 By 1934 , the club 's average attendance had risen to over 23 @,@ 000 , which allowed the club manager , Tom Mather , more transfer funds . Despite this , the core of the side consisted of young local players , such as Matthews , Tommy Sale and Freddie Steele . Mathers resigned from his post in May 1935 to take the managerial job at Newcastle United , ending his 12 @-@ year tenure . Bob McGrory was appointed as the club 's manager shortly afterward ; he had previously played for the club for 14 years . In the 1935 – 36 season , the club finished fourth in the Football League First Division , nine points adrift of champions Sunderland . This was followed by two successive mid @-@ table finishes , in 1936 – 37 and 1937 – 38 . The club recorded its record league win , 10 – 3 , over West Bromwich Albion in February 1937 , in which Steele scored five goals . In April of that year , the club achieved its largest league crowd — 51 @,@ 373 against Arsenal . Steele 's 33 league goals in the 1936 – 37 season remains a club record in 2007 . 
