As part of our regular review of Chelsea’s statistical records, we are advising of changes that must be made to the club’s official appearance data for the opening 1905/06 season. We suggest anyone who maintains such information to do likewise.

Among other ramifications, the decisions remove one player from our men’s team historical roster but add two others for the first time.

After consultation with Blues supporters Robert Randall and Peter Wollaston, whose contributions we gratefully acknowledge, Chelsea's official statistician Paul Dutton and official historian Rick Glanvill have exhaustively re-examined the evidence in the Football League’s archive, hundreds of newspaper reports, and Chelsea’s official programmes and handbook of the time.

In each instance, more than one source of reliable corroborating evidence was sought. As a result, we all agree that changes to the ‘official record’ should be made, as set out below.

Line-ups affected

Updated player records

H Harris

1905/06 1 appearance (previously 0)
Career 1 appearance (previously 0)

Jimmy Miller

1905/06 1 (0)
Career 1 (0)

James Robertson

1905/06  19 (18)
Career  32 (31)

Tommy McDermott

1905/06  24 (23)
Career    33 (32)

William Porter

1905/06   2 (1)
Career 3 (2)

Charles Harris

1905/06  1 (2)
Career  1 (2)

Jack Kirwan

1905/06  36 (37)
Career    75 (76)

Martin Moran

1905/06  35 (36)
Career 65 (66)

John Tait ‘Jacky’ Robertson

1905/06 35 (36)
Career 38 (39)

James Fletcher

1905/06 0 (1)
Career 0 (1)

Total players

1905/06 29 (28)
Overall 794 (793)

Appearance totals remain the same for Davie Copeland, Bob McEwan, Bob McRoberts and Tommy Miller as each gained one appearance and lost another.

The corrections have three broader implications for our statistical records. Our first player-manager Jacky Robertson will now be added to the list of all-time debutant goalscorers for the club at number one, while namesake James Robertson will be removed from the same. The overall number stays at 91 with Axel Disasi (at home to Liverpool in August) currently the most recent.

The second big difference is that two new names will be added to our overall list of men’s first teamers, including H Harris. Why only ‘H’? Well, despite extensive match programme, newspaper, archive and genealogical research, we have been unable to clarify what mystery man Harris’s first name was. Obviously we would love to change that and complete your records, and maybe the Chelsea fanbase can help.

Do you have an H Harris in your family tree who may have played for Chelsea? He is likely to have been born 1880-85 and may have held down another career at the same time as playing for the club’s reserve team. Email [email protected] if you can help solve this mystery.

The second player addition is first-team trainer Jimmy Miller, drafted into league action when duty called. His family are delighted to see their relative, who died a year later in February 1907 aged just 36, newly included in the illustrious roll-call.

‘It is a huge moment for our family,’ said his great-niece Ann Oswald on their behalf.

‘We were already proud to discover Jimmy’s role in the formative years of the club, but to now know he officially pulled on the shirt in a first team game for a club as significant as Chelsea is another wonderful addition.’

The unfortunate loser in all this is ‘James Fletcher’, erroneously credited with a start against Bristol City in April 1906 and now expunged from our records.

Finally, with two players added and one removed, Djordje Petrovic, who made his bow at the weekend against Everton, becomes the 794th all-time member of the Chelsea men’s first team.