So we're hitting 1000 some point next season then?
Yep, and you just know it will be a young lad who gets his only appearance ever in the Pizza Cup. Mind you, it will be a good quiz question in a few years.
To put everyone out of their misery the list of top teams is Brentford - 26 Exeter - 25 Bournemouth depending how you count them - 24 (Bournemouth 15 + Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic 9) Sunderland - 21 Huddersfield - 20 Luton - 20 Norwich - 20 Bolton - 19 Portsmouth - 19 Birmingham - 18 Forest - 18 Wednesday - 18
Yeah I'd expect the 1000th to be someone in a BSM Trophy game against an U21 side. Assuming we've still got more signings to come in this window + the summer and with REG being 984.
To put everyone out of their misery the list of top teams is Brentford - 26 Exeter - 25 Bournemouth depending how you count them - 24 (Bournemouth 15 + Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic 9) Sunderland - 21 Huddersfield - 20 Luton - 20 Norwich - 20 Bolton - 19 Portsmouth - 19 Birmingham - 18 Forest - 18 Wednesday - 18
Full list could be provided if required
Great work.
Will be stealing this for the museum's social media account.
The 1000th is probably now only a few months away and we could be looking at it happen around September. It would be nice if it was an academy player and, to make sure that happens, that it may have to occur during an EFL cup match and we all turn up for it to mark the event.
I was looking at a recent matchday programme at the players season stats, and I could barely read it as the font was so small to squeeze them all in This season has been ludicrous, with :-
"Deadwood" appearing before being sold or loaned out, e.g. Kirk, DJ, McGrandles, Payne
Loan players who hardly played, e.g. Abankwah, Fiorini
Kids thrown in by Appleton, e.g. Casey, Mbick, Rylah, Kedwell.
Youngsters only playing briefly before being loaned out or sold, e.g. Mitchell, Chin, Elewere
Short term signings, e.g. Walker, Wickham, Lua-Lua
Need to remember that squad sizes are much bigger now. When we started in the football league in 1921/22 we didn't even enter the FA Cup that season, just 42 games.
Now we're in the league, 46 games, plus FA Cup, League Cup and EFL Trophy. Also, and this is a big reason the last 500 are going to be much quicker than the first 500 - substitutes. It wasn't until 44 years later we were allowed to use them, and then it was only one. Now we can make 5 every game.
Last season and now this season again we've used 48 players, a club record.
Need to remember that squad sizes are much bigger now. When we started in the football league in 1921/22 we didn't even enter the FA Cup that season, just 42 games.
Now we're in the league, 46 games, plus FA Cup, League Cup and EFL Trophy. Also, and this is a big reason the last 500 are going to be much quicker than the first 500 - substitutes. It wasn't until 44 years later we were allowed to use them, and then it was only one. Now we can make 5 every game.
Last season and now this season again we've used 48 players, a club record.
And there's perhaps even a chance the 50th is before the end of this season, if a couple of kids are blooded?
@killerjerrylee I wonder if you could shed a little light on John Bailey (V086) please. I see that your book names him as 'John Hunter BAILEY' and gives his birthplace as Norwood, whereas Colin Cameron's original Valiant 500 names him as 'John Henry BAILEY' from Grays. The last club handbook that I have (21/22) also names him as John Henry. It looks to me that there may have been some confusion in the past over a couple of John Baileys playing football at that time and that John Henry Bailey was actually an inside right who played for Southend, whereas John Hunter Bailey, goalkeeper, is our man. There also seems to be some confusion with both men being listed in different publications as having played for both Sittingbourne and Tilbury (surely, far too much of a coincidence). Is that your understanding? Given that your book contains some fantastic detail about his early life, that appears nowhere else, I've no doubts that your naming is correct, but I wondered where you found the name Hunter from as it doesn't seem to appear in any other publications. Thanks in advance for any advice you can give.
Good morning. A lot of my information on John 'Jack' Bailey came from genealogical research via ancestor.com. You are quite correct that there was an inside forward named John Henry Bailey who played for Southend, Sittingbourne and Thames, but he was a different person. The statistics website, ENFA, (English National Football Archive) agrees with my conclusions on this one. I have unearthed more missing identities which will appear in volume 2 of the Valiant 1000 and this is near completion and should be out before the start of next season. I am just tidying it up and adding in the stats from 2023-24.
Comments
Brentford - 26
Exeter - 25
Bournemouth depending how you count them - 24 (Bournemouth 15 + Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic 9)
Sunderland - 21
Huddersfield - 20
Luton - 20
Norwich - 20
Bolton - 19
Portsmouth - 19
Birmingham - 18
Forest - 18
Wednesday - 18
Full list could be provided if required
Will be stealing this for the museum's social media account.
Kayne RAMSAY
03/02/2024 v Derby County (H)
Substitute for Macaully Gillesphey (68 minutes)
League 1
Curtis Fleming
Thierry SMALL
17/02/2024 v Bolton Wanderers (A)
Scored 22nd min
League 1
Nathan Jones
Connor WICKHAM
09/03/2024 v Carlisle Utd (H)
Substitute for Karoy Anderson (72mins)
League 1
Nathan Jones
Kazenga LUALUA
16/03/2024 v Fleetwood Town (A)
Substitute for Daniel Kanu (90+1mins)
League 1
Nathan Jones
1,000 could well be the first game of next season
Que sera sera
"Deadwood" appearing before being sold or loaned out, e.g. Kirk, DJ, McGrandles, Payne
Loan players who hardly played, e.g. Abankwah, Fiorini
Kids thrown in by Appleton, e.g. Casey, Mbick, Rylah, Kedwell.
Youngsters only playing briefly before being loaned out or sold, e.g. Mitchell, Chin, Elewere
Short term signings, e.g. Walker, Wickham, Lua-Lua
Now we're in the league, 46 games, plus FA Cup, League Cup and EFL Trophy. Also, and this is a big reason the last 500 are going to be much quicker than the first 500 - substitutes. It wasn't until 44 years later we were allowed to use them, and then it was only one. Now we can make 5 every game.
Last season and now this season again we've used 48 players, a club record.