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100-Year Heroes

Clarets celebrate first title win a century ago

2021-04-23T11:15:09.282Z

100-Year Heroes

Clarets celebrate first title win a century ago

2021-04-23T11:15:09.282Z

Clarets celebrate first title win a century ago

One hundred years ago today – on St George’s Day, 1921 – the Clarets became champions of England for the first time.

A point from a 1-1 draw at Everton was enough for Burnley to win the First Division title with three games to spare.

With second-placed Liverpool losing at Bolton, an equalising goal from Benny Cross - his 15th of the season - saw John Haworth’s legendary side guarantee top spot and go one better than their runners-up’ position of 12 months before.

And the Burnley supporters – inside Goodison Park and those forced to wait outside – were able to celebrate as one of the founder members of the Football League were able to call themselves champions for the first time.

Burnley’s triumph – the first of their two league titles to date – was built around an epic 30-match unbeaten run.

The record run, which had finally been ended at the end of March, was the longest unbeaten sequence in a season to date and would remain so until Arsenal’s ‘Invincibles’ went undefeated in the 2003/04 Premier League season.

Today we remember and salute Burnley’s history-makers and look back at a glorious period in the Clarets’ illustrious past.

The following match report appeared in the Burnley News on 27 April, 1921 and a link to a film made about the champions and one of the heroes of that Burnley team – Tommy Boyle – by Clarets’ historian Mike Smith can be accessed HERE

The Burnley News - Wednesday, 27 April, 1921

“The Clarets travelled to Goodison Park on Saturday the 23rd of April to meet sixth placed Everton. George Halley was still out with a leg injury and Alf Basnett would deputise.

“On a hot, sunny afternoon Burnley should have taken the lead early on, a Joe Anderson effort skimming inches wide of Fern’s post.

“Everton took the lead through Fazackerley on the quarter hour, the goal, suspiciously offside, stood.

“But before the cheers of the crowd had died down, Burnley’s Benny Cross forced a corner. Eddie Mosscrop’s cross found Anderson’s head, the ball finding Cross whose shot rifled past Fern for the equaliser.

“Joe Anderson put the ball in the net for the Clarets in the second half only to be ruled offside and the game ended in a draw.

“At the end, Burnley supporters waited nervously for the score from Burnden Park, where second placed Liverpool were playing Bolton. Wanderers had beaten Liverpool 1-0 and it meant Burnley were seven points clear at the top with three games left and couldn’t be caught.

“For the first time in the club’s history, Burnley were the Football League Champions.”

Burnley: Dawson, Smelt and Jones, Basnett, Boyle and Watson, Nesbitt, Kelly, Anderson, Cross and Mosscrop.

Everton: Fern, Downs and McDonald, Brown, Fleetwood and Peacock, Chedgzoy, Reid, Fazackerley, Crossley and Harrison.

Final Score: Everton 1 (Fazackerley, 15), Burnley 1 (Cross, 18)

Attendance: 43,143