Commodore Vears
Administrative Career
By Malc King
A W Vears served in the Royal Navy for 12 years, reaching the rank of Assistant Paymaster when in 1876 retirement brought him to Gloucester.
He became the first Chairman of the Club and the policies which he instituted served to turn Gloucester into one of the leading clubs in the land. His visionary leadership led to the Club acquiring its own ground from the Castle Grim Estate, his entrepreneurial skills promoted the development of the Club as a gate-taking commercial entertainment business, and his belief in the inclusion of working men bolstered the playing strength of the Club.
He worked closely with Jimmy Boughton to plan the purchase of the Kingsholm ground, chaired the meeting at which that was approved, and signed the contract for the purchase. He is on record as being determined that Kingsholm should be ‘the finest football ground in the West’, an ambition which he worked hard to achieve.