The 1905–06 season was Manchester United’s 14th season in the Football League.
United finished second in the Second Division and gained promotion to the Football League First Division for the 1906–07 season. In the FA Cup, United reached the fourth round, where they were defeated by Woolwich Arsenal.
Charlie Roberts upset the Football Association by starting the fashion of wearing very short knickers. In 1904 the FA took action by passing a regulation that stipulated that football knickers covered the knees. Roberts and some other players ignored this regulation. However, it was one of the reasons that long baggy shorts remained fashionable until after the Second World War.
In the 1905-06 season Manchester United won promotion to the First Division when they finished second to Bristol City. The club scored 90 goals in 38 games and top scorers were John Picken (20), John Peddie (18) and Charlie Sagar (16). Manchester United’s defence was also impressive and only let in 28 goals that season. Charlie Roberts played at centre-half and he was flanked by two outstanding wing-halves, Dick Duckworth and Alec Bell.
The club’s home colours remained red but the away colours returned to white from the blue/white stripes.
Second Division
| Date | Opponents | H / A | ResultF–A | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 September 1905 | Bristol City | H | 5–1 | Sagar (3), Beddow, Picken | 25,000 |
| 4 September 1905 | Blackpool | H | 2–1 | Peddie (2) | 7,000 |
| 9 September 1905 | Grimsby Town | A | 1–0 | Sagar | 6,000 |
| 16 September 1905 | Glossop | A | 2–1 | Bell, Beddow | 7,000 |
| 23 September 1905 | Stockport County | H | 3–1 | Peddie (2), Sagar | 15,000 |
| 30 September 1905 | Blackpool | A | 1–0 | Roberts | 7,000 |
| 7 October 1905 | Bradford City | H | 0–0 | 17,000 | |
| 14 October 1905 | West Bromwich Albion | A | 0–1 | 15,000 | |
| 21 October 1905 | Leicester Fosse | H | 3–2 | Peddie (2), Sagar | 12,000 |
| 25 October 1905 | Gainsborough Trinity | A | 2–2 | Bonthron (2) | 4,000 |
| 28 October 1905 | Hull City | A | 1–0 | Picken | 14,000 |
| 4 November 1905 | Lincoln City | H | 2–1 | Picken, Roberts | 15,000 |
| 11 November 1905 | Chesterfield | A | 0–1 | 15,000 | |
| 18 November 1905 | Burslem Port Vale | H | 3–0 | Beddow, Peddie, own goal | 8,000 |
| 25 November 1905 | Barnsley | A | 3–0 | Beddow, Picken, own goal | 3,000 |
| 2 December 1905 | Clapton Orient | H | 4–0 | Peddie (2), Picken (2) | 12,000 |
| 9 December 1905 | Burnley | A | 3–1 | Beddow, Peddie, Picken | 8,000 |
| 23 December 1905 | Burton United | A | 2–0 | Schofield (2) | 5,000 |
| 25 December 1905 | Chelsea | H | 0–0 | 35,000 | |
| 30 December 1905 | Bristol City | A | 1–1 | Roberts | 18,000 |
| 6 January 1906 | Grimsby Town | H | 5–0 | Beddow (3), Picken (2) | 10,000 |
| 15 January 1906 | Leeds City | H | 0–3 | 6,000 | |
| 20 January 1906 | Glossop | H | 5–2 | Picken (2), Beddow,Peddie, Williams | 7,000 |
| 27 January 1906 | Stockport County | A | 1–0 | Peddie | 15,000 |
| 10 February 1906 | Bradford City | A | 5–1 | Beddow (2), Roberts,Schofield, Wombwell | 8,000 |
| 17 February 1906 | West Bromwich Albion | H | 0–0 | 30,000 | |
| 3 March 1906 | Hull City | H | 5–0 | Picken (2), Peddie, Sagar,Schofield | 30,000 |
| 17 March 1906 | Chesterfield | H | 4–1 | Picken (3), Sagar | 16,000 |
| 24 March 1906 | Burslem Port Vale | A | 0–1 | 3,000 | |
| 29 March 1906 | Leicester Fosse | A | 5–2 | Peddie (3), Picken, Sagar | 5,000 |
| 31 March 1906 | Barnsley | H | 5–1 | Sagar (3), Bell, Picken | 15,000 |
| 7 April 1906 | Clapton Orient | A | 1–0 | Wall | 8,000 |
| 13 April 1906 | Chelsea | A | 1–1 | Sagar | 60,000 |
| 14 April 1906 | Burnley | H | 1–0 | Sagar | 12,000 |
| 16 April 1906 | Gainsborough Trinity | H | 2–0 | Allan (2) | 20,000 |
| 21 April 1906 | Leeds City | A | 3–1 | Allan, Peddie, Wombwell | 15,000 |
| 25 April 1906 | Lincoln City | A | 3–2 | Allan (2), Wall | 1,500 |
