Sam Marks Desperate
Have you ever been to Fall River to see a soccer game? If you have, you can appreciate why Sam Marks, in spite of reports to the contrary, wants to buy or did buy the entire Philadelphia team. There are many hard-boiled fans in Fall River, fans who will shake the hands of the Marksmen in victory, but who will turn and boo if the team has a tough break. Fall River is known to have established attendance records for league, cup and exhibition games, but these records were established when the Marksmen were running wild through the ranks of the American Soccer League clubs. Thus far this season Fall River has been skidding and skidding badly and the fans have not been backward in shouting their disapproval. Furthermore, as a commercial enterprise, which after all the Fall River club is, and a good paying one at that, the bankroll is threatened to take a wallop. Little wonder Sam Marks is desperate and willing to buy out an entire club to get back on Easy Street and in the good graces of the cash customers.

Broke Up Bethlehem Machine
It’s not so many years back that things were not so very rosy in Fall River and to strengthen the club Mr. Marks of the Marks brothers, controlling interest in soccer in Fall River, poached upon the services of the Bethlehem club. It will be remembered that in those days Bethlehem had a club that couldn’t be beaten and when the players too the field the outcome was practically a foregone conclusion. This is no reflection on the present Steel team for we quietly honestly admit that in those days the playing merit of other clubs was not as strong or equally distributed. Anyway, Sam Macks wanted players and wanted them badly, for without players the Fall River soccer promoter, owner and manager was threatened with losing his meal ticket. Harold Brittan, Findley Kerr and numerous others were among the pilgrims who migrated from Bethlehem to Fall River and gave the town a winning club. The raid on the Bethlehem team is one reason why rivalry between these two clubs has always been at fever heat.

Juggling and Shifting Players
Probably had Manager Marks been satisfied to let good enough alone, Fall River would be close to the top in the league standing today. However, juggling, shifting, transferring and buying new players has been a hobby of the Fall River management and instead of strengthening the outfit it seems to have weakened it. Marks let his goalies, among whom was Kerr, and let out quite a few other players. At least the record of the club to date would indicate that the efforts thus far have been a rank failure. It is a new experience for Fall River fans to have the national champions included among the tail end clubs.

Can’t Be Done, Says Cunningham
Bill Cunningham, president of the American Soccer League, according to press reports, denies the sale of the 15 Phillie players to Fall River and says the league will refuse to sanction the deal. Since Bill is one of the powers that be, Marks may lose out on the deal and Fred Maginnis, manager of Phillies, threatened to go still further in the red. The Phillie management, according to reports, was just as desperate at Sam Marks. However, instead of being desperate to secure players, Maginnis was eager to get back some of the funds he sank in a losing proposition. Cunningham’s idea in the matter is plainly seen. A sale of players such as reported would probably mean that the Phillie franchise would next be placed on the market, and Cunningham wants Philadelphia, as one of the largest cities in the east, to remain in the circuit. At that, he can’t expect Maginnis to keep on losing money to try to put soccer across just to satisfy the whims of the league president and no one could hat the Phillie management for trying to recover some of the shekels dropped in the effort to put the club across.