This film is one of a number donated by Simon Foster, son of Bradford and England rugby league legend Trevor Foster, who features in some of the films, and possibly also in this one. This film is unusual in that it combines films taken by two different filmmakers to cover events at Odsall Stadium in 1939. The first part is by C.A. Mitchell of Halifax, and the second by the much better known C. H. Wood. Mitchell seems to have disappeared in the mists of time; although, judging by this film, he...

This film is one of a number donated by Simon Foster, son of Bradford and England rugby league legend Trevor Foster, who features in some of the films, and possibly also in this one. This film is unusual in that it combines films taken by two different filmmakers to cover events at Odsall Stadium in 1939. The first part is by C.A. Mitchell of Halifax, and the second by the much better known C. H. Wood. Mitchell seems to have disappeared in the mists of time; although, judging by this film, he was a gifted filmmaker, managing to capture the atmosphere and much of the play from just one camera on the side-line – nicely situated right behind the line of flight for the conversion. On the other hand, C. H. Wood was a well-known local commercial filmmaker who made thousands of films, and in particular the most extensive collection of British motorcycle racing films, over 400, from the 1940s through to the 1990s. For more information on C. H. Wood and his company see the Contexts for Hot Work (1955) and The Magnet Cup (1960).

The rugby match is notable for a record attendance of 66,308 (although the Bradford Bull’s website gives it as 64,453). This is higher even than the record sell-out crowd of 65,537 at Old Trafford in 2003, when Bradford Bulls claimed the Super League title with victory over Wigan Warriors. Odsal is actually in the Guinness Book of Records for hosting the World Record Rugby League crowd of 102,569 for the RL Challenge Cup final replay between Warrington v. Halifax on 5th May 1954 (a record that stood for almost 45 years). It has been the home ground of Bradford Northern (later Bradford Bulls) since 1934, apart from a couple of years at Valley Parade (2001/2). The Stadium has an interesting history. The Bradford Bull’s website states that : “In the 1950s, geologists discovered that Odsal had been situated in a deep channel, gouged out during the 4th Ice Age 10,000 years ago, which probably explains why many people have commented that Odsal seems to have a climate all of its own!” The Stadium has undergone many changes since 1939, and had just as many plans to convert it into the 'Wembley of the North'. Although the Stadium was renamed "Grattan Stadium" in 2006, it is returning to its old name of Odsal in 2011.
The film gives an idea of the many different sporting events that have been held at Odsal over the years; including speedway, stock car racing, basketball featuring the world famous Harlem Globetrotters, wrestling, show jumping and the Asian sport of Kabaddi.

Halifax RL, who won this match, in the hooped striped shirts and white shorts, was founded in 1873, becoming the first ever winners of the Yorkshire Cup in 1878 (going on to win it on another four occasions). In 1938 they reached the semi-final of the Challenge Cup, after winning three replays in a row, before they were knocked out by Barrow at Fartown (Huddersfield) in the dying seconds of the game. But in 1939 Halifax became the last team to win the Challenge cup final before the war beating favourites Salford 20-3 in front of a record 55,453 spectators at Wembley (still a lower crowd, which perhaps shows the silliness of playing a Rugby League Final in London at that time). The rules of Rugby League have changed since 1939: to prevent the game getting bogged down in too many tackles, the four-tackle rule and a five-metre defence line were introduced in 1967, followed by the six-tackle rule in 1971. One other change that might be observed is the size of the players: carrying a couple of stones less weight than the modern player the game does appear a bit faster! For more on Rugby League in Bradford see the Context for Rugby League Wartime Matches: Odsal Stadium, Bradford (1939-1944).

The second half of the film showing the tennis tour provides very rare film of four of the leading men’s tennis players of the time, all American. These professional players, at a time when they were contracted to promoters – and when there were still many amateurs – spent more time on tours than playing tournament matches, and earned more this way. Prior to this tour, the four had taken part in a competition in London between March 22 and April 4, in which Budge collected £500 prize money. The tennis matches at Odsal were part of a gruelling tour, managed by Jack Harris, taking in the British Isles and Western Europe followed by engagements in South Africa, Asia, and Australia, and starting in Dublin in May. The tour also included Wembley and Southport, with each session, as here, closing with "cheery" doubles. They had also just played at another rugby ground: at St. Helen's in Swansea, Wales on June 7-9.

For both rugby grounds they used the same portable board court. At Bradford Stoefen won both his matches, defeating Budge and Tilden (see the account of the year and tour at ‘Budge’s great pro-year’, References).  Well before the days of tennis on TV, the tour was a success, with up to 10,000 spectators at football grounds on the European part. There are plenty of spaces available at Odsal, with what looks like special seats in the stands. But with the cheapest tickets over three times the cost of the earlier rugby match (at 1/-), perhaps this is no surprise.

First out are Bill Tilden, in the overcoat, and his opponent, Lester Stoefen. Although Bill Tilden was nicknamed ‘Big Bill’, he is clearly shorter than Stoefen. By this time Bill Tilden would have been well past his prime, when he dominated tennis in the early 1920s. He was a major celebratory of his time, with a lifestyle hobnobbing with film stars like Charlie Chaplin and Douglas Fairbanks (see the photos on the website for A Terrible Splendor). It would have been interesting to know what Big Bill thought of Bradford, and the dilapidated stadium – one can see the grass growing on the terraces and the rather ramshackle ‘V’ shaped crowd barriers. Stoefen was something of a doubles specialist, having won three Grand Slam doubles titles.

These two are followed by the red headed Don Budge, the first player to win the grand slam (all four major titles), against the four times world champion Ellsworth Vines. The two had had many battles in the year already leading up to this friendly game, with Budge narrowly winning. The two players had sailed over together from New York aboard the Queen Mary on May 10. They also competed against each other in tournaments that year; and must have been pretty sick of playing each other by the time the year was up! Ellsworth Vines had won the World Championship Series five years on the trot before being defeated in the final in 1939 by Donald Budge, with Lester Stoefen runner up on two of those occasions. Before that Vines had won at Wimbledon in 1931. Donald Budge, the son of a truck driver from California, went on to win it again in 1941 and 1942 and was runner up in 1946. At the time of this film he was just 24. The ruling opinion seems to be that Budge was the more consistent player, but that on his day Vines was unbeatable.

Notably missing from the tour is Fred Perry, the greatest British tennis player of the era (and probably of any other). Perry, for many years world amateur champion, turned professional in 1937, and had toured extensively the previous two years with Vines and Budge (earning a fortune in the process). Another player that just missed out from the tour was the much respected German star, Baron Gottfried von Cramm, who had won Queen’s earlier in the year. Coached by Bill Tilden, von Cramm had played Don Budge two years earlier in the deciding 1937 Davis Cup match at Wimbledon (also losing in the final the previous two years to Fred Perry). According to Marshall Fisher in his intriguing book, A Terrible Splendor , the game was make or break for von Cramm, an opponent of the Nazis regime, who apparently had been phoned by Adolf Hitler just before the game! Despite his popularity in Germany he had much to fear: he was gay and both his Jewish doubles partner and his Jewish lover had fled Germany. He had a running battle with the Nazis regime, refusing the play their game, and in 1938 served 6 months in jail for homosexuality. In the end though he fared better than Tilden, who was also gay, and was eventually arrested and shunned for his homosexuality, dying penniless and alone.

References

Rugby league oral history project
Tennis server, Budge's Great Pro Year, 1939
All about tennis
A Terrible Splendor
Gottfried von Cramm, Wikipedia