Villa Reserves In WWII

[Exeter 77]

There is a letter in the current issue of FourFourTwo which recounts a story mentioned in a book called 'Prisoners Of War' by Noel Barber about a game between some POWs who had been captured at Dunkirque and a team of German camp guards which was called off with the POWs 27-0 up. Apparently the POWs' team was comprised of the Villa second XI who has enlisted en-masse.

I did a quick search and the book seems to have been published in 1944 though.

I hadn't heard this story before and wondered if anyone could shed any light on it.

[dave.woodhall]

It's the first I've heard of it and I'm initially sceptical as most footballers had non-combatant roles in WWII. I'll ask around.

[Ron Manager]

There are a couple of hardback copies of this book on e bay. But at £10 a time a little expensive even for Villa historians.

[Exeter 77]

It's the first I've heard of it and I'm initially sceptical as most footballers had non-combatant roles in WWII. I'll ask around.

That's what I thought and I am a bit dubious because I would have thought I would have heard about from some source at some point.

[PGW]

Hardback copies available £8.25 and paperback £7.05 on amazon