Stix, Baer and Fuller F.C.

McNab, Gonsalves, Nilsen, Roe, McLean

Stix, Baer and Fuller F.C. was a U.S. soccer club which played in the St. Louis Soccer League from 1931 to 1934. The team was known as Hellrungs from 1929 to 1931, St. Louis Central Breweries F.C. from 1934 to 1935 and St. Louis Shamrocks from 1935 to 1938. During its short existence, it won two U.S. Open Cup titles and two league championships as Stix, Baer and Fuller and one Open Cup and league title as St. Louis Central Breweries.

History

Hellrungs

Teams in the St. Louis Soccer League depended on corporate sponsorship. As a result, the teams would frequently change names as their sponsor changed. The team was established as Hellrungs in 1929 as a member of the St. Louis Soccer League (SLSL).

Stix, Baer and Fuller

In 1931, it came under new sponsorship from the Stix, Baer and Fuller, one of the largest St. Louis department stores. Hellrungs had finished the 1930-1931 season third out of four teams in the SLSL. Stix, Baer and Fuller (SBF) would not improve on Hellrungs’ performance, finishing third in the 1931-1932 standings. However, they found considerable success on the national level as they went to the U.S. Open Cup finals. In the semifinal series, they won the first game against Chicago's Bricklayers and Masons F.C. 3-1, before losing 2-0 the second game. As the series was tied, the two teams played a deciding game, won by SBF 1-0. In the Open Cup finals, SBF ran up against the New Bedford Whalers of the American Soccer League. Whalers was stocked with future Hall of Famers. Despite that, SBF played them to a 3-3 tie in St. Louis before losing 5-2 in the second game, both played in St. Louis.^[1] The Whalers folded after the Open Cup series and five of its players moved west to join SBF. Bolstered by the influx of talent, SBF ran to the top of the table in the 1932-1933 SLSL season. They also won the Open Cup with two victories, 1-0 and 2-1, against the New York Americans. SBF then went on to play the Toronto Scottish in the “North American Soccer Championship” and occasional game which pitted the U.S. Open Cup and Canadian championship teams. Toronto won the game 2-1 despite a goal for SBF from Billy Gonsalves.^[2] SBF continued both its league and Open Cup success in the 1933-1934 season. They finished at the top of the SLSL table and won the Open Cup over the Pawtucket Rangers in three games, a 4-2 victory, 2-3 loss and a 5-0 third game.

Central Breweries

Following their Open Cup victory, the team again changed sponsorship, this time to St. Louis Central Breweries. The newly renamed team continued to find success, winning both the 1935 SLSL and Open Cup titles.

Shamrocks

In 1935, the team changed team sponsorship, becoming known as St. Louis Shamrocks. However, the core of the team remained and the Shamrocks went to the 1936 and 1937 Open Cup finals, only to fall to the Philadelphia German-Americans and New York Americans, respectively.^[3] The Shamrocks did not compete in the SLSL but entered Club Lotus, a new St. Louis professional league formed in September 1935. In October 1936, Shamrocks was kicked out of the league and competed as an independent after that. Despite this, in November 1936, Shamrocks played the Club Lotus All Stars in the league all star game. Shamrocks won, 3-0, with one local newspaper writing, "The series was well worth while but it only strengthened the belief that no combination of Pro League players could be put together to give the Shamrocks a real test. Even a bit off form, as the Shamrocks were yesterday, they are far superior to any team the league officials might put on the field.”^[4] In 1938, the Shamrocks folded after several players left the team to sign with St. Patrick. Shamrocks sued for player tampering, but the team collapsed and the remaining players signed with South Side Radio.^[5]

Record

Year	Record	League	Amateur Cup	Open Cup
1929-1930	5-3-4	2nd		2nd Round
1930-1931	7-7-3	3rd		1st Round
1931-1932	6-6-3	3rd		Final
1932-1933	10-2-3	Champion		Champion
1933-1934	9-2-2	Champion		Champion
1934-1935	10-2-3	Champion		Champion
1935-1936				Final
1936-1937				Final

Honors

U.S. Open Cup

• Winner (3): 1933, 1934, 1935
• Runner Up (3): 1932, 1936, 1937

League Championship

• Winner (3): 1933, 1934, 1935

Notable players

• Billy Gonsalves
• William Lehman
• Alex McNab
• Willie McLean
• Bert Patenaude

External links

• Open Cup champions by year
• History of Soccer in St. Louis