Philadelphia football club, untoppled leaders in the American soccer league pennant race, draws another hard assignment from the schedule makers this weekend in a match with Todd Shipyards' football club of Brooklyn, second placers in the league standings and just now going at top speed. Last Sunday the Todds, national champions last year under the banner of Robins Dry Dock F. C., eliminated the New York F. C. from the National Challenge Cup competi9tion by coming from behind in the second half, and won out 5 goals to 3.
The Brooklyn aggregation is well fortified for the sterling test confronting it. It has added four Scotch-Canadian stars to its roster in recent weeks in addition to Harry Jay Ratican, graduate of the St. Louis soccer pitches and leading goal scorer of the country as the center forward of Bethlehem Steel F. C. in the years of that club's supremacy. Ratican played professional football -- the college game -- for Akron, O., during the season in which that sport holds sway.
Brittan, Philadelphia center, continues to lead the league in goal scoring with 16 to his credit as against 11 for McKenna of Brooklyn. Unless his injury of last Saturday in the game with Fall River keeps him out of the game or handicaps him in play for a time, it is unlikely that he will be headed by McKenna, for with Ratican now eligible and competing with McKenna for the center position in the Todd army, it is likely the Brooklyn team management will alternate centers, and certainly will use one when the other is busy weekends, such as the current one. If Ratican opposes Philadelphia tomorrow, McKenna fresh, will go in against New York on Sunday, or vice versa.
Archie Stark, Millar, McGuire and Campbell of New York, Coats, Todds and Philadelphia respectively are tied for third place among the goal scorers with 7 apiece.
The sanding of the league clubs to date -- it became a seven club circuit with the forfeiture of the Jersey City Celtics' franchise a week ago -- follows:
P |
W |
D |
L |
Pts |
|
Philadelphia |
11 |
10 |
1 |
0 |
21 |
Brooklyn (Todds) |
11 |
7 |
2 |
2 |
16 |
New York |
11 |
5 |
3 |
3 |
13 |
Pawtucket (Coats) |
11 |
4 |
3 |
4 |
11 |
Fall River |
12 |
3 |
1 |
8 |
7 |
Holyoke (Falco) |
10 |
2 |
2 |
6 |
6 |
Harrison |
9 |
1 |
4 |
4 |
6 |