#TBT: Fall Rivers Tie with Harrison (10/1/1921)
- Updated: October 2, 2014
Welcome to this week’s edition of “Throwback Thursday,” where we take a trip back in time to spotlight some of the clubs that made their mark on the New England soccer landscape over the past century.
This week, we venture back to the third week of American Soccer League play, where Fall River United returned home from a 2-0 win in Holyoke, Mass. north to face Harrison F.C. at the Athletic Grounds. The Uniteds entered the match hoping to grab their first win in front of the home supporters.
Note: All information provided in the following game report was drawn from the October 3, 1921 edition of The Fall River Globe (Fall River, Mass.).
FALL RIVERS TIE WITH HARRISON
American Soccer League Teams Show Classy Calibre of Football in 1 to 1 Draw at Athletic Grounds — Chick Albion Features.
FALL RIVER, Mass – Newly-acquired forward F. Timmoney scored his debut goal while goalkeeper Chick Albion collected no fewer than eight saves as Fall River United drew 1-1 to Harrison F.C. on Saturday at the Athletic Grounds.
Timmoney, who previously featured with the Fore River contingent in Quincy, Mass., scored in the 35th minute. His strike equalized that of Harrison inside right Del Brierly, who scored moments earlier.
Disjointed play was the order of the first 20 minutes as both squads tried to put together some combinations, but were unsuccessful more often than not. This was likely due to the fact that both were fielding scores of new players, and as such, communication gaps were evident early on.
Despite the growing pains, Harrison was able to get onto the board just after the hour mark. With fight for the ball in front of Fall River’s net, Brierly managed to poke the ball through as Albion and his defenders stood momentarily frozen with uncertainty as to who was going to thwart the slow-rolling effort.
Although Brierly’s ball was deemed a “cheap” goal by the local papers, the hosts would not let ease in which they were scored upon creep into their psyche. Instead, they renewed their efforts, and looked to their newest addition to clear the path to an equalizer.
In the 35th minute, the former Fore River inside left grabbed a pass from Hughie Weir and drilled a shot that goalkeeper George Tintle had no chance of reaching. The goal put the match on level terms going into the break, and there was reason to believe that spectators would be treated to more cohesive displays in the second half.
That was certainly true for the guests. Harrison came out of the interval bent on getting the break though, and it took a slew of heroic stops from Albion to keep them at bay.
Even so, the Uniteds withstood the pressure and returned fire, and came agonizingly close to claiming the winner. Ona give-and-go between Parker and Timmoney, the latter pulled the trigger on shot that richocheted off McLoughlin’s knee and smacked the bottom of the bar before it crashed down in front of the line and rolled toward the right post. With the ball still in play, Tintle reacted quickly to boot it away as a number of Uniteds appealed in vain to referee Carroll that it had crossed the line.
Carroll, to his credit, was praised in the papers for calling a sound game, a game in which he allowed the players to play “real” football. He also kept a keen eye on offside players, none of whom escaped the attention of the Rhode Island referee.
The summary:
Fall River F.C. Harrison F.C.
Albion, g……g, Tintle
Lindsey, rfb……rfb, McLoughlin
Littlejohn, lfb….lfb, Butterworth
Booth, rhb…..rhb, Holt
McFarlane, chb….chb, Bustuard
(Capt.) Parker, lhb, irw….lhb, Blakey
Alves, orw…..orw, Koelsch
Butler, irw, lhb….irw, Brierly
Churley, cf….cf, Hemingway (Capt.)
Timmoney, ilw…..ilw, McGee
Weir, olw….olw, Shaw
Goals, Timmoney, Brierly. Referee, Carroll. Linesmen, Smith for Fall River, Waldron for Harrison. Time, 45 minute halves.
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