[Red Devil]

Part Three: 1930 - 1949

The decline that had started in the 1920's continued at the outset of the 1930's. United finished 17th in 1929/30, to fill their fans with dread.

Their fears were realised in the next season, when United made the worst start in their history by losing their first twelve league matches in a row. The dozen defeats included back-to-back thrashings at Old Trafford, 6-0 by HuddersfieldTown and then 7-4 by Newcastle United. The season was into November before Herbert Bamlett's team took their first points, by winning 2-0 at home to BirminghamCity.

United eventually lost 27 of their 42 league matches in 1930/31, conceding 115 goals. Their relegation led to Bamlett bowing out, and secretary Walter Crickmer taking charge of team affairs. There was to be no immediate improvement, however. United lost their opening two matches of 1931/32, in the Second Division.

The patience of the supporters was being severely tested, and many of them did not hang around - only 3,507 turned up for the opening match. As the season went on, the situation deteriorated. By December, there was no money to pay the players wages. Bankruptcy was a real threat.

The club's saviour came in the shape of James Gibson, a manufacturer of army uniforms. He invested £30,000, paid the players and got the club back on track. He appointed a new manager, Scott Duncan, who was given money to spend. However, he did not make the most of it.

A dreadful run under Duncan in 1933/34 took United to the brink of being relegated into the Third Division for the first time in the club’s history. Survival was only secured on the last day of the season, when they won 2-0 with goals from Tom Manley and JackCape to send their opponents, Millwall, down instead. In that same week, ManchesterCity had won the FA Cup, with a man named Matt Busby in their side.

United finished the 1934/35 season in fifth place, and then in 1935/36 claimed their first silverware of the decade. Unbeaten during the last 19 games of the campaign, they secured the Second Division Championship with a 3-2 win over Bury at Gigg Lane, thanks to goals from Manley and George Mutch.

Their end-of-season form in the Second Division suggested United would do well on their return to the First, but by Christmas they had only won four matches, including one on Christmas Day itself! Only ten wins in the whole season meant relegation, with City again providing stark contrast as the League Champions. The relegated United team included Walter Winterbottom, who would later be knighted after managing England for 16 years.

The yo-yoing continued as United were promoted again the next season, 1937/38, as runners-up to Aston Villa. Scott Duncan could only claim some of the credit, as he left the club in November 1937 to become manager of IpswichTown. Walter Crickmer again stepped into the breach as United's caretaker manager.

The highlight of Duncan and Crickmer's season was the discovery of Johnny Carey, who would later be recognised as one of the greatest full-backs in football history. Playing 32 games and scoring six goals, Carey helped United to stay up this time, finishing 14th, while City took their turn to be relegated! There was no time to gloat, however - the outbreak of war put the Football League on hold again, for several years.

World War 2

The outbreak of the Second World War forced football to the very back of people's minds between 1939 and 1946. But even in the absence of League football, Old Trafford was still the focus of attention.

On 11 March 1941 the stadium was bombed during a German air raid. The attack destroyed the main stand, dressing rooms and offices. It was a devastating blow, but within a few years, there would be optimism again around the famous old ground.

It came with a man named Matt Busby, who would prove to be the most important figure in the history of Manchester United. A former ManchesterCity and Liverpool player, Busby served in the Ninth Battalion of the King's Liverpool Regiment where his leadership qualities shone through. These qualities did not go unnoticed by United.

Busby joined the Reds in 1945, initially on a five-year contract. Little did he know he would still be managing the club 25 years later!

Busby didn't waste any time in making his mark, altering the positions of several key players. He also founded the "Famous Five" forwards when he brought together Jimmy Delaney, Stan Pearson, Jack Rowley, Charlie Mitten and Johnny Morris.

Perhaps the most important signing Busby made, however, was on the coaching staff. Matt had met Jimmy Murphy during the war, and identified him as his perfect right-hand man. The pair formed a partnership that would see United become a power in world football.

Busby and Murphy's first step on the road to glory was to build a team that was capable of challenging for domestic honours. They succeeded almost at the first attempt, as United finished second to Liverpool in the first Football League campaign after the war, 1946/47. It was the club's highest placing for 36 years, and there was extra cause for optimism when the Reserves won their (Central) League Championship in the same season.

Busby's mix of young local lads and established players won their first trophy the following year, when they beat the Blackpool side of Stanley Matthews, Stan Mortensen and Harry Johnston in the 1948 FA Cup Final. It was 39 years to the day that United had previously won the Cup, in 1909.

The FA Cup was also the club's first major honour since winning the League Championship in 1911, and recapturing the title would now become the number one target for Matt Busby's men. During the first five seasons of his post-war reign, United finished second on four occasions, and fourth on the other (1949/50).

The thrill of the chase for honours brought the fans flooding back – more than one million of them passed through the turnstiles in the 1947/48 season, dragging the club out of debt. Surely these fans wouldn't have to wait long to be rewarded with the prize they all craved….