Billy Felton
Encyclopedia
William Felton was an English professional footballer who played as a full back for a number of football league clubs, including Sheffield Wednesday
, Manchester City
and Tottenham Hotspur
in the 1920s and 1930s, before a long spell with Altrincham
. He earned a solitary cap for England
in 1925.
into a mining family. His cousins included Sam Barkas
(Bradford City
, Manchester City
and England
), Tommy Barkas
(Halifax Town), Ned Barkas
(Huddersfield Town
, Birmingham
and Chelsea
) and Harry Barkas
(South Shields
, Gateshead
and Liverpool
). While working as a coal-miner, he played amateur football for various colliery teams before joining Jarrow in the North Eastern League
.
In January 1921, he joined his first Football League club, Grimsby Town
playing in the Third Division
. For the 1921–22 season
, Grimsby joined the newly formed Third Division North
and Felton soon became a regular in the first team. Grimsby finished the season in third place, but only the champions were promoted.
Sheffield Wednesday
for a fee of £1500, making his debut on 1 January 1923 in a goalless draw against Southampton
. He soon became a fixture in the team and gained a reputation as a tough, excellent, uncompromising tackler, comfortable at either right or left back, with excellent powers of recovery.
In 1923–24
he missed a handful of games, as Wednesday finished in eight place. The following season
he was a virtual ever-present, missing only two games as Wednesday again finished in a mid-table position. Success eventually came in 1925–26
when Felton formed a full-back pairing with Ernie Blenkinsop
, which helped Wednesday claim the Second Division title by three points over Derby County
.
His only international appearance came against France
on 21 May 1925. In this match, England’s goalkeeper Freddie Fox
had to leave the field in the 75th minute following a head injury sustained in a charge by Jules Dewaquez
when scoring a goal, and was prevented from completing his sole appearance for England. Following an earlier withdrawal by Vivian Gibbins
, the scorer of England's opening goal, England finished with nine men, but managed to hang on to win the game 3–2.
Once in the First Division
, Felton lost his regular place to Tommy Walker who had been signed from Bradford City
in March 1926. Although Felton remained at Hillsborough
for three First Division seasons, his appearances were now infrequent and, in March 1929 he was transferred to Manchester City
. In his six years with Wednesday, he made a total of 164 appearances in all competitions.
in the First Division. In 1929–30
he was paired up with John Ridley as City finished the season in third place, although they were thirteen points behind the champions, Felton's former club, Sheffield Wednesday.
In March 1932, Felton played for Manchester City in an FA Cup semi-final against Arsenal
. In the final minute of the match Felton lost possession of the ball to Arsenal forward Jack Lambert
who set up Cliff Bastin
for the winning goal. Though earlier in the match Felton had prevented a goal by clearing an Alex James
shot off the line, he was deemed responsible for the defeat, and never played for the club again, being transferred almost immediately to London club Tottenham Hotspur
of the Second Division. In total Felton made 83 appearances for Manchester City.
he missed only one match as he led the club to promotion as runners-up by one point to Stoke City
.
Once back in the First Division, Felton again lost his place, this time to Fred Channell
and at the end of the 1933–34 season
he was placed on the transfer list. In his two years at White Hart Lane
he played a total of 75 games, scoring once from a penalty, in a 1–1 draw with Arsenal
on 11 September 1933.
of the Cheshire County League
. Felton made his debut for Altrincham in an FA Cup
tie against Timperley Athletic. He was immediately appointed team captain and went on to help Altrincham clinch the runners-up spot in the Cheshire League for the next two seasons.
At Moss Lane he was a near ever-present during his five seasons. Rarely injured, he led the side with dedication and total professionalism. Playing primarily as a left back he was just as comfortable on the right. He took on the responsibility as Altrincham's "dead ball" specialist, even though he had only scored one goal in his professional career. Unusually, he even managed to score a hat trick
against Hurst in an 8–1 win, two of the goals being penalties and the third a free kick.
Unfortunately, after finishing second in the league in successive seasons (1934–35 & 1935–36), Altrincham started to struggled to survive financially. Felton was appointed player/coach for his final season (1938–39) before retiring just prior to his 39th birthday and the onset of the Second World War. In his five seasons at Moss Lane, he made a total of 210 appearances, scoring 17 goals.
