BetVictor Northern Premier League Marine announce that the attendance for the friendly game against the touring Nigeria team on Wednesday August 31st 1949 was 6,000 as reported by the Football Association in their official news bulletin in November 1949. Marine has always reported that their attendance record was 4,000 for that game but the recently discovered copy of the 1949 FA news bulletin has smashed the Club’s attendance record.

Marine Chairman Paul Leary said:

“My thanks to football historian and friend Brian Lowe for passing to me a copy of the Football Association’s bulletin from 1949 which records the attendance for the Nigeria game as 6,000 which will now be the Club’s official record attendance as opposed to the 4,000 previously publicised in our records.

Looking at the film footage and photographs of the game it doesn’t really surprise me that the attendance was 6,000 so at least with Brian’s help we have been able to put the record straight.”

Paul Leary added:

“Archive film material of the game can be found on www.youtube.com/watch?v=g__6X7pQzts

The footage is absolutely fabulous and demonstrates the numbers at the football ground for that historic game for Marine Football Club."