Formation of the Club

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THE FORMATION OF ICKLESHAM CASUALS FOOTBALL CLUB

THOMPSON’S TEA ROOMS, RYE

Saturday, 3rd April 1937

Icklesham Casuals Football Club was formally founded on Saturday, 3rd April 1937 at a meeting held at 5 pm at Thompson’s Tea Rooms in Rye. Thompson’s Tea Rooms was actually a bakers with the tea rooms upstairs and was situated on the Landgate. Today it is Beaucatcher Wines at 26 Landgate.

William Dunlop had been involved in forming Rye Old Grammarians, a Club whose main object initially was to give a game of football to old boys of Rye Grammar School who were ‘decent chaps’ and would otherwise not be playing. Whilst accepting it for the first season, William Dunlop, it appears, was not in favour of the name Rye Old Grammarians, preferring the suggestion of Rye Casuals as this did not limit the Club to old boys of the Grammar School. At the start, the Club were short of playing members and were particularly lacking forwards but William Dunlop ‘didn’t feel particularly well qualified to take on the centre forward position himself’ and hoped a few more players could be encouraged to join in order to avert this possibility.

After one season as secretary William Dunlop left Rye Old Grammarians and the meeting at Thompson’s Tea Rooms was arranged to consider the possibility of forming a football club whose headquarters would be at Icklesham. One reason for choosing Icklesham was that a set of goalposts was lying idle in a field there! Those present were Percy Allen, Les Beeney, Frank Crisford, William Dunlop, Jack Munn, Geoff Smith and Robert Woolley. A considerable amount of informal discussion took place after which Geoff Smith was unanimously elected chairman of the meeting and the following proposals passed:-

  • A club should be formed to play football at Icklesham
  • The club should be known as Icklesham Casuals Football Club
  • Members should be of two kinds – full members and playing members
  • The full members should be made up of all those present at the meeting, together with any that the committee might add from time to time. They would pay an annual subscription of five shillings. The Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer must be chosen from among the full members
  • Playing members would become members by invitation of the secretary. Unless they played in three games they would pay no subscription and have no vote. The annual subscription for those playing in three or more game would be 3s 6d
  • An annual general meeting of the Club would be held between April 1st and June 1st each year. All subscription paying members would have the right to attend. At the annual general meeting, the secretary and treasurer would present annual reports on the previous year and the officers and committee for the coming year would be elected
  • The officials of the Club would consist of a chairman, a secretary, a treasurer, a captain and a vice-captain
  • In general, the ordinary business of the Club would be carried on by a committee consisting of the treasurer, the captain and the secretary. They did not need to hold formal meetings but a note of their decisions would be kept
  • At the request of three or more paying members, the secretary would summon within fourteen days a meeting of the whole Club to discuss any particular question which would need to be stated when the request was made

The officials of the Club were elected as follows:-

  • Chairman – Geoff Smith
  • Secretary – William Dunlop
  • Treasurer – Jack Munn
  • Captain – Les Beeney
  • Vice-Captain – Jack Munn

Jack Munn expressed a wish that it should be recorded that he was elected treasurer despite his own protests and that his appointment as vice-captain carried with it no obligation. It was not clear what he meant by the last remark.

It was agreed to play in green and white quartered shirts and Robert Woolley consented to look after them. Frank Crisford expressed his willingness to act as groundsman and the secretary was instructed to make enquiries as to the possibility of entering the Hastings League. After a vote of thanks to Geoff Smith, for conducting so successfully the business of the meeting, had been carried unanimously, the proceedings terminated.

Contact was made with the Hastings and St Leonards Football Association who were pleased to accept the Club into their membership and confirmation received that Icklesham Casuals would be competing in the Hastings League in their first season, either in Division Three if there was one or if not then definitely in Division Two.

Permission was also sort to use Icklesham Recreation Ground as the club’s home pitch and this was granted by Icklesham Parish Council free of charge for one season with application to be made for renewal the following year.