Groundtastic GT91 | Page 6

CAST INTO THE WILDERNESS Above: Action from Eton Manor’s FA Cup debut at The Wilderness v. Clapton in 1935/36 Below: Three seasons later Manor once again played Clapton in the Cup in front of a large crowd that included some boys from the junior teams By the mid-Fifties The Wilderness had developed into a fine sports facility, complete with coaches of the vintage of cricketer Douglas Jardine and future World Cup winning football coach Alf Ramsey. The athletics track was formed of shale from the 1948 Olympic track, after it had been moved from Wembley, and athletes of the quality of Roger Bannister and Chris Brasher ran there. Various structures and buildings had also been added over the years, including a unique 'V for Victory' dedication to Winston Churchill and war memorials to Manor members that died during the two world wars. 6 G r o u n d t a s t i c - T h e F o o t b a l l G r o u n d s M a g a z i n e