94.961   (19 games)
1958/59      121.115   (19 games)
1959/60        90.495   (19 games)
1960/61        78.311   (18 games)

Thanks for that Deb, 49/50 ave' 9694     50/51 ave'6551  51/52 ave' 6565,   drops a bit mid 50s. Only one league then I think so
probably playing the top sides of the day

[NAT]

  Just as an added piont on this its worth remembering that there was no M62 in the 50's so you couldnt expect to see quite the same level of traveling support from the yorkshire clubs .

[Penkvik]

  Just as an added piont on this its worth remembering that there was no M62 in the 50's so you couldnt expect to see quite the same level of traveling support from the yorkshire clubs .

Fair point Nat,I remember travelling to Wakefield for the C.C.semi in '64 and it was quite an arduous journey over the Pennines.

[StuartW]

When you think about it those figures are not very encouraging in that we never managed to average 10,000 gates back in those days and we still don't today, maybe it's just not possible for a town of this size. If the 2012 criteria demands 10,000 averages then we'll be stuffed on this point.

[NAT]

 Consider also back then you probably would find that the actual population within widnes would also have been smaller than it is today .

[Penkvik]

Consider also back then you probably would find that the actual population within widnes would also have been smaller than it is today .

You would think that with new generations of kids,that the attendances would be growing,but when I look around the local playing
fields at weekends it's not rugby that kids are playing,it's the round ball game.It's probably due to the influx of Liverpudlians to the area.
When I was a kid,if you asked for a football as a present,it would be an oval shape. Sunday afternoon in Victoria Park in Widnes used to be full of teenagers playing tick and pass, I wonder what goes on these days.

[Peter]

  Just as an added piont on this its worth remembering that there was no M62 in the 50's so you couldnt expect to see quite the same level of traveling support from the yorkshire clubs .

It used to take all day to get to and from Hull. The easiest Yorkshire sides to get to were Halifax and Huddersfield.

[Peter]

You would think that with new generations of kids,that the attendances would be growing,but when I look around the local playing
fields at weekends it's not rugby that kids are playing,it's the round ball game.It's probably due to the influx of Liverpudlians to the area.
When I was a kid,if you asked for a football as a present,it would be an oval shape. Sunday afternoon in Victoria Park in Widnes used to be full of teenagers playing tick and pass, I wonder what goes on these days.

I had a football for Christmas abou 1942. When the bladder could not be mended any more we stuffed it with old clothes. You could play in the street then as Bowmans steam lorry only came down Moss Bank Rd about twice a week.

[Sunny]

You would think that with new generations of kids,that the attendances would be growing,but when I look around the local playing
fields at weekends it's not rugby that kids are playing,it's the round ball game.It's probably due to the influx of Liverpudlians to the area.
When I was a kid,if you asked for a football as a present,it would be an oval shape. Sunday afternoon in Victoria Park in Widnes used to be full of teenagers playing tick and pass, I wonder what goes on these days.

You probably don't want to know...

[JonM]

All sports got big crowds in the early 1950s post-war boom, though. If you look at crowds in the 1970s, we were one of the best supported clubs in the country with crowds that were probably on a par with what we get today.

[RB]

All sports got big crowds in the early 1950s post-war boom, though. If you look at crowds in the 1970s, we were one of the best supported clubs in the country with crowds that were probably on a par with what we get today.

You are right. If I remember correctly their was a major collapse in RL Crowds from the late 1940's to the 1970,s
Went down from something like 8 million to 1 million.
I think we were the best supported club in the country in about 1978 with gates of something like 8000.
When you consider our crowds in the 1950's consider we were perhaps the 17th best team in the country and consider what the 17th best team gets now.
If we are now the 17th best team we get about the same. if its somebody else they get a lot less than we did.

One thing old crowd figures show. Is that without extending our catchment area we have it all on to average 10000.
It also shows our core crowd has not dimiinished like many other NL clubs core crowd.