June 21, 1940
Liverpool Football Club’s meeting.
Chairman on prospects.
The report of a loss of £6,759 (compared with the previous year’s profit of £12,824) to an attendance of twenty-six shareholders – the lowest on record – provided its own commentary on war-time football at the annual general meeting of the Liverpool Football Club at India Buildings last night.
Mr. William John Harrop presided, and in reply to a question by a shareholder as to whether they had considered carrying on next season, said that they could not make a hard and fast decision. The Football League did not know what was going to happen next season. The League would have their annual meeting shortly and would put before the clubs certain proposals, on which the Liverpool club’s future decision would depend. They had their duty to perform both to the public and to their players.
Reviewing the past season, Mr. Harrop said they were the first to respond to the Football Association’s appeal to form Army units, and had provided twenty-two players. They had not regretted their action. Out of a total of thirty-four players twenty-six were now in the Army, and of those no fewer than fifteen were non-commissioned officers. Regarding the future they could only wait on events and shape their course upon the best interest of the game and all concerned.
When the time came to “rebuild their house” in a football sense they could rely on the directors doing all in their power to make the club what it promised to be – one of the most important and successful football organisations in the country. He did not think they need despair of football; when the war was over it would come back again as strongly as ever.
Mr. Harrop mentioned reductions in staff and also the fact that the ground might be used under a physical training scheme.
The retiring directors, Messrs. William McConnell, George Alfred Richards, and Councillor Stanley Ronald Williams were re-elected.
(Source: Liverpool Daily Post: June 22, 1940)
"Play Up, Liverpool" 