# 1927–28 Huddersfield Town A.F.C. season

Huddersfield Town's 1927–28 campaign was the last season of Town's true dominance of English football. They finished 2nd behind Everton, although if they had won all their last 3 games, they would have won the title, but they only beat Portsmouth and lost to Sheffield United and Aston Villa. They also reached their 3rd FA Cup Final, losing to Blackburn Rovers in controversial circumstances.

## Squad at the start of season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| -- | GK | ENG | Billy Mercer |
| -- | GK | ENG | Hugh Turner |
| -- | DF | ENG | Ned Barkas |
| -- | DF | ENG | Billy Carr |
| -- | DF | ENG | Roy Goodall |
| -- | DF | ENG | Tommy Meads |
| -- | DF | ENG | Levi Redfern |
| -- | DF | ENG | Norman Smith |
| -- | DF | ENG | Bon Spence |
| -- | DF | SCO | David Steele |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| -- | DF | ENG | Sam Wadsworth |
| -- | DF | ENG | Tom Wilson |
| -- | MF | EIR | Laurie Cumming |
| -- | MF | SCO | Alex Jackson |
| -- | MF | ENG | Billy Smith |
| -- | FW | ENG | George Brown |
| -- | FW | ENG | Johnny Dent |
| -- | FW | ENG | Bob Kelly |
| -- | FW | ENG | Harry Raw |
| -- | FW | ENG | Clem Stephenson |

## Review

Town's team of the mid 1920s were all-conquering, almighty and described as the best team in the world. Just 1 season after relinquishing their championship title, but they were still a formidable force in the 1st Division. This was proven by their record 8-2 win over Cardiff City in October and the 7-1 win over Sheffield United in November. George Brown still continued his goalscoring exploits by scoring 35 goals during the season, including 27 in the league. They were still in the hunt for the title until late April. They needed to win their last 3 games to have a realistic chance of reclaiming their title, but defeats to Sheffield United and Aston Villa made the win over Portsmouth irrelevant. They missed out on the championship by 2 points to Everton.

## Squad at the end of the season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| -- | GK | ENG | Billy Mercer |
| -- | GK | ENG | Hugh Turner |
| -- | DF | ENG | Ned Barkas |
| -- | DF | SCO | Willie Campbell |
| -- | DF | ENG | Billy Carr |
| -- | DF | ENG | Roy Goodall |
| -- | DF | ENG | Tommy Meads |
| -- | DF | ENG | Bill Pickering |
| -- | DF | ENG | Levi Redfern |
| -- | DF | ENG | Bon Spence |
| -- | DF | SCO | David Steele |
| -- | DF | ENG | Sam Wadsworth |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| -- | DF | ENG | Tom Wilson |
| -- | MF | EIR | Laurie Cumming |
| -- | MF | SCO | Alex Jackson |
| -- | MF | ENG | Jimmy Smailes |
| -- | MF | ENG | Billy Smith |
| -- | MF | SCO | George Wilson |
| -- | FW | ENG | George Brown |
| -- | FW | ENG | Johnny Dent |
| -- | FW | ENG | Bob Kelly |
| -- | FW | ENG | Harry Raw |
| -- | FW | ENG | Clem Stephenson |

