Albert Hoskins
Encyclopedia
Albert Herbert Hoskins was an English
football forward and football manager, who managed Wolverhampton Wanderers
, Gillingham
and Torquay United
.
, England, Hoskins first played for Freemantle
, where he was noticed by Southampton
when playing against them in a reserve fixture in 1904. He joined the Saints shortly after and made his debut on Christmas Day 1906. According to Holley & Chalk's "The Alphabet of the Saints he was "always on the brink of establishing himself in the first eleven". He failed to score in any of his 21 Southern League
appearances, but did score in each of his three FA Cup
matches.
He moved to Wolverhampton Wanderers
in May 1908. He played 14 league games in the 1908–09 and 1909–10 seasons, before playing for Dudley Town
and Shrewsbury Town
.
and George Jobey
, taking over as manager in May 1924, combining his secretarial duties with those of managing the playing side, as was the norm at the time.
His first season in charge at Molineux
saw Wolves finish sixth in Division Two, a vast improvement on the previous post-war seasons. The following season, Wolves continued to challenge at the top of the table; they would eventually finish in 4th place, but Hoskins surprisingly left Molineux to take up the secretary-manager's post at Gillingham
in March 1926. He spent almost three seasons at Gillingham, with the side always struggling in the lower reaches of Division Three (South) and left in 1929 to become secretary-manager at Torquay United
, taking over from Percy Mackrill
. His only full season in charge at Plainmoor
saw Torquay finish 19th out of 22 sides, and he left in July 1930. He later worked as a trainer, coach and scout for a number of non-league sides up to the start of the war in 1939, at which point he left football.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
football forward and football manager, who managed Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at...
, Gillingham
Gillingham F.C.
Gillingham Football Club is an English professional football club based in the town of Gillingham, Kent. The only Kent-based club in the Football League, they play their home matches at the Priestfield Stadium...
and Torquay United
Torquay United F.C.
Torquay United Football Club, nicknamed the Gulls, are an English association football club based in the tourist resort town of Torquay, Devon. They played in the Conference National in 2008–09, but were promoted to Football League Two after a 2–0 win over Cambridge United on 17 May 2009 at Wembley...
.
Playing career
Born in SouthamptonSouthampton
Southampton is the largest city in the county of Hampshire on the south coast of England, and is situated south-west of London and north-west of Portsmouth. Southampton is a major port and the closest city to the New Forest...
, England, Hoskins first played for Freemantle
Freemantle F.C.
Freemantle Football Club were a football club based in the Freemantle area of Southampton who were active at the end of the nineteenth century. During their brief heyday, they were rivals to Southampton Football Club...
, where he was noticed by Southampton
Southampton F.C.
Southampton Football Club is an English football team, nicknamed The Saints, based in the city of Southampton, Hampshire. The club gained promotion to the Championship from League One in the 2010–2011 season after being relegated in 2009. Their home ground is the St Mary's Stadium, where the club...
when playing against them in a reserve fixture in 1904. He joined the Saints shortly after and made his debut on Christmas Day 1906. According to Holley & Chalk's "The Alphabet of the Saints he was "always on the brink of establishing himself in the first eleven". He failed to score in any of his 21 Southern League
Southern Football League
The Southern League is an English football competition featuring semi-professional and amateur clubs from the South West, South Central and Midlands of England and South Wales...
appearances, but did score in each of his three FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
matches.
He moved to Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at...
in May 1908. He played 14 league games in the 1908–09 and 1909–10 seasons, before playing for Dudley Town
Dudley Town F.C.
Dudley Town F.C. are a football club based in Dudley, West Midlands, England. The club is one of the oldest non-league teams in the Midlands region, having been established in 1888...
and Shrewsbury Town
Shrewsbury Town F.C.
Shrewsbury Town Football Club is an English Association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, who play in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. The club was formed in 1886 and has played in all the bottom three divisions in various guises since being elected into the Football...
.
Management career
He joined the office staff at Wolves and eventually became the club secretary in 1922. As secretary he also acted as assistant to Wolves' managers Jack AddenbrookeJack Addenbrooke
John Henry "Jack" Addenbrooke was an English football player and manager, who spent his career with .-Career:...
and George Jobey
George Jobey
George Jobey was an English football player and manager. He won the league championship as a player with his hometown club Newcastle United.-Career:...
, taking over as manager in May 1924, combining his secretarial duties with those of managing the playing side, as was the norm at the time.
His first season in charge at Molineux
Molineux stadium
Molineux Stadium is a Premier League football stadium situated in Whitmore Reans, Wolverhampton, England. It has been the home ground of Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club since 1889, and has a long and illustrious history as the first 'new build' stadium in Football League history, one of the...
saw Wolves finish sixth in Division Two, a vast improvement on the previous post-war seasons. The following season, Wolves continued to challenge at the top of the table; they would eventually finish in 4th place, but Hoskins surprisingly left Molineux to take up the secretary-manager's post at Gillingham
Gillingham F.C.
Gillingham Football Club is an English professional football club based in the town of Gillingham, Kent. The only Kent-based club in the Football League, they play their home matches at the Priestfield Stadium...
in March 1926. He spent almost three seasons at Gillingham, with the side always struggling in the lower reaches of Division Three (South) and left in 1929 to become secretary-manager at Torquay United
Torquay United F.C.
Torquay United Football Club, nicknamed the Gulls, are an English association football club based in the tourist resort town of Torquay, Devon. They played in the Conference National in 2008–09, but were promoted to Football League Two after a 2–0 win over Cambridge United on 17 May 2009 at Wembley...
, taking over from Percy Mackrill
Percy Mackrill
Percy A. Mackrill was a South African-born footballer and football club manager.Mackrill joined Bradford Park Avenue in the summer of 1913 and remained with them until the outbreak of war, though failed to make the first team...
. His only full season in charge at Plainmoor
Plainmoor
Plainmoor is a suburb of Torquay, Devon, but is best known as the name of the stadium in which Torquay United Football Club currently play.-History:...
saw Torquay finish 19th out of 22 sides, and he left in July 1930. He later worked as a trainer, coach and scout for a number of non-league sides up to the start of the war in 1939, at which point he left football.