| 28 April 1906 | Burton United | H | 6–0 | Sagar (2), Picken (2),Peddie, Wall | 16,000 |
| Pos | Club | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bristol City | 38 | 30 | 6 | 2 | 83 | 28 | 66 |
| 2 | Manchester United | 38 | 28 | 6 | 4 | 81 | 30 | 62 |
| 3 | Chelsea | 38 | 22 | 9 | 7 | 90 | 37 | 53 |
Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points
FA Cup
Manchester United entered the 1905–06 FA Cup at the First Round Proper stage and were drawn at home to Staple Hill on 13 January 1906. United dominated the match, winning 7–2 with a hat-trick from Clem Beddow and two goals from Jack Picken; Jack Allan and Harry Williams scored the other two goals. In the Second Round, United were drawn at home to Norwich City on 3 February 1906. Harry Moger kept the Canaries off the score sheet, while United saw goals from Alex Downie, Jack Peddie andCharlie Sagar. The Reds then faced Aston Villa at home in the Third Round stage on 24 February. 35,500 fans watched United defeat Villa 5–1 to reach the Fourth Round for the first time in their history; Picken scored a hat-trick for United, while Sagar scored two goals. United were drawn at home to Woolwich Arsenal in the Fourth Round. The match was played on 10 March, but goals by Peddie and Sagar would not be enough, as Arsenal advanced the next round with three goals of their own.
| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | ResultF–A | Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 January 1906 | First Round | Staple Hill | H | 7–2 | Beddow (3), Picken (2), Allan, Williams | 7,560 |
| 3 February 1906 | Second Round | Norwich City | H | 3–0 | Downie, Peddie, Sagar | 10,000 |
| 24 February 1906 | Third Round | Aston Villa | H | 5–1 | Picken (3), Sagar (2) | 35,500 |
| 10 March 1906 | Fourth Round | Woolwich Arsenal | H | 2–3 | Peddie, Sagar | 26,500 |
Squad statistics
| Pos. | Name | League | FA Cup | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| GK | Harry Moger | 27 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 31 | 0 |
| GK | Bob Valentine | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| GK | Archie Montgomery | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| FB | Tommy Blackstock | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 0 |
| FB | Horace Blew | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| FB | Bob Bonthron | 26 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 30 | 2 |
| FB | Dick Holden | 27 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 31 | 0 |
| HB | Alex Bell | 36 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 40 | 2 |
| HB | Alex Downie | 34 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 38 | 1 |
| HB | Dick Duckworth | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 |
| HB | Charlie Roberts (c) | 34 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 38 | 4 |
| FW | Jack Allan | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 6 |
| FW | Tommy Arkesden | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| FW | Clem Beddow | 21 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 22 | 11 |
| FW | Bernard Donaghy | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| FW | Jimmy Dyer | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| FW | George Lyons | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| FW | Jack Peddie | 34 | 18 | 3 | 2 | 37 | 20 |
| FW | Jack Picken | 33 | 20 | 4 | 5 | 37 | 25 |
| FW | Alex Robertson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| FW | Charlie Sagar | 20 | 16 | 3 | 4 | 23 | 20 |
| FW | Alf Schofield | 23 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 27 | 4 |
| FW | George Wall | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 3 |
| FW | Harry Williams | 10 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 12 | 2 |
| FW | Dick Wombwell | 25 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 27 | 2 |