Did John (Jack) Hudson and Frederick M. Milnes introduce the passing game to American Association Football along with an English abbreviation ‘Soccer’ that would differentiate the two American codes ?
In his book Soccer in American Culture, G Edward White (University of Missouri) notes that ‘American observers of the game regularly ascribed to the English players (of the Sheffield inspired Pilgrims FC touring team)..’controlled passing, a superior style of play to the hosts’. It was these tours 1905-1909 that ‘ greatly helped to popularise the game in America’ according to the Society for American Soccer History. The Corinthians toured too but the ‘Pilgrims had the greatest effect’.
Wortley born Milnes, a Sheffield United and Sheffield Club player, was the instigator, primary organiser and orchestrator of tours that included a strong Sheffield contingent. John Hudson of Brightside, a former England International who played for many teams in Sheffield but is most strongly associated with The Wednesday, was the coach.
In a wonderful example of synchronicity, he also played for Blackburn Olympic, his namesake Jack Hunter’s team who introduced ‘new ideas to football’ and ‘more general and expert passing’ (Geoffrey Green’s History of the FA). Milnes also created the Milnes Cup or Milnes Trophy, for winners of the intercollegiate league before becoming a highly successful player manager of Niagara Falls FC. The 15, 985 crowd that saw St Louis play the Pilgrims was the largest crowd up to that date. Another first was a Pilgrims game in Cincinnati played under electric light. (26 years before the first floodlit baseball game !)
Clearly, as an American World Cup looms, we need to make more of John Hudson’s story. Pep Guardiola once said that ‘passing is everything in football’ and as we have recently (successfully) evidenced Sheffield’s primacy in using both fixed positional play and passing in UK football, it would be good if we can establish Sheffield’s key role in introducing passing to American soccer. As for soccer, according to the Society for American Soccer History, the word, invented in England to differentiate football from Rugby, became widely used during the Pilgrims tour. As someone who subscribed to Soccer Star Magazine as a boy in the 1960s I have no problem with that.
Lastly a plea to all the amazing collectors and great historians on this site. We need your help to locate more artifacts, images, memorabilia and information on the Pilgrims, Hudson and Fred Milnes, so we can maximize global interest in this story.
