Sutton and District Football League – The Amazing Paulin(e) Family

Coleshill Chronicle, 25 May 1962

Sutton League Awards were worth L700

Sutton and District Football League’s annual presentation and dance on Friday was attended by more than 400 people. Principal guests were the Mayor and Mayoress of Sutton Coldfield (Councillor and Mrs Douglas Smallwood) who were welcomed by the president Mr Norman Paulin.

Mr Paulin praised the work done by the league officials, who had set a very high standard. Several teams had done a magnificent prestige job for the league by their success in outside cup competitions and he specially mentioned Aldridge Athletic (winners of the Bloxwich Charity Cup and Dudley SJAB Cup) and Tamworth WMC (winners of the Coleshill Charity Cup).

Mr Stan Clives (secretary) introduced Councillor Smallwood, who presented the awards to the players and referees. The total value of the awards, including trophies was L700.

The following referees received awards for their part in officiating in the various cup competitions: Messrs FJ Moore, HH Jones, V Hodgkinson, J Bosworth, W Jones-Roberts, R Richards, R Hill, W Armstrong, V Ricketts, J Walsh, V Sutton, B Rees, W Mort, G Burrows, B Sutton, E McAvoy, J Griggs, B White and F Doherty.

Loudest Cheer

Loudest cheer of the evening was for the Alridge Athletic contingent, who cheered their skipper, Colin Hill, onto the stage to receive the Premier Division Championship Shield, the Lewis Cup and Founders Cup.

Two new clubs, Atherstone Town Reserves and Tamworth WMC were also present for awards. Atherstone taking the Premier Division runners-up plaques together with the Aldermans Cup and Tamworth being given losing Founders’ Cup finalist awards.

Special awards were made to the League’s top goal scorers: Colin Radburn (Aldridge BL) 40, Paul Frost (Aldridge Ath) 36 and Gordon Moseley (Thermalite) 54.

Mr Clives announced that he had already received several new applications for next season.

Coleshill Chronicle, 6 Nov 1964

Golden Return for Lost Trophy

Mr Stan Clives, secretary of the Sutton and District Football League, shakes hands with the league president, Mr NE Paulin, after handing over the gold cup.

Stan Clives, secretary of the Sutton and District Football League, was a proud man last week when he presented to league President Mr Norman Paulin, a gold cup.

It was the climax of months of research by Stan that had taken him through the history books of the County FA and through pages of data held in the custody of Birmingham Reference Library.

Slowly but surely the history of both the league – and of a long lost trophy – was unearthed. Now it can be told.

The Sutton League began way back in 1910 under the name of the East Birmingham League. Its name was changed by consent of council on November 21, 1918.

It was on a visit to the office of BCFA secretary Mr Bob Eden that Mr Clives saw an old forgotten trophy standing on the filing cabinet.

A closer look – and a secret was out. It was the property of the Sutton League, Mr Clive found that the cup had been handed in by a Mr HJ Dore, who was traced as having been on the league’s list of referees in the early part of this century.

Stan took the trophy home and after long pondering decided to seek to put the cup into a glamorous “gold” coat. And so, thanks to a fine piece of workmanship, the cup presented by Sir Arthur Steel-Maitland, the Sutton League’s first president, was reborn.

The trophy stands twenty inches high and is surmounted by a figure in football kit. The engraving shows the league was formed in 1910 – providing a Golden Jubilee next year.

The President, Mr Paulin, receiving the cup, thanked Mr Clives for a “wonderful surprise”. He said he was certain “endless pleasure would abound the glittering trophy.”

Tag: Sutton and District Football League

Sutton and District Football League, 1962

Golden Return for Lost Trophy, Minworth, 1964