Albert Fairclough (4 October 1891 – 5 November 1958), sometimes known as Fairy Fairclough, was an English professional footballer who played as a centre forward in the Football League for Bristol City, Derby County, Southend United, Gillingham and Manchester City.[1]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Albert Fairclough[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 4 October 1891 | ||
| Place of birth | St Helens, England | ||
| Date of death | 5 November 1958 (aged 67)[2] | ||
| Place of death | Stockport, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 7+1⁄2 in (1.71 m)[3] | ||
| Position(s) | Centre forward | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1909–1910 | Windle Villa | ||
| 1910–1911 | St Helens Town | ||
| 1911–1912 | St Helens Recreation | ||
| 1912–1913 | Eccles Borough | ||
| 1913–1919 | Manchester City | 5 | (1) |
| 1920–1921 | Southend United | 24 | (15) |
| 1921–1924 | Bristol City | 91 | (44) |
| 1924–1927 | Derby County | 37 | (26) |
| 1927 | Gillingham | 11 | (3) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Career edit
A centre forward, Fairclough began his career in non-league football, before he and his brother Peter transferred to First Division club Manchester City in March 1913.[4] The First World War hampered Fairclough's career at Hyde Road, though he top-scored for the club's reserve team in the 1913–14, 1914–15 and 1919–20 seasons.[2] He made just five first team appearances for City, scoring one goal.[5] In May 1920, Fairclough dropped down to the Third Division to join Southend United and earned the distinction of scoring the club's first Football League goal.[4][6] He subsequently played in all three divisions of the Football League and scored 88 goals in 163 league appearances for Southend United, Bristol City, Derby County and Gillingham,[1] before retiring at the end of the 1926–27 season.[4]
Personal life edit
Fairclough was the older brother of footballer Peter Fairclough.[2] In October 1915, 14 months after the outbreak of the First World War, Fairclough enlisted in the Loyal North Lancashire Regiment.[7] He was later appointed a lance corporal and saw action on the Western Front, Salonika and Egypt.[7]
Honours edit
- Bristol City
Career statistics edit
| Club | Season | League | National Cup | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Manchester City | 1913–14[5] | First Division | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| 1914–15[5] | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1919–20[5] | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Total | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | ||
| Southend United | 1920–21[10] | Third Division | 24 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 26 | 15 |
| Derby County | 1924–25[11] | Second Division | 32 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 22 |
| 1925–26[11] | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1926–27[11] | First Division | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | |
| Total | 37 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 26 | ||
| Gillingham | 1926–27[12] | Third Division South | 11 | 3 | — | 11 | 3 | |
| Career total | 77 | 45 | 2 | 0 | 79 | 45 | ||
References edit
- ^ a b c Joyce, Michael (2012). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: Tony Brown. p. 95. ISBN 978-1905891610.
- ^ a b c Matthews, Tony (21 November 2013). Manchester City: Player by Player. Amberley Publishing Limited. ISBN 9781445617374.
- ^ "The lure of promotion. Bristol City". Athletic News. Manchester. 13 August 1923. p. 6.
- ^ a b c "Fairclough Albert Manchester City 1919". vintagefootballers.com. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
- ^ a b c d "Albert Fairclough - Manchester City Player Statistics - StatCity". www.statcity.co.uk. Retrieved 12 June 2020.
- ^ "History – Southend United". www.southendunited.co.uk. Retrieved 12 June 2020.
- ^ a b "Albert Fairclough | Service Record | Football and the First World War". Football and the First World War. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
- ^ Woods, David; Edwards, Leigh (1997). Bristol City Football Club: The First 100 Years. Redcliffe Press. ISBN 1-900178-26-5.
- ^ Woods, David (1994). The Bristol Babe: The First 100 Years of Bristol City F.C. Yore Publications. ISBN 1-874427-95-X.
- ^ "SUFCdb | Player Profile". www.sufcdb.co.uk. Archived from the original on 9 January 2018. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
- ^ a b c "Albert Fairclough". 11v11.com. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
- ^ "Gillingham FC Career Details – Albert Fairclough". Retrieved 6 December 2017.
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