## Results
### Division One

| Date | Opponents | Home/ Away | Result F - A | Scorers | Attendance | Position |
| 27 August 1927 | Newcastle United | H | 1 - 3 | Brown | 24,465 | 17th |
| 29 August 1927 | Birmingham | A | 1 - 3 | Brown | 16,432 | 18th |
| 3 September 1927 | West Ham United | A | 2 - 4 | Brown, Jackson | 23,925 | 22nd |
| 10 September 1927 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 2 - 2 | Dent, Brown | 27,983 | 21st |
| 17 September 1927 | Manchester United | H | 4 - 2 | Brown (3), Dent | 17,307 | 20th |
| 24 September 1927 | Everton | A | 2 - 2 | B. Smith, Jackson | 37,269 | 20th |
| 1 October 1927 | Cardiff City | H | 8 - 2 | Kelly (3), Jackson, Dent (2), Goodall (pen), B. Smith | 12,975 | 16th |
| 8 October 1927 | Blackburn Rovers | A | 1 - 1 | Jackson | 28,032 | 16th |
| 15 October 1927 | Bolton Wanderers | H | 1 - 0 | Jackson (pen) | 19,818 | 11th |
| 22 October 1927 | Aston Villa | H | 1 - 1 | Jackson | 14,679 | 12th |
| 29 October 1927 | Sunderland | A | 0 - 3 | | 22,070 | 16th |
| 5 November 1927 | Derby County | H | 2 - 1 | B. Smith, Goodall (pen) | 7,098 | 15th |
| 12 November 1927 | Sheffield United | A | 7 - 1 | Meads, B. Smith (2), Brown (2), Jackson (2) | 22,163 | 13th |
| 19 November 1927 | Bury | H | 3 - 0 | Brown (2), B. Smith | 12,273 | 9th |
| 26 November 1927 | Liverpool | A | 2 - 4 | B. Smith, Goodall (pen) | 34,128 | 11th |
| 3 December 1927 | Arsenal | H | 2 - 1 | B. Smith (2) | 15,140 | 7th |
| 10 December 1927 | Burnley | A | 1 - 0 | Brown | 19,130 | 5th |
| 17 December 1927 | Leicester City | H | 3 - 1 | Brown (2), Kelly | 13,717 | 3rd |
| 24 December 1927 | Portsmouth | A | 1 - 2 | Brown | 21,785 | 5th |
| 26 December 1927 | Sheffield Wednesday | H | 1 - 0 | Jackson | 21,336 | 4th |
| 27 December 1927 | Sheffield Wednesday | A | 5 - 0 | Barkas (pen), B. Smith, Brown (3) | 41,824 | 2nd |
| 31 December 1927 | Newcastle United | A | 3 - 2 | Brown, Jackson, Barkas (pen) | 33,640 | 2nd |
| 2 January 1928 | Middlesbrough | A | 1 - 3 | Brown | 26,032 | 2nd |
| 7 January 1928 | West Ham United | H | 5 - 2 | Jackson (2), Brown (3) | 10,972 | 2nd |
| 21 January 1928 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | 4 - 2 | Brown, B. Smith (2), Jackson | 17,892 | 2nd |
| 4 February 1928 | Everton | H | 4 - 1 | Dent, B. Smith (3) | 51,284 | 2nd |
| 11 February 1928 | Cardiff City | A | 0 - 4 | | 21,073 | 2nd |
| 25 February 1928 | Bolton Wanderers | A | 1 - 0 | B. Smith | 44,082 | 2nd |
| 7 March 1928 | Manchester United | A | 0 - 0 | | 35,413 | 2nd |
| 10 March 1928 | Sunderland | H | 4 - 2 | Stephenson, Jackson, Kelly, Brown | 17,497 | 1st |
| 14 March 1928 | Blackburn Rovers | H | 3 - 1 | Goodall (pen), Jackson, Brown | 10,890 | 1st |
| 17 March 1928 | Derby County | A | 0 - 0 | | 24,684 | 1st |
| 31 March 1928 | Bury | A | 3 - 2 | G. Wilson, Raw, Dent | 14,636 | 1st |
| 7 April 1928 | Liverpool | H | 2 - 4 | Jackson, Brown | 27,290 | 2nd |
| 9 April 1928 | Birmingham | H | 2 - 0 | Dent (2) | 28,779 | 1st |
| 10 April 1928 | Middlesbrough | H | 2 - 4 | Stephenson, Goodall (pen) | 29,034 | 1st |
| 14 April 1928 | Arsenal | A | 0 - 0 | | 38,707 | 1st |
| 25 April 1928 | Burnley | H | 1 - 2 | Brown | 20,643 | 2nd |
| 28 April 1928 | Leicester City | A | 2 - 1 | Raw, Barkas (pen) | 29,191 | 2nd |
| 30 April 1928 | Sheffield United | H | 0 - 1 | | 22,380 | 2nd |
| 2 May 1928 | Aston Villa | A | 0 - 3 | | 30,173 | 2nd |
| 5 May 1928 | Portsmouth | H | 4 - 1 | Jackson (2), B. Smith, Barkas | 11,706 | 2nd |

### FA Cup

| Date | Round | Opponents | Home/ Away | Result F - A | Scorers | Attendance |
| 14 January 1928 | Round 3 | Lincoln City | H | 4 - 2 | Brown, B. Smith, Goodall (pen), Steele | 19,329 |
| 28 January 1928 | Round 4 | West Ham United | H | 2 - 1 | Brown, Jackson | 27,525 |
| 18 February 1928 | Round 5 | Middlesbrough | H | 4 - 0 | Steele, Brown, Jackson, B. Smith | 55,200 |
| 3 March 1928 | Round 6 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | 6 - 1 | B. Smith (2), Brown (4) | 52,390 |
| 24 March 1928 | Semi-Final | Sheffield United | N | 2 - 2 | Jackson, Brown | 69,260 |
| 26 March 1928 | Semi-Final Replay | Sheffield United | N | 0 - 0 | | 53,749 |
| 2 April 1928 | Semi-Final 2nd Replay | Sheffield United | N | 1 - 0 | Jackson | 69,370 |
| 21 April 1928 | Final | Blackburn Rovers | N | 1 - 3 | Jackson | 92,041 |

## Appearances and goals

| Name | Nation | Position | League Apps | League Goals | FA Cup Apps | FA Cup Goals | Total Apps | Total Goals |
| Ned Barkas | England | DF | 36 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 40 | 4 |
| George Brown | England | FW | 32 | 27 | 6 | 8 | 38 | 35 |
| Willie Campbell | Scotland | DF | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Billy Carr | England | DF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Laurie Cumming | Ireland | FW | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Johnny Dent | England | FW | 18 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 20 | 8 |
| Roy Goodall | England | DF | 29 | 5 | 8 | 1 | 37 | 6 |
| Alex Jackson | Scotland | FW | 39 | 19 | 8 | 5 | 47 | 24 |
| Bob Kelly | England | FW | 35 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 43 | 5 |
| Tommy Meads | England | DF | 27 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 29 | 1 |
| Billy Mercer | England | GK | 23 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 30 | 0 |
| Bill Pickering | England | DF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Harry Raw | England | FW | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 2 |
| Levi Redfern | England | DF | 23 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 30 | 0 |
| Jimmy Smailes | England | MF | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Billy Smith | England | MF | 38 | 17 | 8 | 4 | 46 | 21 |
| Norman Smith | England | DF | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| Bon Spence | England | DF | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| David Steele | Scotland | DF | 24 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 30 | 2 |
| Clem Stephenson | England | FW | 31 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 39 | 2 |
| Hugh Turner | England | GK | 19 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 20 | 0 |
| Sam Wadsworth | England | DF | 17 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 21 | 0 |
| George Wilson | Scotland | MF | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Tom Wilson | England | DF | 41 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 49 | 0 |