Magyar News, 2000. szeptember-2001. augusztus (11. évfolyam, 1-12. szám)
2000-11-01 / 3. szám
A couple ofpictures of the time showing Wordin Avenue and Pine Street of the Hungarian communiity. ters at 219 Spruce St. and was appropriately named “The Westerns.” During my youth I had often heard about The Westerns from my father, Stephen “Pibi” Nemeth and my uncle, Alexander “Sam” Nemeth (both now deceased) who were long-time key players for the team - my father played halfback and my uncle played the line. However, I did not realize what an exceptional team they were until I heard from a friend, John Link (age 94), who was also my father’s friend. John grew up in the West End and remains a source of oral history about life there. He assured me that the Westerns were so good that Robert Ripley commented on them in his nationally syndicated “Believe-It-Or-Not” publication. I was skeptical, but decided to do some research, and spent hours in the Bridgeport Public Library researching copies from that era of the Bridgeport newspapers. That turned out to be quite an emotional experience. My researches determined that John was correct and, imagine my reaction, when I uncovered such sports headlines as, “Nemeth and Antos Brilliant as Westerns Beat Arrows 21-0” (Bridgeport Post Oct. 24, 1927). That was my father they wrote about! One source commented that, “The Westerns were a close-knit club of almost all Hungarian boys.” Games were played in public areas such as Newfield Park or Seaside Park and were watched by crowds of up to four thousand people. The hat was passed among the spectators, a collection was taken, and the players were paid a small amount (hence their semi-professional status) if anything remained after medical bills were paid. The team guaranteed any player injured that his “board” would be paid and was unique in that it had a team physician, Dr. Alex Szollosy. I found that The Westerns football team won six consecutive championships in the years 1923-1928, and had five unbeaten seasons (Photo 3). During that time the team was undefeated in forty-one straight games. Even more amazingly, I found that The Westerns awesome defense had held their opponents without a score for at least twenty-six consecutive games over a four-year period. No wonder Ripley was interested in them; they truly had a record suitable for a “Believe-It-Or-Not” item. The amazing string of championships, victories, and scoreless opponents were, obviously, not easily attained. Many descriptions of games I found used such phrases as, “Rough Battle”, “Hard Fought”, and “Turned to Roughness.” As the Westerns’ reputation grew, so did their number of challengers, for all teams want to have a chance to beat the “champs”. Increasingly opponents were from around the state and from New Haven, Stamford, Waterbury, A n s o n i a, and other cities challenged them. Then, regional teams such as the Astoria, Long Island, Indians and the New York Steamrollers took up the challenge. “All Star” teams of picked players from the city and from around the region played The Westerns but they, too, were unable to beat them. The Westerns’ brilliant records were obviously a tribute to the spirit, determination, and vitality of those Hungarian boys representing the West End. They had something to play (should I write, fight?) for. My father “Pibi” Nemeth is quoted as saying, “I don’t think you can round up a team of semi-pros and make them play real football. You have to have the old club and sectional spirit.” The Westerns had it! I often wonder how many more “Joe Namaths” there would have been had those Westerns players been able to stay in school and benefit from high school and college programs. The Amazing Football Record of the Western Athletic Club in Bridgeport, Connecticut. 1926 Westerns 6, Bridgeport Arrows 0 Westerns 6, Stratford Arrows 0 Westerns 6, North End Triangles 0 Westerns 14, Brooklawns 0 Westerns 26, Auburns 0 Westerns 19, Bridgeport Arrows 0 1927 Westerns 24, Brooklawns 0 Westerns 21, Arrows 0 Westerns 25, Milford Paddocks 0 Westerns 12, Auburns 0 Westerns 0, N. End Triangles 0 Westerns 7, Brooklawns 0 Westerns 6, Bridgeport Arrows 0 1928 Westerns 25, Yellowjackets 0 Westerns 13, Cove-Stamford 0 Westerns 6, Norwalk 0 Westerns 13, Ansonia Pioneers 0 Westerns 6, Sokol-Rosebuds 0 Westerns 0, N. Haven Sachems 0 Westerns 26, Naugatuck 0 Westerns 26, Straiford Arrows 0 1929 Westerns 27, Astoria LI 0 Westerns 26, NY Steamrollers 0 Westerns 19, Waterbury 0 Westerns 6, Sokol-Rosebuds 0 Westerns 25, All Meriden 0 Westerns 12, Stamford Cove 7 Westerns 6, Caldwell Stars 0 Westerns 12, City All Stars 6 Westerns 6, Sokol-Rosebuds 6(tie) Page 5 The WESTERNS as they were in 1926. Second in the top row is the writer s father, István
