Alf Wheeler (footballer, born 1910)
Alfred James Wheeler (4 April 1910 – 1978) was an English professional footballer who played as a forward for various clubs in the Football League in the 1930s.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Alfred James Wheeler[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 4 April 1910[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Bilston, England | ||
| Date of death | 1978 (aged 67–68)[1] | ||
| Place of death | Wolverhampton, England[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Inside forward, centre forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Thompson Brothers | |||
| 1929–1931 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1931–1932 | Walsall | 11 | (3) |
| 1932 | Mossley | 1 | (0) |
| 1932–1933 | Brentford | 1 | (0) |
| 1933–1934 | Northampton Town | 5 | (1) |
| 1934–1935 | Southampton | 11 | (6) |
| 1935 | Barnsley | 0 | (0) |
| 1935–1936 | Norwich City | 0 | (0) |
| 1936–1937 | Gillingham | 8 | (3) |
| 1937 | Dudley | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Football career edit
Wheeler was born in Bilston, near Wolverhampton[3] and started his professional career with Walsall in the Football League Third Division North, for whom he scored three goals in eleven league appearances.[1] After a spell in the Cheshire County League with Mossley,[4] Wheeler joined Brentford, before joining Northampton Town for the 1933–34 season, in which he made five appearances, scoring once.[1]
In July 1934, he joined Southampton of the Second Division,[3] making his debut playing at inside-left at home to Port Vale on 27 August. He was in and out of the side for most of the season, with Arthur Holt the preferred inside-left. In November 1934, Wheeler played three matches at centre-forward in place of Norman Cole, scoring an "outstanding" hat-trick in the first 27 minutes of a 4–1 victory over Bradford City.[5] A lack of consistency led to him being dropped in favour of new signing, Walter Pollard, and Wheeler was transfer listed at the end of the season.[3]
In August 1935, he joined Barnsley for a fee of £100,[3] and in October he moved on to Norwich City,[3] but he never played first-team football for either club.[1] In the summer of 1936, he joined his final league club, Gillingham, making a further eight league appearances, scoring three goals.[1]
References edit
- ^ a b c d e f g Joyce, Michael (2012). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: Tony Brown. p. 307. ISBN 978-1905891610.
- ^ "Fred Wheeler". SaintsPlayers.co.uk. Retrieved 17 September 2021.
- ^ a b c d e Holley, Duncan; Chalk, Gary (1992). The Alphabet of the Saints. ACL & Polar Publishing. p. 360. ISBN 0-9514862-3-3.
- ^ "MOSSLEYWEB The Original Official Mossley AFC Website". www.mossleyweb.com. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
- ^ Chalk, Gary; Holley, Duncan (1987). Saints – A Complete Record. Breedon Books. pp. 92–93. ISBN 0-907969-22-4.