Sheffield Wednesday F.C.
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club are a football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, who are currently competing in the Football League One in the 2011-12 season, in England. Sheffield Wednesday are one of the oldest professional clubs in the world and the fourth oldest in the...
, Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...
and Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
in the 1920s and 1930s, before a long spell with Altrincham
Altrincham F.C.
Altrincham Football Club is an English association football club from Altrincham, Greater Manchester. They currently play in the Conference North, having been relegated from the Conference National at the end of the 2010–11 season.-History:...
. He earned a solitary cap for England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
in 1925.
Early career
Felton was born in Heworth, Tyne and WearHeworth, Tyne and Wear
Heworth is a village in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead, Tyne and Wear, England. The village's name appears in written records from 1091 as Hewarde, and later as Hewrtha, and in 1300 as Hewrthe....
into a mining family. His cousins included Sam Barkas
Sam Barkas
Samuel "Sam" Barkas was an English football player and manager who played at left back.-Career:Born in Wardley Colliery, England, Barkas had worked in the pits and farm before leaving his junior club Middle Dock to join Bradford City in 1928...
(Bradford City
Bradford City A.F.C.
Bradford City Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Bradford, West Yorkshire, playing in League Two....
, Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...
and England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
), Tommy Barkas
Tommy Barkas
Tommy Barkas, BEM was an English professional footballer who played in England during the 1930s and 1940s.Born in Gateshead, England, Barkas was one five brothers, including Ned, Harry, Jimmy and Sam, who all had professional careers. A cousin, Billy Felton, also played for England...
(Halifax Town), Ned Barkas
Ned Barkas
Edward "Ned" Barkas was an English professional footballer who played as a full-back. He played in the Football League First Division for Huddersfield Town, Birmingham and Chelsea.Barkas was born in Wardley, Gateshead...
(Huddersfield Town
Huddersfield Town F.C.
Huddersfield Town Football Club is an English football club formed in 1908 and based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. They currently play in League One...
, Birmingham
Birmingham City F.C.
Birmingham City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, they became Small Heath in 1888, then Birmingham in 1905, finally becoming Birmingham City in 1943.They were relegated at the end of the...
and Chelsea
Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...
) and Harry Barkas
Harry Barkas
Henry Brown "Harry" Barkas was an English professional footballer who played centre forward for Spennymoor United before joining Football League Third Division North side South Shields in 1929, making 21 league appearances and scoring 15 goals...
(South Shields
South Shields F.C.
South Shields F.C. are a football club based in South Shields, England. They have a long and complicated history, with three distinct incarnations taking the name...
, Gateshead
Gateshead F.C.
Gateshead Football Club are a professional Association football club, based in Gateshead, England. They currently play in the Conference National, the fifth level of the English football league system.Ian Bogie is the current manager....
and Liverpool
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
). While working as a coal-miner, he played amateur football for various colliery teams before joining Jarrow in the North Eastern League
North Eastern League
The North Eastern League was a football league for teams in the North East of England.The league was founded in 1906 and was initially successful, with teams defecting from the rival Northern Football Alliance to play...
.
In January 1921, he joined his first Football League club, Grimsby Town
Grimsby Town F.C.
Grimsby Town Football Club is an English football club based in the seaside town of Cleethorpes, in North East Lincolnshire, England, who compete in the Conference National. They were formed in 1878 as Grimsby Pelham and later became Grimsby Town...
playing in the Third Division
Football League Third Division
The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
. For the 1921–22 season
1921-22 in English football
The 1921–22 season was the 47th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:The league underwent a major expansion for the second consecutive season, adding 20 teams from the Midlands and Northern England. They were placed in the new Third Division North, and the existing southern-based...
, Grimsby joined the newly formed Third Division North
Football League Third Division North
The Third Division North of The Football League was a tier in the English association football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran parallel to Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to one or the other according to geographical position...
and Felton soon became a regular in the first team. Grimsby finished the season in third place, but only the champions were promoted.
Sheffield Wednesday
In December 1922, he moved to Second DivisionFootball League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday F.C.
