ABSTRACT
Having established himself initially in the reserves playing in the Midlands League, Betmead made his debut in the Grimsby first team almost a year after signing for the club, when he helped the club to a 2-0 home victory over Bolton Wanderers in a First Division match early in the 1931/2 season. The season ended unhappily with relegation, alongside West Ham United. Betmead got ‘a fair blooding’ during the season, making 17 League appearances and scoring twice. While Grimsby maintained a respectable home record, losing only 6 out of 21 matches, the team’s away record was appalling, with just 2 victories and 2 draws. Their run in the Cup also reflected this tendency, with 2 home victories being followed by a 1-0 defeat away to Liverpool in the fifth round. The champion team in 1932 was Everton: the great Bill ‘Dixie’ Dean contributed a remarkable 45 goals, in contrast to Grimsby’s joint leading scorers, Tim Coleman and Pat Glover, who each scored just 13 times. Grimsby’s management was also suffering at this time. The club’s secretary, H.N. Hickson, died in 1932, aged 75, after 34 years in the post, and the manager, Wilf Gillow, resigned in early April that year. Frank Womack, who had been a player at Birmingham City, took over as manager. He was to become, for many, the most successful manager the club has ever had.
