Sandringham Soccer Club

On the 28th of July I received the following letter from the Treasurer of Sandringham Soccer Club, Michele Rowse. It expresses a lot of the issues and difficulties we all have to negotiate as soccer historians

 

Dear Ian,

I do hope this finds you well in these unusual times.

My name is Michele and I am currently the Treasurer at Sandringham Soccer Club. I am trying to track down the history of the club as there are snippets of information and conflicting and missing dates and I am trying to put together a full picture (as much as possible) so we don’t lose the past.

During my research, I have come across your name numerous times in articles and books and I would truly appreciate your advice in regards to where you suggest I look for information. I have obviously done online searches and read numerous newsletters and articles and I can track mentions of Sandringham Soccer Club to as early as June 1911. There is a clear path from 1948 (which the Club is happy to claim), however I believe there is richness in capturing the years before this period, and although there were moments of recess because of war, it would be such a shame to miss out on the preceding history of the club.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated as I conduct this work in my spare time.

Kind regards

Michele Rowse

I replied to her: had a look in Mark Boric's statistical history of Victorian soccer  https://melbournesoccer.blogspot.com/2018/12/the-latest-draft-of-victorian-football.html  and a Sandringham club exists at the beginning of ww1 but collapses because of the war and is resurrected in 22/23 but disappears once more. Another Sandringham emerges in 1936. Whether that is the same club as yours needs to be examined via a number of connections. I'm happy to have a chat about this with you but I want to use it as a typical problem for Victorian soccer history on today's program.

She replied and assented to my use.