Barnsley fans pay tribute

Islington cemetry, where Tiverton Preedy, the founder of Barnsley FC is buried. Picture credit: ElectricRay wikipedia public domain.

A group of Barnsley FC fans set off on the M1 down to London for a very special reason…to restore the grave of their club’s founder. Tiverton Preedy was born in 1863 in Norfolk and moved to Barnsley for his first assignment as a priest. Originally he became involved with the town’s rugby team, but allegedly left under a cloud when they played a match on Good Friday. After a chance meeting with a group of local lads, who wanted to set up a football team, he helped them fulfill their wishes in 1887. Preedy acquired land in Oakwell, on the site of the present football ground and even took part in their first fixture! Nowadays, fans make the trip down to Islington, London, where he was buried, after his death in 1928, to restore his grave and pay tribute to the man who founded their football club.

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