Nottingham Forest v Fulham

THE HISTORY FILES
IN THE LAST WEEK’S BLACKPOOL PROGRAMME,
NOTTINGHAM FOREST HONORARY HISTORIAN, DON
WRIGHT, STARTED A TWO PIECE ARTICLE ON TRIP TO
SOUTH AMERICA 60 YEARS – HERE IS PART TWO
After two resounding victories against the
Britanicos (13-1) and Rosario (6-0), The Reds
attracted the joint highest attendance of the tour
when 10,000 watched the match against Alumni
on 25th June 1905.
That was when Senor Langone of Independiente
found red shirts inspirational and irresistible and it is
surely possible that the young Juan Peron was there
too, later to be President of Argentina.
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In any event, the Alumni were beaten 6-1. Lessons (2),
Niblo, Shearman and Timmins scored. There was also
an own goal. Another 10,000 spectators were present
for the match on 2nd July 1905 against Liga Argentina,
a representative side selected from the country’s
leading clubs. It made no difference as Lessons
struck another four goals in a 9-1 victory. Niblo (2),
Henderson, Timmins and Shearman got the others.
Finally, on 5th July 1905, Forest played an exhibition
game with all 13 players taking part and, presumably,
a few locals making up the sides. The ‘A’ team beat
the ‘B’ team 2-1 but the venue and other details are
unrecorded. Inside-right Bill Shearman, who had
top-scored in the First Division season with 13 goals
from 29 matches, got 13 goals in eight matches
on tour but the leading scorer was centre-forward
George Lessons with 17. Both forwards twice hit four
goals in tour games.
Tom Clifford, who played six games at right-half, is listed
as C. Clifford in former secretary Ken Smales’ records,
which provide no further information about him.
In fact, he was a 29-year-old former Celtic player
who had been signed by Forest from Motherwell just
before the tour began. According to the Nottingham
Evening Post on Thursday, 3rd August, 1905, Hallam