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club are a football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, who are currently competing in the Football League One in the 2011-12 season, in England. Sheffield Wednesday are one of the oldest professional clubs in the world and the fourth oldest in the...
for a fee of £1500, making his debut on 1 January 1923 in a goalless draw against 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...
. He soon became a fixture in the team and gained a reputation as a tough, excellent, uncompromising tackler, comfortable at either right or left back, with excellent powers of recovery.
In 1923–24
1923-24 in English football
The 1923–24 season was the 49th season of competitive football in England.-Events:*On 11 November 1923, Aston Villa centre-half Tommy Ball was shot dead by his neighbour, thus becoming the only Football League player to have been murdered.-Honours:...
he missed a handful of games, as Wednesday finished in eight place. The following season
1924-25 in English football
The 1924–25 season was the 50th season of competitive football in England.-Honours:Notes = Number in parentheses is the times that club has won that honour...
he was a virtual ever-present, missing only two games as Wednesday again finished in a mid-table position. Success eventually came in 1925–26
1925-26 in English football
The 1925–26 season was the 51st season of competitive football in England. This marked the year that Huddersfield Town won the League three years running, making them the first team in Football League history to do so.-Honours:-First Division:...
when Felton formed a full-back pairing with Ernie Blenkinsop
Ernie Blenkinsop
Ernie Blenkinsop was an English footballer who played as a defender at left back. He spent the majority of his career at Sheffield Wednesday, where he won two Football League titles. He also attained 26 caps playing for England....
, which helped Wednesday claim the Second Division title by three points over Derby County
Derby County F.C.
Derby County Football Club is an English football based in Derby. the club play in the Football League Championship and is notable as being one of the twelve founder members of the Football League in 1888 and is, therefore, one of only ten clubs to have competed in every season of the English...
.
His only international appearance came against France
France national football team
The France national football team represents the nation of France in international football. It is fielded by the French Football Federation , the governing body of football in France, and competes as a member of UEFA, which encompasses the countries of Europe...
on 21 May 1925. In this match, England’s goalkeeper Freddie Fox
Freddie Fox
Frederick Samuel "Freddie" Fox was an English football goalkeeper....
had to leave the field in the 75th minute following a head injury sustained in a charge by Jules Dewaquez
Jules Dewaquez
Jules Dewaquez , was a French amateur footballer, who played for both club and country on the right wing. He was extremely short and renowned for his small moustache. By profession he was a technical draughtsman, but he became one of the most successful French players during the 1920s...
when scoring a goal, and was prevented from completing his sole appearance for England. Following an earlier withdrawal by Vivian Gibbins
Vivian Gibbins
William Vivian Talbot Gibbins was an English amateur footballer who played as a striker....
, the scorer of England's opening goal, England finished with nine men, but managed to hang on to win the game 3–2.
Once in the First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
, Felton lost his regular place to Tommy Walker who had been signed from Bradford City
Bradford City A.F.C.
Bradford City Association Football Club is an English association football club based in Bradford, West Yorkshire, playing in League Two....
in March 1926. Although Felton remained at Hillsborough
Hillsborough Stadium
Hillsborough Stadium is the home of Sheffield Wednesday football club, Sheffield, England. Football has been played at the ground since it was opened on 2 September 1899, when Wednesday moved from their original ground at Olive Grove. Today it is a 39,812 capacity all-seater stadium, making it the...
for three First Division seasons, his appearances were now infrequent and, in March 1929 he was transferred to Manchester City
Manchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...
. In his six years with Wednesday, he made a total of 164 appearances in all competitions.
Manchester City
Felton spent three years at Maine RoadMaine Road
Maine Road was a football stadium in Moss Side, Manchester, England that was home to Manchester City F.C. from its construction in 1923 until 2003...
in the First Division. In 1929–30
1929-30 in English football
The 1929–30 season was the 55th season of competitive football in England.-Events:The Wednesday officially changed their name to Sheffield Wednesday prior to the start of this season....
he was paired up with John Ridley as City finished the season in third place, although they were thirteen points behind the champions, Felton's former club, Sheffield Wednesday.
