Court Rangers and Frank Cass

by David Watkins

In the 1940s, young men living Courtland Terrace and the surrounding area decided to start off a football team, appropriately naming their club Court Rangers A.F.C.

They first played in the Rhymney Valley Football League before joining the Merthyr League. Ken Tucker remembers the exciting times and the camaraderie that existed between the players, also the superb organisation of Frank Cass the manager, John Power the captain and an enthusiastic committee.

There were many extremely talented individuals in the team, including a young Philip Jones – later to become famous as Philip Madoc, however I wish to concentrate on another fascinating individual.

During a conversation with Ken, he asked me if I was aware of a Court Rangers player named Frank Cass? Although I knew he was in the publishing business, I was very surprised at the Court Rangers connection!

Whilst a young man, Frank and his Jewish family from London moved to Merthyr Tydfil at the start of the Second World War, and found accommodation at Dowlais, later moving to Courtland Terrace. He immediately integrated himself into the community, enjoying his stay in Merthyr, making friends before joining the Court Rangers Football Club and furthering his education at the County Grammar School.

All his life Frank was passionate about reading and knew he wanted a career in the world of books. Leaving Merthyr at the age of eighteen, he returned to London, and fortunately, a year later, found a job at the Economist Bookshop in Bloomsbury. Frank opened his own shop in 1953, and then, onwards and upwards, he became the owner of a number of prestigious publish firms.

One of the most satisfying decisions of his illustrious career was to publish the Goon Show Scripts in 1972. He knew that the Prince of Wales was a Goon fan and invited him to the book launch, along with Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe and Peter Sellers. They all attended and the book became an instant bestseller.

Frank’s love of Merthyr continued throughout his life and because of this he later published a book of particular interest to Merthyr entitled “Labour and Poor in England and Wales, 1849/1951 – Vol 3 South Wales, North Wales”. The first ninety-six pages are devoted to the working class of Merthyr Tydfil, with an illustration of Dowlais Ironworks on the cover.

After a wonderful and fulfilling career in the book trade, Frank sold off some of his publishing interests for fifteen million pounds! Not bad for a boy from North London, who for a short time in his life enjoyed himself living, studying, playing football for Court Ranger A.F.C. in Merthyr Tydfil.

Frank Cass died in 2007 aged 77