Newcastle Players 1947/48

Player dissatisfaction was rife across the country but it is hard to imagine any club had more disgruntled employees than Newcastle.

Many of the disenchanted moved on including four of their star forwards: Wayman, Bentley, Shackleton and Pearson.

But there were many others who had put in transfer requests but remained at the club such as Fairbrother, Crowe, Dodgin, Woodburn and Craig

Meanwhile, Dougie Wright was forced to retire

The FA was concerned with a perceived lack of discipline on the field and in December they decided to publish the names of the 73 players who had been cautioned thus far that season.

After the defeat against Plymouth a crisis meeting was called between Martin and the players and the manager suggested it was up to the players to sort it out themselves.

So they organised their own meeting and it was so successful that they decided they would meet on a weekly basis from then on.

Jimmy Guthrie and the Players Union were as active as ever and there were a couple of new issues they were dealing with.

They wanted a three year ban on transfers during the season and were campaigning against clubs employing players on a "part time" (effectively match by match) basis which allowed them to get around the minimum wage rules

They also campaigned for the introduction of a Provident Fund which would ensure that all players would receive a lump sum when they retired. The fund would be financed by contributions made by the players, clubs and officials during the footballer's career.