In March 1932, Felton played for Manchester City in an FA Cup semi-final against Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...
. In the final minute of the match Felton lost possession of the ball to Arsenal forward Jack Lambert
Jack Lambert (association footballer)
John "Jack" Lambert was an English footballer.A large and robust centre forward from Greasbrough near Rotherham, Yorkshire, Lambert was turned down by Sheffield Wednesday after a trial, so started his career playing for Rotherham County in 1922. He soon made a move to Leeds United, but spent three...
who set up Cliff Bastin
Cliff Bastin
Clifford Sydney Bastin was an English football player.Born in Heavitree near Exeter, Bastin started his career at Exeter City, making his debut for the club in 1928, at the age of 16...
for the winning goal. Though earlier in the match Felton had prevented a goal by clearing an Alex James
Alex James (footballer)
Alexander Wilson James was a Scottish footballer, and is most noted for his success with Arsenal, where he is regarded as one of the club's greatest players of all time. James played as an inside forward, as a supporting player for the main strikers...
shot off the line, he was deemed responsible for the defeat, and never played for the club again, being transferred almost immediately to London club Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
of the Second Division. In total Felton made 83 appearances for Manchester City.
Tottenham Hotspur
At Tottenham, be became team captain and in 1932–331932-33 in English football
The 1932–33 season was the 58th season of competitive football in England.-Honours:Notes = Number in parentheses is the times that club has won that honour...
he missed only one match as he led the club to promotion as runners-up by one point to Stoke City
Stoke City F.C.
Stoke City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire that plays in the Premier League. Founded in 1863, it is the oldest club in the Premier League, and considered to be the second oldest professional football club in the world, after Notts...
.
Once back in the First Division, Felton again lost his place, this time to Fred Channell
Fred Channell
Fred Channell was a professional footballer who played for Harwich & Parkeston, Haywards Heath, Peterborough & Fletton United, Northfleet United and Tottenham Hotspur.- Football career :...
and at the end of the 1933–34 season
1933-34 in English football
The 1933–34 season was the 59th season of competitive football in England.-Honours:Notes = Number in parentheses is the times that club has won that honour...
he was placed on the transfer list. In his two years at White Hart Lane
White Hart Lane
White Hart Lane is an all-seater football stadium in Tottenham, London, England. Built in 1899, it is the home of Tottenham Hotspur and, after numerous renovations, the stadium has a capacity of 36,230....
he played a total of 75 games, scoring once from a penalty, in a 1–1 draw with Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...
on 11 September 1933.
Altrincham
Spurs had been looking for a transfer fee of £1000, but eventually accepted an offer of £500 from AltrinchamAltrincham F.C.
Altrincham Football Club is an English association football club from Altrincham, Greater Manchester. They currently play in the Conference North, having been relegated from the Conference National at the end of the 2010–11 season.-History:...
of the Cheshire County League
Cheshire County League
The Cheshire County League was a football league founded in the north west of England in 1919, drawing its teams largely from Cheshire, surrounding English counties and North Wales....
. Felton made his debut for Altrincham in an 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...
tie against Timperley Athletic. He was immediately appointed team captain and went on to help Altrincham clinch the runners-up spot in the Cheshire League for the next two seasons.
At Moss Lane he was a near ever-present during his five seasons. Rarely injured, he led the side with dedication and total professionalism. Playing primarily as a left back he was just as comfortable on the right. He took on the responsibility as Altrincham's "dead ball" specialist, even though he had only scored one goal in his professional career. Unusually, he even managed to score a hat trick
Hat Trick
Hat trick, hat-trick or hattrick may refer to:* hat-trick — in various sports, achieving three goals, wickets, etc. in a single match* Hattrick — online football management game** Hattrick Limited — producers of this game...
against Hurst in an 8–1 win, two of the goals being penalties and the third a free kick.
Unfortunately, after finishing second in the league in successive seasons (1934–35 & 1935–36), Altrincham started to struggled to survive financially. Felton was appointed player/coach for his final season (1938–39) before retiring just prior to his 39th birthday and the onset of the Second World War. In his five seasons at Moss Lane, he made a total of 210 appearances, scoring 17 goals.