Interesting Pin Badge

[Groucho]

Intriguing.

 

[Gladystweet]

It seems, "they gave their today for our tomorrow" is linked with the Royal British Legion. I wonder if that's the connection.

 

[Stocko3000]

My guess would be the players of each clubs volunteered to go to the war instead of playing? hence the "They gave their today for our tomorrow"

 

[evo1878]

Very interesting mate, nothing obvious springs to mind - contact these guys: http://www.footballandthefirstworldwar.org/

Cheers @the esk

 

[evo1878]

My guess would be the players of each clubs volunteered to go to the war instead of playing? hence the "They gave their today for our tomorrow"

That's a good thought but surely there were more players at more clubs that did this? And surely more clubs lost players during the war too?

 

[SuffolkBlue]

Could it have anything to do with recruitment for the war? I'm fairly sure Fratton Park was used for recruitment itself for the Navy. They have a nice inscription in the tunnel with the last paragraph credited to Alan Ball. Without searching was Goodison ever used for recruitment?

 

[summerisle]

Everton Board minutes from the War :


http://www.merseyside-at-war.org/story/everton-football-club-during-wwi/

 

[The Esk]

@evo1878 have you tried the Everton Collection http://www.evertoncollection.org.uk/home ?

 

[summerisle]

All of Hearts' first team joined Macrae' s battalion. Thirty other professional players also joined. Perhaps they were amongst them :

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2005/nov/13/hearts

 

[4737carlin]

Anything on this site that can help

http://www.footballandthefirstworldwar.org/footballers-killed-first-world-war/

 

[Reidy's Bottle Of Grecian]

a lot more than those clubs had players killed in WW1
http://www.footballandthefirstworldwar.org/footballers-killed-first-world-war/

 

[evo1878]

All of Hearts' first team joined Macrae' s battalion. Thirty other professional players also joined. Perhaps they were amongst them :

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2005/nov/13/hearts

Aha I reckon you're onto something here because McCrae's battalion were enrolled into the Scottish Football Association Hall of Fame in 2014 - that explains the Everton crest being the one season 'beehive' crest. Raith Rovers players and Hibs players both initially enlisted in McCrae's battalion too. But If Hearts made the pin badge you could understand if they chose to leave Hibs out. But still doesn't explain Everton, Brechin, Portsmouth or Chelsea connection ?

 

[summerisle]

Aha I reckon you're onto something here because McCrae's battalion were enrolled into the Scottish Football Association Hall of Fame in 2014 - that explains the Everton crest being the one season 'beehive' crest. Raith Rovers players and Hibs players both initially enlisted in McCrae's battalion too. But If Hearts made the pin badge you could understand if they chose to leave Hibs out. But still doesn't explain Everton, Brechin, Portsmouth or Chelsea connection ?

Maybe the Clubs contributed monies to the formation of the battalion. Why don't you go onto a Heart's forum. Might get some joy there.

 

[Dario Terracotta]

It's a brilliant item. Not a clue the link with the teams though.

I know there is a plaque at Goodison behind the Park End to an Everton player I think he was a keeper who was a first world war hero,I've got it in the recesses of my mind there may have been a fella we sold to Chelsea who was honoured in the great war too,thats the only tenuous link I could come up with,really interesting though those badges.

 

[The Esk]

From memory and I'll look it up later I think we "only" lost 2 former players in WWI

Apologies in advance if I have that wrong.